Provides for crime of non-support of a child where a parent voluntarily reduces or terminates employment or fails to seek employment to circumvent the order of child support.

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S5104-2011 Actions

• Jun 20, 2012: referred to codes
• Jun 20, 2012: DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY
• Jun 20, 2012: PASSED SENATE
• Jun 20, 2012: ORDERED TO THIRD READING CAL.1377
• Jun 20, 2012: COMMITTEE DISCHARGED AND COMMITTED TO RULES
• Jan 4, 2012: REFERRED TO CODES
• May 3, 2011: REFERRED TO CODES

S5104-2011 Meetings

Rules: Jun 21, 2012

S5104-2011 Calendars

Floor Calendar: Jun 20, 2012

S5104-2011 Votes

S5104-2011 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S5104

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the penal law, in relation to non-support of a child where
parent voluntarily reduces or terminates employment

PURPOSE:
To amend the penal law to provide for criminal penalties for the
knowing failure to pay child support by a person obligated to make
child support payments by a child support order entered by a court or
agency of competent jurisdiction when he or she is able to do so or
becomes unable to do so when he or she voluntarily terminates his or
her employment, voluntarily reduces his or her earning capacity or
fails to diligently seek employment.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one amends subdivision 2 of section 260.05 of the penal law,
as added by chapter 70 of the laws of 2008, nonsupport of a child in
the second degree, to include agency of competent jurisdiction so
that it is a misdemeanor for a person obligated to make child support
payments by an order of child support entered by either a court of
competent jurisdiction or an agency of competent jurisdiction for a
child less than eighteen years old to knowingly fail to payor refuse
without lawful excuse to provide support for such child when he or
she is able to, or becomes unable to pay, when, though employable, he
or she voluntarily terminates his or her employment, voluntarily
reduces his or her earning capacity or fails to diligently seek
employment.

Section two amends paragraph (b) of subdivision 1 of section 260.06 of
the penal law, as added by chapter 70 of the laws of 2008,
non-support of a child in the first degree, by making it a crime for
a person obligated to make child support payments for a child less
than eighteen years old by a child support order entered by a court
or agency to knowingly fail to payor refuse without lawful excuse to
provide support for such child when he or she is able to, or becomes
unable to pay, when, though employable, he or she voluntarily
terminates his or her employment, voluntarily reduces his or her
earning capacity or fails to diligently seek employment.

Section three provides for the effective date.

JUSTIFICATION:
Under current law, a person obligated to pay child support by a child
support order is guilty of the misdemeanor offense of non-support of
a child when he or she purposely terminates his or
her employment, reduces his or her earnings or fails to diligently
seek to be employed. However, the purposeful termination of
employment, reduction of earnings or failure to diligently seek to be
employed is currently not a basis for the felony offense of

non-support of a child in the first degree. This bill will make clear
that a person obligated to pay child support by a child support order
is guilty of non-support in the first degree when he or she purposely
terminates his or her employment, reduces his or her earnings or fails
to diligently seek to be employed, and he or she has been previously
convicted in the preceding five years of the misdemeanor offense of
nonsupport of a child.

With this change, we will provide consistency in the law so that the
purposeful termination of employment, reduction of earnings or
failure to diligently seek to be employed may serve as the basis for
both the felony offense of non-support of a child in the first degree
as well as the misdemeanor offense of non-support of a child in the
second degree. Persons who are legally obligated to provide child
support should not be permitted to escape criminal prosecution where
they have deliberately taken action to avoid paying child support.

We will also provide consistency in the law by providing that a child
support order may be entered in either a court of competent
jurisdiction or an agency of competent jurisdiction since child
support orders can and are obtained in either venue.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
A.7605, 2009 and 2010 held for consideration in codes.
Similar to A.5346, 2007 and 2008 referred to codes committee.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of November following the date
on which it shall become law.

S5104-2011 Text

                      S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
  ________________________________________________________________________

                                    5104

                         2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                              I N  SENATE

                                 May 3, 2011
                                 ___________

  Introduced  by  Sen.  BALL  --  read twice and ordered printed, and when
    printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes

  AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to  non-support  of  a  child
    where parent voluntarily reduces or terminates employment

    THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
  BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


    Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 260.05 of the penal law, as  added
  by chapter 70 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows:

    2.  being  a  parent, guardian or other person obligated to make child
  support payments by an order of child support  entered  by  a  court  OR
  AGENCY  of  competent  jurisdiction for a child less than eighteen years
  old, he or she knowingly fails  or  refuses  without  lawful  excuse  to
  provide  support  for  such  child  when  he or she is able to do so, or
  becomes unable to do so, when, though employable, he or she  voluntarily
  terminates his or her employment, voluntarily reduces his or her earning
  capacity, or fails to diligently seek employment.
    S  2.  Paragraph  (b)  of subdivision 1 of section 260.06 of the penal
  law, as added by chapter 70 of the laws of 2008, is amended to  read  as
  follows:

    (b)  being  a parent, guardian or other person obligated to make child
  support payments by an order of child support  entered  by  a  court  OR
  AGENCY  of  competent  jurisdiction for a child less than eighteen years
  old, he or she KNOWINGLY fails  or  refuses  without  lawful  excuse  to
  provide  support  for  such  child  when  he or she is able to do so, OR
  BECOMES UNABLE TO DO SO, WHEN, THOUGH EMPLOYABLE, HE OR SHE  VOLUNTARILY
  TERMINATES HIS OR HER EMPLOYMENT, VOLUNTARILY REDUCES HIS OR HER EARNING
  CAPACITY OR FAILS TO DILIGENTLY SEEK EMPLOYMENT; and
    S 3. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
  ing the date on which it shall have become a law.

   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD02280-01-1