North Dakota Administrative Code › Title 75 - Department of Human Services › Article 75-02 - Economic Assistance › Chapter 75-02-04.1 - Child Support Guidelines › Section 75-02-04.1-02 - Determination of support amount - General instructions

Current through Supplement No. 393, July, 2024
1. Except as
				provided in section
				75-02-04.1-08.2, calculations of
				child support obligations provided for under this chapter consider and assume
				that one parent acts as a primary caregiver and the other parent contributes a
				payment of child support to the child's care. Calculation of a child support
				obligation under section
				75-02-04.1-08.2 does not preclude
				a court from apportioning specific expenses related to the care of the child,
				such as child care expenses and school activity fees, between the parents. An
				apportionment under this subsection is in addition to the child support amount
				determined by application of this chapter.
2. Calculations assume that the care given to
				the child during temporary periods when the child resides with the obligor or
				the obligor's relatives do not substitute for the child support
				obligation.
3. Net income received
				by an obligor from all sources must be considered in the determination of
				available money for child support.
4. The result of all calculations which
				determine a monetary amount ending in fifty cents or more must be rounded up to
				the nearest whole dollar, and must otherwise be rounded down to the nearest
				whole dollar.
5. In applying the
				child support guidelines, an obligor's monthly net income amount ending in
				fifty dollars or more must be rounded up to the nearest one hundred dollars,
				and must otherwise be rounded down to the nearest one hundred
				dollars.
6. The annual total of all
				income considered in determining a child support obligation must be determined
				and then divided by twelve in order to determine the obligor's monthly net
				income.
7. Income must be
				sufficiently documented through the use of tax returns, current wage
				statements, and other information to fully apprise the court of all gross
				income. Where gross income is subject to fluctuation, regardless of whether the
				obligor is employed or self-employed, information reflecting and covering a
				period of time sufficient to reveal the likely extent of fluctuations, not to
				exceed five years, must be provided.
8. Calculations made under this chapter are
				ordinarily based upon recent past circumstances because past circumstances are
				typically a reliable indicator of future circumstances, particularly
				circumstances concerning income. If circumstances that materially affect the
				child support obligation have changed in the recent past or are very likely to
				change in the near future, consideration may be given to the new or likely
				future circumstances.
9. Each child
				support order must include a statement of the net income of the obligor used to
				determine the child support obligation, and how that net income was
				determined.
10. A payment of
				children's benefits made to or on behalf of a child who is not living with the
				obligor must be credited as a payment toward the obligor's child support
				obligation in the month (or other period) the payment is intended to cover, but
				may not be credited as a payment toward the child support obligation for any
				other month or period. The court may order the obligee to reimburse the obligor
				for any overpayment that results from the credit provided in this
				subsection.
11. No amount may be
				deducted to determine net income unless that amount is included in gross
				income.
General Authority:
NDCC 50-06-16,
					 50-09-25
Law Implemented:
NDCC 14-09-09.7,
					 50-09-02(16); 42 USC
					 667