Hawaii Revised Statutes 571-52 – Assignment by court order of future income for payments of support
The assignment of the amounts shall be to the clerk of the court where the order is entered if for the support or maintenance of a spouse or former spouse, unless the spouse or former spouse elects to enforce the order pursuant to chapter 651, 652, or 653, or to the child support enforcement agency if for the support of a child or if child support and spouse support are contained in the same order. The order of assignment to the child support enforcement agency shall be in the standard format prescribed by Title IV-D of the Social Security Act, as amended by the child support enforcement agency. The order of assignment shall be effective immediately after service upon an employer of a true copy of the order, which service may be effected by regular mail, personal delivery, or transmission through electronic means.
Thereafter, the employer shall for each pay period withhold from any income due to the person from the employer, and not required to be withheld by any other provision of federal or state law, and transmit to the clerk of the court or child support enforcement agency as set forth in the order, as much as may remain payable to the person for the pay period up to the amount specified in the order of assignment as being payable during the same period. The person ordered to pay shall inform the court immediately of any change that would affect the order of assignment or the disbursement thereof.
Compliance by an employer with the order of assignment shall operate as a discharge of the employer’s liability to the employee for that portion of the employee’s income withheld and transmitted to the clerk of court or child support enforcement agency, as the case may be, regardless of whether the employer has withheld the correct amount.
Attorney's Note
Under the Hawaii Revised Statutes, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| misdemeanor | up to 1 year | $2,000 |
Terms Used In Hawaii Revised Statutes 571-52
- Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
- Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
- Clerk of court: An officer appointed by the court to work with the chief judge in overseeing the court's administration, especially to assist in managing the flow of cases through the court and to maintain court records.
- Court: means one of the family courts as herein established. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 571-2
- Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
- Garnishment: Generally, garnishment is a court proceeding in which a creditor asks a court to order a third party who owes money to the debtor or otherwise holds assets belonging to the debtor to turn over to the creditor any of the debtor
- Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
For each payment made pursuant to an assignment order, the person making the payment may deduct and retain as an administrative fee the additional amount of $2 from the income owed to the obligor. Any assignment made pursuant to an assignment order shall have priority as against any garnishment, attachment, execution, or other assignment order, or any other order unless otherwise ordered by the court and the same shall not be subject to any of the exemptions or restrictions contained in part III of chapter 651, and chapters 652 and 653; provided that orders solely for the support or maintenance of a spouse or former spouse may be enforced directly pursuant to chapter 651, 652, or 653, if elected by the spouse or former spouse, and payments shall not be assigned to the clerk of the court.
For purposes of this subsection, delinquencies in payments shall be computed on the basis of the moneys owed and unpaid on the date that the obligor under the support order has been given notice pursuant to law of the application for the order of assignment. The fact that the obligor may have subsequently paid the delinquencies shall not relieve the court of its duty under this subsection to order the assignment.
“Employer” includes the United States government, the State, any political subdivision thereof, and any person who is or shall become obligated to the obligor for payment of income.
“Income” includes salaries, wages, earnings, workers’ compensation, disability benefits, commissions, independent contractor income, and any other entitlement to money including moneys payable as a pension, annuity, retirement, disability, death, or other benefit, or as a return of contributions and interest from the United States government, the State, or other political subdivision thereof, or from any retirement, disability, or annuity system established by any of them pursuant to statute.