Withholding should begin no later than the first pay period after the order/notice is received.
When dealing with multiple orders for an employee, the employer should fulfill the current obligations first
before fulfilling the past due obligations.
To report a lump sum payment, the employer should consider the following:
Is the order from the OAG?
Is the lump sum gross payment $500 or more?
If the answer is “yes”
to both questions, the employer must notify the OAG of the lump sum prior to distributing the payment
to the employee.
A lump sum payment includes when an employee cashes out his/her vacation or other leave time for payment.
If an employee has more than one child support obligation, the lump sum payment should be applied equally to
all the cases.
Lump sum payments and severance pay payments are not handled the same. Severance pay payments are different.
When signing up to receive income withholding orders electronically, an employer should use an email address where
many people can access to avoid missing an order.
Employers have two business days to retrieve the income withholding orders electronically. If not retrieved within
that time frame, the orders will be mailed to the employer.
The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) maintains an Employer Maintenance Unit (EMU) that contacts employers to
follow-up and track Administrative Income Withholding (AIW) orders. Employers who follow these simple best practices
can see a reduction of calls or faxes from the EMU:
Notify the OAG, as directed by law, of employee terminations timely.
Submit child support payments promptly.
Obtain Income Withholding Orders electronically.
Respond to all calls and faxes from the EMU promptly.
