Illinois Child Support May Change

Illinois may alter child support formula 'Income shares' method would consider both parents' incomes, time with child December 30, 2011|By Bill Ruthhart, Chicago Tribune reporterState officials for the first time in decades are pushing a major overhaul of a system that touches one of the most volatile of all family issues: how child support is calculated. The move aims at making the process fairer by considering both parents' incomes and time spent with the child, but some advocates already are arguing to change — or scrap — the new proposal, which won't be finalized until next spring. Ads by Google IL Grandparent Visitation Learn about Grandparent Visitation from the attorney who wrote the law www.goldberglawoffice.comAmicable Divorce Friendly and uncontested divorces. Contact us for a consultation. www.connifflaw.comHow to Stop Your Divorce. There are 7 Secrets. Get them Free. "I suggest you read this..." www.MarriageMax.com/Free-HelpPell Grants For Mothers Improve Your Life. Moms May Qualify For Grants To Start School Online. schools.classesandcareers.com If Illinois switches the calculation, it would join 38 other states that already have adopted versions of what's known as the "income shares" formula. "Parents, both mothers and fathers, have talked a lot about making the establishment of child support a more transparent process," said Pam Lowery, director of the state's Division of Child Support Services. "That's exactly what the income shares model does. It's very fair." Currently, Illinois and nine other states use a "percentage of income" formula, which calculates child support by taking a flat percentage of the noncustodial parent's net income, based on the number of children he or she supports. It's time to modify the current formula, which dates to the 1980s and doesn't consider the realities of many modern families, say officials with the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, its child support division and most family law experts it appoints to evaluate the state's system. The current model, Lowery said, includes outdated "buried assumptions," such as both parents having roughly the same income and not recognizing cases where a child splits time between parents. Incorporating those realities, the proposed income shares model doesn't assign flat percentages for support payments, but instead calls for children to receive the same amount as they would have had had the parents stayed together. The new formula would use an economic table listing the average costs to raise a child for intact families of various incomes. The formula considers each parent's income and assigns a percentage of total cost from the table based on how much each parent earns. The result, proponents argue, evenly weighs the financial footing of both parents and aims to curtail often-bitter disputes. "The biggest reason for moving to an income shares model is that it will be perceived by both mothers and fathers as fair to all," said Margaret Stapleton, an attorney on the Illinois Child Support Advisory Committee, which has backed the change. "People will see the baseline is what this child needs, what Parent A has and what Parent B has. I think people will see that as fairer." Critic cites cost of switch The advisory committee, required by statute to review the state's system, voted 12-3 a year ago to study how best to switch formulas. With much of that work complete, it is waiting for an economist to complete the financial tables that would drive support payments under the new model. Reduce Your Child Support Step By Step Instruction On How To Reduce Your Child Support Payment. www.LowerChildSupportPayment.com With that work expected to be finished this spring, the committee hopes to move forward with its formal proposal to the General Assembly. If lawmakers adopt a change in 2012, it likely wouldn't take effect for two or three years — allowing time to update computer systems and for training, Lowery said. Although a change may be several years away, that hasn't tempered arguments over the proposed model. Joan Colen, a Chicago family law attorney on the advisory committee, voted against the new formula, calling the switch unwarranted. Experts consulted by the committee concluded support payments would not be altered dramatically under the formula, which will be "extremely expensive" to implement, Colen said. "So, I keep asking, 'Why are we doing this?' I've yet to hear a satisfactory answer," she said. "The only one I've heard is that this will give the appearance of being fairer. In light of the significant cost, I don't find that to be adequate." Lowery said changing the calculation is estimated to cost between $2 million and $3 million, but she said that cost will be spread over multiple years and two-thirds of it will be covered by federal funding. There are more than 740,000 child support cases in Illinois, according to rough estimates based on state figures. For parents in the current system, it's unlikely their payments would be re-calculated under the new formula — unless a parent could show the model or other circumstances would lead to a significant adjustment in payments that would warrant review by a judge, Lowery said. An example, she said, would be if the custodial parent made a significantly larger salary than the noncustodial parent. "For people already in the system, it won't make a lot of difference," Lowery said. "For people coming through it new, they will start off with a different perception, and I think that will help make stronger families." 40 percent threshold