INDIANAPOLIS —
A new state law that drops the cutoff age for child support in Indiana is raising questions about how courts may interpret it.She also expects angry reactions, as people see an abrupt end to child-support payments they may have been expecting.
“Our challenge at this point is getting the word out, to make sure people are aware it’s happening,” Avery said.
The change in the age of emancipation brings Indiana closer in line with most states, which terminate child-support obligations at age 18.
Still, it signals a major shift in a philosophical argument over the obligations that a parent has to a child. Avery said the Indiana State Bar Association’s family law section didn’t take a position on the legislation as it was making its way through the Indiana General Assembly, because family law attorneys in Indiana were so divided on it.
State Sen. Tim Lanane, an attorney and Democrat from Anderson, sits on the Senate Corrections, Criminal and Civil Law Committee where the legislation changing the age originated. He said the argument over the emancipation age has gone on for at least 20 years in the General Assembly, but until recently legislators had opted to leave the law as is.
Lanane said that conversation intensified over the past year. One of the issues raised was fairness: While Indiana law required a noncustodial parent in a divorce to pay child support until the age of 21, the law doesn’t require parents who are married to each other to do the same. “Some people felt that it was bad public policy to treat children of an intact family differently than children of divorced parents.”
Lanane said the Indiana legislature opted for 19 — rather than 18 as most states — because there are some Indiana high school students who don’t graduate until they’re 19. “We wanted those students covered while they were still in school,” he said.
The legislature also included the exemption for education expenses, acknowledging the cost of college.
Lanane said he hopes the best interests of children will come first as attorneys and judges consider the change. “I think most parents will feel an obligation to continue their support, even if they're not legally obligated to do so.”
Maureen Hayden covers the Statehouse for the CNHI newspapers, the parent company of the Tribune-Star. She can be reached at maureen.hayden@indianamediagroup.com.
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Questions expected with law change
Emancipation age move likely to raise issues with child support
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