§ 16–916.02. Child Support Guideline Commission.

(a) There is established a Child Support Guideline Commission (“Commission”). The Commission shall study and make recommendations on the child support guidelines to the Mayor.

(b) The Commission shall consist of a chairperson and 8 members who are District of Columbia residents. The Chief Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia may appoint 2 members. The Mayor shall appoint the chairperson as well as 2 members, one of whom shall be a member of the District of Columbia Bar (“Bar”) and an expert in the fields of family law and child support. The Mayor shall also appoint one member to represent the Child Support Enforcement Division of the Office of the Corporation Counsel (“CSED”). The Council shall designate one Councilmember to serve on the Commission and shall appoint 2 additional members, one of whom shall be a member of the Bar and an expert in the fields of family law and child support.

(c)(1) Of the Commission members first appointed after the effective date of the Child Support Guideline Commission Restructuring Emergency Act of 2002 (“Commission Restructuring Act”) [July 23, 2002], one member appointed by the Chief Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, the non-Bar member appointed by the Council, the Bar member appointed by the Mayor, and the CSED representative appointed by the Mayor shall serve 2-year terms. All of the other initial appointments after the effective date of the Commission Restructuring Act [July 23, 2002] shall serve 4-year terms. Thereafter, all Commission members shall serve for a term of 4 years from the date of appointment. A Commission member may be reappointed. A person appointed to fill a vacancy on the Commission occurring prior to the expiration of a term shall serve for the remainder of the term. A vacancy shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment.

(2) A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum. A quorum shall be necessary for the Commission to conduct business.

(d) The functions of the Commission shall include:

(1) To review and recommend updates of the child support guidelines not less than once every 4 years.

(2) To review pertinent economic data, including poverty levels, and information on the functioning of the guidelines that the Commission gathers or that is brought to the attention of the Commission for the purpose of recommending changes to the guidelines.

(3) To hold a public meeting at least annually to receive oral or written comments from members of the Bar or the public. Thirty days public notice shall be given for a public meeting.

(4) To perform other tasks as necessary to develop, update, or monitor the guidelines and to ensure that the District of Columbia is in compliance with the federal mandates in section 467 of the Social Security Act, approved August 16, 1984 (98 Stat. 1321; 42 U.S.C. § 667).

(e) The Commission, as restructured pursuant to the Child Support Guideline Commission Restructuring Act [this section], shall convene no later than December 31, 2002, and shall issue initial recommendations no later than December 31, 2003.

(f) Members of the Commission shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for any reasonable expense associated with service on the Commission.

(g) The Mayor shall provide sufficient space for the Commission to operate and may detail personnel to assist the Commission. The Mayor shall also direct any agency contacted by the Commission to give full cooperation to the Commission.

(July 25, 1990, D.C. Law 8-150, § 3, 37 DCR 3720; Oct. 1, 2002, D.C. Law 14-190, § 2902, 49 DCR 6968.)

Prior Codifications

1981 Ed., § 16-916.2.

Section References

This section is referenced in § 1-523.01.

Effect of Amendments

D.C. Law 14-190 rewrote the section.

Cross References

Mayoral nomination to Child Support Guideline Commission, review and approval of Council, see § 1-523.01.

Emergency Legislation

See note to § 16-916.01.

For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 2802 of Fiscal Year 2003 Budget Support Emergency Act of 2002 (D.C. Act 14-453, July 23, 2002, 49 DCR 8026).

Temporary Legislation

For temporary (225 day) addition of § 16-916.2 1981 Ed., see § 2(b) of the Child Support Guideline Amendment Temporary Act of 1989 (D.C. Law 8-90, March 15, 1990, law notification 37 DCR 2073).

Short Title

Short title of title XXIX of Law 14-190: Section 2901 of D.C. Law 14-190 provided that title XXIX of the act may be cited as the Child Support Guideline Commission Restructuring Act of 2002.

Editor's Notes

Section 28(b)(2) of D.C. Law 15-354 provided that the section designation of § 16-916.2 of the District of Columbia Official Code is redesignated as § 16-916.02.