child support modification

[armywife]

Father-custodial parent-resides in Texas
Mother-non custodial parent-resides in Arizona
Court Order-Texas
Arizona is garnishing wages and sending the amount to us even though the order is from Texas.

Agreed upon child support modification reducing child support for the mother was filed in Texas court September 28th, and a copy was sent to me, the father who is the custodial parent.  

The order states:  "It is ordered that [mother] is obligated to pay and shall pay to [father] child support of $300.00 per month with the first payment being due and payable on September 1, 2006..."

This has been a long, drawn out process with mother taking nearly a year for her to hire, make payments to lawyer, and form a modification that I (father) could agree to.  When I was home on R & R from Iraq in August, I signed the modification.  The lawyer assured me that the date stated above would be changed to show the month following when the modification was filed with the court.  Apparently, that didn't happen.

Currently mother's wages are being garnished by the state of Arizona at the amount stipulated by the court when custody was reversed plus $120.00 a month in arrearages.  I agreed to lower the amount since any review by the attorney general would have her paying more, not less.  

Mother is now e-mailing my wife (I am still in Iraq) telling her to return $132.00 in child support from the month of September.

1)  Are we legally bound to send back this money even though most of it would be credited towards her arrears, and we have already used that money?

2.  If her wages countinue to be garnished at the higher amount(until the states coordinate records), are we required to send back the difference between that and the $300?  That would be fine except she would be credited for paying arrears, when if fact, she had not.  

[socrateaser]

>Father-custodial parent-resides in Texas
>Mother-non custodial parent-resides in Arizona
>Court Order-Texas
>Arizona is garnishing wages and sending the amount to us even
>though the order is from Texas.
>
>Agreed upon child support modification reducing child support
>for the mother was filed in Texas court September 28th, and a
>copy was sent to me, the father who is the custodial parent.
>
>
>The order states:  "It is ordered that [mother] is obligated
>to pay and shall pay to [father] child support of $300.00 per
>month with the first payment being due and payable on
>September 1, 2006..."
>
>This has been a long, drawn out process with mother taking
>nearly a year for her to hire, make payments to lawyer, and
>form a modification that I (father) could agree to.  When I
>was home on R & R from Iraq in August, I signed the
>modification.  The lawyer assured me that the date stated
>above would be changed to show the month following when the
>modification was filed with the court.  Apparently, that
>didn't happen.
>
>Currently mother's wages are being garnished by the state of
>Arizona at the amount stipulated by the court when custody was
>reversed plus $120.00 a month in arrearages.  I agreed to
>lower the amount since any review by the attorney general
>would have her paying more, not less.  
>
>Mother is now e-mailing my wife (I am still in Iraq) telling
>her to return $132.00 in child support from the month of
>September.
>
>1)  Are we legally bound to send back this money even though
>most of it would be credited towards her arrears, and we have
>already used that money?

Your numbers are not entirely clear to me -- I can't tell if your new orders entitle you to $300 per month and arrears forgiven, $300 per month + $120 per month arrears,  $180 per month + $120 per month arrears, $300 per month and arrears stayed until the child is emancipated (a really bad choice), or something else.

Please advise.

>
>2.  If her wages countinue to be garnished at the higher
>amount(until the states coordinate records), are we required
>to send back the difference between that and the $300?  That
>would be fine except she would be credited for paying arrears,
>when if fact, she had not.  

You're entitled to what you're entitle to. At the moment, I can't tell what that is, though. lol.

[armywife]

Sorry, I guess I was about as clear as mud!!

We currently receive from biomom $362 child support and $120 a month in arrears for a total of $482 monthly

I agreed to lower support down to $300 monthly and $50 a month towards arrears for a total of $350 monthly.

I signed the modification in August when I was home on R & R from Iraq.   It got filed on September 28th.  The modification states, however, that biomom will pay $350 beginning on September 1st.  We already received the September child support.  Bio mom now wants my wife to return $130 to her from the $482 child support that was withheld from her pay check in September.  

Are we legally bound to send that money back to her even though it has already been credited to her arrears?  That is not something I am willing to do if I don't legally have to.  

If the $482 continues to be withheld in the month of October, will we have to send back the difference? ($130)  Again, that would be credited as her arrears payment.

I hope this makes sense.  Thank you.

[socrateaser]

>Are we legally bound to send that money back to her even
>though it has already been credited to her arrears?  That is
>not something I am willing to do if I don't legally have to.

Your order says that the change to $350 support began Sep. 1, so if you receive a check for support for a period after Sep 1, then you should contact the AZ state collection unit, and arrange to send the money back to them, so that the parent's account will correctly reflect the arrears actually paid.

But, if the check is for a support period beginning prior to Sep 1., then you can keep it.

Having said the above, if you choose to keep it, the other parent will have to take you back to court to get things straightened out, and the court will almost certainly just credit the parent's arrears, rather than force you to give the money back, so while you are legally bound to return the money, as a practical matter, the cost of forcing you to do so (and betting that the court will do the legal thing, rather than play fast and loose with the law in the "child's best interests") will outweigh any practical benefit.

So, I suggest that if the timing of the check is actually for a period after Sep. 1, that you try to get the collections unit to fix its records to credit the arrears as a compromise and then try to explain to the other parent that this makes more sense (you probably won't succeed, but so what -- family law is war, most of the time anyway -- why should you get an exception).

>If the $482 continues to be withheld in the month of October,
>will we have to send back the difference? ($130)  Again, that
>would be credited as her arrears payment.

Maybe it will be credited -- maybe it won't. I can get you a list of NCPs a mile long who have spent more money trying to fix their arrearage credits, than the value of the credits received.

So, I can see both sides of this story.

[armywife]

   I am not going to try to contact the child support people.  I (stepmom) am tired of trying to fix her (biomom) problems.  I have contacted the child support agencies in both Arizona and Texas trying to help biomom and have gotten no where.  I think I will call her lawyer.

I have talked to her lawyer on numerous occasions trying to speed up the process and get her(biomom) child support lowered.  I sent $1770 in taxes back to biomom that the federal government intercepted and sent to us.  In fact, I sent it over night at no cost to her.  

 So, if you think that biomom is the one being screwed here, you are wrong.  She will be paying us $50 a month forever until her arrearages are paid off.    We agreed to this because the child support agency would have charged her over $200 a month in arrearages and upped her monthly support payments.  T

This was all done while my husband (step son's dad) has been in Iraq fighting a stupid war that is never going to get better.   A war which he will be going back to in 18 months after he returns the end of November.  I am trying to raise a step son who is constantly put on emotional trips by his mother who puts him the middle of her roller coaster life.  So not only is he dealing with his dad being in a war zone for a year, but his crazy mother also.  I'm here trying to mop up the mess while she writes to me asking to send her more money that I have already spent on her biological child, my step (prefer bonus)child who I love with all my heart.  

I'm sorry.  I know this has nothing to do with legalities, but I'm tired of it all.  There are step parents and Custodial Parents who are fair and try to do the right thing.  She is the one who is getting the good deal on the arreages, not us.  We are giving her a deal, and then are asked to give more.  

Please don't be mad at me for using your board as my gripe session.  I won't do it again.  

[socrateaser]

.>Please don't be mad at me for using your board as my gripe
>session.  I won't do it again.  

My comments are not related to who's getting "screwed." I'm simply telling you what the law is and what practice. You can do with it what you like.

Legally, you could be held in contempt for not returning the money, but no judge would ever do it, knowing that the other parent is in arrears for more than the overpayment.

As for the rest of your vent, I'm not mad, but you're right, you won't do it again, because if you do, I'll just delete your post without further comment. So, please try and restrain your enthusiasm.

[armywife]

I'm sorry.  Major moment of self pity. Thanks for all the help you give even though it's not always what we want to hear.