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Commenter urges Connecticut commission to publish firm schedule for 4‑year child support guideline reviews
Summary
At the Sept. 11 meeting of the Connecticut Commission for Child Support Guidelines, a public commenter urged the commission to adopt a standing quadrennial review calendar and set a firm adoption date for updated guidelines; the commission accepted minutes from its June meeting and scheduled its next session for Oct. 2, 2025.
Hartford — Anne Cortland, a resident who testified at the State of Connecticut Commission for Child Support Guidelines meeting on Sept. 11, told commissioners that federal rules and Connecticut law require states to review child support guidelines every four years and urged the commission to adopt a firm review calendar.
"Federal rules require every state to review its child support guidelines at least once every 4 years, and Connecticut law echoes that our commission is directed to review and issue updated guidelines every 4 years," Cortland said. "So I'm asking the commission to publish a firm adoption date for updated guidelines, post a standing quadrennial calendar now with next reviews in 2029 and 2033, etcetera, with milestones for data, draft hearings, and final vote, and issue a brief process policy committing Connecticut to the 4 year cycle going forward."
Cortland told the commission that when guideline schedules fall behind current wages and costs, it increases deviations, arrears and conflicts in family-court orders. She cited Massachusetts and New York as examples of neighboring states that have kept more frequent review cycles.
Chief Family Court Magistrate Michael Ferguson, who opened the meeting and conducted roll call, and other commission members did not ask follow-up questions during Cortland's three-minute public comment. The commission then proceeded to routine business, including a motion to accept the minutes from the June 5, 2025 meeting, which was moved, seconded and carried by voice vote.
The commission adjourned after Cortland's comment and announced its next meeting for Oct. 2, 2025, at 5 p.m.
Why this matters: Child support guidelines set the baseline calculations judges use to set support orders; periodic reviews can adjust charts and presumptive amounts to reflect shifting wages, costs and policy choices. Cortland argued that a predictable, publicly posted review timetable would give families and courts clearer expectations about when guideline changes will be proposed and adopted.
What was not decided: The commission did not set an adoption date or adopt a standing quadrennial calendar at the Sept. 11 meeting. Cortland's request was taken as public comment only; no formal directive or vote on adopting a schedule was recorded.
