Note: The DearEsq free 'ask a lawyer' site is offered as a free informational service to the public and is not intended as legal advice. Laws vary from state-to-state, and in addition every situation is unique, and relevant facts may not be known. The answer to the question posed below may not apply to in your state or to your situation. For legal advice in your state and your situation you should consult with an attorney in your state who is familiar with the rules and laws in your state.
“We live in Georgia and my husband’s ex-wife just had his wages garnished. What I want to know is, they have stated that she has three qualified children in her home. Only one belongs to my husband. How do they figure this? Also, they have him down as making $2860 monthly gross income. Someone does know how to count. Twelve dollars an hour and a forty-hour week, times four weeks, is only $1920. I know they figure by a little more than four weeks for a month but thats still way off. What is the percentage in Georgia? This just boggles my mind that he pays almost as much for one child as I receive for two children, based on almost the same wages.”
Child support guidelines and child support calculations are now standardized in nearly all states. That means that unless the court orders otherwise due to extraordinary circumstances, what one person will receive for child support should be the same as what another person receives for child support, given the same number of children and share of parenting time, and the same earnings between both sets of parents. Things which can alter this include how recently one order was made versus the other (intervening changes in child support guidelines and child support calculations can cause the same set of facts to yield different amounts of child support), a determination by the court that a departure from the guidelines is warranted, or inclusion of child support arrearages to be paid back.
In your situation as you describe it, however, it sounds as if whichever agency calculated your husband’s child support did so based only on information received from your husband’s ex-wife, and not you. It is critical that the support payor ensure that the agency have up-to-date and accurate information. Having your attorney contact the agency and provide them with proof of his actual income, and number of children, should help to rectify the situation.
