Since July 1, 2018, a Georgia court that imputes income for child support must look at the parent’s actual circumstances instead of assuming a 40-hour week at minimum wage.
The Old Rule
Before the amendment, the imputation provision was a formula. In Brogdon v. Brogdon, 290 Ga. 618 (2012), the Georgia Supreme Court quoted it: where a parent produced no reliable evidence of income, “gross income for the current year shall be determined by imputing gross income based on a 40 hour workweek at minimum wage.” Imputing $1,257 a month to a wife on that basis was upheld.
The Current Rule
OCGA 19-6-15 was amended effective July 1, 2018, and the mandatory formula is gone. Under the current OCGA 19-6-15(f)(4)(A), gross income “may be imputed,” and when it is, the court “shall take into account the specific circumstances of the parent to the extent known,” including the parent’s “assets, residence, employment and earnings history, job skills, educational attainment, literacy, age, health, criminal record and other employment barriers, and record of seeking work, as well as the local job market.” In Lockhart v. Lockhart, 361 Ga. App. 499 (2021), an award built on a husband’s earlier years as a tow truck driver was reversed because nothing showed he could still earn that amount.
Two Other Changes in the Same Amendment
First, the amended statute addresses incarcerated parents: a court “shall not assume an ability for earning capacity based upon pre-incarceration wages,” and incarceration that prevents employment cannot support a finding of willful unemployment. Second, in a modification case, OCGA 19-6-15(f)(4)(B) now lets the court either impute income under the individualized standard or increase the nonproducing parent’s income by at least 10 percent per year. Before the amendment, Jackson v. Sanders, 299 Ga. 332 (2016), held that applying the subsection “required the court to utilize the increment.” Decisions from before July 2018, including Brogdon, applied the older text.
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This post is a quick overview of the law and is not intended as legal advice. Please feel free to contact our office for a consultation if you have questions about this or any other legal aspects regarding your case!