Could Louisiana suspend a dentist's license for unpaid child support without a separate dental-board hearing?

Plain-English summary

The Louisiana State Board of Dentistry asked whether it could immediately suspend a license after receiving a child-support noncompliance certification without denying the licensee due process. In Opinion 03-0243, the AG said the statutory process met due process when the Department of Social Services had given notice and an opportunity to object before suspension. A timely written objection required the department to hold an administrative hearing to determine compliance with the support order.

The opinion explained the process in stages: delinquency notice to the person owing support, a 20-day period to request a hearing, an administrative hearing after a timely objection, and then licensing-authority suspension after a certification of noncompliance. It also identified limited circumstances involving specified final judgments in which the ordinary delinquency notice was not required. Where the child-support provisions conflicted with earlier dental-licensing and administrative-procedure statutes, the AG treated the later child-support enactments as controlling.

Currency note

This opinion is dated July 30, 2003. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

What the opinion meant at issuance

License holders with support orders

The AG relied on notice and the chance to object before suspension. It said a timely objection triggered a department hearing limited to whether the person was complying with the support order, subject to the judgment-based notice exceptions described in the opinion.

Dentistry board and child-support department

The opinion treated the dental board as a licensing authority under the child-support suspension scheme. It said the department had to conduct the hearing after a timely objection and that the licensing authority then acted on a noncompliance certification under the statute.

Common questions

Q: Did a dentist have a chance to challenge the child-support delinquency before suspension? A: The opinion said the ordinary process provided notice and a 20-day opportunity for a written objection. A timely objection required an administrative hearing on compliance.

Q: Was the dentistry board required to conduct that hearing itself? A: The AG said the Department of Social Services had to conduct the hearing after a timely objection; the board's role was as the licensing authority receiving the certification.

Q: Did every case require the same preliminary delinquency notice? A: No. The opinion described exceptions for specified final judgments ordering suspension or finding criminal neglect of family.

Q: Which rules controlled if the child-support procedure conflicted with older licensing law? A: The AG read the later child-support statutes as superseding conflicting earlier provisions of the dental and administrative-procedure laws.

Background and statutory framework

La.R.S. 9:315.41 governed delinquency notice; La.R.S. 9:315.42 allowed a written objection; La.R.S. 9:315.43 governed the resulting hearing; and La.R.S. 9:315.45 required licensing-authority action after noncompliance certification. The opinion compared those later enactments with the Dental Practice Act and Administrative Procedure Act and addressed their order of application where provisions conflicted.

Citations and references

Statutes quoted or cited: La.R.S. 9:315.41; La.R.S. 9:315.42; La.R.S. 9:315.43; La.R.S. 9:315.45.

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/03-0243

Original opinion text

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
One American Place

c~v,L o,v,s,oN
301 Main Street, Suite 600
P.O. Box 94005
BATON ROUGE
TEL.: (225) 342-7013
FAX: (225) 342-2090
RICHARD P. IEYOUI~
70804-9005
ATTORNEY GENERAL

JUL 3 0 ZO03
OPINION NUMBER 03-0243
1 Administrative Procedure Act
19-B Dentistry
63-B Licensing - for professions and occupations

It is the opinion of this office that the requirements of due process are met when the Department of Social Services has given the obligor notice of child support delinquency and of the intent to suspend his
Brian M. Begue, Counsel
license(s). Additionally, the due process requirements are met when
the obligor has been given opportunity (i.e., the obligor may file a Louisiana State Board of Dentistry wdtten objection within twenty (20) days following receipt of the notice
2127 Dauphine St.
of child support delinquency) to file and has filed a timely objection
requesting an administrative headng. See La.R.S. 9:315.41; La.R.S.
New Orleans, LA 70116
9:315.42; La.R.S. 9:315.43. When the department receives a timely
written objection, it is then legally mandated to conduct a headng for the sole purpose of determining whether the obligor is in compliance.
Mr. Begue:

This office is in receipt of your recent opinion request in which you present the following issue for our review: whether the immediate suspension of a license issued to a person by the Louisiana State Board of Dentistry as mandated by Title 9 denies the individual due process of law.

La.R.S. 9:315.45 provides the applicable laws relative to the suspension of Louisiana licenses for failure to pay child support. La.R.S. 9:315.45(A) states, in pertinent part, that

"within thirty days after receipt of a certification of noncompliance from the department, the licensing authority shall suspend the license of all licensees named therein and notify each licensee that his license has been suspended because of noncompliance with an order of support."

The licensing authority shall specify a date of suspension, which date shall be within thirty days from the licensing authority’s receipt of the order of suspension. La.R.S.
9:315.45(B). It (the licensing authority) shall then promptly issue a notice of suspension informing the licensee of all the following: (1) his license has been suspended by administrative order for noncompliance with an order of support, including a copy of the certification of nonsupport; (2) the effective date of the suspension; (3) to apply for reinstatement, the obligor must obtain a compliance release from the department; and (4) any other information prescribed by the licensing authority. La.R.S. 9:315.33(B).
"Department" for the purposes of La.R.S. 9:315.45 means the Department of Social Services, office of family support. "License" is defined, in pertinent part, as any license, certification, registration, permit, approval, or other similar document evidencing admission to or granting authority for engaging in a profession, occupation, business, or industry. La.R.S. 9:315.45(4)(a). The "licensing authority" is any state board,

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Opinion No. 03-0243
Brian M. Begue, Counsel
Louisiana State Board of Dentistry
Page: -3-

commission, department, agency, officer, or other entity, which issues, authorizes, or otherwise regulates licenses.

The department may send by certified mail, return receipt requested, a notice of child support delinquency to an obligor who is not in compliance with an order of support informing the obligor of the department’s intention to submit his name to the licensing authority for suspension of his license. La.R.S. 9:315.41(A). If the obligor holds multiple licenses, the department may issue a single notice of its intention to submit multiple suspensions. La.R.S. 9:315.41(A). A notice of child support delinquency shall include all of the following: (1) a summary of the obligor’s right to file a written objection to the suspension of his license, including the time within which such objection must be filed and the address where the objection must be filed; (2) a brief description of the administrative hearing and the location of such hearing if the obligor timely files a written objection; (3) the municipal address and telephone number of the department that issued the notice of child support delinquency; (4) the docket number and court which issued the order of support; (5) a statement of the amount of past-due support; and (6) a brief summary of what the obligor must do to come into compliance or to forestall the suspension. La.R.S. 9:315.41(B). Within twenty days of receiving the notice of child support delinquency, the obligor may file a written objection with the department requesting an administrative hearing for the purposes of determining whether the obligor is in compliance with an order of support. La.R.S. 9:315.42(A). Upon receipt of a timely written objection, the department shall conduct an administrative hearing in accordance with the Louisiana Administrative Procedure Act. La.R.S. 9:315.43.

There are certain exceptions with respect to the requisite notice of child support delinquency given to obligors pursuant to La.R.S. 9:315.41. Particularly, when the department receives a certified copy of a final judgment to make executory past-due payments under a child support award and the judgment specifically provides for the suspension or revocation of the obligor’s license or when the department receives a certified copy of a final judgment or order finding the obligor to be in violation of La.R.S. 14:74, criminal neglect of family, the obligor is not entitled to notice of child support delinquency.

It is the opinion of this office that the requirements of due process are met when the Department of Social Services has given the obligor notice of child support delinquency and of the intent to suspend his license(s). Additionally, the due process requirements are met when the obligor has been given opportunity (i.e., the obligor may file a written objection within twenty (20) days following receipt of the notice of child support delinquency) to file and has filed a timely objection requesting an administrative hearing. See La.R.S. 9:315.41; La.R.S. 9:315.42; La.R.S. 9:315.43. When the department receives a timely written objection, it is then legally mandated to conduct a hearing for the sole purpose of determining whether the obligor is in compliance.

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Opinion No. 03-0243
Brian M. Begue, Counsel
Louisiana State Board of Dentistry
Page: -4-

La.R.S. 37:751 et seq, The Louisiana Dental Practice Act and La.R.S. 49:951 et seq, The Louisiana Administrative Procedure Act, were enacted by the legislature in 1940 and 1966 respectively. Later in 1995, the legislature enacted La.R.S. 9:315.41, La.R.S. 9:315.42, and La.R.S. 9:315.43, which govern the administrative suspension of licenses for nonpayment of child support. The enactment of these laws in 1995 represents the latest expression of the legislative will. Particularly, the legislature intended that every license issued pursuant to the statutory authority granted to state agencies, boards, commissions, departments, or other entities, be subject to suspension for failure to make child support payments. Titles 9, 37, and 49 may be read in relation to one another where appropriate. However, where the provisions contained therein may not be reconciled, the legislature intends for its most recent enactments to supersede any of its prior enactments. Therefore, this office opines that the provisions in Title 9 supersede those contained in Titles 37 and 49.

If you need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact this office.

Very truly yours,

RICHARD P. IEYOUB
ATTORNEY GENERAL

CHARLES H. BRAUD,
Assistant Attorney General

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