75-02-01.2-33 Assignment of right to support.

1. The child support agency must be notified of any child, except a child in receipt of supplemental security income, who is a member of the household and whose eligibility for assistance is based on the continued absence of the child's parent from the home. 2. The applicant and, upon request, any member of the household for whom temporary assistance for needy families is requested, as a condition of eligibility shall: a. Execute all necessary documents to protect the right of any member of the household, and the agency, to child support from the absent parent of such member; and b. Cooperate in obtaining support and in establishing paternity of any child in the household with respect to whom paternity has not been established. 3. The requirement for the assignment of rights to support from absent parents continues through the month in which the latest of the following occurs: a. The child reaches age eighteen. b. The child graduates from high school, provided that graduation does not occur after the month of the child's nineteenth birthday. c. Child support obligations, imposed by a court for periods after the child reaches age eighteen, are terminated. 4. For purposes of this section: a. "Cooperate in obtaining support and in establishing paternity" includes: 25 (1) Appearing at a state or local office designated by the child support agency to provide information or evidence relevant to the case; (2) Appearing as a witness at a court or other proceeding; (3) Providing credible information, or credibly attesting to lack of information; (4) Paying to the department any support funds received that are covered by the assignment of rights; and (5) Taking any other reasonable steps to assist in establishing paternity and securing child support. b. A child support agency shall determine if the applicant, recipient, or any member of the household, who is required to cooperate in obtaining support and establishing paternity, has done so. In making that determination, the child support agency shall consider if any information provided, or attestation to lack of information, is corroborated by relevant circumstances and is credible. Information provided, or an attestation to lack of information, is not presumed correct. 5. An individual shall cooperate in establishing paternity of a child born out of wedlock for whom the individual can legally assign rights, and obtaining child support and payments for the individual and any other individual for whom the individual can legally assign rights, unless cooperation is waived by the human service zone for good cause. 6. The custodian who refuses to cooperate in obtaining support, including establishing paternity, is ineligible to receive assistance. If the custodian continues to refuse to cooperate, the entire household shall become ineligible for assistance and may not reapply for one full benefit month following case closure. History: Effective December 9, 1996; amended effective July 1, 1997; January 1, 2003; January 1, 2011; April 1, 2024. General Authority: NDCC 50-09-02, 50-09-25 Law Implemented: NDCC 50-09-02