§ 19-11-30.Confidentiality of information and records; safeguards against unauthorized use

Chapter 11. Enforcement of Duty of Support · Article 1. Child Support Recovery Act · Last amended 2017 · Last verified October 9, 2026

In one sentenceO.C.G.A. § 19-11-30 makes Georgia child support agency records confidential, makes unauthorized release a misdemeanor, lets parents’ lawyers and certain private collectors get case documents, and requires safeguards that keep a party’s whereabouts from someone who may harm them.

Full Text of § 19-11-30

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b)

(a)

(1) Information and records obtained by the department pursuant to any provision of this article or Title IV-D of the federal Social Security Act shall be deemed to be confidential and shall be released only by permission of the party or parties named in the information or records, by order of the court, or for those purposes specifically authorized by this article. Any person who violates this Code section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.

(2) The department shall provide to an attorney representing an obligor, to an attorney representing an obligee, or to a private child support collector, as defined in Code Section 10-1-392, and hired by an obligee and acting pursuant to a power of attorney signed by such obligee, any documents which such obligor or obligee would be entitled to request and receive from the child support enforcement agency.

(b) The department shall establish safeguards against the unauthorized use or disclosure of information relating to:

(1) Proceedings or actions to establish paternity;

(2) Proceedings to establish or enforce support;

(3) The whereabouts of one party to another party against whom a protective order with respect to the former party has been entered; and

(4) The whereabouts of one party to another party if the department has reason to believe that the release of the information may result in physical or emotional harm to the former party.

End

Plain-English Summary

Child support files hold sensitive material, from addresses and employers to paternity findings. Subsection (a)(1) makes information and records the department obtains under this article or Title IV-D of the federal Social Security Act confidential. They may be released only with the permission of the party or parties named in them, by court order, or for purposes the article specifically authorizes. Anyone who violates the section is guilty of a misdemeanor, and § 19-11-30.4 uses that penalty for unauthorized disclosure of bank-match data.

Subsection (a)(2) opens access for representatives. The department shall give an attorney representing an obligor, an attorney representing an obligee, or a private child support collector any documents the obligor or obligee could request and receive from the child support enforcement agency. A private collector qualifies only if it fits the definition in § 10-1-392, was hired by the obligee, and acts under a power of attorney the obligee signed.

Subsection (b) directs the department to establish safeguards against unauthorized use or disclosure of information about four things: paternity proceedings; proceedings to establish or enforce support; the whereabouts of one party, as against another party subject to a protective order protecting the first; and the whereabouts of one party when the department has reason to believe that releasing it may result in physical or emotional harm to that party. The last two keep a party’s location away from someone who may hurt them. The section was last amended in 2017.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can my ex get my address from Georgia child support services?

Not freely. Child support records are confidential and may be released only with the named party’s permission, by court order, or for purposes the article authorizes. The department must also set safeguards against disclosing one party’s whereabouts to another party who is subject to a protective order protecting the first, or when it has reason to believe release may cause physical or emotional harm.

Can my lawyer get copies of my child support case file from the department?

Yes. The department shall provide to an attorney representing an obligor, or an attorney representing an obligee, any documents that obligor or obligee would be entitled to request and receive from the child support enforcement agency. The lawyer’s access matches the client’s; it doesn’t open records the client couldn’t get.

Is it a crime to disclose child support records in Georgia?

Yes, when the disclosure violates this section. Information and records the department obtains under the article or Title IV-D are confidential, and any person who violates the section is guilty of a misdemeanor. Release is lawful only with permission of the parties named, by court order, or for purposes the article specifically authorizes.

Can a private child support collection company get my case documents?

Only under set conditions. The collector must meet the definition of a private child support collector in § 10-1-392, must have been hired by the obligee, and must act under a power of attorney the obligee signed. If those conditions are met, the department shall provide the documents the obligee would be entitled to request and receive from the agency.

How can child support records be released in Georgia?

In three ways: with the permission of the party or parties named in the information or records, by order of the court, or for purposes this article specifically authorizes. The section separately requires the department to give parents’ attorneys and qualifying private collectors the documents the parent could obtain. Any other release violates the section and is a misdemeanor.

Amendment History

Laws 1994, p. 1728, § 4; Laws 1997, p. 1613, § 29; Laws 2009, Act 344, § 5, eff. July 1, 2009; Laws 2017, Act 242, § 1-23, eff. July 1, 2017.

Source & verification. Section text and amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, enacted by the Georgia General Assembly, and checked word for word against the Georgia Code Revision Commission’s public-domain edition and the acts that later amended it. Section headings are the Code’s official catchlines. Last verified October 9, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: child support records confidential georgiadhs child support file requestprotect address child support casechild support case file attorney access