New Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines

In Massachusetts, a judge of the Probate and Family Court determines child custody and support. Child support is typically paid from a non-custodial parent to a custodial parent; the amount of support is determined by the Court’s child support guidelines. New child support guidelines have taken effect January 1, 2009.

The court considers income as any gross income from any source, regardless of whether the income is recognized or reported to the IRS or Massachusetts Department of Revenue (or any other state taxing agency). Income includes obvious sources, such as salary, commissions, severance pay, and bonuses, and the new guidelines incorporate Social Security benefits (excluding a benefit for a child’s own disability), military pay, and distributions from trusts.

The new guidelines will address instances where a party obtains a second job or begins working overtime in order to pay the child support. If a party had neither the second job nor the overtime prior to the child support order, then there is a presumption that the job or the overtime “should not be considered in a future support order.” It seems the court wants to deter petitions for increases in child support where a parent obtains this new income to pay child support.

Another notable change is that an obligation to a former spouse or child will be deducted before calculating the order for the subsequent child, regardless of whether an actual court order exists. The current guidelines only deduct for court-ordered child support, and do not account for voluntary obligations to pay support..

The current guidelines apply to parties whose gross annual income does not exceed $135,000, or where the non-custodial parent’s income does not exceed $100,000. If family income exceeds this cap, then the amount of child support is considered the minimum presumptive order; a court can award additional support in its own discretion. The new support guidelines will apply to parents whose gross annual income does not exceed $250,000. Apparently, the Probate and Family Court has decided to do away with the cap on the non-custodial parent’s income.

The new guidelines also presume that a child will live with one parent, but that the child will spend about one-third of the time with the non-custodial parent. If a child splits time on a 50-50 basis, the new guidelines instruct the court to calculate support twice, first with one parent as the recipient, and second with the other parent as the recipient. The difference in the calculations must be paid to the parent with the lower weekly child support amount.

The new guidelines contain two completely new sections on modification and deviation. Under the new guidelines a court can modify a child support order if: (1) the existing order is at least three years old; (2) health insurance that was once available at reasonable costs is no longer available; (3) health insurance not previously available at a reasonable cost has become available; or (4) any other “material change” in circumstances has occurred.

Parties to a divorce may agree to deviate from the Probate and Family Court’s guidelines, but only if a court permits the deviation. For example, if a child has special needs or extraordinary medical expenses, or the other party is in jail.

These new guidelines are effective for all child support orders entered after January 1, 2009, and, in general, may be applied to current child support orders that are more than three years old. Orders that are less than three years old can only be modified under limited circumstances.

If you have questions about how the new child support guidelines might affect you, phone Parker Scheer LLP to speak with an experienced Massachusetts child support lawyer, seven days a week, toll free at 866-414-0400. There is no fee charged to discuss your case. All information furnished will be kept strictly confidential.