Comparing income-shares and percentage-of-income child support guidelines. (January 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Cancian, Maria; Costanzo, Molly A.
• Is Part Of: Children and youth services review. Volume 96(2019)
• Page Start: 451
• Page End: 462
• Publication Date: 2019-01
• Subjects: Child support -- Child support policy -- Child support guidelines -- Income-shares -- Percentage-of-income; Social work with children -- Periodicals; Social work with youth -- Periodicals; Adolescent -- Periodicals; Child Welfare -- Periodicals; Social Work -- Periodicals; Service social aux enfants -- Périodiques; Service social à la jeunesse -- Périodiques; Electronic journals; 362.705
• DOI: 10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.12.011
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0190-7409

Abstract

Abstract: Child support guidelines are one of the most explicit, and consequential, public articulations of parents' obligations to their biological children. States must weigh a variety of policy tradeoffs, including issues of equity, transparency, and simplicity. Many states are shifting to "income-shares" guidelines models from "percentage-of-income" models, citing a perceived increase in equity and flexibility. Given additional complexities in implementing the income-shares model, we ask how often, and for whom, alternative guidelines yield substantially different child support orders. We use state administrative data on matched pairs of divorcing parents to simulate expected order amounts for each type of guideline. We find that, despite substantial differences in the information required to implement alternative models, for most families, adopting a different model would result in only modest changes in the amount of child support due. However, in some instances a different model would result in large changes, particularly for relatively low-income fathers. Highlights: Many states are shifting to 'income-shares" child support guidelines models. For most families, alternate models result in only modestly different order amounts. Relatively low-income fathers could see the largest changes in orders. Other decisions drive differences (e.g., shape and level of the guideline).