The Financial Responsibility of Custodial Parents

Child support is paid by the noncustodial parent, however, misuse of child support has led some state courts to revise statutes to account for the financial responsibility of the custodial parent as well.

Custodial Parent

The custodial parent has physical custody of the child. A custodial parent is responsible for the child on a daily basis, including housing, food, school expenses, extracurricular activities, transportation and medical care. Custodial parents have authority over all aspects of raising the child.

Financial Responsibility

Child support is paid by the noncustodial parent to aid the custodial parent in the care of the child. Most state's family courts account for the income of both parents when determining the amount of child support the noncustodial parent will pay.

A custodial parent has the responsibility to make sure the child is cared for regardless of the amount of the child support payments. The custodial parent, does not, however, have to prove how they are financially caring for the child, except in states that allow accounting.

Custodial Parent Accounting

The custodial parent has the authority to choose how child support money is spent. After several Supreme Court cases, there are only a few states which allow a noncustodial parent to ask for an accounting of how the money is spent. The consensus of the remaining states is that accounting for how child support money is spent interferes with the custodial parent's decision making. Similarly, custodial parents would also need meticulous record keeping abilities, and this causes an undue burden on the custodial parent.

References

• Support Guidelines.com: The Custodial Parent's Duty to Report to the Noncustodial Parent for How Child Support Money is Spent
• Lawyers.com: Use of Child Support Payments