Dads from Kansas and throughout the country have been petitioning through Petition2Congress.com for several years to have the many unfair aspects of child support laws addressed.
Of the 7,613 unfair Kansas child support laws petitions filed as of September 2013, here are examples of two dads from Kansas and their complaints:
Wilbert G. from Fort Riley, Kan., writes: “I don’t think it’s fair that my entitlements from the military are included in my child support. I believe that is for my household and shouldn’t be used in the child support calculations.”
Another unhappy dad, Brandon T. from Topeka, Kan., writes: “Child support is unfair for the Non-Custodial Parent. I pay 45% of my net pay and the Taxes on this Money. I also have the expense when they are with me EVERY Saturday thru Tuesday night with NO credit. Child Support is Legalized Extortion….. Do something about it.”
Reasons for Petitioning
There are many reasons why these dads and thousands of others are petitioning their legislators at the federal level. One dad was never served with divorce papers and, yet, still must pay child support. He claimed that his default was entirely unintentional since he could not serve response papers if he didn’t know that he had been served in the first place.
A great many of the dads filing grievance petitions have experienced years and years of frustration on many fronts, including “deadbeat” ex-wives who refuse to get jobs, children being used as financial bargaining chips, denied visitation, and simply too much money expended to ex-wives with very little accounting of how much of the money is actually spent on the children.
How can these men effectively move forward with their lives if they are indebted to ex-wives for more than they can realistically afford?
Child Support – A State Issue
Child support issues are, for the most part, a states’ issue, and it is interesting to note that the men filing petitions are filing them with their federal legislators on Capitol Hill. This brings to mind the obvious problem of Kansas dads’ rights at the state level not being addressed properly.
Kansas child support payments are calculated according to the usual formulae for one child, multiple children, and multi-family applications. Of course, a shared expense formula is best because it takes into account the income of both parents and divides the child support obligation accordingly.
But something has to be wrong, systemically, if so many dads are filing legitimate grievances with the federal government.
What A Dad Can Do
If a dad feels that he is paying for an ex-wife who refuses to work, there are steps that he can take.
He can try to talk to his ex-wife to determine if and when she intends to return to the workforce. With a steady increase of working mothers, including those who are not married, there is, essentially, no reason why a mother cannot work at least part-time while her children are young.
The federal government and state and county entities sponsor childcare financial assistance for working mothers. In some programs, the county picks up the entire cost of childcare.
A father, who is unable to come to an agreement with an ex-wife who claims that she cannot work, will need to return to court. His best bet is to hire a Kansas family law attorney who focuses on fathers’ rights. This way, a dad can proceed along a logical path with the experienced guidance of a Kansas divorce attorney and the court to set up a workable child support amount and payment schedule.
Kansas Child Support Lawyer
If you are a man facing divorce, please consult with a Kansas divorce lawyer in your jurisdiction to assist you with your child support issue. Cordell & Cordell has offices and family law attorneys located in Overland Park should you seek additional information or possible legal representation.