The following three articles discuss Minnesota's new child support payment structure, signed into law by Gov. Tim Pawlenty during the first week of June, 2005.

• A new equation on child support, Star Tribune (June 13, 2005)
• Child-support law would change parents' payments, St. Paul Pioneer Press (June 2, 2005)
• Child support payment structure likely to change, KARE 11 News (May 26, 2005)

A new equation on child support

Star Tribune
Jean Hopfensperger
June 13, 2005

Attention, divorced mothers and fathers -- or those considering a split. Gov. Tim Pawlenty recently signed into law an overhaul of the state's child support formula -- and it could affect you.

For the first time, the formula will consider the incomes of both parents -- not just the child support payer. The new law gives financial breaks for parenting time and for children from other marriages. Depending on whom you talk to, the new law either makes the formula more fair or continues to let deadbeat parents off the hook.

Here's what you need to know; the answers were provided by legislators and divorce attorneys.

Who will be affected by the new law?
Every Minnesota couple with a child support order will use this formula. And parents of the roughly 265,000 kids now getting child support will be eligible to seek modifications.

What's the difference between the old formula and the new one?
For decades, child support was based on the net income of noncustodial parents, typically the fathers, and the number of children. For example, a noncustodial parent with a net monthly income between $1,001 and $6,700 would pay 25 percent for one child, 30 percent for two children and 35 percent for three. The new law looks at the gross incomes of both parents. It considers the cost of raising children, divides it based on the parents' relative income, and then makes some adjustments for parenting time and for the lowest-income noncustodial parents.

Will I get more or less child support?
Custodial parents, typically mothers, with one child are likely to get less money, especially if they're working. Custodial parents with two or more children are likely to get slightly more support, especially if the noncustodial parent earns a lot more money than they do. Custodial parents who earn as much as their former spouse -- or more -- are likely to get less. But these are general estimates, and each individual case may differ.

When does the new law kick in?
January 2007. The state must first reprogram the computer system that manages child support for 265,000 kids in Minnesota , as well as train state and county staff. It also needs to create a web-based calculator for parents to use.

The first year, mainly parents getting new child support orders will go through the system. In 2008, most parents can seek modifications in their existing orders.

What will the law do about deadbeat parents?
Nothing. This law is about the formula for calculating child support. The hope is that noncustodial parents will see the formula as more fair and therefore be more willing to pay support.

Do noncustodial parents get a break for parenting time?
Yes. If the child is with them between 10 percent and 45 percent of the time, noncustodial parents automatically get a 12 percent cut in support payments. If each parent has 45 percent or more of the child's time, support will be reduced further, based on the incomes of both parents.

Under the old system, only parents with joint physical custody were eligible for a financial break.

Will the law affect alimony payments?
No.

Won't this clog up the courts, which already are overloaded with child support cases?
Ten new child support magistrates would be hired under this law. The legislation's authors hope that by starting out with just new cases, the courts would face a more gradual transition.

If both incomes are supposed to be considered, what about custodial parents who don't work -- or refuse to work?
For the first time, their income could be "imputed" -- meaning a judge who finds that a parent is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed can determine his/her "potential income" for calculating child support. Potential income is based on past work history or 1.5 times the minimum wage.

What do mothers' rights groups think about this law?
The groups argue the new law helps noncustodial fathers far more than custodial mothers. They don't like the financial breaks for parenting time or for second families, for example. And the bill does nothing about what they consider the biggest child support problem, namely getting deadbeat parents to pay.

They also worry that mothers who are custodial parents will be financially penalized for working hard and trying to make a better life for their children, because if they earn more than their husbands, they could lose or lessen their support.

What do fathers' rights groups think?
They support the use of both parents' incomes when determining child support. And they agree that noncustodial parents should get breaks if they have other children by another partner. But many want a bigger financial break for the time they spend with their children and the households they keep for the kids. And many want penalties for custodial parents who refuse to work. They've also argued for tighter controls on how child support is used.

Why change the formula?
Minnesota was one of 11 states that didn't consider both parents' incomes. Child support frequently got bogged down in disputes over financial breaks for parenting time. Also, the old formula was based on net income, which allowed noncustodial parents to deduct pretax expenses such as a 401(k)s before calculating support.

Where can I get more information?
Go to www.senate.leg.state.mn . In the "legislation" tab on the left, type in "SF 630" for the full legislation and a summary.

Jean Hopfensperger is at hopfen@startribune.com .

ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS
June 2, 2005

ST. PAUL - In the final hours of this year's legislative session, lawmakers passed a dramatic rewriting of Minnesota's child-support policies. Unlike the law that has been in place for decades, the new system would calculate support payments based on the income of both parents -- the parent with custody and the parent without. The old system based payments just on the income of the parent without child custody.

The bill, which was passed May 23 on the last day of the Legislature's regular session, is expected to be signed Friday [June 3, 2005] by Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

Advocates for parents on both sides of divorce proceedings have long pushed for changes in the support system but neither side of the debate says they are completely satisfied with what lawmakers did. Still, state officials say, the measure would create a fairer system and makes significant improvement in the method for calculating the payments upon which nearly 300,000 Minnesota children depend.

"I really am optimistic that these will be perceived as fair," said Sen. Tom Neuville, R-Northfield, the Senate sponsor of the measure.

Molly Olson certainly doesn't perceive the new guidelines that way. She is the volunteer executive director of the Center for Parental Responsibility, which mostly represents noncustodial parents. It gives, she said, "false hope to the general public by saying the bill is more fair. It is not going to be more fair.... It's like a mythical marketing line."

Jen Peterson, founder of the Minnesota chapter of Association for Children for Enforcement of Support, which mostly represents custodial parents, agrees the new system isn't hugely better than what's now in place. "It doesn't make it fairer because it's basically treating the custodial parent as if they are not already paying a whole lot of money for the kids," Peterson said.

Because it would take into account both parents' income, she said the new policy might decrease the incentive for parents to earn more money to take care of the children's basic needs. If a parent earns less money, under the new system, the parent also would have to pay less money for the children.

Neuville, an attorney who deals with family law, said those negative opinions may be outliers. "Two-thirds of the people are pleased and the rest of the them aren't," he said.

While the measure -- which would go into effect in January -- does include a major overhaul of how child support will be calculated, unlike some proposals over the past few years, the policy may not create major changes in the amount of the child-support payments.

Generally, people paying child support for one child will pay a bit less than they are now and those paying for more than one will pay a bit more. If both parents earn the same amount of money, then the noncustodial parents may pay a bit less than they are now. Kevin Hoppe, an Oak Grove well digger who pays child support for three children, says he'll see only about a $30 monthly decrease in his payments. His ex-wife, he said, earns more than he does. "My personal situation is not going to change hardly at all.... I'm paying about $990 now and it goes down to $960 and they are calling that reform," Hoppe said.

Hoppe also is concerned that the new policy bases payment on the parents' gross income. The current guidelines are based on net income. That change makes it easier for state officials and judges to find the income upon which to base the payments and may also make it harder for parents to "hide" some of their income by opting to invest more money in a retirement account or through tax gimmicks.

"I personally like it because it is much easier for us in a public agency to figure out what a gross income is as opposed to a net income," said Wayland Campbell, director of the child support enforcement division at the Department of Human Services.

But Hoppe says the new policy won't take into account his own needs. "Wait a minute here. What's left for me to live on?" he asked.

The new policy, unlike the old, would ensure that noncustodial parents aren't child-supporting themselves into poverty. The support-paying parent would be allowed to keep at least 120 percent of the federal poverty guideline for one person, about $11,000 a year, before paying child support.

According to Neuville and others, the new system would also:

• Allocate child care and medical support based on the income of each of the parents and define what appropriate medical coverage is for the children.

• Increase divorce filing fees by $50 and child-support modification fees by $35.

• Grant parents a "parenting expense adjustment," essentially a 12 percent reduction on payments if they spend a certain amount of time with the children.

• Reduce the noncustodial parents' payments if they care for subsequent children.

• Presume that both parents are entitled to have custody of their children 25 percent of the time.

• Require the Department of Human Services to develop a Web-based child-support calculator.

For all the sweep of the new policy, the measure would not -- and could not -- soothe all the hurt feelings and harmful fights that come when parents separate, say people involved. "The change in this law, I hope, will create a little bit less conflict," Neuville said. But, he added, "there still will be deadbeat dads; there still will be unreasonable moms." And there still will be fights over the issue. That's simply the nature of the child-support business, said Campbell, who has worked in child support for decades. "What is too high for one person is too low to the other person."

This information is posted for nonprofit educational purposes.