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Senate approves repeal of court-ordered postsecondary support in divorce cases; opponents say it undermines children’s educational opportunities
Summary
Senate File 513 eliminates the option for courts to order parental payment of postsecondary education costs in divorce proceedings; supporters called the law outdated and prone to abuse, while opponents argued it reduces children’s access to higher education.
Senate File 513, which eliminates the court’s option to order parents to pay postsecondary education subsidies for children in divorce proceedings, passed the Senate after floor debate that highlighted competing views on fairness and children’s educational access.
Sponsor Senator Green (Boone) said the law dated from the 1970s and that changed economic circumstances and higher tuition rates have produced “a toxic situation” in which the option to order support can be abused. Green said the bill came from constituent concerns and that the law’s original assumptions no longer fit today’s realities.
Senator Kornbach (Story) opposed the repeal, stressing that the existing statute allows a court to order support only on a showing of good cause and requires the court to consider parents’ finances and available financial aid. Kornbach warned that removing the court’s ability to order support would disadvantage children of divorced parents compared with children whose parents were never married: “The way to resolve the inequity is not to equalize things down,” he said, urging that the current standard protects the child’s best interest.
After debate, Senator Green moved the bill to final passage. The clerk announced the roll call result as 43 ayes and 4 nays; the bill passed and will be messaged to the House.
