25-510

25-510. Receiving and disbursing support and
maintenance monies; arrearages; interest

A. The support payment clearinghouse established pursuant to section 46-441 shall
receive and disburse all monies, including fees and costs, applicable to support and
maintenance unless the court has ordered that support or maintenance be paid directly to
the party entitled to receive the support or maintenance. Within two business days the
clerk of the superior court shall transmit to the support payment clearinghouse any
maintenance and support payments received by the clerk. Monies received by the support
payment clearinghouse in cases not enforced by the state pursuant to title IV-D of the
social security act shall be distributed in the following priority:

1. Current child support or current court ordered payments for the support of a
family when combined with the child support obligation.

2. Current spousal maintenance.

3. The current monthly fee prescribed in subsection D of this section for handling
support or spousal maintenance payments.

4. Past due support reduced to judgment and then to associated interest.

5. Past due spousal maintenance reduced to judgment and then to associated
interest.

6. Past due support not reduced to judgment and then to associated interest.

7. Past due spousal maintenance not reduced to judgment and then to associated
interest.

8. Past due amounts of the fee prescribed in subsection D of this section for
handling support or spousal maintenance payments.

B. In any proceeding under this chapter regarding a duty of support, the records of
payments maintained by the clerk or the support payment clearinghouse are prima facie
evidence of all payments made and disbursed to the person or agency to whom the support
payment is to be made and are rebuttable only by a specific evidentiary showing to the
contrary.

C. At no cost to the clerk of the superior court, the department shall provide
electronic access to all records of payments maintained by the support payment
clearinghouse, and the clerk shall use this information to provide payment histories to
all litigants, attorneys and interested persons and the court. For all non-title IV-D
support cases, the clerk shall load new orders, modify order amounts, respond to payment
inquiries, research payment related issues, release payments pursuant to orders of the
court and update demographic and new employer information. The clerk shall forward
orders of assignment to employers for non-title IV-D support orders. Within five
business days the clerk shall provide to the department any new address, order of
assignment or employment information the clerk receives regarding any support order. The
information shall be provided as prescribed by the department of economic security in
consultation with the administrative office of the courts.

D. The support payment clearinghouse shall receive a monthly fee for handling
support and maintenance payments. The director, by rule, may establish this fee. The
court shall order payment of the handling fee as part of the order for support or
maintenance. The handling fee shall not be deducted from the support or maintenance
portion of the payment.

E. In calculating support arrearages not reduced to a final written money judgment,
interest accrues at the rate of ten per cent per annum pursuant to section 44-1201,
beginning at the end of the month following the month in which the support payment is
due, and interest accrues only on the principal and not on interest. A support arrearage
reduced to a final written money judgment accrues interest at the rate of ten per cent
per annum pursuant to section 44-1201 and accrues interest only on the principal and not
on interest.

F. Past support reduced to a final written money judgment before September 26, 2008
and pursuant to section 25-320, subsection C or section 25-809, subsection B accrues
interest at the rate of ten per cent per annum pursuant to section 44-1201 beginning on
entry of the judgment by the court and accrues interest only on the principal and not on
interest. Past support reduced to a final written money judgment beginning on September
26, 2008 and pursuant to section 25-320, subsection C or section 25-809, subsection B
does not accrue interest for any time period.

G. Any direct payments not paid through the clearinghouse or any equitable credits
of principal or interest permitted by law and allowed by the court after a hearing shall
be applied to support arrearages as directed in the court order. The court shall make
specific findings in support of any payments or credits allowed. If the court order does
not expressly state the dates the payments or credits are to be applied, the payments or
credits shall be applied on the date of the entry of the order that allows the payments
or credits. In a title IV-D case, if a court order does not indicate on its face that
the state was either represented at or had notice of the hearing or proceeding where the
payments or credits were determined, the court order shall not reduce any sum owed to the
department or its agent without written approval of the department or its agent.

H. Any credit against support arrearages, other than by court order, shall be made
only by written affidavit of direct payment or waiver of support arrearages signed by the
person entitled to receive the support or by that person and the person ordered to make
the support payment. The affidavit of direct payment or waiver of support arrearages
shall be filed directly with the clerk of the court, who shall enter the information into
the statewide case registry. Any credits against support arrearages shall be applied as
of the dates contained in the affidavit or the date of the affidavit if no other date is
specified in the affidavit. In a title IV-D case, the affidavit of direct payment or
waiver of support arrearages shall not reduce any sum owed to the department or its agent
without written approval of the department or its agent.

I. An arrearage calculator may be developed by a government agency using an
automated transfer of data from the clearinghouse and the child support registry. The
arrearage figure produced by this calculator is presumed to be the correct amount of the
arrearage.