House committee hears bill to add oversight and private verification to child support guidelines

Helena, Mont.

On Jan. 30, 2025, the Montana House Health and Human Services Committee heard testimony on House Bill 352, sponsored by Representative Schomer, a proposal to revise state child support guidelines, require certain staff expertise, establish a guidelines review oversight committee, require DPHHS to contract with a private software vendor to verify the agencycalculator and amend MCA 40-5-209.

The billproposes placing several calculation-related requirements into statute and creating a committee to report to the Children, Families, Health and Human Services Interim Committee. Proponents said the change would restore outside checks and increase public input; opponents said the measure duplicates federal regulations and existing administrative rulemaking and could constrain procurement.

Temple McLean, an expert witness testifying remotely, described the bill as a response to recent recommendations from the stateguidelines review committee (referred to in testimony as GROC). McLean said the committeequadrennial report recommended at least two significant changes to the child…