REVIEW AND ADJUSTMENT OF A SUPPORT ORDER

CS 450P-4 Procedures to Adjust Judicial Order – AGO Referral

10/90 Revised 03/13/26 Training Completed 03/27/26 Last Reviewed 03/30/26

45 CFR 303.8; Utah Code 26B-9-207, 211, 220, 221 and, 224, 81-6-102, 202, 212, 81-7-102; R527-231

 

The overall steps for CSS cases and CIC cases coded for review and adjustment are similar. Any specific procedural differences discussed in this section will refer to “CSS case coded” or “CIC case coded.” Every letter used in the review and adjustment process on a CSS case has a parallel letter to be used on a CIC case; however, the automation may not be the same. Those differences are noted below where they are known.

 

 

Procedures to Adjust Judicial Order – AGO Referral

 

After you enter the review complete code on ORSIS for judicial orders, follow the steps below to make a referral to the Attorney General Office (AGO).

 

1.                   Update ORSIS appropriately.

 

NOTE 1: If the case being referred to the AGO is a CSS case but the Juvenile Court has jurisdiction, refer the case to the CSS AGO and if appropriate, the CSS Assistant Attorney General (AAG) will refer the case to the CIC AAG. If the case being referred to the AGO is a CIC case and there is a Juvenile Court order, ORSIS should be updated with the CIC attorney’s worker ID and referred to the CIC attorney in the Salt Lake Attorney General’s Office.

 

NOTE 2: If a family has two children – one child in the care or custody of the state and the other child open on a CSS case, then the referral would be made to the CSS AGO.

 

2.                   Verify that both parents have been added to ORSIS correctly. For specified relative or Children in Care (CIC) cases, both parents need to be added to at least one of the cases being referred to the AGO.

 

NOTE: If the other parent’s name is unknown at the time of the referral and the AGO later discovers the other parent’s name and requests the name be added to the case; update ORSIS appropriately.

 

3.                   Update both parent’s information appropriately.

 

4.                   If there is pending judicial action or a previous order, verify that the name listed on the judicial action is listed on ORSIS.

 

5.                   Write a narrative detailing the action being taken on ORSIS.

 

6.                   Ensure all documents needed for the referral have been imaged and added to the  agent’s appropriate folder.

 

7.                   Prepare the referral packet. The referral packet should include the following documents as an imaged form:

a.                   The “AGO Referral for Modification” form.

 

NOTE: If Juvenile Court is involved because the child is in state custody, make note on the form indicating which state agency has custody of the child.

 

b.                   CIC NOTE: When completing the “AGO Referral for Modification” form, the primary obligor will be listed as the noncustodial parent and the secondary obligor or other parent’s information will be listed in the custodial parent fields.

 

c.                   The “Request for Review and Adjustment of the Child Support Obligation” form signed by the requesting party.

 

NOTE: If “UTAH” is the requestor, this form is not required as part of the referral packet. The referral form should be marked “N/A” in the “Request for Review and Adjustment of Child Support Obligation section in the document table and write “State of Utah is the requestor” in the “Comments” section.

d.                   The appropriate Utah guidelines worksheet and the “Worksheet Income Verification Declaration” form.

e.                   The income information used to calculate the Utah guidelines worksheet.

f.                    Any documentation in support of present family credit (e.g. current spouse income, marriage certificate, birth certificates, evidence of parentage establishment, etc.).

g.                   Any documentation in support of previously ordered support credit (i.e., a copy of the order).

h.                   The “Income Worksheet” form completed by the agent.

i.                     Any financial declarations (e.g. the “Financial Statement for Review/Adjustment Only” form and supporting documentation).

j.                     The “Declaration of Decreased Income” completed by the parent(s) whose income(s) may have decreased.

k.                   The “Review and Adjustment Worksheet” form completed by the agent to calculate the difference between the existing award and the new amount for both parents.

l.                     The UIFSA petition (if the case is an incoming interstate case).

m.                 Other items which may be unique to your office (e.g., prepared legal documents, service fee check for long-arm, etc.).

n.                   A photo for process service.

 

7.                   Send the referral packet to the assigned AAG. If you believe that one of the parents will provide you with additional information that could affect your decision to open a referral to the AGO then delay creating the referral packet for up to 15 days.

 

NOTE 1: Referral packets and AG litigation files are the property of the AGO and will not be used by CSS nor returned to the agent once the judicial action is completed. CSS agents may not access the referral packets once they are referred to the AGO and may not obtain copies of any of the documents that may be contained in the AGO litigation files.

 

NOTE 2: Once a referral has been made to the AGO, all questions related to the pending legal action should be directed to the assigned AAG and/or the AAG’s legal secretary.

 

8.                   If additional information is provided, review the facts of the case with the assigned AAG and decide what action, if any, to take on the case. You may wish to contact the other parent to reconcile discrepancies in the evidence.

 

If a parent disagrees with the results of the review, it is the parent’s responsibility to present an argument at the judicial hearing, or seek private counsel.

 

9.                   When the AGO is done with the modification, the AGO will take the appropriate steps and import any additional information directly to the assigned agent. The AGO will close the referral in ORSIS and send the final modified order (if the order was modified) to the Central Imagining Unit (CIU) for the modification agent to review. Once the system is updated, it will close the referral on ORSIS and it will no longer be viewable in ORSIS.

 

NOTE: If there is a completed order and the AG referral has not been closed on ORSIS, contact the secretary for the assigned AAGO listed on ORSIS to close the referral.

 

10.               If the AGO declines to proceed with the modification, verify that policy was followed. If procedures in policy were followed, complete the steps listed below. If not, consult with your management chain for further discussion. Further discussion may be needed with the assigned AAG, and the case may need to be addressed in a meeting with the AGO.

a.                   If consensus is reached that the case will not be pursued, the agent sends the letter denying the modification. Choose the option that best describes the reason for the denial. If none of the options fit, use the “AGO Denial” option.

b.                   End the review and adjustment process on ORSIS.

 

11.               If the order was modified, update ORSIS appropriately.

 

12.               After adding the order to ORSIS and completing any other updates, if the order has not previously been imaged, attach the order and any other necessary documents and a copy of the “ORS Imagining Header Sheet” with a black clip and forward to the Central Imagining Unit. All judicial orders returning from the AGO will be scanned and imported directly into the assigned modification agent’s mailbox. The assigned modification agent is responsible to ensure that the order and all other additional documents have been received and are attributed into the correct Item Type with the appropriate Form Name(s). If there are other cases that may be affected by the order, the agent must also attribute the order to those cases and notify the assigned worker, if appropriate, that a new order has been received and attributed to his/her case. Documents returning from the AGO that should be imaged include:

a.                   Any judicial orders; and,

b.                   The appropriate Utah guidelines worksheet associated with the final order.

 

NOTE: If a paper document is received from the AGO that is on the imaging index, check the system to determine whether the document has already been imaged or verify that the document needs to be prepared for imaging.

 

13.               End the review and adjustment process on ORSIS.

 

14.               Write a case narrative any time you take an action during the review process.