ESTABLISHMENT OF PARENTAGE

CS 1316P Children in Care (CIC) Administrative Notice of Agency Action – Parentage and Child Support

10/96 Revised 09/01/25 Training Completed 09/15/25 Last Reviewed 10/01/25

Utah Code 26B-9-206, 78A-6-356, 81-5-601, 602, 620

 

NOTE: CIC-specific procedures contained in this section.

 

 

Statutory Authority

 

Office of Recovery Services/Children in Care (ORS/CIC) has authority to establish parentage through the administrative process under the Utah Administrative Procedures Act (UAPA). Pursuant to Utah Code 26B-9-206:

“(1) Through an adjudicative proceeding the office may issue or modify an administrative order that:

(a) determines parentage;

(b) determines whether an obligor owes support;

(c) determines temporary orders of child support upon clear and convincing evidence of parentage in the form of genetic test results or other evidence;

(d) requires an obligor to pay a specific or determinable amount of present and future support;

(e) determines the amount of past-due support;

(f) orders an obligor who owes past-due support and is obligated to support a child receiving public assistance to participate in appropriate work activities if the obligor is unemployed and is not otherwise incapacitated;

(g) requires an obligor to pay an ongoing expense for child care in accordance with Section 81-6-209.5;

(h) imposes a penalty authorized under this chapter;

(i) determines an issue that may be specifically contested under this chapter by a party who timely files a written request for an adjudicative proceeding with the office; and

(j) renews an administrative judgment.”

 

CIC will use the administrative process to establish parentage when possible. CIC provides services for children in state care based on an application for IV-D services filed by the Director of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). Parentage establishment is included with IV-D services, regardless of whether it has been specifically ordered by the Juvenile Court in conjunction with child support services.

 

NOTE: Do not use the UAPA process to establish parentage or a child support order against an unemancipated minor. For additional information on unemancipated minors, refer to CS 309P Mother or Alleged Father is an Unemancipated Minor.

 

If there is not an existing order and parentage has been legally established (adjudicated, presumed or declarant fathers), and that father is referred to ORS in the Juvenile Court order, CIC will proceed to establish an administrative order for the named father. For additional information on Notice of Agency Action Preparation, refer to CS 1360P Children in Care (CIC) Notice of Agency Action Preparation.

 

 

Procedures – Administrative Parentage Establishment Process 

1.                   Open a CIC Case in ORSIS for the Alleged Father: If a CSS case exists, the CIC case worker must coordinate with the CSS worker if a CSS order exists or if the NAA process has been started.

a.                   Paper copy of Juvenile Court order – If you receive a paper copy of the order, the case may be opened based on the paper copy. The order should then be routed to the Central Imaging Unit (CIU) to be imaged into Content Manager.

b.                   Juvenile Order is received through mail – Once the Juvenile Court order has been imaged, the imaged document should be forwarded to the appropriate agent as “Mail” to parentage a paternity case if the case was not previously opened (refer to CS 103P Opening a New Children in Care (CIC) Case for opening procedures). After the case is opened, the appropriate CIC agent on team 70 will begin to establish parentage.

 

NOTE: Open a separate case on ORSIS for the mother, if one has not already been opened. If the mother’s case is assigned to a different team from the alleged father’s case, the team with the lowest open case number is responsible for establishing one order with both parties as respondents (if possible) to be used for both cases.

 

2.                   Identify the Alleged Father: If parentage has not been legally established for the “father” that the Juvenile Court refers to ORS, parentage must be established as part of the order establishment process.

 

3.                   Gather Parentage Information from Mother: Contact the mother to determine if she will cooperate in the establishment process. Attempt to obtain a completed Declaration of Affiliation and Parentage Questionnaire from the mother. If the mother does not cooperate or is not available, refer the case to the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) for judicial paternity establishment or for judicial parentage establishment or for judicial establishment of a third-party order.

 

NOTE: The mother may be the only parent known to the Juvenile Court and referred to ORS/CIC. Even in this case, attempt to contact the mother and obtain enough information to pursue parentage establishment for the child(ren), regardless of whether the Juvenile Court has addressed parentage issues or establishment in its order. Document your attempts to obtain this information in the case narratives.

 

4.                   Genetic Testing Prior to Notice of Agency Action (NAA): If parentage establishment has specifically been ordered by Juvenile Court, you may contact the alleged father to arrange for genetic testing prior to serving an NAA. However, you may also serve the NAA as the initial contact and offer testing as part of that process. If the alleged father will not cooperate with genetic testing, contact the caseworker at the Division of Child and Family Services (DCFS) or the Juvenile Justice and Youth Services (JJYS) for them to determine how to proceed due to the alleged father’s non-cooperation (e.g., requesting a Juvenile Court hearing, etc.).

a.                   Alleged Father Excluded: If the alleged father is excluded as the father, consult with the assigned Assistant Attorney General (AAG) to determine if a referral to the AGO is needed in order to notify the court that the court-named alleged father has been excluded. If a referral is necessary, refer the case to the AGO. The assigned AAG will present the results to the Juvenile Court. If the court orders that the excluded father is financially responsible despite the genetic tests, the assigned AAG will pursue judicial establishment of the support amount as a third-party obligor case. Send a copy of the test results to the appropriate parties. If the court relieves the excluded consort of financial responsibility, begin case closure procedures.

b.                   Alleged Father Not Excluded: Prepare the “Notice of Agency Action: Parentage and Child Support” form if you have enough information to proceed administratively; otherwise, refer the case to the AGO for judicial establishment.

 

5.                   Prepare the NAA: Include options indicating that genetic testing has already been completed or that genetic tests are scheduled. If testing has not been completed, schedule a genetic testing appointment for the alleged father and prepare the appropriate testing letters.

 

6.                   Maintain a Paper Copy of the NAA: The agent will keep a copy of the NAA packet signed by the Presiding Officer (PO) until service on the respondent(s) is successful.

 

7.                   Personally Serve the Alleged Father: You must personally serve the alleged father with the NAA packet when parentage is an issue. Use constable, sheriff, ORS process server, or ORS employee over the age of 21 to personally serve the alleged father. ORS employees may only serve the NAA if they do not and will not be involved in the case, and the alleged father is in the ORS office. The NAA must be served on the alleged father; it cannot be served on another member of the household. Do NOT use certified mail to serve the father when parentage is an issue.

 

8.                   Monitor for Service to be Returned and Imaged: Returned certified mail will be imaged and sent to your mailbox.

 

NOTE: The alleged father may sign an Acknowledgment of Receipt of Notice of Agency Action and of Acceptance of Service form instead of being personally served. It is also possible to serve a participant in the ORS office using the “Return of Service: Document Served by ORS Employee” form.

 

9.                   Forward the NAA Packet to the Central Imaging Unit (CIU).

 

 

Options after Service of Notice of Agency Action – Parentage and Child Support

 

After the alleged father is served with the NAA, he may choose any of the options below:

 

1.                   The alleged father may acknowledge parentage by signing an administrative “Stipulation Order: Parentage and Child Support” form at any time. Include current support and any arrears that may be owed as of the date of the NAA in the administrative stipulation. For more information, refer to CS 1364P Children in Care (CIC) Administrative Stipulation. If the alleged father is unable to sign the stipulation in the office, send a copy of the stipulation and signature page to him along with the Stipulation Cover Letter.

 

2.                   The alleged father may submit to genetic tests.

a.                   After a genetic testing sample has been taken from the alleged father, attempt to schedule the mother (if available) and the child for genetic tests. Send the appropriate testing letters for each party and involve the referring agency in arranging the child’s testing appointment if needed.

b.                   Utah Code 81-5-614 states:

“(2) If an individual whose parentage is being determined fails to submit to genetic testing ordered by the tribunal, the tribunal for that reason may adjudicate parentage contrary to the position of that individual.”

 

If the alleged father does not appear for genetic testing, and there are no other possible consorts, issue a “Default Order: Parentage and Child Support” form 30 days after the alleged father was served.

c.                   After you receive the imaged test results and the alleged father is NOT excluded, send the alleged father the “Genetic Test Appointment: Not Excluded to Father” letter by regular mail to the address the NAA was served. Print a copy of the test results to include with the. Notify the mother of the tests results by sending her the “Genetic Test Appointment: Not Excluded to Mother” letter with a printed copy of the test results. Notify the referring agency of the test results by sending the “Genetic Test Results Not Excluded to Agency” letter. If the alleged father moves after being served the original NAA, proof is needed to verify that he received the genetic test results before an order can be issued. You may use certified mail or constable service on a case-by-case basis to verify that the test results letter and test results were received. If the alleged father does not respond to the letter, issue an “Order: Parentage and Child Support” form 30 days after the letters were sent.

d.                   If the alleged father is excluded by the test results, consult with the assigned AAG to determine if a referral to the AGO is needed in order to notify the court that the court-named alleged father has been excluded. If a referral is necessary, refer the case to the AGO. The assigned AAG will present the results to the Juvenile Court. If the court orders that the excluded father is financially responsible despite the genetic tests, the AGO will pursue judicial establishment of the support amount as a third-party obligor case. Send a copy of the test results to the appropriate parties. If the court relieves the excluded consort of financial responsibility, begin case closure procedures.

 

3.                   If the alleged father responds to the NAA, but does not sign a stipulation or request a hearing, issue a “Participation Order: Parentage and Child Support” form for current support and any arrears, if appropriate.

 

4.                   If the alleged father does not respond to the NAA, issue a “Default Order: Parentage and Child Support” form.

 

5.                   The alleged father may request a judicial hearing. Refer to CS 1371P Children in Care (CIC) Case Preparation for Administrative Hearing and CS 1373P Children in Care (CIC) Administrative Hearing Order for more information on hearing procedures. If the alleged father requests a judicial hearing, make a referral to the AGO for parentage and order establishment. For information about the referral form and procedures, refer to CS 1354P Children in Care (CIC) Referral to the AGO for Order Establishment.

 

 

Filing Administrative Orders 

All administrative orders of parentage must be filed with the State Case Registry which is found on ORSIS. If the child was born in Utah, also complete the Notice of Adjudication of Paternity form.

 

 

Low Income or Means-tested Income Waiver for Orders that are Already Established

 

Utah Code 78A-6-356 states:

“(13) After the juvenile court or the office establishes an individual's child support obligation ordered under Subsection (3), the office shall waive the obligation without further order of the juvenile court if:

(a) the individual's child support obligation is established in accordance with a low income table described in Title 81, Chapter 6, Part 3, Child Support Tables; or

(b) the individual's only source of income is a means-tested, income replacement payment of aid, including:

(i) cash assistance provided under Title 35A, Chapter 3, Part 3, Family Employment Program; or

(ii) cash benefits received under General Assistance, social security income, or social security disability income.”

 

Pursuant to Utah Code 78A-6-356(13), once the child support order has been established for the case and the case meets the following criteria, it is no longer enforceable under state law when:

1.                   The low income table was used to determine current support; or,

2.                   The NCP’s only source of income is a means-tested, income replacement payment of aid, including:

a.                   Cash assistance from FEP [Family Employment Program (formerly referred to as TANF)]; or,

b.                   Cash benefits received under:

i.                     GA (General Assistance);

ii.                   SSI (Supplemental Security Income); or,

iii.                 SSDI (Social Security Disability Income).

 

If it has been determined that the NCP’s only source of income is SSI or SSDI in conjunction with SSI, an order does not need to be established and the case must be closed using the case closure code SSI.

 

Otherwise, if it has been determined that the NCP’s only source of income is a means-tested, income replacement payment of aid, including SSDI (not in conjunction with SSI), load the obligation on the case and then end it on the same day. Pend the case for closure. Narrate in the case narratives that the case meets the criteria for closure.