Maryland is changing how courts calculate child support, and the shift could mean lower payments for some families.

(HB 1191 / SB 548), sponsored by Delegate Charlotte Crutchfield (District 19, Montgomery County), revises how judges determine a parent’s “adjusted actual income,” the number at the heart of every child support order.

Here’s what’s changing:

Currently, courts start with a parent’s gross income, then subtract certain items, like taxes, union dues, health insurance premiums, and alimony, to reach adjusted actual income.

That adjusted number is what the child support guidelines rely on.

The new law adds a fresh deduction:

If a parent has other children living in their household (children they are legally obligated to support but for whom no child support order exists), the

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