It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

SECTION 1. Section 8-10-3.1 of the General Laws in Chapter 8-10 entitled "Family Court" is hereby amended to read as follows:

8-10-3.1. Masters -- Appointment, duties and powers. -- (a) The court may appoint masters to assist the court in the conduct of its business. A person appointed to serve as a master shall be a member of the bar of Rhode Island. The powers and duties of such masters shall be prescribed in the order appointing them.

(b) In addition, the chief judge of the family court may appoint masters to assist the court in the enforcement and implementation of chapter 11 of title 15, and to assist the family court in matters pertaining to hearings in accordance with section 8-10-4, chapter 1 of title 14, chapter 8 of title 15, chapter 11 of title 40, and chapter 5 of title 40.1. Said master will be empowered to hear all motions, pre-trial conferences, arraignments of juvenile offenders, probable cause hearings and review of all such matters including but not limited to the temporary placement, custody, disposition and adoption of children and the taking of testimony in conducting all hearings relative thereto.

(c) Such master shall serve at the pleasure of the chief judge and his or her powers and duties shall be prescribed in the order appointing him or her or in the rules of procedure of the family court. Such special master may be authorized:

(1) To regulate all proceedings before him or her;

(2) To do all acts and take all measures necessary or proper for the efficient performance of his or her duties;

(3) To require the production before him or her of books, papers, vouchers, documents and writings;

(4) To rule upon the admissibility of evidence;

(5) To issue subpoenas for the appearance of witnesses, to put witnesses on oath, to examine them and to call parties to the proceeding and examine them upon oath;

(6) To adjudicate a person in contempt and to order him or her imprisoned for not more than seventy-two (72) hours, pending review by a justice of the court, for failure to appear in response to a summons or for refusal to answer questions or produce evidence or for behavior disrupting a proceeding;

(7) To adjudicate a party in contempt and to order him or her imprisoned for not more than seventy-two hours (72), pending review by a justice of the court, for failure to comply with a pending order to provide support or to perform any other act;

(8) To issue a capias and/or body attachment upon the failure of a party or witness to appear after having been properly served and, should the family court not be in session the person apprehended may be detained at the adult correctional institution, if an adult, or at the Rhode Island training school for youth, if a child, until the next session of said family court.

(d) A party aggrieved by an order entered by a master shall be entitled to a review of the order by a justice of the family court. Unless otherwise provided in the rules of procedure of the family court, such review shall be on the record and appellate in nature. The family court shall, by rules of procedure, establish procedures for review of orders entered by a master, and for enforcement of contempt adjudications of a master.

(e) Final orders of the family court entered in a proceeding to review an order of a master may be appealed to the supreme court.

(f) Such masters shall be empowered to hear de novo all applications for income withholding pursuant to chapter 16 of title 15 and appeals of administrative agency orders of the department of human services to withhold income under chapter 16 of title 15 entitled "Income Withholding".

(g) Such masters shall be empowered to hear all matters relating to the revocation or nonrenewal of a license of an obligor due to noncompliance with a court order of support, in accordance with chapter 11.1 of title 15 of the general laws.

{ADD (h) Such masters may be authorized by the chief judge to hear those matters on the domestic abuse prevention calendar and the nominal calendar. ADD}

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.