Sec. 203.007. ACCESS TO RECORDS; OFFENSE. (a) A domestic relations office may obtain the records described by Subsections (b), (c), (d), and (e) that relate to a person who has:
(1) been ordered to pay child support;
(2) been designated as a conservator of a child;
(3) been designated to be the father of a child;
(4) executed an acknowledgment of paternity;
(5) court-ordered possession of a child; or
(6) filed suit to adopt a child.
(b) A domestic relations office is entitled to obtain from the Department of Public Safety records that relate to:
(1) a person's date of birth;
(2) a person's most recent address;
(3) a person's current driver's license status;
(4) motor vehicle accidents involving a person;
(5) reported traffic-law violations of which a person has been convicted; and
(6) a person's criminal history record information.
(c) A domestic relations office is entitled to obtain from the Texas Workforce Commission records that relate to:
(1) a person's address;
(2) a person's employment status and earnings;
(3) the name and address of a person's current or former employer; and
(4) unemployment compensation benefits received by a person.
(d) To the extent permitted by federal law, a domestic relations office is entitled to obtain from the national directory of new hires established under 42 U.S.C. Section 653(i), as amended, records that relate to a person described by Subsection (a), including records that relate to:
(1) the name, telephone number, and address of the person's employer;
(2) information provided by the person on a W-4 form; and
(3) information provided by the person's employer on a Title IV-D form.
(e) To the extent permitted by federal law, a domestic relations office is entitled to obtain from the state case registry records that relate to a person described by Subsection (a), including records that relate to:
(1) the street and mailing address and the social security number of the person;
(2) the name, telephone number, and address of the person's employer;
(3) the location and value of real and personal property owned by the person; and
(4) the name and address of each financial institution in which the person maintains an account and the account number for each account.
(f) An agency required to provide records under this section may charge a domestic relations office a fee for providing the records in an amount that does not exceed the amount paid for those records by the agency responsible for Title IV-D cases.
(g) The Department of Public Safety, the Texas Workforce Commission, or the office of the secretary of state may charge a domestic relations office a fee not to exceed the charge paid by the Title IV-D agency for furnishing records under this section.
(h) Information obtained by a domestic relations office under this section that is confidential under a constitution, statute, judicial decision, or rule is privileged and may be used only by that office.
(i) A person commits an offense if the person releases or discloses confidential information obtained under this section without the consent of the person to whom the information relates. An offense under this subsection is a Class C misdemeanor.
(j) A domestic relations office is entitled to obtain from the office of the secretary of state the following information about a registered voter to the extent that the information is available:
(1) complete name;
(2) current and former street and mailing address;
(3) sex;
(4) date of birth;
(5) social security number; and
(6) telephone number.
Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 20, Sec. 1, eff. April 20, 1995. Renumbered from Family Code Sec. 203.012 and amended by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 475, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995. Amended by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 803, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995; Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 165, Sec. 7.18, eff. Sept. 1, 1997; Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 556, Sec. 49, eff. Sept. 1, 1999; Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 859, Sec. 4, eff. Sept. 1, 1999; Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1191, Sec. 2, eff. June 18, 1999.
Amended by:
Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 832 (H.B. 772), Sec. 9, eff. September 1, 2007.
Section: Previous 203.001 203.002 203.003 203.004 203.005 203.006Last modified: September 28, 2016