Enforcement of money judgments: exemptions.

(1) Existing law authorizes a judgment creditor to levy upon the property of a judgment debtor to satisfy a judgment, and authorizes the judgment debtor to claim that certain property is exempt from the levy by following a specified procedure. Existing law authorizes a claimant to assert an exemption by filing a claim of exemption with the levying officer within 10 days after the date the notice of levy on the property claimed to be exempt is served on the judgment debtor. Existing law authorizes a judgment creditor who opposes a claim of exemption to file a notice of opposition to the claim and a notice of motion for an order determining the claim within 10 days after service of the notice of claim of exemption. This bill would authorize a claimant to file a claim of exemption with the levying officer either in person or by mail and would specify that the period for filing the claim is 15 days if the judgment debtor is personally served with a notice of levy on the property claimed to be exempt, and 20 days if the claimant is served with notice by mail. The bill would deem the filing by mail complete on the date the claim is postmarked if the mailing is assigned a tracking number. If the mailing is not assigned a tracking number, the bill would deem the filing by mail complete on the date the claim is received by the levying officer. The bill would extend the period of time in which a judgment creditor may give notice of opposition to a claim of exemption to 15 days after service of the notice of claim of exemption. These provisions of the bill would become operative on September 1, 2020. (2) Existing law authorizes a judgment creditor to levy upon the earnings of a judgment debtor through specified wage garnishment procedures, and specifies the maximum amount of a judgment debtor's disposable earnings, as defined, that are subject to that garnishment. Existing law specifies certain property of a judgment debtor as exempt, including 75% of paid earnings of an employee that can be traced into deposit accounts or in the form of cash or its equivalent if prior to payment to the employee those earnings were not subject to an earnings withholding order or an earnings assignment order for support. This bill would instead, in the case of paid earnings that were not subject to an earnings withholding order or an earnings assignment order for support prior to payment to the employee, specify that disposable earnings that would otherwise not be subject to levy under the wage garnishment procedures described above are exempt. The bill would exempt from levy money provided to the judgment debtor by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. With certain enumerated exceptions, the bill would exempt from a levy money in a judgment debtor's deposit account in an amount equal to or less than the minimum basic standard of adequate care for a family of four, as specified. The bill would require a levy against a judgment debtor's deposit account to include a description of these requirements. The bill would also exempt from a levy money in a judgment debtor's deposit account that is not otherwise exempt under these provisions to the extent that money is necessary for the support of the judgment debtor and the spouse and dependents of the judgment debtor. This bill would require the Judicial Council to amend or adopt necessary forms. These provisions of the bill would become operative on September 1, 2020.