Texas Finance Code 396.251 – Threats or Coercion
(a) In enforcing a child support obligation, a private child support enforcement agency may not use threats, coercion, or attempts to coerce that employ any of the following practices:
(1) using or threatening to use violence or other criminal means to cause harm to an obligor or property of the obligor;
(2) accusing falsely or threatening to accuse falsely an obligor of a violation of state or federal child support laws;
(3) taking or threatening to take an enforcement action against an obligor that is not authorized by law; or
(4) intentionally representing to a person that the agency is a governmental agency authorized to enforce a child support obligation.
(b) Subsection (a) does not prevent a private child support enforcement agency from:
(1) informing an obligor that the obligor may be subject to penalties prescribed by law for failure to pay a child support obligation; or
(2) taking, or threatening to take, an action authorized by law for the enforcement of a child support obligation by the agency.
Terms Used In Texas Finance Code 396.251
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- Person: includes corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- Property: means real and personal property. See Texas Government Code 311.005