2020 Colorado Revised Statutes
Title 5 - Consumer Credit Code
Article 17. Colorado Child Support Collection - Consumer Protection Act
Section 5-17-106. Requirements relating to private child support enforcement service contracts.

(1) In order to perform a child support enforcement service for an obligee, a collector shall enter into a written private child support enforcement service contract that:

1. Meets the requirements of this section;

2. Has been delivered to the obligee in a form that the obligee may keep;

3. Is dated and signed by the obligee and an authorized representative of the collector;

4. Fully discloses each term of the contract, any fees that may be imposed pursuant tothe contract, and any amount that the obligee would be required to pay to the collector for services performed under section 5-17-109 if the contract were to be canceled or terminated by the obligee; and

5. Includes a copy of any other document the collector requires the obligee to sign.

2. Before a collector offers or proposes to perform a child support enforcement servicefor an obligee, the collector shall deliver to the obligee the notice developed pursuant to the rulemaking described in section 5-17-113 and shall obtain signed verification from the obligee that the obligee received the notice described in section 5-17-113.

3. A private child support enforcement service contract shall contain the following:

1. A clear and accurate explanation of the amount of child support that will be collected;

2. A clear description of the child support enforcement services that may be providedpursuant to the contract;

3. A clear and accurate explanation of the fees that will be deducted and an example ofhow they are deducted;

4. A good-faith estimate of the total amount of fees that will be charged pursuant to thecontract;

5. The full legal name, principal business address, and telephone number of the collector and any agents who assist the collector in providing a child support enforcement service and any separate name, address, and telephone number that the obligee may need for communication about the case;

6. A complete and accurate copy of each disclosure and notice required by this article17 to be provided to the obligee before the obligee signs the contract;

7. A conspicuous statement in bold-faced type, in immediate proximity to and on thesame page as the space reserved for the signature of the obligee, which shall read as follows:

You may cancel this contract at any time within thirty days of signing the contract or after any twelve consecutive months in which the collector fails to make a collection.

8. An explanation that the contract may be in effect for an extended period of timebecause of the difficulty in estimating how long it will take to collect the full amount of child support due under the contract; and

9. A statement that a collector may not assess fees on collections attributable to a federal, state, or county agency. Fees improperly retained shall be refunded within seven business days.

(4) A private child support enforcement service contract shall not include:

1. A mandatory arbitration clause that limits the rights of a person to seek judicial relieffor a claim arising under the contract or this article 17;

2. A clause that requires the obligee to change the payee or redirect child support payments that would otherwise be payable to the obligee, a state agency administering a state plan approved under Title IV-D of the federal "Social Security Act", as amended, or a central payment registry, if payment is ordered to be made through a central payment registry;

3. A clause that requires the obligee to close, or not open, a child support case with acounty delegate child support enforcement unit or state agency administering a state plan approved under Title IV-D of the federal "Social Security Act", as amended; and

4. A clause that requires the obligee to waive his or her rights to review and consent toany modification of a contract entered into by the obligee.

5. A private child support enforcement contract may not be modified by subsequentagreement unless the obligee has signed the subsequent agreement after receiving a written copy of the modifications.

6. A private child support enforcement service contract shall be accompanied by a form, in duplicate, that has the heading "notice of cancellation" and contains a description of, in easy-to-understand language, the cancellation and termination provisions contained in section 517-109, the cancellation rights of the consumer obligee contained in section 5-17-109, and the principal business address of the collector.

7. A collector who enters into a contract with an obligee shall retain a copy of thesigned contract and the statement signed by the obligee acknowledging receipt of the preliminary notice required by subsection (2) of this section for a period of five years after the completion or settlement of the collection efforts by the collector or termination of the contract, whichever event occurs first.

Source: L. 2017: Entire article added with relocations, (HB 17-1238), ch. 260, p. 1109, § 2, effective August 9.

Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 12-14.1-106 as it existed prior to 2017.