Question: As a schoolteacher, I am “off” from the end of May until the middle of August, but work part time during my breaks to make ends meet. I was granted custody of my two sons (four and six), and my wife pays child support. Included in the child support calculation is the daycare I provide for the boys when I am working.

My wife has been complaining about the child support and says that the amount should be changed during the summer when I am with the children. What I have been trying to explain to her is that I have to work during the summer and still use child care, although not as much.

She is threatening to take me back to court to whittle down the support during the months of June and July and part of August, and wants the credit for the last few days of May. I told her that I was considering sending the boys to camp for a few weeks while I am working because she only takes one week visitation during the summer, and think she should help pay for it. I see trouble brewing and wonder if you have any ideas.

Answer: Aside from your wife seemingly looking for ways to spend your money on lawyers, one question here is whether summer camp expenses are “child care” expenses for purposes of the child support guidelines. According to Laura Morgan (www.childsupportguidelines.com), how this is handled impacts the child support calculations rather significantly. According to Ms. Morgan, if considered as child care, summer camp is a mandatory add-on in most states and the expense is divided proportionately according to the parents’ incomes on the theory that this is an income-producing expense of the parent. On the other hand, if not considered “child care,” the court may or may not obligate the non-custodial parent.

The bottom line is a determination of whether summer camp 1) is taking the place of child care while the custodial parent is working or going to school or 2) is an elective luxury item for the child(ren). Included in this determination is the necessity of child care. If, for example, a child is sufficiently old to not require child care, then the summer camp would no longer be considered as an “add on” to the child care expenses but, instead, would be an “extracurricular activity.”

In some cases where the custodial parent felt more comfortable with supervision (which we believe is a good idea), the non-custodial parent’s new spouse offered to provide the care at no cost during the summer, thus making camp not necessary.

Generally, where necessary both due to employment of the custodial parent and the age of the children, the cost of summer camp can be considered as child care, and the cost divided pro rata. On the other hand, even if not “child care” expenses, some courts have ordered payment as a necessary added expenditure to insure in the best interests of the children.

Therefore, your position should be that summer camp replaces school year child care and is required due to your work schedule, while your ex will assert that summer camp is not an appropriate extra expenditure based on your prior standard of living, etc. Either way, you will both incur fees that, in the final analysis, will exceed the cost you are talking about.