2010 Kentucky Domestic Relations Legislation

The 2010 Session of the Kentucky Legislature enacted the following legislation affecting domestic relations matters.

The 2010 Session of the Kentucky Legislature enacted the following legislation affecting domestic relations matters.

    House Bill 1is known as Amanda’s Bill in honor of Amanda Ross who was killed in 2009 in a domestic violence incident.  The Act allows judges to order violators of a Domestic Violence Order to wear a global positioning system tracking device to monitor abuses and help make sure they maintain the required distance from their victims.  Felony charges may be brought against DVO violators who attempt to remove a court-ordered tracking device.

    House Bill 289amends relevant sections of Kentucky Revised Statutes to require the Kentucky Employees Retirement System, the County Employees Retirement System, the State Police Retirement System, the Kentucky Teachers’ Retirement System, the Legislators’ Retirement Plan, and the Judicial Retirement Plan to honor qualified domestic relations orders if the orders meet the requirements established by the retirement systems or plan and by this legislation.  Affected statutes are KRS 6.525, 16.645, 61.690, 78.545, 161.700, and 21.540.

    The Act amends KRS 16.505, 61.510, 78.510, 161.220, and 21.540 to define a qualified domestic relations order as any judgment, decree, or order issued by a court or administrative agency which relates to the provision of child support, alimony payments, or marital property rights to an alternate payee and to define an alternate payee as a former spouse, child, or other dependent of a member or retired member of the retirement systems; amends KRS 161.620 to clarify that the minimum benefit payment will not apply if the order reduces the member’s payment below the minimum.  The bill also amends KRS 161.585 to provide procedures for responding to and providing testimony when an employee of the Kentucky Teachers’ Retirement System is subpoenaed; amends KRS 161.700 to conform to KRS 403.190(4); and amends KRS 21.540 to provide authorization for the Judicial Form Retirement System to promulgate administrative regulations.

    Finally, HB 171 amends KRS 382.135 to specify that the in-care-of address is not required in deeds making certain types of conveyances, including deeds which transfer property through a court action pursuant to a divorce proceeding. The link we have to this bill doesn't work. If you have it, please post a comment. Thanks.