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What is considered to be “gross income” for child support calculations? 

5/5/2015

 
4.  Welcome back!  This all sounds really easy, doesn't it?  Well, let's start to look at where the complications come into play.  The first complication is the question of this Lesson:  What is considered to be “gross income” for child support calculations? 

            Fortunately, KRS 403.212(2)(b) defines "gross income" for us, and it is not just what you would see on a W-2 form.  Let's take a look at the statute: 

            "Gross income" includes income from any source, except as excluded in this subsection, and includes but is not limited to income from salaries, wages, retirement and pension funds, commissions, bonuses, dividends, severance pay, pensions, interest, trust income, annuities, capital gains, Social Security benefits, workers' compensation benefits, unemployment insurance benefits, disability insurance benefits, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), gifts, prizes, and alimony or maintenance received. Specifically excluded are benefits received from means-tested public assistance programs, including but not limited to public assistance as defined under Title IV-A of the Federal Social Security Act, and food stamps.

             Can you see the room for interpretation here?

            Capital gains - what if Father sold the family business last year and had a big gain?  He makes $6,000 per month in salary, but had a capital gain of $600,000 last year.  Whoa!  Do we add in another $50,000 per month to his "monthly gross income"?

            Gifts - What about that $500 Mother's Aunt Gertrude has been giving the family every month?  Now she is mad at Father and says she is giving the $500 to Mother only.  Or, what if she has Mother sign a Promissory Note every time she "gives" her a $500 check?  She is worth millions, and the whole family knows she will never expect it to be paid back.  Or maybe she just quits giving them anything until the question of child support gets resolved.

            Supplemental Security Income - What about SSI benefits, which are federal benefits based on financial need?  Yes, they are included, but not means-tested public assistance programs such as Medicaid, TANF benefits (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families - formerly AFDC), and foodstamps.

            What about payments received by a child based on the disability of a parent? KRS 403.211(15) tells us that these payments are not counted as income for either parent, but are credited against the child support obligation, if any, of the disabled parent. 

            Alimony or maintenance?  Yes, for purposes of "gross income" in calculating child support in Kentucky, maintenance paid to a spouse is considered income to the recipient, and it is deductible to the payor.  We will talk about that further in Lesson 8.

             I may have asked more questions than provided answers in this Lesson, but trust me - there are many more questions about determining "gross income."  Use wisely any knowledge you gained in this Lesson!

 


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    Judge John Schrader is a Husband, a Father, and a Lexington Attorney providing legal and mediation services in the office of Sherrow, Sutherland & Associates, P.S.C.

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    CHILD SUPPORT TABLE OF CONTENTS
    1. Who is required to pay child support in Kentucky?
    Publish Date: April 29, 2015
    2. What do I do to obtain a Kentucky Child Support Order?

    Publish Date: April 29, 2015
    3. How is child support calculated under the guidelines?
    Publish Date: April 30, 2015
    4. What is considered “gross income” for child support calculations?
    Publish Date: May 5, 2015
    5. How do I find out what the other parent's income is?
    Publish Date: May 6, 2015
    6. What about income from self-employment or business income?
    Publish Date: May 7, 2015
    7. What if a parent is voluntarily unemployed or underemployed?
    Publish Date: May 13, 2015
    8. What if one parent is paying maintenance?
    Publish Date: May 13, 2015
    9. Is there an adjustment to a parent's "gross income" if he or she is supporting a prior-born
    child?

    Publish Date: May 13, 2015
    10. What happens in a split custody arrangement where Sissy lives with Mother and Jr. lives with Father?
    Publish Date: May 20, 2015
    11. When can a judge deviate from the child support “guidelines”?
    Publish Date: May 20, 2015
    12. When the parents' combined monthly adjusted gross income exceeds $15,000 per month, how is child support calculated?
    Publish Date: May 20, 2015
    13. How does Kentucky law deal with the big-ticket item of childcare expense?
    Publish Date: May 27, 2015
    14. Do parents have to maintain private health insurance for their child, and if so, who pays
    for it?

    Publish Date: May 27, 2015
    15. Who pays for deductibles and co-pays and how do we deal with extraordinary medical expenses not covered by the insurance?
    Publish Date: May 27, 2015
    16. How does a parent actually recover the proportionate share of extraordinary medical expenses from the other parent?
    Publish Date: June 3, 2015
    17. What if I find out the other parent has not been paying for childcare even though I have been paying for my share?
    Publish Date: June 3, 2015
    18. How do I get a modification of child support in Kentucky?
    Publish Date: June 3, 2015
    19. When does child support terminate?
    Publish Date: June 10, 2015
    20. Is a Wage Assignment Order required for child support in Kentucky?

    Publish Date: June 10, 2015
    21. What does the court do about child support when the child spends a considerable amount of time with both parents?
    Publish Date: June 10, 2015
    22. What is involved in collection of child support?
    Publish Date: June 17, 2015
    23. How does the law deal with enforcement of the child support order when my ex and I
    live in two different states?

    Publish Date: June 17, 2015
    24. If Kentucky does not have jurisdiction over the other parent of my child, what is the UIFSA process to deal with establishment, enforcement and modification of child support
    orders?

    Publish Date: June 17, 2015
    25. What about parents who were not husband and wife to each other when their child was
    born?

    Publish Date: June 24, 2015
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