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PAG LIN
1 1 Section 1. Section 598.21, Code 2003, is amended by adding
1 2 the following new subsection:
1 3 NEW SUBSECTION. 5B. If the conditions of paragraph "a"
1 4 are met, a percentage of the child support payments of the
1 5 noncustodial parent shall be diverted as provided in paragraph
1 6 "b" into a qualified tuition program.
1 7 a. All of the following parental conditions shall be met:
1 8 (1) The custodial parent is remarried or cohabitating with
1 9 another person.
1 10 (2) The custodial parent has obtained a degree from an
1 11 accredited postsecondary college or university or accredited
1 12 community college prior to the date of the divorce decree.
1 13 (3) The net monthly household income of the custodial
1 14 parent equals at least one hundred ten percent of the monthly
1 15 allowable living expenses for the area in which the custodial
1 16 parent resides.
1 17 (4) The noncustodial parent has regular, overnight
1 18 visitation with the child for whom child support is provided
1 19 of at least ninety overnights per calendar year.
1 20 (5) All of the joint children of the custodial and
1 21 noncustodial parents are five years of age or older.
1 22 b. If the conditions in paragraph "a" are met, the
1 23 noncustodial parent shall divert a percent of the child
1 24 support payment to a qualified tuition program in the name of
1 25 that child based upon the percent that the custodial parent's
1 26 net monthly household income is of the monthly allowable
1 27 living expenses in the area in which the custodial parent
1 28 resides according to the following schedule:
1 29 Percentage of monthly
1 30 allowable living expenses: Percentage diverted:
1 31 110 - 119.99 .......................... 5
1 32 120 - 129.99 .......................... 10
1 33 130 - 139.99 .......................... 15
1 34 140 - 144.99 .......................... 20
1 35 145 - 149.99 .......................... 25
2 1 150 - 154.99 .......................... 30
2 2 155 - 159.99 .......................... 35
2 3 160 - 164.99 .......................... 40
2 4 165 - 169.99 .......................... 45
2 5 170 - 174.99 .......................... 50
2 6 175 - 179.99 .......................... 55
2 7 180 - 184.99 .......................... 60
2 8 185 - 189.99 .......................... 65
2 9 190 - 194.99 .......................... 70
2 10 195 - 199.99 .......................... 75
2 11 200 - 204.99 .......................... 80
2 12 205 - 209.99 .......................... 85
2 13 210 - 214.99 .......................... 90
2 14 215 - 219.99 .......................... 95
2 15 220 - 224.99 ......................... 100
2 16 225 - 249.99 ......................... 100 plus 5 percent from
2 17 custodial parent
2 18 250 - 274.99 ......................... 100 plus 10 percent from
2 19 custodial parent
2 20 275 - 299.99 ......................... 100 plus 15 percent from
2 21 custodial parent
2 22 300 or more .......................... 100 plus 20 percent from
2 23 custodial parent
2 24 c. For purposes of this subsection:
2 25 (1) "Monthly allowable living expenses" means the sum of
2 26 the appropriate amounts from the food, clothing, and other
2 27 items chart, the housing and utilities chart, and the
2 28 transportation chart as listed in the United States internal
2 29 revenue service's collection financial standards for allowable
2 30 living expenses.
2 31 (2) "Net monthly household income" means the gross monthly
2 32 income of the custodial parent and the custodial parent's
2 33 spouse or person cohabitating with the custodial parent minus
2 34 federal and state taxes withheld, federal old-age, survivors,
2 35 and disability insurance, and federal hospital insurance.
3 1 (3) "Noncustodial parent" means a parent to whom anything
3 2 less than joint physical care of a child has been awarded.
3 3 (4) "Qualified tuition program" means the same as defined
3 4 in section 529(b) of the Internal Revenue Code.
3 5 d. Notwithstanding the amount of the diversion required in
3 6 paragraph "b", the amount of the diversion shall be reduced if
3 7 the diversion will result in excess contributions being made
3 8 on behalf of the child as prohibited under section 529(b)(6)
3 9 of the Internal Revenue Code.
3 10 e. To invoke the diverted child support provisions, the
3 11 noncustodial parent shall file an original affidavit with the
3 12 court in the county where the divorce decree was entered, and
3 13 shall serve a copy of the affidavit by certified mail or
3 14 personal service to the custodial parent, and shall mail a
3 15 copy of the affidavit by ordinary mail to the attorney who
3 16 represented the custodial parent in the divorce proceedings,
3 17 or to the current attorney of the custodial parent, and a copy
3 18 to the clerk of court's staff person responsible for receiving
3 19 child support payments and entering the receipt of payments
3 20 into the clerk's accounting system. The clerk shall ensure
3 21 that the diverted child support obligation is noted in the
3 22 clerk's accounting system. The contents of the affidavit
3 23 shall include all of the following:
3 24 (1) The names of each child who is to be a designated
3 25 beneficiary in a qualified tuition program.
3 26 (2) The dates of birth of each child.
3 27 (3) A statement that the custodial parent is married or
3 28 cohabitating with another partner. The affidavit shall
3 29 include the name of the spouse or partner, and the address at
3 30 which the couple resides.
3 31 (4) The amount of the custodial parent's net monthly
3 32 household income.
3 33 (5) The amount the noncustodial parent believes represents
3 34 the custodial parent's monthly allowable living expenses.
3 35 (6) A statement as to the custodial parent's education
4 1 level.
4 2 (7) A statement as to the current monthly or weekly child
4 3 support obligation of the noncustodial parent and a
4 4 calculation of the amount of child support the noncustodial
4 5 parent believes should be diverted, and the amount that
4 6 remains payable directly to the custodial parent.
4 7 (8) The name, mailing address, street address, telephone
4 8 number, fax number, and e-mail address of the broker or plan
4 9 administrator that will be receiving the payments for the
4 10 designated beneficiary of the qualified tuition program, and
4 11 the name of the investment or investments into which the
4 12 broker or plan administrator will be placing the child
4 13 support.
4 14 (9) The addresses where the broker shall send monthly
4 15 statements, including the current mailing addresses of the
4 16 custodial and noncustodial parents.
4 17 (10) A statement that all of the children common to the
4 18 custodial and noncustodial parent are at least five years of
4 19 age.
4 20 (11) A statement that the parties have joint custody and
4 21 that the noncustodial parent exercises periodic overnight
4 22 visitation with the children a minimum of ninety overnights
4 23 per year on average.
4 24 Upon filing this affidavit and serving it upon all parties,
4 25 the noncustodial parent may begin making payments directly to
4 26 the qualified tuition program in the amount determined by the
4 27 percent diversion schedule in paragraph "b". The noncustodial
4 28 parent must continue to pay the nondiverted amount to the
4 29 clerk of court. If a wage withholding is in effect, the
4 30 affidavit must be served on the employer, who shall
4 31 immediately adjust the wage withholding accordingly.
4 32 If the custodial parent objects to the accuracy of the
4 33 affidavit filed by the noncustodial parent, or to the
4 34 calculation utilized by the noncustodial parent, the custodial
4 35 parent may request a hearing on the accuracy of the affidavit.
5 1 Prior to the hearing the custodial parent must provide a
5 2 financial affidavit, the prior year's tax return, the most
5 3 recent tax return from a year in which the custodial parent
5 4 worked full time, the most recent tax return from a year in
5 5 which the custodial parent's spouse or cohabitating partner
5 6 worked full time, and the four most recent pay stubs of the
5 7 custodial parent and the custodial parent's spouse or
5 8 cohabitating partner. If the noncustodial parent has
5 9 requested these items from the custodial parent prior to
5 10 filing the affidavit, and the custodial parent failed to
5 11 deliver them within twenty days of receiving the request, the
5 12 custodial parent, prior to being granted a hearing on the
5 13 accuracy of the affidavit, must advance seven hundred fifty
5 14 dollars to the clerk of court, who in turn shall forward it to
5 15 the noncustodial parent for payment of attorney fees. The
5 16 noncustodial parent shall continue to make payments to the
5 17 qualified tuition program during the pendency of the hearing.
5 18 If it is determined that the noncustodial parent overstated
5 19 the amount of the diversion, no payments will be made to the
5 20 qualified tuition program in the months immediately following
5 21 the court order setting the new reduced amount of the diverted
5 22 payments following such a hearing. Payments to the qualified
5 23 tuition program will resume in the amount ordered by the court
5 24 after all overpayments to the qualified tuition program have
5 25 been made up in the form of direct payments to the custodial
5 26 parent.
5 27 f. Any child support payments diverted to a qualified
5 28 tuition program pursuant to this subsection shall be an
5 29 alternative to and in lieu of a postsecondary education
5 30 subsidy order made pursuant to subsection 5A.
5 31 EXPLANATION
5 32 This bill provides for the diversion of a portion of a
5 33 noncustodial parent's child support obligation to a college
5 34 savings plan set up by the state of Iowa or one or two
5 35 educational institutions in situations where the custodial
6 1 parent, who has benefited from higher education, has
6 2 sufficient income to adequately support the daily needs of the
6 3 child. The higher the income of the custodial parent, the
6 4 greater the percentage of support payments are diverted to the
6 5 college savings plan. The bill does not increase nor decrease
6 6 the noncustodial parent's monthly child support obligation.
6 7 The diverted portion is paid directly to the college savings
6 8 plan, which grows tax free, and cannot be used until the child
6 9 enrolls in a postsecondary institution of higher learning.
6 10 The income scale is based on the internal revenue service's
6 11 collection financial standard for allowable living expenses
6 12 published for each county in Iowa or region in which Iowa is
6 13 situated, according to family size.
6 14 LSB 2493XS 80
6 15 mg/cf/24
Text: SF00264 Text: SF00266 Text: SF00200 - SF00299 Text: SF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
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