CA Child Support + Health Insurance

[jhuddleston73]

Okay, let's say hypothetically I have an order for $500/mo child support, plus CA ordered my employer to enroll my 2 children in my health insurance plan, which costs me an additional $300/mo. This brings the total to $800/mo. The current guidelines say, based on my income, plus a hardship deduction for the 2 children with my current wife, that my monthly support amount should be $458.

Does CA count the money you pay in monthly premiums for insurance as part of your required support, or do they require you to pay the full amount PLUS whatever your insurance costs?

I am paying full amount plus health insurance, I have 2 children with me, and because of this additional amount we cannot pay our bills, we have lost all means of transportation (car was repoed), we cannot afford food for our children, and we are about to lose our apartment because we can't keep up with our rent. After all the deductions we are left with virtually nothing once we factor in trying to feed ourselves, keep lights on, keep water on, and all that.

What advice can anyone give me? Is there a way to file for an emergency modification or something? I cannot afford a lawyer, and we are about to be in some deep stuff VERY soon if I cannot get some sort of relief from this large amount of money being deducted.

[ocean]

Health insurance is on top of child support guidelines. They can legally take up to 65% of your paycheck if you have arrears. You can ask for a modification if something has changed from the last order. Health insurance can be split, you can see if moms job has cheaper insurance, or does the kids qualify for state insurance under moms salary.

If you file in family court where the last order was, you usually get a court date in a month or so....In my state it is free to file for child support modification. You can ask that the courts lower support as father XXXXX (lost job.....give reason since last order). Ask that health insurance go through mother if it is cheaper and if mom has any type of job that the insurance be appropriately split according to salaries of each party.

Courts most times dont care about additional children as you were aware that you had this obligation and then had more children. Some states give a small break for additional children. Bring recent paystubs with you...

[MixedBag]

Two things came to mind...

1.  Find an on-line calculator for CA's child support and crunch your numbers

2.  IF there is a significant difference between what's going on now and what the calculator shows you should be paying, then file (ask) the CA for a modification based on your current condition as it has considerably changed since your last CS amount was set.

When I was the NCP, and the CP had subsequent children, YES, my CS obligation went UP as a result.  But jurisdiction is not CA for me.  And NO, it didn't go up significantly, but it did go up because the CP got credit for additional children.  So there are states that take that into consideration -- don't know about CA.

If I remember correctly (from many years ago), the CA calculator (www.supportguidelines.com (http://www.supportguidelines.com)  I think), took "time with the child" into consideration too. 

And I know this is none of my business, but if things are so tight in your home with your fiance and two additional bio children, maybe BOTH of you need to be working -- and to lessen expenses, on opposite shifts.

As for the health insurance.....our judge asked each of us "What's the cost and how many people does it cover?"  And then divided it out and put that cost in each of our columns, then I got full credit for what I paid against the CS owed (that included insurance).  SO....dare I think that by paying full insurance coverage for your non-custodial situation, your current kids are also covered? 

Good luck -- sounds like a bit of a hole got dug, but you can get out of the hole and move forward.

[MomofTwo]

Ocean and Kitty are right (as usual)...I just wanted to add (and this is only where I am) that this would not be an emergency modification.  Also, Kitty is right, the insurance - unless you only cover the first children on it, you would only get credit for their portion.   If you have family coverage that covers you, your wife, first children and subsequent, you do not get to deduct the cost of the coverage for the entire family.