Alabama Central Disbursement Division
By law, all IV-D child support payments and non
IV-D child support payments made through income withholding must
be processed through a central payment center. See
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996
(PL 104-193) and
§30-3-195, Code of Alabama (1975).
In response to the legislation, Alabama established The Alabama
Child Support Payment Center (ACSPC) in August 2000.
It is imperative that all obligors, employers, and
custodial parents understand the route payments take from ACSPC to final
disbursement to the custodial parent. ACSPC transmits all IV-D
payments to the Alabama Department of Human Resources (DHR). For
information regarding IV-D payments, please visit the
DHR website Conversely, all non-IV-D
payments are transmitted to The Alabama Central Disbursement Division
(ACDD). The information in the following paragraph is provided to
assist you on payments directed through ACDD.
ACDD was established to handle disbursement of non-Title
IV-D payments. Disbursements are made on the same day they are
received from ACSPC. ACDD disburses child support payments by check,
direct deposit or to a debit card. ACDD customer service
representatives are available to answer questions and perform in depth research
regarding payments. ACDD has implemented an interactive voice
response system, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, which gives
the date and amount of the last payment processed. Additionally, the ACDD
web site provides helpful information including forms and a 90 account
history.
Child Support Guidelines
Rule 32, Alabama Rules of Judicial
Administration, Effective 10/4/93
Alabama's Child Support Guidelines were adopted in response to
requirements set forth in the Child Support Enforcement Amendments of
1984 (P.L. 98-378) and the Family Support Act of 1988 (P.L. 100-485). The
guidelines provide an adequate standard support for children, subject to
the ability of their parents to pay, and make awards more equitable by
ensuring more consistent treatment of persons in similar circumstances.
These guidelines are based on the income shares model developed by the
National Center for State Courts and are founded on the premise that children
should continue to receive the same level of support that would have been
available to them had the family unit remained intact.
Child Support Guidelines Review
Application of the Child Support Guidelines in Alabama is mandatory
unless the court makes a written finding on the record indicating that
application of the guidelines would be unjust or inappropriate.
Schedule of Basic Child Support Obligations
The Schedule of Basic Child Support Obligations was developed through
research sponsored by the National Center for State Courts and is based
on extensive economic research on the cost of supporting children at various
income levels. This schedule is based on gross income and has been
adjusted for Alabama's income distribution relative to the U. S. income
distribution. It also incorporates the federal income tax provisions as
well as the withholding schedule for Alabama state income tax.
The category entitled "combined gross income" in the schedule
means the combined monthly adjusted gross incomes of both parents.
"Adjusted gross income" means gross income less preexisting child
support obligations and less preexisting periodic alimony actually paid
by a parent to a former spouse.(See the
Child Support Guideline Worksheet [Form CS-42]
to compute the combined adjusted gross income.)
For combined gross income amounts falling between amounts shown in the
schedule, the lower value shall be used if the combined gross income
falls less than halfway between the amounts shown in the schedule. Where the
combined gross income falls halfway or more than halfway between two
amounts, the higher value shall be used. The category entitled
"number of children due support" in the schedule means children
for whom the parents share joint legal responsibility and for whom
support is being sought.
The court may use its discretion in determining child support in
circumstances where combined adjusted gross income is below the lowermost
levels ($550) or exceeds the uppermost levels of the schedule ($10,000).
Child Day Care Rates
The Alabama Child Support Guidelines provide an adjustment for
work-related child care costs, provided such costs do not exceed those on
the schedule of guidelines for licensed child care costs published by the
Alabama Department of Human Resources (DHR). The following are the DHR
weekly child care rates for all Alabama counties effective as of
October 1, 2007.
Rates are given for three school ages: infants/toddlers (0-30 months of
age); preschool (30 month - school age); and school age. Rates are also
given according to four licensing categories.
To determine the maximum adjustment you may enter for work-related child
care costs, select the type of child care service you use from the list
below. Then check the weekly rate for your county and the age of your
child(ren). The following rates are per child. For more than one child,
add the costs for each child to determine the maximum adjustment.
The maximum rate for part-time child care services is one-half the full
time rate for the type of care and the age of the child.
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