Commission assigns preamble drafting, aims for Aug. 1, 2026 effective date for child support guidelines

The Connecticut Commission for Child Support Guidelines at its March meeting adopted the minutes from the February meeting, confirmed a quorum and assigned members to finish drafting the preamble to the revised guidelines.

The chair opened the meeting and called the roll. After no questions about the minutes, Attorney Darren Preslow moved to adopt the minutes that were circulated from the February commission meeting, a motion that was seconded and approved by voice vote with no dissent.

Attorney Darren Preslow told commissioners the regulations review commission had approved the proposed regulation with technical changes and that he had filed the revised regulation with the Secretary of State’s office. "It has not formally been acted upon yet," Preslow said. "I think it usually takes them a few days, and I did that earlier this week." He said he expected the Secretary of State to formally record the filing in the coming days.

The commission then focused on the preamble to the guidelines. Preslow summarized the outstanding items that still need drafting: consideration of adopting a shared‑parenting formula, a brief section explaining that union dues are non‑mandatory (citing Supreme Court case law), and an option to include an order for contribution toward a child’s extracurricular activities. "Those are the only things that are really outstanding," Preslow said, and he asked for volunteers to draft specific sections.

A commission member volunteered to draft both the union‑dues paragraph and the shared‑parenting paragraph. Preslow said he would note the volunteers, consolidate contributions into a single workable draft and re‑circulate the updated version to the full commission.

Commissioners also discussed timing for completing the preamble and preparing the guidelines for the commission’s approval. Preslow outlined an internal timeline: aim to have draft pieces ready for the May meeting, consolidate drafts by June 1, and adopt the final guideline package with an intended effective date of Aug. 1, 2026. He added that members should use the circulated Word version of the preamble as a starting point and submit edits in track changes so the full commission can see modifications.

The chair closed the short meeting after thanking members for their work; no further substantive business or votes were recorded.

Next steps: members will submit drafted preamble sections to the lead drafter, who will consolidate edits and circulate a new draft ahead of the May meeting.