|
Child Support History in Alabama |
|
ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE OF COURTS SONNY HORNSBY OLIVER GILMORE March 9, 1993 MEMORANDUM TO: Emily Roane FROM: Peg Walker RE: Alabama Supreme Court Advisory Committee The Advisory Committee on Child Support Guidelines and Child Support Enforcement was appointed by the Alabama Supreme Court to coordinate with the Department of Human Resources concerning the state's Title IV-D child support program and to ensure compliance with various federal child support enforcement requirements. The committee is composed of judges, attorneys, representatives of the Department of Human Resources, and representatives of both custodial and non--custodial parents. The work of the committee is closely aligned with the Title IV-D child support program. In 1974, Congress enacted Part D of Title IV of the Social Security Act P.L. 93-647), which established a federal child support enforcement program. A review of the original program during the early 1980's revealed many problems but also identified several procedures which had proven effective. The Child Support Enforcement Amendments of 1984 (P.L. 98-378) revamped the federal child support enforcement program and required all states to develop an enforcement plan which would incorporate those specific procedures which hail proven effective. One such requirement was the adoption of state guidelines for the determination of child support awards Shortly after the implementation of the Child Support Enforcement Amendments of 1984, Governor George C. Wallace appointed the Alabama Commission on Child Support to examine and study the operation of the State's child support system in view of the amendments and to make recommendations for legislative, administrative, or rule changes. In reference to the requirement for the adoption of child support guidelines, the Alabama Commission on Child Support recommended that such guidelines be established by a rule of Judicial administration of the Supreme Court. The Commission's decision was based on "limitations on legislative time, other child support issues requiring legislation, and the fact that a subject which so directly effects the judicial administration or the courts should be dealt with by the Supreme Court," In March 1988, then Chief Justice C. C. Torbert, Jr. established the Child Support Committee to study and make recommendations on a number of issues including child support guidelines. In September 1987, based on the recommendations of that committee, the Alabama Supreme Court adopted Rule 32, Alabama Rules of Judicial Administration, which provided an advisory guideline, which could be used by the courts in establishing child support. This advisory guideline was based on the income shares model which was developed by the National Center for State Courts and which encompasses the concept that a child should continue to receive the same level of support that he or she would have received if the family unit had remained in tact. The Family Support Act of 1988 (PL. 100-485) established further requirements for state child support enforcement programs, including the provision that child support guidelines be established as a rebuttable presumption and that provisions be included in the guidelines to provide for a review at least once every four years. In August 1989, the Alabama Supreme Court amended the state's child support guidelines to incorporate these new requirements. While the Advisory Committee on Child Support Guidelines and Child Support Enforcement has been reconstituted and reappointed since its initial establishment in 1986, the committee continues to coordinate with the Department of Human Resources concerning the state's Title IV-D child support program. The committee is currently reviewing the state's child support guidelines (Rule 32, Alabama Rules of Judicial Administration) in accordance with the requirement of the Family Support Act of 1988. The committee anticipates submitting its recommendations on child support guidelines to the Alabama Supreme Court by May 15, 1993. Some of the child support issues being addressed by the Committee include: ( 1) Child care costs; |
||