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Child Support Services
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The Potter County District
Clerk's Office operates the local registry for receipt and
distribution of child support payments that were court ordered
before January 1, 1994. The Federal Legislation "Personal
Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA),
passed in 1990, required that all states establish a State
Disbursement Unit (SDU) for child support payments court ordered
after January 1, 1994. In April 2001, some Potter County cases were
redirected to the SDU. The redirection to the SDU was completed
in August 2006.
The State Disbursement Unit (SDU) for Texas must have current
information about your address and any current withholding orders.
The Potter County District Clerk's office will fax or e-mail this
information to the SDU when presented to this office. You may fax
the SDU directly at 1-877-924-6872.
Child support records are confidential, therefore, no information
about child support payments will be given out by child support.
clerks over the phone. You will need to contact the SDU directly if
you have not received your child support. The SDU is 1-800-252-8014.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What if the person ordered to pay child support does not pay?
The District Clerk does not have the power to provide enforcement
services. You must contact an attorney or the Office of the Attorney
General for assistance to make someone pay child support. The Office
of Attorney General may be reached by calling 1-800-252-8014 or 806 376-4471.
Click here to go to the
web page for the Office of the Texas Attorney General.
What if the SDU has mailed a payment and I have not received it?
Make sure your address is current with the SDU or District Clerk at all
times. The post office will not accept a tracer form from this
office to investigate lost mail. The Postal Service has informed
this office that they will search the "dead letter" file
upon request from the mail recipient. If you do not receive your
child support check, please ask the post office to look in the
"dead letter" file.
What should I do if I move to make sure my payments don't go to
the wrong address or get returned to the State Disbursement Unit as
undeliverable by the post office?
You must submit a change of address to the SDU or District Clerk in writing
(or in person with a valid picture I.D.). A change of address with
the post office will not change your address with the District
Clerk's office. Send a change of address card to the District Clerk
at P. O. Box 9570, Amarillo, TX 79105 when you mail notices to the
utility companies, banks, etc. YOU MUST INCLUDE YOUR CAUSE NUMBER,
YOUR NAME, AND THE NAME OF THE PERSON WHO PAYS THE CHILD SUPPORT
when you submit a new address.
CHANGE OF ADDRESS
Change of Address Forms must be completed, signed and
returned to the District Clerk's office. Please note: Change of
Address Forms will NOT be accepted by email.
Click here to download change of address for obligor and obligee.
How do I obtain copies of my divorce decree or other papers I may
need from my court file?
Send a written request to P. O. Box 9570, Amarillo, TX 79105. You
must provide your CAUSE NUMBER, your name, your address, and
specifiy the documents you would like copied and sent to you. You
must include a cashier's check or money order (no personal checks
accepted) in the amount of $10 for deposit on the cost of copies and
postage. If the copies and postage are less than $10, you will
receive a refund check from Potter County. If the copies and postage
are more than $10, we will contact you for the remainder of the
balance due.
Click here to download a Request for
Copies Form.
How do I get child support withheld from someone's wages?
If a wage garnishment (withholding) order has been signed by the
judge, the Clerk is required to send a certified copy of the Wage
Withholding Order to an employer upon request. State law requires
the Clerk to charge a fee of $15.00 for each Wage Withholding Order
mailed to an employer. If you would like to have a Wage Withholding
Order mailed to an employer, send a written request to the District
Clerk, P. O. Box 9570, Amarillo, TX 79105.
You must provide your CAUSE NUMBER, the name of the person who is
ordered to pay child support, and the employer's name and address.
Be sure to sign the request and include a cashier's check or money
order (no personal checks accepted) in the amount of $15.00. You may
appear in person, with valid picture identification, and complete a
request to issue a Wage Withholding Order. The District Clerk's
office is located at 501 S. Fillmore Street in Amarillo, Texas.
What do I do if an employer is withholding money from a paycheck
for child support but is not mailing it?
The District Clerk's office does not have authority to make an
employer follow the law. The District Clerk provides each employer
with a copy of the law that governs wage withholding for child
support and a copy of the court order that directs the employer to
withhold child support from wages. Contact an attorney or the Office
of Attorney General for assistance.
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