CHILD SUPPORT
Who Pays
The parent who has the right to establish the primary residence of the child is called the “primary conservator”. The parent who is not the primary conservator is expected to pay child support to the primary conservator based upon his or her ability to pay. If mom has primary custody of the kids, then dad is going to be ordered to pay child support to mom. If grandparents have custody of the kids, then both mom and dad are going to be ordered to pay child support to the grandparents.
Texas Standard Guidelines
The Texas Family Code says that the amount of child support that a parent pays is calculated as percentage of the parent’s net resources according to how many children are being supported as follows:
| One Child | 20% |
| Two Children | 25% |
| Three Children | 30% |
| Four Children | 35% |
| Five or More Children | 40% |
Net Resources
A person’s “resources” are generally all income from whatever sources, including bonuses, overtime, social security benefits, severance pay, gifts and prizes, etc. From that total amount is deducted only:
| - | Social security taxes |
| - | Federal income tax based on the tax rate for a single person claiming one personal exemption and the standard deductions |
| - | State Income Tax |
| - | Union dues; and |
| - | Cost of health insurance coverage for the child[ren] |
So, you add up all income from whatever sources, subtract the items listed above for the entire year, divide it by 12 and you get the monthly net resources that you multiply by the percentage for the number of children. The income of a spouse is not counted in computing net resources.
The Attorney General of the State of Texas has a tax chart for each year that computes how much your net resources are.
The Texas Standard Guidelines only provide guidance to the court up to a maximum obligor’s monthly net resources of $7,500 (as of 2007). If the obligor earns more than $7,500 per month net, it will be up to the court to decide how much he or she should pay beyond the standard guidelines.
Withholding From Salary
At the time the court enters the final order on your case, the court will also enter an Employer’s Order of Withholding. The withholding order is an order to the employer to withhold from the parent’s salary the amount of child support ordered each month and send it to the State Disbursement Unit in San Antonio. The Unit will then send the money to the parent who is supposed to receive it. The child support can be directly deposited into the bank account of the recipient if the proper form is sent to the Unit.
When Does Child Support End
The obligation to support a child ends when the child graduates from an “accredited school” (high school) or turns 18, whichever occurs last. A parent is not obligated to support a child through college unless he or she agrees to it. The obligation may continue after graduation or the 18th birthday if the child is disabled.
Health Insurance
The parent paying child support is also expected to carry health insurance on all the children at his or her expense in addition to paying child support. If the other parent has a better health policy, the parents can agree that the obligee can carry the health insurance and the obligor can reimburse him or her each month for the cost of the premium. The parties usually divided all uninsured health care costs of the children equally.
Other Factors
The court may order periodic child support payments in an amount other than that established by the guidelines if the evidence rebuts the presumption that application of the guidelines is in the best interest of the child and justifies a variance from the guidelines. In determining whether application of the guidelines would be unjust or inappropriate under the circumstances, the court shall consider evidence of all relevant factors, including:
| (1) | the age and needs of the child; |
| (2) | the ability of the parents to contribute to the support of the child; |
| (3) | any financial resources available for the support of the child; |
| (4) | the amount of time of possession of and access to a child; |
| (5) | the amount of the obligee's net resources, including the earning potential of the obligee if the actual income of the obligee is significantly less than what the obligee could earn because the obligee is intentionally unemployed or underemployed and including an increase or decrease in the income of the obligee or income that may be attributed to the property and assets of the obligee; |
| (6) | child care expenses incurred by either party in order to maintain gainful employment; |
| (7) | whether either party has the managing conservatorship or actual physical custody of another child; |
| (8) | the amount of alimony or spousal maintenance actually and currently being paid or received by a party; |
| (9) | the expenses for a son or daughter for education beyond secondary school; |
| (10) | hether the obligor or obligee has an automobile, housing, or other benefits furnished by his or her employer, another person, or a business entity; |
| (11) | the amount of other deductions from the wage or salary income and from other compensation for personal services of the parties; |
| (12) | provision for health care insurance and payment of uninsured medical expenses; |
| (13) | special or extraordinary educational, health care, or other expenses of the parties or of the child; |
| (14) | the cost of travel in order to exercise possession of and access to a child; |
| (15) | positive or negative cash flow from any real and personal property and assets, including a business and investments; |
| (16) | debts or debt service assumed by either party; and |
| (17) | any other reason consistent with the best interest of the child, taking into consideration the circumstances of the parents. |