Child support on average can be reviewed by the court and recalculated once every three years. If DHR is invloved, they will likely send a letter to the custodial parent asking if they would like a review at this time.
However, circumstances that warrant either an increase or a decrease in child support can be brought before the court before the court earlier than 3 years when warranted – by showing substantial proof that the circumstances of the parties have changed and thus an increase or a decrease in child support is appropriate.
Examples of changes in circumstances where a modification would be beneficial include:
1. If the custodial parent, who is receiving child support, was not working at the time child support was originally calculated and then that parent gets a job making more than minimum wage. This would be a good reason for the parent who is paying child support to request that the child support be modified. In order for the child support to be decreased in that parent’s favor, the new spouse must be making at least 10% more than what she was imputed at in the original calculation. Note that if one parent does not have a job, but it’s perfectly able to work, they are imputed at minimum wage which is assessed at $1,257 per month in Alabama.
2. Another example in which a child support modification would be appropriate is if the parent paying child support gets a new job and they are making at least 10% more in income per month. Then, the parent that’s receiving the child support for the children’s benefit should seek to have child support increased.
One area that is particularly important to note is that if one parent is able or eligible through their job to add their children to their insurance and their children are currently receiving AllKids or Medicaid – if that parent fails to add them to their insurance the state, through DHR can go after the parents and make them pay back what the State has expended for medical expenses or other government benefits because the parent failed to pay child support as they should; or, when they are eligible to add their children to their insurance and failed to do it and the State (tax payers) pay medical expenses for the care of the child.
RULE 32 ARJA
(A)(3) MODIFICATIONS. The guidelines shall be used by the parties as the basis
for periodic updates of child-support obligations.
(a) The provisions of any judgment respecting child support shall be
modified only as to installments accruing after the filing of the
petition for modification.
(b) A party seeking a modification of child support must plead and
prove that there has occurred a material change in circumstances
that is substantial and continuing since the last order of child
support.
(c) There shall be a rebuttable presumption that child support should
be modified when the difference between the existing child-support
award and the amount determined by application of these guidelines
varies more than ten percent (10%), unless the variation is due to
the fact that the existing child-support award resulted from a rebuttalof the guidelines and there has been no change in the
circumstances that resulted in the rebuttal of the guidelines.
(d) The existence of the guidelines or periodic changes to the
guidelines in and of themselves do not constitute proof of a material
change in circumstances that is substantial and continuing.
(e) A trial court has discretion and authority to modify a child-support
obligation even when there is not a ten percent (10%) variation
between the current obligation and the guidelines when a petitioner
has proven a material change in circumstances that is substantial
and continuing. Likewise, a trial court has discretion to deny a
modification even when the ten percent (10%) variation is present,
based on a finding that the application of the guidelines in that case
would be manifestly unjust or inequitable.
