Faster Support for Spouses

Section 1. Paragraph (d) of subdivision 2 of section 412 of the family court act, as added by chapter 269 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:

(d) "income cap" shall mean up to and including one hundred [seventyfive] eighty-four thousand dollars of the payor's annual income; provided, however, beginning [January thirty-first] March first, two thousand [sixteen] twenty and every two years thereafter, the income cap amount shall increase by the sum of the average annual percentage changes in the consumer price index for all urban consumers (CPI-U) as published by the United States department of labor bureau of labor statistics for the prior two years multiplied by the then income cap and then rounded to the nearest one thousand dollars. The office of court administration shall determine and publish the income cap.

§ 2. The section heading of section 828 of the family court act, as amended by chapter 222 of the laws of 1994, is amended and a new subdivision 5 is added to read as follows:

Temporary order of protection; temporary [order] orders for child support and spousal maintenance.

5. Notwithstanding the provisions of section eight hundred seventeen of this article, where a temporary order of spousal support has not

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

[ ] is old law to be omitted.

LBD10899-02-9

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already been issued, the court may, in addition to the issuance of a temporary order of protection pursuant to this section, issue an order directing the parties to appear within seven business days of the issuance of the order in the family court, in the same action, for consideration of an order for temporary spousal support in accordance with article four of this act. If the court directs the parties to so appear, the court shall direct the parties to appear with information with respect to income and assets, but a temporary order for spousal support may be issued pursuant to article four of this act on the return date notwithstanding the respondent's default upon notice and notwithstanding that information with respect to income and assets of the petitioner or respondent may be unavailable.

§ 3. Section 842 of the family court act, as amended by chapter 526 and the closing paragraph as added by chapter 480 of the laws of 2013, is amended to read as follows:

§ 842. Order of protection. An order of protection under section eight hundred forty-one of this part shall set forth reasonable conditions of behavior to be observed for a period not in excess of two years by the petitioner or respondent or for a period not in excess of five years upon (i) a finding by the court on the record of the existence of aggravating circumstances as defined in paragraph (vii) of subdivision (a) of section eight hundred twenty-seven of this article; or (ii) a finding by the court on the record that the conduct alleged in the petition is in violation of a valid order of protection. Any finding of aggravating circumstances pursuant to this section shall be stated on the record and upon the order of protection. The court may also, upon motion, extend the order of protection for a reasonable period of time upon a showing of good cause or consent of the parties. The fact that abuse has not occurred during the pendency of an order shall not, in itself, constitute sufficient ground for denying or failing to extend the order. The court must articulate a basis for its decision on the record. The duration of any temporary order shall not by itself be a factor in determining the length or issuance of any final order. Any order of protection issued pursuant to this section shall specify if an order of probation is in effect. Any order of protection issued pursuant to this section may require the petitioner or the respondent:

(a) to stay away from the home, school, business or place of employment of any other party, the other spouse, the other parent, or the child, and to stay away from any other specific location designated by the court, provided that the court shall make a determination, and shall state such determination in a written decision or on the record, whether to impose a condition pursuant to this subdivision, provided further, however, that failure to make such a determination shall not affect the validity of such order of protection. In making such determination, the court shall consider, but shall not be limited to consideration of, whether the order of protection is likely to achieve its purpose in the absence of such a condition, conduct subject to prior orders of protection, prior incidents of abuse, extent of past or present injury, threats, drug or alcohol abuse, and access to weapons;

(b) to permit a parent, or a person entitled to visitation by a court order or a separation agreement, to visit the child at stated periods;

(c) to refrain from committing a family offense, as defined in subdivision one of section eight hundred twelve of this [act] article, or any criminal offense against the child or against the other parent or against any person to whom custody of the child is awarded, or from harassing, intimidating or threatening such persons;

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(d) to permit a designated party to enter the residence during a specified period of time in order to remove personal belongings not in issue in this proceeding or in any other proceeding or action under this act or the domestic relations law;

(e) to refrain from acts of commission or omission that create an unreasonable risk to the health, safety or welfare of a child;

(f) to pay the reasonable counsel fees and disbursements involved in obtaining or enforcing the order of the person who is protected by such order if such order is issued or enforced;

(g) to require the respondent to participate in a batterer's education program designed to help end violent behavior, which may include referral to drug and alcohol counselling, and to pay the costs thereof if the person has the means to do so, provided however that nothing contained herein shall be deemed to require payment of the costs of any such program by the petitioner, the state or any political subdivision thereof;

(h) to provide, either directly or by means of medical and health insurance, for expenses incurred for medical care and treatment arising from the incident or incidents forming the basis for the issuance of the order;

(i) 1. to refrain from intentionally injuring or killing, without justification, any companion animal the respondent knows to be owned, possessed, leased, kept or held by the petitioner or a minor child residing in the household.

2. "Companion animal", as used in this section, shall have the same meaning as in subdivision five of section three hundred fifty of the agriculture and markets law;

(j) 1. to promptly return specified identification documents to the protected party, in whose favor the order of protection or temporary order of protection is issued; provided, however, that such order may: (A) include any appropriate provision designed to ensure that any such document is available for use as evidence in this proceeding, and available if necessary for legitimate use by the party against whom such order is issued; and (B) specify the manner in which such return shall be accomplished.

2. For purposes of this subdivision, "identification document" shall mean any of the following: (A) exclusively in the name of the protected party: birth certificate, passport, social security card, health insurance or other benefits card, a card or document used to access bank, credit or other financial accounts or records, tax returns, any driver's license, and immigration documents including but not limited to a United States permanent resident card and employment authorization document; and (B) upon motion and after notice and an opportunity to be heard, any of the following, including those that may reflect joint use or ownership, that the court determines are necessary and are appropriately transferred to the protected party: any card or document used to access bank, credit or other financial accounts or records, tax returns, and any other identifying cards and documents; and

(k) to observe such other conditions as are necessary to further the purposes of protection.

The court may also award custody of the child, during the term of the order of protection to either parent, or to an appropriate relative within the second degree. Nothing in this section gives the court power to place or board out any child or to commit a child to an institution or agency.

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Notwithstanding the provisions of section eight hundred seventeen of this article, where a temporary order of child support has not already been issued, the court may in addition to the issuance of an order of protection pursuant to this section, issue an order for temporary child support in an amount sufficient to meet the needs of the child, without a showing of immediate or emergency need. The court shall make an order for temporary child support notwithstanding that information with respect to income and assets of the respondent may be unavailable. Where such information is available, the court may make an award for temporary child support pursuant to the formula set forth in subdivision one of section four hundred thirteen of this act. Temporary orders of support issued pursuant to this article shall be deemed to have been issued pursuant to section four hundred thirteen of this act.

Upon making an order for temporary child support pursuant to this subdivision, the court shall advise the petitioner of the availability of child support enforcement services by the support collection unit of the local department of social services, to enforce the temporary order and to assist in securing continued child support, and shall set the support matter down for further proceedings in accordance with article four of this act.

Where the court determines that the respondent has employer-provided medical insurance, the court may further direct, as part of an order of temporary support under this subdivision, that a medical support execution be issued and served upon the respondent's employer as provided for in section fifty-two hundred forty-one of the civil practice law and rules.

Notwithstanding the provisions of section eight hundred seventeen of this article, where a temporary order of spousal support has not already been issued, the court may, in addition to the issuance of an order of protection pursuant to this section, issue an order directing the parties to appear within seven business days of the issuance of the order in the family court, in the same action, for consideration of an order for temporary spousal support in accordance with article four of this act. If the court directs the parties to so appear, the court shall direct the parties to appear with information with respect to income and assets, but a temporary order for spousal support may be issued pursuant to article four of this act on the return date notwithstanding the respondent's default upon notice and notwithstanding that information with respect to income and assets of the petitioner or respondent may be unavailable.

In any proceeding in which an order of protection or temporary order of protection or a warrant has been issued under this section, the clerk of the court shall issue to the petitioner and respondent and his or her counsel and to any other person affected by the order a copy of the order of protection or temporary order of protection and ensure that a copy of the order of protection or temporary order of protection [be] is transmitted to the local correctional facility where the individual is or will be detained, the state or local correctional facility where the individual is or will be imprisoned, and the supervising probation department or the department of corrections and community supervision where the individual is under probation or parole supervision.

Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions, an order of protection, or temporary order of protection where applicable, may be entered against a former spouse and persons who have a child in common, regardless of whether such persons have been married or have lived together at any

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time, or against a member of the same family or household as defined in subdivision one of section eight hundred twelve of this article.

In addition to the foregoing provisions, the court may issue an order, pursuant to section two hundred twenty-seven-c of the real property law, authorizing the party for whose benefit any order of protection has been issued to terminate a lease or rental agreement pursuant to section two hundred twenty-seven-c of the real property law.

The protected party in whose favor the order of protection or temporary order of protection is issued may not be held to violate an order issued in his or her favor nor may such protected party be arrested for violating such order.

§ 4. Subparagraph 5 of paragraph (b) of subdivision 5-a of part B of section 236 of the domestic relations law, as amended by chapter 269 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows: