In this post I’ll discuss an obscure (at least I believe it is obscure) topic relating to the application of the Washington economic table to combined incomes that exceed $7000. In the past, there had been confusion among the lower courts as to whether extrapolation was an appropriate method to employ when exceeding the economic table. However, none of the lower courts that dealt with this issue calculated the excess child support amount properly with regard to the trial court’s authority to extrapolate. McCausland v. McCausland, 159 Wash. 2d 607 619, 152 P.3d 1013 1019 (2007).
We should begin by examining the legislature’s intent with regard to the Washington Child Support Schedule.
The legislature intends, in establishing a child support schedule, to insure that child support orders are adequate to meet a child’s basic needs and to provide additional child support commensurate with the parent’s income, resources, and standard of living…
Wash. Rev. Code § 26.19.001 (1988) (in part).
In practice, if the parent’s combined monthly net income is greater than $7000 then the court may set child support at an amount on the economic table for incomes between $5000 - $7000, or it may exceed that amount based on written findings. Wash. Rev. Code § 26.19.020 (1998).
One issue with the aforementioned statute is that it does not specify any particular method the court must use when exceeding the economic table, nor does it delineate what factors the court should consider when rendering its findings of fact. McCausland v. McCausland, 159 Wash. 2d 607 616, 152 P.3d 1013 1017 (2007).
The main idea is that the amount of support ordered beyond the boundaries of the economic table must be based on the child’s needs, and commensurate with the parent’s income, resources, and standard of living. Id. at 617.
To extrapolate is to use known facts as the starting point from which to draw inferences or conclusions about something unknown. Microsoft Encarta Dictionary 508 (2001). The economic table provides a known series of numbers from which a basic child support amount might be extrapolated, but the trial court is required to support any child support award that exceeds the economic table with written findings of fact. McCausland, 159 Wash. at 617, 152 P.3d at 1017.
When a trial court determines the basic child support amount by extrapolation, or mechanically extending the economic table; the resulting award may not have any realistic correlation to the child’s needs. Id. at 617. Because awards exceeding the economic table must be based on legislative criteria, the trial court may not use extrapolation when it exceeds the economic table in the child support schedule. Wash. Rev. Code § 26.19.001 (1988); McCausland, 159 Wash. at 610, 152 P.3d at 1014;.
At a minimum, the trial court must employ the Daubert/Rusch factors. Id. at 620. These factors include: (1) the parent’s standard of living, and (2) the children’s special, medical, educational, or financial needs. McCausland, 159 Wash. at 620, 152 P.3d at 1019; In Re Marriage of Daubert, 124 Wash. App. 483, 99 P.3d 401 (2004), overruled on other grounds by, McCausland, 159 Wash. 607; Rusch v. Rusch, 124 Wash. App. 226, 98 P.3d 1216 (2004), overruled on other grounds by, McCausland, 159 Wash. 607.
In conclusion, when determining a “ball park” child support award amount that your client may pay/receive, remember that the court must employ the Daubert/Rusch factors for combined incomes exceeding $7000. McCausland, 159 Wash. at 620. However, the court may also consider other factors. Id.
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