Who Wins When Good Parents Fight? Adding National Policy Context to the Texas Family Law Foundation’s HB 3379 Comments.
On Monday, March 13, 2023, the Texas Family Law Foundation (TFLF) emailed legislators with the subject line, “PLEASE DO NOT SUPPORT HB 3379 BY REPRESENTATIVE DAVID COOK.” In this post, the NPO Texas team aims to add national child support policy context to the contents of that email to help guide legislators with a holistic view of the elements of HB 3379.
The TFLF represents the perspectives of a subset of Texas family law attorneys, most of whom earn more than $350 per hour. Logically, these attorneys earn more when parents cannot resolve issues amicably and quickly and less when they can. TFLF represents one specific interest among a vast array of family law stakeholders.
NPO Texas advocates on behalf of all Texas children, but we pay careful attention to the vast majority of children (far more than 50% in Texas) whose parents do not have the financial means to hire attorneys to convince judges why outdated sections of the Family Code should not apply to their family. We must ensure these families’ voices are heard as loud as others.
As legislators consider board-certified family law attorney and state representative David Cook’s HB 3379, legislators must understand that the majority of families affected by the Family Code do not have the privilege of an attorney in their case (more detail below), which means it’s vital that the law contains child-centered best practices that help guide families in making the best decisions possible for their kids when they decide to live apart.
Several points from the TFLF letter have been quoted below, and those excluded were done so for brevity and to limit duplication of points. Further detail about all points is available by request—including those not directly noted below. Email texas@sharedparenting.org with questions, comments, and clarifications.
What’s in HB 3379?
In HB 3379, Representative Cook proposes a new 20-mile distance radius that has a default of an “equal” parenting time schedule for parents who share legal custody (known as Joint Managing Conservators in Texas), giving children maximized access to both of their parents when good parents live close together.
This builds on the existing parenting time schedules in the Family Code that are based on distance between parents (>100 miles, 50-100 miles, and <50 miles).
Currently, the Texas Family Code does not include an “equal” schedule option for Texas parents, and this bill would close that gap.
In addition, when parents live close and share “equal” parenting time with their children, child support would be calculated by determining the child support order for each parent and then taking the difference, so the higher-earning parent would pay the lower-earning parent to help with the child expenses in the other home. This is the manner in which child support is calculated in every state except Texas and Mississippi (more detail below).
Who has signed on to HB 3379?
HB 3379 has four (4) joint authors and 18 coauthors as of 3/19/2023. All supporters can be viewed here.
In Response to Select TFLF Comments
TFLF: “WE TOLD Y'ALL "EQUAL PARENTING" WAS ALL ABOUT CHILD SUPPORT.”
Correction: Texas family law judges and attorneys have been asking legislators for formulaic child support adjustments like in HB 3379 for many years.
And as a board-certified family law attorney, bill author Rep. Cook is a subject matter expert on the contents of HB 3379.
In 2020, 70.3% of the 691 responses submitted by Texas family law judges and attorneys (members of the State Bar) to the Office of the Attorney General's (OAG) request for feedback on the current child support guidelines indicated that child support adjustments, like in HB 3379, should be included in the Family Code.
2022 independent public polling indicates over 90% support by Texas residents.
Only Texas and Mississippi still do not make formulaic child support adjustments similar to HB 3379 in any family scenario. All other states do.
Here are direct quotes from the 2020 OAG survey of Texas family law judges and attorneys that showed >70% professional support:
"The code should address a presumption when the parents have a 50/50 possession schedule."
"Both parties should calculate child support and then offset each other. Child support concerns are the driving factor in complicating cases and discouraging peaceful resolution."
"Child support guidelines are meaningless without some tie to possession time. The main issue my clients face when attempting to reach agreement is that the guidelines are mandatory without adjustment for additional expenses resulting from a near 50/50 possession agreement."
"When are we going to get guidelines for 50/50 possession?"
"I really believe that the amount of time and the amount that the payor has to pay to take care of the child/ren in his/her care needs to be taken into account, as well as the income amount of both parties."
"A statute for off-setting child support in equal possession cases would be extremely helpful."
"child support guidelines ought to recognize the amount of time the child spends with each parent as well as the income of the obligee."
...and many more.
HB 3379 supports hard-working Texas family law judges and attorneys and protects Texas kids by finally providing guidance they have been requesting for many years and has been federally recommended for over three decades.
TFLF: The bill would reduce child support to millions of MOTHERS with children depending on it--as rampant inflation eats away at scarce childrearing resources--by requiring an "income shares" child support calculation because parents live close by.
Correction: This bill would ensure that children benefit from their parents' total financial resources when parents are fully sharing parenting responsibilities, as is standard in nearly all other states. (Complete national policy data available by request.)
Per the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE), which oversees all state child support programs:
"...the Income Shares model and Melson formula encourage continued involvement of both parents in the child's upbringing by means of adjustments for joint or extensively shared physical custody." [defined in the report as 20-25% parenting time]
"In the Advisory Panel's view, income of the custodial parent as well as the non-custodial parent should be taken into account in setting the amount of the award." "In this way, children benefit from both parents' ability to pay." (emphasis added—full report available by request)
Note: the current Texas guideline model was NOT recommended for use by OCSE, ostensibly because it does produce these child-centered results.
TFLF: “HB 3379 replaces the flexibility of current law with 'equal' parenting time and strict, inflexible schedules for parents who live 20 miles or less apart.”
Correction: All flexibility and judicial discretion that exist today remain with HB 3379. The >100 miles, 50-100 miles, and <50 miles schedules in the Family Code provide critical support to judges, lawyers, and families navigating the family law system, and a 20-mile radius extends that key support for families who choose to live very close to raise their children together.
95%+ of parents in the Texas IV-D courts, where more than half of the affected cases are disposed of, have no attorney present. Further, almost 50% of child support obligors appear to earn less than $11 per hour, based on their child support obligation.
Respectfully, these parents cannot afford to hire the Foundation's attorney clients to handle their cases. Supporting families is good for kids.
From OAG staff about IV-D courts:
"AAGs [Assistant Attorneys General—state employees] frequently mentioned that they do not have the time they would like to devote to each case. Many have dockets with 60 to 80 cases per day, and they cannot spend more than approximately 15 minutes per case, which includes time to set the child support order, medical support, and establish conservatorship and visitation. The AAGs frequently commented that these time constraints make it highly unlikely that they will seek any deviations from the guidelines [...]." (emphasis added)
Remember: nearly ALL parents in these cases have no attorney present, but the state of Texas has legal representation in every case.
TFLF: “The bill would create incentives for parents to put real distance between themselves to avoid the law under HB3379 and it may incentivize judges to avoid naming parents joint managing conservators.”
We respectfully urge legislators to zoom out. These child-centered child support adjustment policies exist in nearly every other state, sometimes for decades, and these farcical predictions are not reality. NPO Texas is happy to provide significant detail about national child support policies and "equal" parenting time laws and outcomes.
TFLF: “The Legislature provided for equal parenting time last session.”
This is not accurate. Per the OAG and TFLF in 2021:
On page 270 of the 2021 Quadrennial Review Report, the OAG estimates that the Expanded Standard Possession Order with all elections is 159 overnights (43.6%), but this estimate includes 10 Monday and Friday holidays and teacher service days, which is more than double the four found in recent local ISD calendars, enlarging the OAG estimate from what would have been 42.4%. The TFLF's own calendars from the 87th showed 37.8% and 41.3% after you correct the errors.
For kids, every moment with their parents matters to them, and they're grateful it matters to you, too.
Support HB 3379 and help protect Texas kids’ right to access both of their good parents when they live apart.
