Montana Code Annotated 2023

TITLE 40. FAMILY LAW

CHAPTER 5. ENFORCEMENT OF SUPPORT

Part 4. Child Support Enforcement Act Administrative Income Withholding

Duties Of Payor

40-5-421. Duties of payor. (1) A payor who has been served with an order to withhold and deliver income shall deduct the amount designated in the order beginning not later than the first pay period that occurs after service of the order. The payor shall, within 7 working days of the date the obligor is paid, promptly deliver the amount withheld to the department as directed by the order or in accordance with any subsequent modification of the order received from the department. The payor shall include with the payment a statement indicating the date the amount was withheld from the obligor's income.

(2) Whenever the payor is obligated to withhold income for more than one obligor, the payor may combine all amounts withheld into a single payment for that month with the portion of the withholding that is attributable to each obligor separately designated.

(3) (a) Whenever there is more than one order for withholding against a single obligor, the payor shall honor all withholding orders to the extent that the total amount withheld from the obligor's wages or salary does not exceed the limits set in 40-5-416. In no case may the allocation result in a withholding for one of the support obligations not being implemented.

(b) Withholding of current support that is less than the amount of current support due all obligees must be prorated among the obligees based on the amount of current support due each obligee.

(c) Withholding of support arrears must be distributed equally among the obligor's cases.

(4) The payor shall promptly notify the department of the termination of the obligor's employment or other source of income and provide the obligor's last-known address and the name and address of the obligor's new employer or other source of income, if known to the payor.

History: En. Sec. 10, Ch. 571, L. 1985; amd. Sec. 14, Ch. 635, L. 1991; amd. Sec. 75, Ch. 552, L. 1997; amd. Sec. 3, Ch. 131, L. 2019.