US Congress · H.R. 6903 · Passed the House

Ensuring Children Receive Support Act

Introduced

Moved

Reached a final decision

Introduced 2025-12-18

Derived from the official record below.

Officially: “Ensuring Children Receive Support Act” Read the full text

Families

What it does

Ensuring Children Receive Support Act This bill specifies that the Department of State must revoke passports for certain individuals who fail to make child support payments. Under current law, if the Office of Child Support Enforcement of the Department of Health and Human Services receives information from a state that an individual owes more than $2,500 in child support, the State Department must refuse to issue the individual a passport and may revoke a previously issued passport. The bill specifies that the State Department must revoke a previously issued passport in these circumstances. T

Summary by the Congressional Research Service, from the official record. Plain-language version below. Not legal advice.

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AI plain language2 sections

Written by AI from the complete official bill text and independently fact-checked against it. Not legal advice.

1Short title

This section would give the Act the short title "Ensuring Children Receive Support Act."

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Official text, verbatim from the record

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Ensuring Children Receive Support Act .

2Revocation of passports issued to individuals with a child support arrearage exceeding $2,500

This section would change section 452(k) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 652(k)), which governs how the Secretary of Health and Human Services certifies child support arrearages to the Secretary of State for passport actions. It would narrow the list of actions the certification covers so that it applies to denial or revocation of a passport, removing limitation as a listed action. It would also change the Secretary of State's power over a previously issued passport from a discretionary choice to revoke, restrict, or limit the passport into a mandatory duty to revoke the passport, and it would require the Secretary of State to notify the individual of the intent to take that action. Combined with a certification from the Secretary of Health and Human Services that an individual has a child support arrearage exceeding $2,500, this section would require the Secretary of State to revoke that individual's passport rather than merely being allowed to revoke, restrict, or limit it. Notwithstanding these changes, if the individual is abroad and needs to return to the United States on an emergency basis, the Department of State would be authorized to issue the individual a temporary passport for that purpose; the temporary passport would be valid only for the individual's return home and would be limited in duration.

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Official text, verbatim from the record

2. Revocation of passports issued to individuals with a child support arrearage exceeding $ 2,500 (a) In general Section 452(k) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 652(k)) is amended— (1) in paragraph (1), by striking , revocation, or limitation and inserting or revocation ; and (2) in paragraph (2)— (A) by striking may revoke, restrict, or limit and inserting revoke ; and (B) by inserting , and notify such individual of the intent to take such action before the period. (b) Exception Notwithstanding the amendments made by subsection (a), if an individual is abroad and needs to return to the United States on an emergency basis, the Department of State is authorized to issue a temporary passport for that purpose. That passport will be good only for the return home of the individuals and will be limited in duration.

AI plain languageRead the whole bill in plain language, 2 sections

Where it is

Introduced · 2025-12-18

In the House.

Passed the House · 2026-04-27

Senate floor vote · next · the next step

Official documents

Full bill textread it on this site, version rfs (Referred in Senate), as published by GovInfo

official

Congressional Budget Office cost estimatewhat it would cost, by the nonpartisan CBO

official

The on-site text is shown verbatim from the GovInfo publication, captured 2026-07-23. The same version at GovInfo.

The numbers

29%

of bills that passed one chamber became law in the 118th Congress, 2023 to 2024 (n=939)

sponsors, out of 218 needed to pass

Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record. Last action: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (2026-04-28).