It is always difficult to transition from a married life with children to the prospect of two single parents managing their children’s needs. There are several factors that can make it even harder, like a contentious relationship between the divorcing spouses.
Reliance on support from the State of California or the government in Washington can also create problems. Raising children well is an expensive proposition, and parents often divide responsibilities of earning money and caring for kids. If a divorce occurs and alters that relationship, one parent may find himself or herself short of cash at a tender time.
California’s Supreme Court may have just made it more difficult with a ruling regarding child support paid to a custodial parent. The ruling states that parents applying for welfare must list child support received from a parent or former spouse as income. This may endanger several parents’ ability to receive benefits from Sacramento.
The lawyers arguing against that conclusion said it was unfair to count child support payments as money that could be regularly expected, and it could, therefore, not be counted as income. But the ruling apparently confirms regulations established by California’s Department of Social Services, which counts child support as income.
State officials claimed their regulations were meant to encourage working parents. But the attorneys on the other side described the inclusion of child support as income as a “formula for hardship.”
This is another reason why parents may feel the need to fight for a higher level of child support based on the children’s need and another parent’s ability to pay. Divorcing parents may wish to consult an attorney on the best way to make a case for reasonable child support.
