By Elaine Hirsh, Guest Writer
For the first time in decades, state officials in Illinois are considering a major overhaul in the state's child support legislation. An advisory committee to the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services backs the overhaul, which aims to update and modernize the state's current child support laws.
Under current Illinois law, non-custodial parents pay a flat percentage based on his or her net income and the number of children who receive support. No special provisions exist based on custodial parents income, nor on the amount of time children spend with each parent. Some officials of the child support division of the Department of Healthcare and Family Services say this system is outdated and doesn't consider the circumstances of many modern families. Not only do criminology experts believe this current system incentivize for non-custodial parents to seek tax income loopholes, it is also unfair to the child who ends up receiving less financial support than if his/her parents had stayed together.
If passed into law, the changes will take into consideration the income of both parents involved, as well as how much time the child or children in question spend with each parent. The basic premise of the proposed system is that children will receive the same amount of financial support as they would have received had their parents not divorced or separated. Supporters of the overhaul claim these changes will be beneficial not only to the children, but to both custodial and non-custodial parents as well.
The proposed plan, which is already in place in 38 states, is based on an "income shares" system. The system will employ the use of an economic table which will outline the average cost of raising a child for nuclear families of various incomes. Unlike the current child support model, the income shares system will take into account both parents' incomes when calculating child support payments. Supports claim this will level the financial playing field for both parents, and can perhaps curtail child support disputes.
As reported in the Chicago Tribune, Margaret Stapleton, an attorney on the Illinois Child Support Advisory Committee, had this to say about the proposed child support model: "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." Stapleton, who backs the changes, went on to say, "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".
Those not in favor of the overhaul cite cost as a major factor in their decision. Advisory committee member and family law attorney, Joan Colen, calls the change unwarranted, and says that the costs to implement them would be far too drastic for such little change to the current system. Economic experts hired by the committee agree, saying child support payments wouldn't be altered enough to warrant a complete overhaul, the estimated costs of which are between two and three million dollars.
The advisory committee hopes to approach the General Assembly with its proposal by this spring. If the new system passes legislation, it will take at least two or three years for it to go into full effect.
About the Author:
Elaine Hirsch is kind of a jack-of-all-interests, from education and history to medicine and videogames. This makes it difficult to choose just one life path, so she is currently working as a writer for various education-related sites and writing about all these things instead. She is currently writer for an online PhD website.
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State attorneys are appealing a judge's order that favored five fathers who are targeting Georgia's practice of jailing parents who don't pay child support.
ReplyDeleteThe Georgia Attorney General's office on Monday filed a motion that said there's an "epidemic" of parents who fail to pay their child support. It said the men were jailed because of the "consequences of their own poor decision-making."
The five fathers claim in the lawsuit that jailing parents who can't afford to pay child support creates a modern day debtor's prison. They want to force Georgia to provide poor defendants with attorneys at child support hearings.
The men recently won a court battle when a judge allowed thousands of other parents who were imprisoned for failing to pay the child support join their lawsuit.
http://www.covnews.com/section/163/article/26166/
Of course IL wants to join the other 38 states that say "It doesn't matter what you make, we're going to charge you twice that any way."
ReplyDeleteHarrison
This system is so corrupt and the attorney's involved are scumbags.
ReplyDeleteOne thing that Illinois does not require is for the custodial parent to show any accountability - proof that the money they receive for support is actually being used FOR THE CHILD and not used for their own personal gain. With the way the non-custodial parents are treated by the outdated and unfair laws in this state, they deserve proof that their money is used exclusively for the child, and should be given that proof just as they are often required to show proof of what their income is.
ReplyDeleteThe idea that it is used for "everyday living expenses" of the custodial parent and child are nothing more than excuses for keeping this outdated system in place. For example: the custodial parent's mortgage would be the same every month whether the child lived there or not. And since the non-custodial parent must also pay for a place to live, it is unfair and ridiculous to make the non-custodial parent give money for what the law calls "the child's share" of the custodial parent's housing expences.
Another excuse used is that the child support given to the custodial parent is for the "child's share" of food costs. But then doesn't the non-custodial parent ALSO pay for food for the child during visitations? But the laws define anything the non-custodial parent provides as "gifts" and will not even consider them as a legitimate reason to lower the amount of support payments. Not even for food and clothing - basic needs of the child.
Illinois is also stuck on using a flat percentage of the non-custodial parent's income to calculate support payments. This also needs to change, especially in cases where the custodial parent has a higher income. Courts need to look at every case and evaluate the financial situations of both parents, instead of just using the same outdated generic formula every time.
All of these together are proof that the laws are unfairly biased against the non-custodial parents in this state, whether they are the fathers or the mothers. They will not waste any time in prosecuting you if you miss one support payment, but even if you follow the rules they are still not on your side if you are the non-custodial one. The current system is unfair, outdated, and it's disgusting. It needs to be changed.
Your not wrong Kevin, but what IL is planning is in a way just the opposite of what your saying. I've seen the combined income table used as a smoke screen more often than not. In most states with this system they have a time frame of years, so if you were making say $100,000 a year and in the last year made $15,000 and face divorce the courts would consider you under employed and base the CS on the $100,000 a year.
ReplyDeleteFurther more if the combined income is over a set amount ($5,000 a month my state) or below the poverty line the court can set CS as it sees fit and trust a custodial father when I say, seldom if ever is the scale tipped in the fathers favor.
IL is headed down an even worst road and it's all about the state making a profit on our kids at at least 100% or more.
When IL passes this new CS table the percentage of parents in arrears will climb, maybe not right off so they all can pat each other on the ass for a great job, but as soon as that is over (I'd give it 6 mo.). The numbers will take off and we're all aware of IL willingness to jail fathers for not being able to pay.
Harrison