5086 AMS FAIR S2300.1

SB 5086 - S AMD - 084

By Senators Fairley, Spanel, Thibaudeau, Kohl and Loveland

                                               NOT ADOPTED 3/11/97

    Strike everything after the enacting clause and insert the following:

    "Sec. 1.  RCW 26.19.090 and 1991 sp.s. c 28 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:

    (1) ((The child support schedule shall be advisory and not mandatory for postsecondary educational support.

    (2) When considering whether to order support for postsecondary educational expenses,)) The court shall ((determine whether)) not award postsecondary educational support unless the court finds that the child is in fact dependent and is relying upon the parents for the reasonable necessities of life.  The court shall exercise its discretion when determining whether and for how long to award postsecondary educational support based upon consideration of factors that include but are not limited to the following:  Age of the child; the child's needs and resources; the expectations of the parties for their children when the parents were together and whether support would likely have been provided if the parents had stayed together; the child's prospects, desires, aptitudes, abilities or disabilities; the nature of the postsecondary education sought; other children of either parent for whom postsecondary educational support may be required; and the parents' level of education, standard of living, and current and future resources.  ((Also to be considered are the amount and type of support that the child would have been afforded if the parents had stayed together.)) The court shall determine and specify the amount of contribution, if any, to be made by the child.  The child support schedule shall be advisory and not mandatory in determining the amount of postsecondary support.

(2) The combined obligation of both parents shall not exceed the highest tuition, fees, room, and board charged to a resident undergraduate student at a state institution of higher education in this state, together with a reasonable amount for textbooks and supplies.  The limitation in this subsection does not apply if the court determines in a specific case that there are exceptional circumstances, such as the existence of a developmental or chronic functional disability.  A desire to enroll in a school outside of this state is not, by itself, an exceptional circumstance.

    (3) The child must enroll in an accredited academic or vocational school, must be actively pursuing a course of study commensurate with the child's vocational goals, and must be in good academic standing ((as defined by the institution)).  For purposes of this subsection, "good academic standing" means enrolled in a course of study and making customary progress towards the completion within the period of time it is expected to take to complete the course.  The court-ordered postsecondary educational support shall be automatically suspended during the period or periods the child fails to comply with these conditions.  A child whose medical condition temporarily changes or deteriorates following initial enrollment and who is unable to achieve good academic standing is not obligated to continue uninterrupted enrollment as a condition of receiving the support, so long as the condition exists.

    (4) The child shall ((also)) make available all academic and registration records and grades to both parents as a condition of receiving postsecondary educational support.  Each parent shall have full and equal access to the postsecondary education records as provided in RCW 26.09.225.

    (5) The court shall not order the payment of postsecondary educational expenses beyond the child's twenty-third birthday, except for exceptional circumstances, such as mental, physical, or emotional disabilities.

    (6) The court shall direct that either or both parents' payments for postsecondary educational expenses be made directly to the educational institution if feasible.  If direct payments are not feasible, then the court in its discretion may order that either or both parents' payments be made directly to the child if the child does not reside with either parent.  If the child resides with one of the parents the court may direct that the parent making the support transfer payments make the payments to the child or to the parent ((who has been receiving the support transfer payments)) with whom the child resides.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  This act does not apply to orders regarding postsecondary education child support entered before the effective date of this section."

SB 5086 - S AMD - 084

By Senators Fairley, Spanel, Thibaudeau, Kohl and Loveland

                                               NOT ADOPTED 3/11/97

    On page 1, line 1 of the title, after "Relating to" strike the remainder of the title and insert "prohibiting mandatory child support for postsecondary education of adult children, except under very limited circumstances; amending RCW 26.19.090; and creating a new section."

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