PAY CHILD SUPPORT OR LOSE YOUR PROFESSIONAL LICENSE, INCLUDING YOUR LAW LICENSE

When a person who holds any kind of professional license or certification in Kansas owes past due child support equal to or greater than three months of child support and has failed, after reasonable opportunity, to comply with any payment plan, 2009 HB 2201 mandates that the court order noticesent to the support debtor’s licensing body. In the case of an attorney, the court is required to file a complaint with the disciplinary administrator in this state and/or any other state in which the attorney is licensed.

Once the licensing body gets notice, it must notify the support debtor within 30 days that it will suspend or withhold issuance or renewal of debtor’s license. It can then issue a temporary license that is good for up to 6 months to give the debtor a chance to comply. The sixth months can be extended an additional 30 days upon a showing of extreme hardship. The licensing body has no jurisdiction over anything related to the debt. Upon compliance, the license would be reinstated or renewed.