Opinion ID: 1941482
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: facts

Text: What occurred in the Circuit Court needs to be considered in light of the statutory regime that governs the setting of child support in Maryland. The heart of that regime, embodied in Maryland Code, § 12-202(a) of the Family Law Article (FL), consists of (1) the requirement that, in any proceeding to establish or modify child support, the court must use the child support guidelines set forth in FL § 12-204, to the extent they are applicable, and (2) the creation of a rebuttable presumption that the amount of child support that would result from application of those guidelines is the correct amount to be awarded. The child support guidelines are based on the combined adjusted actual income of the parents. The term actual income is defined very broadly in FL § 12-201(b). Section 12-201(b)(5), however, excludes from the definition benefits received from means-tested public assistance programs, including SSI. Those kinds of benefits may not, therefore, be considered as actual income when determining child support under the guidelines. Adjusted actual income is calculated by deducting from actual income preexisting reasonable child support obligations actually paid, alimony or maintenance obligations actually paid, and, for purposes of this case, the actual cost of providing health insurance for a child for whom the parents are jointly and severally responsible. See § 12-201(c). [2] The format of the guidelines is to establish, first, the amount of basic child support obligation, which is done through a table set forth in FL § 12-204(e). That table specifies a monthly dollar amount based on the combined adjusted actual income of the parents and the number of children involved. Where the combined adjusted actual income of the parents is between 0 and $850 per month, the table sets the basic child support obligation as $20-$150 Per Month, Based on Resources And Living Expenses Of Obligor And Number Of Children Due Support. The basic child support obligation, as established from the table, is then divided between the parents in proportion to their adjusted actual incomes. See FL § 12-204(a)(1). The custodial parent is presumed to spend that parent's total child support obligation directly on the child. With exceptions not relevant here, the non-custodial parent's child support obligation is to be satisfied by payments to the non-custodial parent. See FL § 12-204( l ). This case began with a petition filed by the State's Attorney in February, 2006, to establish that appellant was the father of a minor child, Shallah, determine who should have custody of the child, and establish appellant's child support obligation. The child, born in 1996, apparently lived with her mother and appellant until the couple separated in 2005. After reviewing the results of a blood test which indicated a 99.99% probability that he was the father, appellant decided not to contest paternity, and, as appellant did not then contest custody, the only issue was child support. At a hearing held before Judge Pierson on June 13, 2006, it was essentially stipulated that appellant was receiving SSI benefits. A document in the record from the Social Security Administration showed the monthly SSI benefit to be $603. Counsel for the State acknowledged that SSI income could not be considered in the calculation of actual income but argued that, under the guidelines, an award of between $20 and $150 was permissible where the income was between $100 and $800. [3] Counsel asked for an award of $50, noting that that amount was acceptable to the mother. Appellant testified that he could not afford to pay any amount of child support. He said that his rent was $568 a month, his telephone bill was $56 per month, that he was on nine medicines, four of which were to treat his HIV condition, and that his co-pay for those medicines was $5, apparently per medicine. He gave no indication of what his other living expenses were  food, clothing, heat and electricity, etc. Appellant said that he last worked about eight or nine years ago and that he lived alone. When the court noted that his necessary expenses exceeded his SSI benefits and suggested that he must have some other source of income, appellant acknowledged that he got money from his mother from time to time, although not recently. The child's mother, who was working part time and had income of her own, testified that appellant was living with a new girlfriend who received welfare benefits and was helping him pay the rent. Appellant denied that was the case. Having heard the evidence, the court concluded that appellant's testimony regarding his ability is not supported by the facts that he's demonstrated because it's clear that he has some means beyond those that he has actually produced to the court and that $50 is a reasonable amount of support. Upon that finding, the court entered a judgment that determined appellant to be the father, awarded custody of the child to the mother, and ordered appellant to pay $50 per month in child support. No appeal was taken from that June 13 order. On July 13, 2006, appellant, acting pro se, filed a motion for reconsideration in which he asked the court to [t]ake into consideration [appellant's] limited income and current established Bills and reduce set amount of child support. He also asked that the court establish visitation rights and award joint custody. Counsel from a non-profit organization entered her appearance on behalf of appellant and, in a request for hearing, averred that appellant's sole source of support was the SSI benefit, which may not be counted as income, that he was totally disabled, and that he was unable to supplement his income. The essence of her argument, articulated in a memorandum in support of the motion for reconsideration, was that if an individual's only income with which to pay child support is SSI, and the person cannot work, the court runs afoul of federal authority in ordering child support because it forces federal money to be used for a purpose other than that for which it was initially allocated, that is the survival of a disabled individual. Neither the motion for reconsideration nor counsel's written or oral argument in support of it alleged any new or changed circumstance, not considered by Judge Pierson, that would warrant a reduction in child support, but only that the court had erred in establishing the $50 amount. At a hearing before Judge Doory in March, 2007, appellant noted that the monthly SSI benefit had been increased to $623, but claimed that was all the money he has and that the law prohibited the court from imputing the SSI benefit as income. Appellant contended that Judge Pierson had ordered the $50 based on a finding that appellant lived with another individual who contributed to the rent, which freed up more of his income to pay the child support, and urged that it was legally inappropriate for the court to consider that person's contribution because she had no obligation to support appellant's child. The State responded that when a court applies the guidelines, it ordinarily does not consider the obligor's general expenses; the guidelines are based on gross income, not expenses. When the combined adjusted actual income falls below a minimum amount, howeverwhen it is between 0 and $850  the guidelines require that the court consider the resources and living expenses of the obligor, and that, in the State's view, is what Judge Pierson did. On the evidence presented, he concluded that appellant had sufficient resources to pay $50 per month. Judge Doory, having apparently read the transcript of the hearing before Judge Pierson, which is in the record, decided not to interfere with Judge Pierson's decision and denied the motion. This appeal was then filed, within 30 days after denial of the motion for reconsideration but long beyond the time allowed to appeal from Judge Pierson's order. We granted certiorari on our own initiative, before any meaningful proceedings in the Court of Special Appeals.