Senate Bill No. 365
(By Senators Chafin, Sprouse, Kimble, Bailey, Snyder and
Wiedebusch)
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[Introduced March 18, 1997; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend article one-b, chapter forty-eight-a of the code
of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated section
sixteen, relating to providing for the creation of a trust
fund for child support payments above one thousand five
hundred dollars per month per child to be distributed to the
child when he or she attains the age of eighteen.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article one-b, chapter forty-eight-a of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
be amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section
sixteen, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1B. GUIDELINES FOR CHILD SUPPORT AWARDS.
§48A-1B-16. Mandatory trust for child support payments above one
thousand five hundred dollars.
Unless otherwise agreed by the parties, in any case where
child support payments exceed one thousand five hundred dollars
per month per child, a trust shall be created and maintained to
receive the excess payments. The trustee shall provide a written
accounting on a quarterly basis to both the custodial parent and
the noncustodial parent. Unless any funds in the trust are
necessary toward the support and maintenance of the child before
the child reaches the age of eighteen, the child shall receive
the entirety of the trust upon reaching his or her eighteenth
birthday. Otherwise, he or she shall receive the entirety of the
remainder of the trust:
Provided, That nothing contained in this
section may be construed to prohibit the payment of costs, fees
or charges associated with medical needs, special education needs
or physical or mental rehabilitative or counseling needs
recommended by a qualified physician, counselor or special
education specialist in the event no other funding source is
available or accessible for the payment thereof.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide a trust fund
be created for child support payments above $1,500 per month per child to be held until the child reaches eighteen, at which time
the money is distributed to the child.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.