      |                   IOWA SUPPORT MASTER 2000                    |
      |                 Copyright 2000 Alft & Wilson                  |  
      |                                                               |
      |                                                               |
      |  The following text has been reprinted from the Iowa Supreme  |
      |  Court order filed on May 9th, 2000.                          |
      |                                                               |
      |                  CHILD SUPPORT GUIDELINES                     |
      |               Adopted Effective August 1, 2000                |
      |                                                               |
      |                        --------------                         |
                      IN THE SUPREME COURT OF IOWA
                                  ORDER
               IN THE MATTER OF CHILD SUPPORT GUIDELINES
       _______________________________________________________________
            
            The supreme court has undertaken to prescribe uniform
       child support guidelines and criteria pursuant to the
       federal Family Support Act of 1988, Pub. L. No. 100-485 and
       Iowa Code section 598.21(4).  The following child support
       guidelines are hereby adopted, effective August 1, 2000, as
       shown in the attached Exhibit "A".  The guidelines shall
       apply to cases pending on August 1, 2000.
       
            Dated this 9th day of May, 2000.
    
                               THE SUPREME COURT OF IOWA
      
                               (signed)
                               Arthur A. McGiverin, Chief Justice
    
       _______________________________________________________________
    
                             EXHIBIT "A"
    
                     CHILD SUPPORT GUIDELINES
    
          The following charts are established as guidelines for use
      by the courts of this state in determining the amount of child
      support. The charts are applicable to modification of child
      support orders as provided in Iowa Code section 598.21(9).
      
          The purpose of the guidelines is to provide for the best
      interest of the children by recognizing the duty of both
      parents to provide adequate support for their children in
      proportion to their respective incomes. While the guidelines
      cannot take into account the specific facts of individual
      cases, they will normally provide reasonable support.
      
          In ordering child support, the court should determine the
      amount of support specified by the guidelines. There shall be
      a rebuttable presumption that the amount of child support
      which would result from the application of the guidelines
      prescribed by the supreme court is the correct amount of child
      support to be awarded. That amount may be adjusted upward or
      downward, however, if the court finds such adjustment
      necessary to provide for the needs of the children and to do
      justice between the parties under the special circumstances of
      the case.
      
          In the guidelines the term "net monthly income" means
      gross monthly income less deductions for:
      
          (1) Federal income tax (properly calculated withholding or
      estimated payments);
      
          (2) State income tax (properly calculated withholding or
      estimated payments);
      
          (3) Social security deductions;
      
          (4) Mandatory pension deductions;
      
          (5) Union dues;
      
          (6) Health insurance premium either deducted from wages or
      paid by a parent for health insurance so long as the child is
      covered by the policy;
      
          (7) Actual medical support paid pursuant to court order or
      administrative order;
      
          (8) Parent's unreimbursed medical expenses, not to exceed
      $25.00 a month;
      
          (9) Prior obligation of child support and spouse support
      actually paid pursuant to court or administrative order;
    
         (10) Qualified additional dependent deductions; and

         (11) Actual child care expense while custodial parent is
      employed, less the appropriate income tax credit. Other items, 
      such as credit union payments, charitable deductions, savings, 
      or thrift plans, and voluntary pension plans, are not to be 
      deducted from a parent's income, since the needs of the 
      children must have a higher priority than voluntary savings 
      or payment of indebtedness.

          Gross monthly income does not include public assistance
      payments.
      
          To establish a qualified additional dependent deduction,
      the requesting party must demonstrate a legal obligation to
      the child(ren) through one of the following actions:
      
          (1) By order of a court of competent jurisdiction or by
              administrative order when authorized by state law.
          (2) By the statement of the person admitting paternity
              in court and upon concurrence of the mother.  If
              the mother was married, at the time of birth or
              conception of the child, to an individual other
              than the person admitting paternity, the individual
              to whom the mother was married at the time of birth
              or conception must deny paternity in order to
              establish the paternity of the person admitting
              paternity upon the sole basis of the admission.
          (3) By the filing of an affidavit of paternity executed
              on or after July 1, 1993, as provided in Iowa Code
              section 252A.3A, provided that the mother of the
              child was unmarried at the time of birth and
              conception of the child or if the mother was
              married at the time of birth or conception of the
              child, a court of competent jurisdiction has
              determined that the individual to whom the mother
              was married at the time is not the father of the
              child.
          (4) By a child being born during the marriage unless
              the paternity has been determined otherwise by a
              court of competent jurisdiction.
       
       The monthly deduction for qualified additional dependents
       (custodial or noncustodial) shall be:
         
         $135 for one (1) child
         $213 for two (2) children
         $279 for three (3) children
         $330 for four (4) children
         $383 for five (5) children.
       
          The qualified additional dependent deduction can be used
       for the establishment of original orders or in proceedings
       to modify an existing order. However, the deduction cannot
       be used to affect the threshold determination of eligibility
       for a downward modification of an existing order. After the
       threshold determination has been met, the deduction shall be
       used in the determination of the net monthly income. A
       deduction may be taken for a prior obligation for support
       actually paid (deduction 9) or a qualified additional
       dependent deduction (deduction 10) but both deductions
       cannot be used for the same child. A qualified additional
       dependency deduction cannot be claimed for a child for whom
       there is a prior court or administrative support order.
       
          If the nonscustodial parent's court-ordered visitation
       exceeds 127 days per year, the noncustodial parent shall
       receive credit to the guideline amount of child support in
       accordance with the following table:
       
            Days                     Credits
          128-147                      25%
          148-166                      30%
          167 or more                  35%
        
          For the purposes of this credit, "days" means overnights
       spent caring for the child.  Failure to exercise court-ordered
       visitation may be a basis for modification.  The credit for
       extraordinary visitation shall not reduce a child support
       obligation below the minimum amount required by the guidelines
       ($50 for one child, $75 for two children, $100 for three 
       children, or $125 for four or more children).
        
                 All parties shall file a child support guidelines
       worksheet prior to a support hearing or the establishment of
       a support order. The parties shall use Form 1, unless both
       parties agree to use Form 2. The Child Support Recovery 
       Unit (CSRU) shall use Form 2. The child support guidelines
       worksheet forms are contained in the appendix to Exhibit
       "A".
       
          The court shall not vary from the amount of child support
      which would result from application of the guidelines without
      a written finding that the guidelines would be unjust or
      inappropriate as determined under the following criteria:
          
          (1) Substantial injustice would result to the payor,
      payee, or child;
         
          (2) Adjustments are necessary to provide for the needs of
      the child and to do justice between the parties, payor, or
      payee under the special circumstances of the case; and
           
          (3) Circumstances contemplated in Iowa Code section
      234.39.
      
          In addition, the court shall enter an order for medical
      support as required by statute.
       
          "Uncovered medical expenses" means all medical expenses
      for the child not paid by insurance.  The custodial parent
      shall pay the first $250 per year per child of uncovered
      medical expenses up to a maximum of $500 per year for all
      children.  Uncovered medical expenses in excess of $250 per
      child or a maximum of $500 per year for all children shall
      be paid by the parents in proportion to the respective net
      incomes.  "Medical expenses" shall include, but not be limited
      to, costs for reasonably necessary medical, orthodontia, dental
      treatment, physical therapy, eye care, including eye glasses or 
      contact lenses, mental health treatment, substance abuse
      treatment, prescription drugs, and any other uncovered medical
      expense.  Uncovered medical expenses are not to be deducted in
      arriving at net income.
      
          A stipulation of the parties establishing child support
      and medical support shall be reviewed by the court to
      determine if the amount stipulated and the medical support
      provisions are in substantial compliance with the guidelines.
      A proposed order to incorporate the stipulation shall be
      reviewed by the court to determine its compliance with these
      guidelines. If a variance from the guidelines is proposed,
      the court must determine whether it is justified and
      appropriate, and, if so, include the stated reasons for the
      variance in the order.
      
      [Adopted effective August 1, 2000.]
