Georgia’s child support guidelines start with “all income from any source,” but a short list of receipts is left out of gross income.
The Statutory Exclusions
OCGA 19-6-15(f)(2) excludes: (1) “[c]hild support payments received by either parent for the benefit of a child of another relationship”; (2) “[b]enefits received from means-tested public assistance programs,” such as TANF, PeachCare for Kids, food stamps, and Supplemental Security Income; (3) foster care payments; (4) “[a] nonparent custodian’s gross income”; and (5) federal adoption assistance.
Child Support You Receive for Another Child
In Hammond v. Hammond, 282 Ga. 456 (2007), the trial court counted $240 a month the wife received as child support from a previous marriage. The Georgia Supreme Court reversed. “Such payments do not improve the financial position of the parent, but instead provide support for a child,” and counting them would mean “a child of another relationship would be forced to suffer in favor of the child of a present relationship.”
Standard Employer Benefits
Under OCGA 19-6-15(f)(1)(C), fringe benefits count as income only if they “significantly reduce personal living expenses,” and never include “employer paid portions of health insurance premiums or employer contributions to a retirement or pension plan.” In Hendry v. Hendry, 292 Ga. 1 (2012), the husband’s employer paid him $935 a month to reimburse the family health insurance premium, and the trial court treated it as income. The Supreme Court reversed, reading “employer paid” to mean “premium costs borne by the employer.”
Military Special Pay
For a parent in the armed forces, OCGA 19-6-15(f)(1)(E) counts base pay, drill pay, and the basic allowances for subsistence and housing, but “special pay or incentive pay, allowances for clothing or family separation, and reimbursed expenses related to the parent’s assignment to a high cost of living location shall not be considered income.” In Black v. Black, 292 Ga. 691 (2013), a father’s extra deployment pay was excluded on that basis.
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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!