BP BHEAD INT S

AN ACT Relating to child support; amending RCW 26.19.071 and 26.19.075; reenacting and amending RCW 7.06.020; and adding a new section to chapter 26.19 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1. RCW 7.06.020 and 1987 c 212 s 101 and 1987 c 202 s 127 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:

(1) All civil actions, except for appeals from municipal or district courts, which are at issue in the superior court in counties which have authorized arbitration, where the sole relief sought is a money judgment, and where no party asserts a claim in excess of fifteen thousand dollars, or if approved by the superior court of a county by two-thirds or greater vote of the judges thereof, up to thirty-five thousand dollars, exclusive of interest and costs, are subject to mandatory arbitration.

(2) If approved by majority vote of the superior court judges of a county which has authorized arbitration, all civil actions which are at issue in the superior court in which the sole relief sought is the establishment((,)) or termination ((~~or modification~~)) of maintenance or child support payments or the modification of maintenance are subject to mandatory arbitration. The arbitrability of any such action shall not be affected by the amount or number of payments involved.

(3) All civil actions that are at issue in the superior court in which the sole relief sought is the modification of child support payments are subject to mandatory arbitration except: (a) The action shall be handled by mediation pursuant to RCW 26.09.015 upon the request of one of the parties, or (b) shall be handled under normal court motion procedures upon agreement of both parties.

Sec. 2. RCW 26.19.071 and 1993 c 358 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Consideration of all income. All income and resources of each parent's household shall be disclosed and considered by the court when the court determines the child support obligation of each parent. Only the income of the parents of the children whose support is at issue shall be calculated for purposes of calculating the basic support obligation. Income and resources of any other person shall not be included in calculating the basic support obligation.

(2) Verification of income. Tax returns for the preceding two years and current paystubs shall be provided to verify income and deductions. Other sufficient verification shall be required for income and deductions which do not appear on tax returns or paystubs.

(3) Income sources included in gross monthly income. Except as specifically excluded in subsection (4) of this section, monthly gross income shall include income from any source, including:

(a) Salaries;

(b) Wages;

(d) Deferred compensation;

(e) Overtime;

(f) Contract-related benefits;

(g) Income from second jobs;

(h) Dividends;

(i) Interest;

(j) Trust income;

(k) Severance pay;

(l) Annuities;

(m) Capital gains;

(n) Pension retirement benefits;

(o) Workers' compensation;

(p) Unemployment benefits;

(q) Spousal maintenance actually received;

(r) Bonuses;

(s) Social security benefits; and

(t) Disability insurance benefits.

(4) Income sources excluded from gross monthly income. The following income and resources shall be disclosed but shall not be included in gross income:

(a) Income of a new spouse or income of other adults in the household;

(b) Child support received from other relationships;

(d) Aid to families with dependent children;

(e) Supplemental security income;

(f) General assistance; and

(g) Food stamps.

Receipt of income and resources from aid to families with dependent children, supplemental security income, general assistance, and food stamps shall not be a reason to deviate from the standard calculation.

(5) Determination of net income. The following expenses shall be disclosed and deducted from gross monthly income to calculate net monthly income:

(a) Federal and state income taxes;

(b) Federal insurance contributions act deductions;

(d) Mandatory union or professional dues;

(e) State industrial insurance premiums;

(f) Court-ordered spousal maintenance to the extent actually paid;

(g) Up to two thousand dollars per year in voluntary pension payments actually made if the contributions were made for the two tax years preceding the earlier of the (i) tax year in which the parties separated with intent to live separate and apart or (ii) tax year in which the parties filed for dissolution; and

(h) Normal business expenses and self-employment taxes for self-employed persons. Justification shall be required for any business expense deduction about which there is disagreement. Normal business expenses include unreimbursed business expenses appropriate to a party's particular occupation. It is not intended that this section apply only to self-employed persons, but shall also be applied to unreimbursed business expenses incurred by other persons in the normal course of their employment.

Items deducted from gross income under this subsection shall not be a reason to deviate from the standard calculation.

(6) Imputation of income. The court shall impute income to a parent when the parent is voluntarily unemployed or voluntarily underemployed. The court shall determine whether the parent is voluntarily underemployed or voluntarily unemployed based upon that parent's work history, education, health, and age, or any other relevant factors. A court shall not impute income to a parent who is gainfully employed on a full-time basis, unless the court ((~~finds~~)) enters written findings of fact that the parent is voluntarily underemployed and ((~~finds~~)) enters written findings of fact that the parent is purposely underemployed to reduce the parent's child support obligation. Income shall not be imputed for an unemployable parent. Income shall not be imputed to a parent to the extent the parent is unemployed or significantly underemployed due to the parent's efforts to comply with court-ordered reunification efforts under chapter 13.34 RCW or under a voluntary placement agreement with an agency supervising the child. In the absence of information to the contrary, a parent's imputed income shall be based on the median income of year-round full-time workers as derived from the United States bureau of census, current populations reports, or such replacement report as published by the bureau of census.

Sec. 3. RCW 26.19.075 and 1993 c 358 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Reasons for deviation from the standard calculation include but are not limited to the following:

(a) Sources of income and tax planning. The court may deviate from the standard calculation after consideration of the following:

(i) Income of a new spouse if the parent who is married to the new spouse is asking for a deviation based on any other reason. Except as provided in (iii) of this subsection, income of a new spouse is not, by itself, a sufficient reason for deviation;

(ii) Income of other adults in the household if the parent who is living with the other adult is asking for a deviation based on any other reason. Except as provided in (iii) of this subsection, income of the other adults in the household is not, by itself, a sufficient reason for deviation;

(iii) Income of a new spouse where the custodial parent has remarried and the custodial parent's new spouse has a substantial income, or income of another adult in the household of the custodial parent, where the custodial parent is involved in an ongoing, stable relationship with that person and the person has a substantial income.

In addition, before deviating under this subsection (1)(a)(iii), the court must find that the noncustodial parent has a modest income, and that there exists a significant disparity in income between the noncustodial parent and the custodial parent's household to the extent that the noncustodial parent is experiencing difficulty maintaining a reasonable lifestyle commensurate with the noncustodial parent's level of income;

(iv) Child support actually received from other relationships;

((~~(iv)~~)) (v) Gifts;

((~~(v)~~)) (vi) Prizes;

((~~(vi)~~)) (vii) Possession of wealth, including but not limited to savings, investments, real estate holdings and business interests, vehicles, boats, pensions, bank accounts, insurance plans, or other assets;

((~~(vii)~~)) (viii) Extraordinary income of a child; or

((~~(viii)~~)) (ix) Tax planning considerations. A deviation for tax planning may be granted only if the child would not receive a lesser economic benefit due to the tax planning.

(b) Nonrecurring income. The court may deviate from the standard calculation based on a finding that a particular source of income included in the calculation of the basic support obligation is not a recurring source of income. Depending on the circumstances, nonrecurring income may include overtime, contract-related benefits, bonuses, or income from second jobs. Deviations for nonrecurring income shall be based on a review of the nonrecurring income received in the previous two calendar years.

(c) Debt and high expenses. The court may deviate from the standard calculation after consideration of the following expenses:

(i) Extraordinary debt not voluntarily incurred;

(ii) An obligation imposed on one party in a dissolution decree for payment of substantial debt voluntarily incurred before the parties were separated;

(iii) A significant disparity in the living costs of the parents due to conditions beyond their control;

((~~(iii)~~)) (iv) Special needs of disabled children;

((~~(iv)~~)) (v) Special medical, educational, or psychological needs of the children; or

((~~(v)~~)) (vi) Costs incurred or anticipated to be incurred by the parents in compliance with court-ordered reunification efforts under chapter 13.34 RCW or under a voluntary placement agreement with an agency supervising the child.

(d) Residential schedule. The court may deviate from the standard calculation if the child spends a significant amount of time with the parent who is obligated to make a support transfer payment. The court may not deviate on that basis if the deviation will result in insufficient funds in the household receiving the support to meet the basic needs of the child or if the child is receiving aid to families with dependent children. When determining the amount of the deviation, the court shall consider evidence concerning the increased expenses to a parent making support transfer payments resulting from the significant amount of time spent with that parent and shall consider the decreased expenses, if any, to the party receiving the support resulting from the significant amount of time the child spends with the parent making the support transfer payment.

(e) Children from other relationships. The court may deviate from the standard calculation when either or both of the parents before the court have children from other relationships to whom the parent owes a duty of support.

(i) The child support schedule shall be applied to the mother, father, and children of the family before the court to determine the presumptive amount of support.

(ii) Children from other relationships shall not be counted in the number of children for purposes of determining the basic support obligation and the standard calculation.

(iii) When considering a deviation from the standard calculation for children from other relationships, the court may consider only other children to whom the parent owes a duty of support. The court may consider court-ordered payments of child support for children from other relationships only to the extent that the support is actually paid.

(iv) When the court has determined that either or both parents have children from other relationships, deviations under this section shall be based on consideration of the total circumstances of both households. All child support obligations paid, received, and owed for all children shall be disclosed and considered.

(2) All income and resources of the parties before the court, new spouses, and other adults in the households shall be disclosed and considered as provided in this section. The presumptive amount of support shall be determined according to the child support schedule. Unless specific reasons for deviation are set forth in the written findings of fact and are supported by the evidence, the court shall order each parent to pay the amount of support determined by using the standard calculation.

(3) The court shall enter written findings that specify reasons for any deviation or reasons for any denial of a party's request for any deviation from the standard calculation made by the court. The court shall not consider reasons for deviation until the court determines the standard calculation for each parent.

(4) When reasons exist for deviation, the court shall exercise discretion in considering the extent to which the factors would affect the support obligation.

(5) Agreement of the parties is not by itself adequate reason for any deviations from the standard calculation.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. A new section is added to chapter 26.19 RCW to read as follows:

If the combined monthly net income of the parties exceeds five thousand dollars, the court may in its discretion enter an order requiring that a specific portion of the child support payment be placed in an education trust account. The moneys collected in this account shall only be used for the purpose of payment of educational expenses incurred as a result of attendance at an accredited educational institution. The court may not create an education trust account unless it first determines that the diversion of funds to the account will not affect the basic needs of the child and will not affect the child's ability to sustain a reasonable standard of living.