Friday, February 26, 2010
Following are a number of e-mail exchanges between us and a South Carolina State Senator on the subject of the South Carolina New Hire reporting statute. For the sake of clarity, the reader should be aware that the most oldest e-mails are at the bottom of the page.
The e-mails have been edited only to remove all identifying information.
We now understand why South Carolina is the only State in the country without a computerized child support tracking and collection system and why the State cannot manage to comply with Federal Mandates despite having been given fourteen (14) years to do so.
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Senator:
I have put up with your rudeness and name-calling for about a year and a half now. I now have no more time for your insults and lectures. And while I agree that you should not have shared Mr. L's e-mail with me, I DISAGREE with your position on whether I can communicate directly with Mr. L. Moreover, now that you have publicly disseminated Mr. L's e-mail, I think I have a right to share Mr. L's name and legal opinion with whomever I choose. Still, I am not interested in embarrassing either you or Mr. L. Instead, I am interested only in getting the necessary remedial Legislation passed. Once that is accomplished you, Mr. L, and I may have something to celebrate with the citizens of this great State, particularly the 70,000 South Carolinians who are not receiving child support from the non-custodial parent.
From:
To:
Sent: Thu, February 25, 2010 10:44:35 AM
It is entirely possible for someone to agree with part of what you say but not all of what you say. Therefore, it is not true that Mr. L either agrees with you or disagrees with you. While your world may be that black and white, that does not mean reality is as you see it.
I would have let you see what Mr. L said but I fear you would react to him with hostility with him as you do with me. Therefore, I am trying to insulate/ protect him from your negativity, and continue to sacrifice only myself to learn what I can from you that is accurate, for the benefit of the State of SC.
I regret giving you Mr. L’s name. Please do not contact him, but deal only with me. As staff, he is to deal only with a Senator or state employee. It is only I as an elected official who has offered to deal directly with you.
Senator
From:
Senator :
You did not answer my question. And, in any case, Mr. L either agrees with me or he disagrees with me. I say that Federal Law mandates that:
fire departments, school districts, roofers, the Office of the Attorney General, homebuilders, lawyers, developers, newspapers, the South Carolina Legislature, and Dorchester County “shall furnish to the Directory of New Hires of the State in which a newly hired employee works, a report that contains the name, address, and social security number of the employee, and the name and address of, and identifying number assigned under section 6109 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to, the employer."
First, § 63-17-1210 conflicts with 42 U.S.C. § 653a. Second, in adopting this particular statute rather than the mandated statute South Carolina has violated Federal Law. And third, South Carolina employers who are not filing the appropriate reports are themselves in violation of Federal Law and may be facing severe fines.I look forward to reading your proposed Legislation.
----- Forwarded Message ----
Mr. L. no longer disagree with you completely. There are two state statutes, one that is permissive and one that is mandatory. Remedial legislation will be introduced by me in a few days that may please you.
Senator
Senator :
Attached is a hard copy of the latest version of 42 U.S.C. § 653a.
I understand that L disagrees with my interpretation of this statute regarding whether it mandates the filing of the New Hire Reporting Form* in South Carolina. And, while I continue to believe that South Carolina is on a disastrous course, I note that the Governor appoints the DSS Director and that DSS has its own well-paid General Counsel to assist it in complying with federal mandates. Therefore, I suggest that you present my “concerns” to Ms. Williamson and see what she has to say on this issue. Alternately, I suggest that you contact the Director of the Office of Child Support Enforcement of the United States Department of Health and Human Services on the subject. I tried to speak with her myself, but the switchboard operator would neither connect me with her nor provide a direct number.
For you information, the main number to CSE is 202-401-9200.
Good luck to you.
*See, second attachment.
Labels: New Hire Reporting, Welfare Reform
