§48-18-113. Disbursements of amounts collected as support.

(a) Amounts collected as child or spousal support by the Bureau for Child Support Enforcement shall be distributed within two business days after receipt from the employer or other source of periodic income. The amounts collected as child support shall be distributed by the Bureau for Child Support Enforcement in accordance with the provisions for distribution set forth in 42 U.S.C. §657. The Commissioner shall promulgate a legislative rule to establish the appropriate distribution as may be required by the federal law.

(b) Any payment required to be made under the provisions of this section to a family shall be made to the resident parent, legal guardian or caretaker relative having custody of or responsibility for the child or children.

(c) The Commissioner shall maintain methods of administration which are designed to assure that employees of the Bureau for Child Support Enforcement or any persons employed pursuant to a contract who are responsible for handling cash receipts do not participate in accounting or operating functions which would permit them to conceal in the accounting records the misuse of cash receipts: Provided, That the Commissioner may provide for exceptions to this requirement in the case of sparsely populated areas in this state where the hiring of unreasonable additional staff in the local office would otherwise be necessary.

(d) No penalty or fee may be collected by or distributed to a recipient of Bureau for Child Support Enforcement services from the state Treasury or from the Child Support Enforcement Fund when child support is not distributed to the recipient in accordance with the time frames established herein.

(e) For purposes of this section, "business day" means a day on which state offices are open for regular business.