CHILD SUPPORT

Read the WARNING! first.

In Arizona, child support is governed by the provisions of Arizona Revised Statutes, Section 25-320.

The Court may order one (1) or both parents to provide an amount reasonable and necessary for the support of the child. Support amounts are set according to guidelines established by the Arizona Supreme Court. The guidelines take into consideration the number of children and the combined net income of the spouses. Usually, a spouse is ordered to pay to the other spouse his/her proportionate share of the child support. Thus, if one (1) spouse makes sixty percent (60%) percent of the combined net income, that spouse will be required to pay sixty percent (60%) of the child support amount.

The guidelines are based on the following factors:

1. The financial resources and needs of the child;

2. The financial resources and needs of the custodial parent;

3. The standard of living the child would have enjoyed had the marriage not been dissolved;

4. The physical and emotional condition of the child, and his/her educational needs;

5. The financial resources and needs of the non-custodial parent;

6. Excessive or abnormal expenditures, destruction, concealment or fraudulent disposition of community, joint tenancy and other property held in common;

7. The duration of visitation and related expenses.

If necessary, the Court may order an assignment of wages to cover child support payments. The Court is required to assign responsibility for providing medical insurance for the child. In the absence of admissible evidence to the contrary, the Court is required to presume that a non-custodial parent is capable of full time employment at a wage equal to the federal minimum wage.

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Arizona Revised Statutes, Section 25-320.

Child support; factors; methods of payment; additional enforcement provisions; definitions.

A. In a proceeding for dissolution of marriage, legal separation, maintenance or child support, the court may order either or both parents owing a duty of support to a child, born to or adopted by the parents, to pay an amount reasonable and necessary for support of the child, without regard to marital misconduct. If no child support has been ordered by a child support order and if the court deems child support appropriate, the court shall direct, using a retroactive application of the child support guidelines to the date of filing a dissolution of marriage, legal separation, maintenance or child support proceeding, the amount which the parents shall pay for the past support of the child and the manner in which payment shall be paid, taking into account any amount of temporary or voluntary support which has been paid. Retroactive child support is enforceable in any manner provided by law. The supreme court shall establish guidelines for determining the amount of child support. The amount resulting from the application of these guidelines shall be the amount of child support ordered unless a written finding is made, based on criteria approved by the supreme court, that application of the guidelines would be inappropriate or unjust in a particular case. The supreme court shall review the guidelines at least once every four years to ensure that their application results in the determination of appropriate child support amounts. The guidelines and criteria for deviation from them shall be based on all relevant factors, including:

1. The financial resources and needs of the child.

2. The financial resources and needs of the custodial parent.

3. The standard of living the child would have enjoyed had the marriage not been dissolved.

4. The physical and emotional condition of the child, and the child's educational needs.

5. The financial resources and needs of the noncustodial parent.

6. Excessive or abnormal expenditures, destruction, concealment or fraudulent disposition of community, joint tenancy and other property held in common.

7. The duration of visitation and related expenses.

B. In the case of a mentally or physically disabled child, if the court, after considering the factors set forth in subsection A of this section, deems it appropriate, the court may order support to continue past the age of majority and to be paid to the custodial parent, guardian or child, even if at the time of the filing of a petition or at the time of the final decree, the child has reached the age of majority.
C. If a child reaches the age of majority while the child is attending high school or a certified high school equivalency program, support shall continue to be provided during the period in which the child is actually attending high school or the equivalency program but only until the child reaches nineteen years of age unless the court enters an order pursuant to subsection B of this section. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a parent paying support for a child over the age of majority pursuant to this section shall be entitled to obtain all records related to the attendance of the child in the high school or equivalency program.
D. If a personal check for support payments and handling fees is rightfully dishonored by the payor bank or other drawee, any subsequent support payments and handling fees shall be paid only by cash, money order, cashier's check, traveler's check or certified check. If a person required to pay support other than by personal check demonstrates full and timely payment for twenty-four consecutive months, that person shall be permitted to pay support by personal check as long as such payments are for the full amount, are timely tendered and are not rightfully dishonored by the payor bank or other drawee.
E. The provisions of subsection D of this section do not apply to payments made by means of an assignment.
F. If the clerk or support payment clearinghouse is unable to deliver payments for a period of three months due to the failure of the person to whom the support has been ordered to be paid to notify the clerk or support payment clearinghouse of a change in address, the clerk or support payment clearinghouse shall not deliver further payments and shall return the payments to the obligor.
G. An order for child support shall assign responsibility for providing medical insurance for the child who is the subject of the support order and shall assign responsibility for the payment of any medical costs of the child which are not covered by insurance. In title IV-D cases, the parent responsible pursuant to court order for providing medical insurance for the child shall notify the support payment clearinghouse prescribed in section 46-441 if the child is no longer covered under an employer's insurance plan. The support payment clearinghouse shall notify the child support enforcement agency in the department of economic security of the lapse in insurance coverage.
H. In title IV-D cases the superior court shall accept for filing any documents that are received through electronic transmission if the electronically reproduced document states that the copy used for the electronic transmission was certified before it was electronically transmitted.
I. The court shall presume, in absence of contrary testimony, that a noncustodial parent is capable of full-time employment at least at the federal adult minimum wage. This presumption does not apply to noncustodial parents who are under the age of eighteen and who are attending high school.
J. An order for support shall provide for an assignment pursuant to sections 25-504 and 25-323.
K. Each licensing board or agency that issues professional, recreational or occupational licenses or certificates shall record on the application the social security number of the applicant and shall enter this information in its data base in order to aid the department of economic security in locating parents or their assets or to enforce child support orders. This subsection does not apply to a license issued pursuant to title 17 that is not issued by an automated drawing system. If a licensing board or agency allows an applicant to use a number other than the social security number on the face of the license or certificate while the licensing board or agency keeps the social security number on file, the licensing board or agency shall advise an applicant of this fact.
L. For the purposes of this section:

1. "Child support guidelines" means the child support guidelines that are adopted by the state supreme court pursuant to 42 United States Code sections 651 through 669B.

2. "Support" means the provision of maintenance or subsistence and includes medical insurance coverage and uncovered medical costs for the child, arrearages, interest on arrearages, past support, interest on past support and reimbursement for expended public assistance.

3. "Support payments" means the amount of money ordered by the court to be paid for the support of the minor child or children.

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