On December 15, 2020, the Massachusetts Council on Family Mediation submitted comments from members on potential child support guidelines updates.
While the comment period for submitting written comments closed on December 15, 2020, there are upcoming public forums and we're sharing the full notice with you below:
NOTICE OF PUBLIC FORUMS
CHILD SUPPORT GUIDELINES TASK FORCE SEEKS PUBLIC COMMENT
Overview:
Federal law and regulations require that each state review its Child Support Guidelines at least every four years. To comply with the federally required review, the Honorable Paula M. Carey, Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Trial Court, has appointed a Task Force to review the Child Support Guidelines that became effective on September 15, 2017, as amended June 15, 2018.
Chief Justice Carey appointed the Honorable John D. Casey, Chief Justice of the Probate and Family Court, and the Honorable Katherine Field, First Justice of the Bristol County Probate and Family Court, as the Co-Chairs of the Task Force. The Task Force includes representatives from the Probate and Family Court, the Department of Revenue, the domestic relations bar, and legal services organizations. More information about this child support review can be found at: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/2020-2021-child-support-guidelines-review.
Members:
The members of the Task Force are:
Hon. John D. Casey, Co-chair
Hon. Katherine Field, Co-chair
Kara Carey, Esq.
David Friedman, Esq.
Fern Frolin, Esq.
Lisa Greenberg, Esq.
Christopher Hercun
Peter Kajko, Esq.
Hon. Robert W. Langlois (ret.)
Dolores O'Neill, Esq.
Anna Richardson, Esq.
Jamie Sabino, Esq.
Kimberlie Sweet, Esq.
Patrick Yoyo, Esq.
Amanda Vanderhorst, Esq.
Kelly Zawistowski, Esq.
Public Forums and Written Comments:
The public is invited to provide comments on the Child Support Guidelines for the Task Force's consideration. Public forums will be held on January 21, 2021, from 4:00 - 6:00 p.m. (EST); January 22, 2021, from 11 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. (EST); and January 26, 2021, from 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. (EST).
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the forums will be held by Zoom. The forums will be open to the public to view. The forums are an opportunity to make a brief statement to members of the Task Force. Oral testimony is limited to 3 minutes per person, and should not refer to specifics about a speaker's court case. The Task Force also encourages people to email written testimony or comments to childsupport@jud.state.ma.us by January 26, 2020. Please do not submit any written testimony or comments to Task Force members individually.
The public forums will be recorded by the host. Anything said will be captured and made part of the recording. No other recording is allowed.
How to Participate:
If you would like to speak at a forum, please send an email in advance to
childsupport@jud.state.ma.us to register. The email must include your full name, your affiliation (if any), your phone number and email address, and the date you would like to speak. Please also include in the subject line of your email the date you would like to speak. You may register by email up to 15 minutes before each forum begins.
The information for accessing the Zoom meeting is:
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To sign up to receive Probate and Family Court email updates, please go to:
https://www.mass.gov/forms/probate-and-family-court-notification-email-signup-page