706.020-706.034

CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE
SECTION 706.020-706.034




706.020.  Except for an earning assignment order for support, the
earnings of an employee shall not be required to be withheld by an
employer for payment of a debt by means of any judicial procedure
other than pursuant to this chapter.


706.021.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, a levy
of execution upon the earnings of an employee shall be made by
service of an earnings withholding order upon the employer in
accordance with this chapter.


706.022.  (a) As used in this section, "withholding period" means
the period which commences on the 10th day after service of an
earnings withholding order upon the employer and which continues
until the earliest of the following dates:
   (1) The date the employer has withheld the full amount required to
satisfy the order.
   (2) The date of termination specified in a court order served on
the employer.
   (3) The date of termination specified in a notice of termination
served on the employer by the levying officer.
   (4) The date of termination of a dormant or suspended earnings
withholding order as determined pursuant to Section 706.032.
   (b) Except as otherwise provided by statute, an employer shall
withhold the amounts required by an earnings withholding order from
all earnings of the employee payable for any pay period of the
employee which ends during the withholding period.
   (c) An employer is not liable for any amounts withheld and paid
over to the levying officer pursuant to an earnings withholding order
prior to service upon the employer pursuant to paragraph (2) or (3)
of subdivision (a).



706.023.  Except as otherwise provided in this chapter:
   (a) An employer shall comply with the first earnings withholding
order served upon the employer.
   (b) If the employer is served with two or more earnings
withholding orders on the same day, the employer shall comply with
the order issued pursuant to the judgment first entered. If two or
more orders served on the same day are based on judgments entered
upon the same day, the employer shall comply with whichever one of
such orders the employer selects.
   (c) If an earnings withholding order is served while an employer
is required to comply with another earnings withholding order with
respect to the earnings of the same employee, the subsequent order is
ineffective and the employer shall not withhold earnings pursuant to
the subsequent order.



706.023.  Except as otherwise provided in this chapter:
   (a) An employer shall comply with the first earnings withholding
order served upon the employer.
   (b) If the employer is served with two or more earnings
withholding orders on the same day, the employer shall comply with
the order issued pursuant to the judgment first entered. If two or
more orders served on the same day are based on judgments entered
upon the same day, the employer shall comply with whichever one of
the orders the employer selects.
   (c) If an earnings withholding order is served while an employer
is required to comply with another earnings withholding order with
respect to the earnings of the same employee, the subsequent order is
ineffective and the employer shall not withhold earnings pursuant to
the subsequent order, except as provided in subdivision (d).
   (d) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, a
withholding order for elder or dependent adult financial abuse has
priority over any other earning withholding order except for a
withholding order for support under Section 706.030 and a withholding
order for taxes under Section 706.072.
   (1) An employer upon whom a withholding order for elder or
dependent adult financial abuse is served shall withhold and pay over
earnings of the employee pursuant to that order notwithstanding the
requirements of another earnings withholding order except as provided
in paragraph (2).
   (2) An employer shall not withhold earnings of an employee
pursuant to an earnings withholding order for elder or dependent
adult financial abuse if a withholding order for support or for taxes
is in effect or if a prior withholding order for elder or dependent
adult financial abuse is in effect. In that case, the subsequent
withholding order for elder or dependent financial abuse is
ineffective.
   (3) When an employer is required to cease withholding earnings
pursuant to a prior earnings withholding order, the employer shall
notify the levying officer who served the prior earnings withholding
order that a supervening earnings withholding order for elder or
dependent financial abuse is in effect.



706.024.  (a) The amount required to satisfy an earnings withholding
order is the total amount required to satisfy the writ of execution
on the date the order is issued, with the following additions and
subtractions:
   (1) The addition of the statutory fee for service of the order and
any other statutory fees for performing duties under the order.
   (2) The addition of costs added to the order pursuant to Section
685.090.
   (3) The subtraction of the amount of any partial satisfactions.
   (4) The addition of daily interest accruing after issuance of the
order, as adjusted for partial satisfactions.
   (b) From time to time the levying officer, in the levying officer'
s discretion, may give written notice to the employer of the amount
required to satisfy the earnings withholding order and the employer
shall determine the total amount to withhold based upon the levying
officer's notice, notwithstanding a different amount stated in the
order originally served on the employer.
   (c) If the full amount required to satisfy the earnings
withholding order as stated in the order or in the levying officer's
notice under subdivision (b) is withheld from the judgment debtor's
earnings, interest ceases to accrue on that amount.



706.025.  (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), the amount
required to be withheld pursuant to an earnings withholding order
shall be paid monthly to the levying officer not later than the 15th
day of each month. The initial monthly payment shall include all
amounts required to be withheld from the earnings of the employee
during the preceding calendar month up to the close of the employee's
pay period ending closest to the last day of that month, and
thereafter each monthly payment shall include amounts withheld from
the employee's earnings for services rendered in the interim up to
the close of the employee's pay period ending closest to the last day
of the preceding calendar month.
   (b) The employer may elect to pay the amounts withheld to the
levying officer more frequently than monthly. If the employer so
elects, payment of the amount withheld from the employee's earnings
for each pay period shall be made not later than 10 days after the
close of the pay period.



706.026.  (a) The levying officer shall receive and account for all
amounts paid by the employer pursuant to Section 706.025 and shall
pay the amounts so received over to the person entitled thereto at
least once every 30 days.
   (b) At least once every two years, the levying officer shall file
an accounting with the court, as provided by Section 699.560, for all
amounts collected under the earnings withholding order, including
costs and interest added to the amount due. Subject to the
limitations in subdivision (c) of Section 263, the levying officer
may electronically file the accounting with the court, pursuant to
Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 263) of Title 4 of Part 1.



706.027.  If the judgment pursuant to which the earnings withholding
order is issued is satisfied before the order otherwise terminates
pursuant to Section 706.022, the judgment creditor shall promptly
notify the levying officer who shall promptly terminate the order by
serving a notice of termination on the employer.




706.028.  (a) "Final earnings withholding order for costs and
interest" means an earnings withholding order for the collection only
of unsatisfied costs and interest, which is issued after an earlier
earnings withholding order has been returned satisfied.
   (b) After the amount stated as owing in a prior earnings
withholding order is paid, the judgment creditor may obtain a final
earnings withholding order for costs and interest to collect amounts
of costs and interest that were not collected under the prior
earnings withholding order.
   (c) A final earnings withholding order for costs and interest
shall be enforced in the same manner as other earnings withholding
orders.
   (d) Satisfaction of the amount stated as owing in a final earnings
withholding order for costs and interest is equivalent to
satisfaction of the money judgment. For this purpose, interest ceases
to accrue on the date of issuance of the final earnings withholding
order and no additional costs may be added after that date, except
for the statutory fee for service of the order and any other
statutory fees for performing duties under the order.




706.029.  Service of an earnings withholding order creates a lien
upon the earnings of the judgment debtor that are required to be
withheld pursuant to the order and upon all property of the employer
subject to the enforcement of a money judgment in the amount required
to be withheld pursuant to such order. The lien continues for a
period of one year from the date the earnings of the judgment debtor
become payable unless the amount required to be withheld pursuant to
the order is paid as required by law.



706.030.  (a) A "withholding order for support" is an earnings
withholding order issued on a writ of execution to collect delinquent
amounts payable under a judgment for the support of a child, or
spouse or former spouse, of the judgment debtor. A withholding order
for support shall be denoted as such on its face.
   (b) The local child support agency may issue a withholding order
for support on a notice of levy pursuant to Section 17522 of the
Family Code to collect a support obligation.
   (1) When the local child support agency issues a withholding order
for support, a reference in this chapter to a levying officer is
deemed to mean the local child support agency who issues the
withholding order for support.
   (2) Service of a withholding order for support issued by the local
child support agency may be made by first-class mail or in any other
manner described in Section 706.101. Service of a withholding order
for support issued by the local child support agency is complete when
it is received by the employer or a person described in paragraph
(1) or (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 706.101, or if service is by
first-class mail, service is complete as specified in Section 1013.
   (3) The local child support agency shall serve upon the employer
the withholding order for support, a copy of the order, and a notice
informing the support obligor of the effect of the order and of his
or her right to hearings and remedies provided in this chapter and in
the Family Code. The notice shall be accompanied by the forms
necessary to obtain an administrative review and a judicial hearing
and instructions on how to file the forms. Within 10 days from the
date of service, the employer shall deliver to the support obligor a
copy of the withholding order for support, the forms to obtain an
administrative review and judicial hearing, and the notice. If the
support obligor is no longer employed by the employer and the
employer does not owe the support obligor any earnings, the employer
shall inform the local child support agency that the support obligor
is no longer employed by the employer.
   (4) An employer who fails to comply with paragraph (3) shall be
subject to a civil penalty of five hundred dollars ($500) for each
occurrence.
   (5) The local child support agency shall provide for an
administrative review to reconsider or modify the amount to be
withheld for arrearages pursuant to the withholding order for
support, if the support obligor requests a review at any time after
service of the withholding order. The local child support agency
shall provide the review in the same manner and timeframes provided
for resolution of a complaint pursuant to Section 17800 of the Family
Code. The local child support agency shall notify the employer if
the review results in any modifications to the withholding order for
support. If the local child support agency cannot complete the
administrative review within 30 calendar days of receipt of the
complaint, the local child support agency shall notify the employer
to suspend withholding any disputed amount pending the completion of
the review and the determination by the local child support agency.
   (6) Nothing in this section prohibits the support obligor from
seeking a judicial determination of arrearages pursuant to
subdivision (c) of Section 17256 of the Family Code or from filing a
motion for equitable division of earnings pursuant to Section 706.052
either prior to or after the administrative review provided by this
section. Within five business days after receiving notice of the
obligor having filed for judicial relief pursuant to this section,
the local child support agency shall notify the employer to suspend
withholding any disputed amount pending a determination by the court.
The employer shall then adjust the withholding within not more than
nine days of receiving the notice from the local child support
agency.
   (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter:
   (1) An employer shall continue to withhold pursuant to a
withholding order for support until the earliest of the dates
specified in paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of subdivision (a) of Section
706.022, except that a withholding order for support shall
automatically terminate one year after the employment of the employee
by the employer terminates.
   (2) A withholding order for support has priority over any other
earnings withholding order. An employer upon whom a withholding order
for support is served shall withhold and pay over earnings of the
employee pursuant to that order notwithstanding the requirements of
another earnings withholding order.
   (3) Subject to paragraph (2) and to Article 3 (commencing with
Section 706.050), an employer shall withhold earnings pursuant to
both a withholding order for support and another earnings withholding
order simultaneously.
   (4) An employer who willfully fails to withhold and forward
support pursuant to a valid earnings withholding order for support
issued and served upon the employer pursuant to this chapter is
liable to the support obligee, as defined in Section 5214 of the
Family Code, for the amount of support not withheld, forwarded, or
otherwise paid to the support obligee.
   (5) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an employer shall
send all earnings withheld pursuant to a withholding order for
support to the levying officer or the State Disbursement Unit as
described in Section 17309 of the Family Code within the time period
specified by federal law.
   (6) Once the State Disbursement Unit as described in Section 17309
of the Family Code is operational, all support payments made
pursuant to an earnings withholding order shall be made to that unit.
   (7) Earnings withheld pursuant to an earnings withholding order
for support shall be credited toward satisfaction of a support
judgment as specified in Section 695.221.



706.031.  (a) Nothing in this chapter affects an earnings assignment
order for support.
   (b) An earnings assignment order for support shall be given
priority over any earnings withholding order. An employer upon whom
an earnings assignment order for support is served shall withhold and
pay over the earnings of the employee pursuant to the assignment
order notwithstanding the requirements of any earnings withholding
order. When an employer is required to cease withholding earnings
pursuant to an earnings withholding order, the employer shall notify
the levying officer who served the earnings withholding order that a
supervening earnings assignment order for support is in effect.
   (c) Subject to subdivisions (b), (d), and (e), an employer shall
withhold earnings of an employee pursuant to both an earnings
assignment order for support and an earnings withholding order.
   (d) The employer shall withhold pursuant to an earnings
withholding order only to the extent that the sum of the amount
withheld pursuant to any earnings assignment order for support and
the amount withheld pursuant to the earnings withholding order does
not exceed the amount that may be withheld under Article 3
(commencing with Section 706.050).
   (e) The employer shall withhold pursuant to an earnings
withholding order for taxes only to the extent that the sum of the
amount withheld pursuant to any earnings assignment order for support
and the amount withheld pursuant to the earnings withholding order
for taxes does not exceed the amount that may be withheld under
Article 4 (commencing with Section 706.070).



706.032.  (a) Except as otherwise provided by statute:
   (1) If withholding under an earnings withholding order ceases
because the judgment debtor's employment has terminated, the earnings
withholding order terminates at the conclusion of a continuous
180-day period during which no amounts are withheld under the order.
   (2) If withholding under an earnings withholding order ceases
because the judgment debtor's earnings are subject to an order or
assignment with higher priority, the earnings withholding order
terminates at the conclusion of a continuous two-year period during
which no amounts are withheld under the order.
   (b) If an earnings withholding order has terminated pursuant to
subdivision (a), the employer shall return the order to the levying
officer along with a statement of the reasons for returning the
order.


706.033.  If the writ is returned before the earnings withholding
order terminates, on termination of the earnings withholding order
the levying officer shall make a supplemental return on the writ. The
supplemental return shall contain the same information as an
original return pursuant to Section 699.560.



706.034.  The employer may deduct from the earnings of the employee
the sum of one dollar and fifty cents ($1.50) for each payment made
in accordance with an earnings withholding order issued pursuant to
this chapter.