Otter drafts child support legislation in advance of May 18 special session

Gov. Butch Otter posted draft child support legislation on his website today that will be the focus of deliberations when the Idaho Legislature convenes May 18 for its first special session since 2006.

The proposed language can be found in the Media Center on the governor's website at http://gov.idaho.gov.

Gov. Otter announced last week that he was calling the special session after Senate Bill 1067 was tabled by a House committee as the Legislature prepared to adjourn its 2015 regular session last month.

The special session will deal solely with the issue of Idaho's child support system, which affects more than 400,000 Idaho children and parents - or about one in four Idaho citizens. The governor said last week that he hopes the Legislature's work can be concluded "in hours, not days."

"I want every parent and family relying on court-ordered child support payments to have the chance to review this bill. I want every member of the Legislature to have a better understanding of what it does and does not do, and a fuller appreciation of what happens if we fail to act affirmatively," Gov. Otter wrote in a press release. "The more everyone knows - not 'thinks' but knows - about this measure, the better chance we have for success."