State ex rel. State Dept. of Welfare v. Smith
| Decision Date | 10 March 1981 |
| Docket Number | No. 14993,14993 |
| Citation | 275 S.E.2d 918,166 W.Va. 495 |
| Court | West Virginia Supreme Court |
| Parties | STATE ex rel. STATE DEPARTMENT OF WELFARE, Assignee of Judy Wright v. Hon. Robert K. SMITH, Judge, Circuit Court, Kanawha County. |
Syllabus by the Court
The State Department of Welfare has standing to enforce support obligations assigned to the State pursuant to W.Va.Code, 9-3-4 (1979).
R. Joseph Zak, Sp. Asst. Atty. Gen., Charleston, for relator.
This writ of mandamus presents a question of first impression under the recently enacted statute, W.Va.Code, 9-3-4 (1979), which requires recipients of financial assistance under state and federal assistance to assign their support obligations to the State Department of Welfare. The question presented is whether the statute grants the State Department of Welfare standing necessary to enforce that assignment. While the question is novel, it is not difficult, and we conclude that the State Department of Welfare is clearly empowered to enforce the assignment.
Judy Wright, assignor of the Department of Welfare, was granted a divorce from respondent Jack Wright by order of the Circuit Court of Kanawha County sitting as Domestic Relations Court on 16 December 1974. Under the order Judy Wright was granted custody of the five children born to Judy and Jack Wright and the respondent, Jack Wright, was ordered to pay support of $100 per month. Since 1 January 1975 Jack Wright has failed to provide any support under that court order.
On 7 December 1976 and again on 27 August 1979 Judy Wright applied to the State Department of Welfare for money from the Aid to Families With Dependent Children Program (hereinafter AFDC). As a condition for receiving that assistance, in accordance with W.Va.Code, 9-3-4 (1979), she executed an assignment of all her right, title and interest in support payments provided under the order of 16 December 1974.
On 3 July 1980 the State Department of Welfare filed a petition in the Circuit Court of Kanawha County requesting that Jack Wright be held in contempt of the order of 16 December 1974, and that a judgment against Mr. Wright be granted in the amount of $4,600. On 11 July 1980 the Honorable Robert K. Smith, Judge of the Circuit Court of Kanawha County denied the State Department's request for a hearing, finding as follows:
Upon consideration whereof, the Court is of the opinion and finds that the State Department of Welfare does not have standing to proceed against the respondent, Jack Wright, as assignee of Judy Wright in the original divorce proceeding Civil Action No. 17,879-D as it was not a party thereto and that any action by the petitioner should be brought in a separate and independent suit.
It is therefore ORDERED that petitioner's request for a hearing on its Petition is hereby denied to which ruling the petitioner objects and excepts.
It is essential to understand the relationship between the federal government and the states in the administration of the AFDC program. In 1975 federal legislation established a comprehensive program to enforce child support which was to be carried out by the states. To be eligible for federal assistance a state must meet certain standards, including as a condition for eligibility for aid that the applicant assign to the state any rights to support which have accrued at the time such assignment is executed. 1 If the State fails to comply with the legislation and is found to have failed to have an effective program, the amount payable to the State for its AFDC program is reduced by five percent. In response to the federal legislation, West Virginia enacted W.Va.Code, 9-3-4 (1979) which covers the application for, and granting of, public welfare assistance.
The State clearly has standing, through its agent, the Department of Welfare, to initiate a proceeding to enforce support obligations by civil contempt under W.Va.Code, 9-3-4 (1979). The overall intention of W.Va.Code, 9-3-1 et seq. is to improve and extend the enforcement of duties of support under programs involving aid to families with dependent children. The support obligation then becomes a debt owed by the non-custodial parent to the State. This right then becomes a chose in action for the State and it has same rights to enforce that obligation as the original holder.
It is clear under the provisions in W.Va.Code, 9-3-4 (1979) that the Department of Welfare...
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...has accomplished the same result by manhandling the statute to equate "subrogation" with "assignment." State ex rel. State Department of Welfare v. Smith, W.Va., 275 S.E.2d 918, 920 II (1981). Nevertheless, the federal legislative scheme, having made the disbursing state's right to recover ......
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