Maryland Revisions Impact Property Tax, Child Custody and Support
Not all marriages are alike. As such, not all divorces are alike either. Some involve children, while others may involve high conflicts regarding assets involved in the dissolution. In other cases, one spouse may be a service member, which could impact some of the ultimate decisions during the divorce process when it comes to property division and family law matters.
Legislative changes in Maryland
The Maryland General Assembly enacted several changes during the 2020 legislative session that will ultimately impact service members as well as retirees and their families. Specifically, these changes will impact the areas of property taxes, child support and child custody.
Property taxes
With regards to property taxes, these changes give local governments the authority to grant a property tax credit for the primary residence of certain disabled veterans. Furthermore, this bill also provides the authority to continue providing property tax credit to the surviving spouses of a veteran. Lastly, it extended the eligibility for local property credit for Veterans under the age of 65.
Child Support and custody
Significant changes were made to both child support and custody. Child custody is either sole or shared, and the definition of shared has been changed. Previously, a parent needed to spend 35% or 128 overnights to qualify for shared custody. This has been changed to 25% of the time or 92 overnights. Thus, sole custody only applies if a parent has less than 25% of the time or 92 overnights.
With regards to child support, the combined monthly income maximum has increased from $15,000 to $30,000 per month. This means that the court will have the authority to deviate from the guidelines if the combined monthly income of the parents is greater than $30,000. In other words, the court will have discretion when it comes to deciding child support obligations.
Navigating a divorce and family law matters can be challenging. Thus, it is important to fully understand the matter at hand and whether changes in legislation may impact the overall decision. This information could help a divorcing spouse protect their legal rights while moving forward with their matter.
