As used in this section:

(1) "Arrearage" means the total amount of unpaid support obligations.

(2) "Court" as used in this section means Family Court.

(3) "Delinquency" means when a support payment owed by an obligor pursuant to an order of support is overdue in an amount equal to at least one month's support obligation.

(4) "Income" means any periodic form of payment to an individual regardless of source including, but not limited to, wages, salary, commission, bonuses, compensation as an independent contractor, workers' compensation, disability, annuity and retirement benefits, payments made pursuant to a retirement program, interest, and any other payments made by a person or an agency or department of the federal, state, or local government provided the income excludes:

(a) amounts required by law to be withheld, other than creditor claims, including, but not limited to, federal, state, and local taxes, social security and other retirement deductions, and disability contributions;

(b) amounts exempted by federal law;

(c) public assistance payments.

Any other state or local laws which limit or exempt income or the amount or percentage of income that can be withheld do not apply.

(5) "Obligee" means an individual or the individual's assignee who is entitled to receive payments pursuant to an order of support.

(6) "Obligor" means an individual who is required to make payments pursuant to order for support.

(7) "Order for support" means any order of a court or an administrative agency of competent jurisdiction which provides for periodic payments of funds for the support of a child or maintenance of a spouse or former spouse, whether temporary or final, whether incidental to a proceeding for divorce, separation, separate maintenance, paternity, guardianship, or otherwise and includes any order providing for a modification of support payment of an arrearage or reimbursement of support.

(8) "Payor" means any payor of income to an obligor. For purposes of this section, the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce is not considered to be a payor.

HISTORY: 2008 Act No. 361, Section 2; 2008 Act No. 332, Section 4.

Code Commissioner's Note

Pursuant to the directive to the Code Commissioner in 2010 Act No. 146, Section 122, "Department of Employment and Workforce" was substituted for all references to "Employment Security Commission", and "Executive Director of the Department of Employment and Workforce" or "executive director" was substituted for all references to the "Chairman of the Employment Security Commission" or "chairman" that refer to the Chairman of the Employment Security Commission, as appropriate.