Original: January 25, 2019 // Updated: March 26, 2019
On March 28, 2019, Ohio will update its child support guidelines for the first time in 25 years. Many of the specifics are not yet finalized, but much of the framework has been established by the legislature through Ohio House Bill 366, which was signed into law in 2018.
If you are currently under a Child Support Order in the State of Ohio, you will want to keep track of the upcoming changes and figure out if obtaining a modification under the new laws will benefit you.
Key Changes to the Ohio Child Support Laws:
- Updates to the economic tables, changing the formulas for determining the amounts owed for support based on the parent’s incomes.
- Increases the $150,000 income “cap” that existed in the current tables up to $300,000 of combined income for calculating child support using the tables.
- Creates an automatic 10% reduction in the child support amount when the payor has a “standard parenting time order” (90 nights or more) and the payor is actually exercising the parenting time.
- In shared parenting cases with equal parenting time (over 147 nights), the court is required to explain why it is NOT granting a downward deviation from the child support guideline amount.
- Places a cap on the amount of child care expenses that will be incorporated into the child support order, determined by the age of each child and the number of children.
- Places limitations on when the court can impute income to a party when they are disabled
- Creates a standard income deduction for each child of the payor, treating each child equally even if they are under different child support orders. This eliminates the “first to file” advantage that existed when the payor was subject to more than one child support order.
- Creates a “self sufficiency reserve” that allows lower income individuals retain more cash in their household in order to allow them to support themselves after they have paid their child support obligation.
These changes are not automatic. In order to update your child support obligations under the new rules, you will need to file a motion to modify child support with the court or request a modification through CSEA.
[Want to know what your child support will be? We’ll calculate it for you. More information here. You can also download a DIY manual here.]
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOU:
1. Add March 28, 2018 to your calendar.
2. You will want to review the new guideline amounts or consult with an attorney to determine if the changes will benefit you.
3. If you will benefit from the changes, you will want to be ready to initiate the modification process as soon as the new rules take effect.
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