Child Support in Riverside County: The Guideline, the Calculator, and DCSS Versus the Court

Family Code section 4055 states the statewide formula: CS = K[HN – (H%)(TN)]². CS is the child support amount; HN is the high earner’s net monthly disposable income; TN is both parents’ net monthly disposable incomes added together; H% is the approximate percentage of time the high earner has primary physical responsibility for the children². K is the share of the parents’ combined income allocated to support. It equals one plus H% when H% is 50 percent or less, or two minus H% when H% is above 50 percent, multiplied by a fraction that depends on TN².

For more than one child, the result is multiplied by 1.6 for two children, 2 for three, 2.3 for four, 2.5 for five, and up to 2.86 for ten². A positive result means the higher earner pays the lower earner; a negative result means the lower earner pays². Unless the court orders otherwise, the order allocates the amount so that the youngest child’s share is the one-child amount².

The current section was enacted by Senate Bill 343 (Stats. 2023, ch. 213) and became operative September 1, 2024². The guideline amount is presumed correct; section 4057 lists the grounds that rebut it, including a stipulation, extraordinarily high income and special circumstances¹⁰.

What counts as income

Gross income under section 4058 is income “from whatever source derived”, including wages, bonuses, rents, dividends and pensions; business income is counted after business expenses, and needs-based public assistance is excluded¹¹. Section 4059 lists the deductions that produce net disposable income, among them income tax payable, mandatory union dues, health insurance premiums and support paid under another order¹². Income and deductions are reported on the Income and Expense Declaration (form FL-150), revised September 1, 2024¹³.

Add-ons

Section 4062 makes two add-ons mandatory: childcare costs actually incurred for work or job-related training, and the reasonable uninsured health care costs of the children¹⁴. Educational or other special needs and travel for visitation are discretionary¹⁴.

The low-income adjustment

Section 4055(b)(7) creates a rebuttable presumption of a low-income adjustment when the paying parent’s net disposable income per month is below the gross monthly income from full-time minimum wage (40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year)². California’s minimum wage was $16.90 an hour on January 1, 2026¹⁵. By the statute’s own arithmetic that is $16.90 x 40 x 52 / 12, or $2,929.33 a month. The threshold moves with the state minimum wage, and neither the state’s calculator page nor its FAQ prints a figure³⁵.

The California Child Support Guideline Calculator on the state DCSS site estimates support “using the same legal guidelines California courts apply”³. The page says the calculator “provides only an estimate and is not a guarantee of the amount of support that will be ordered”, and that the county child support commissioner or family law judge has final authority³. It links a user guide and an Arrears Payoff Calculator³.

The two do different jobs. DCSS is a government agency that establishes parentage, locates parents, obtains support and medical-support orders, collects and tracks payments, and changes orders that qualify⁴. It does not represent either parent. It cannot handle custody, visitation, divorce, restraining orders or spousal support⁴⁵. The court decides custody and every other family law question, and it makes the support order, whether on DCSS’s case or on a case the parents file.

Either parent or a legal guardian can enroll online¹⁶. Parents paying support receive services free⁵. A receiving parent who is not on public cash assistance pays an annual fee of no more than $35; the FAQ says the $35 applies on cases that received payments of $550 or more⁵.

The state directory lists Riverside’s local child support agency at 2041 Iowa Ave., Riverside, CA 92507, with the website rivcodcss.com; it prints no phone number or hours for the local office⁶. The statewide customer line is 1-866-901-3212⁵.

When a DCSS case exists, the agency’s attorneys appear at hearings for the agency and do not represent either parent¹. Local Rule 5101 treats actions involving DCSS as family filings¹⁷. As of September 2026 the court’s judicial assignments list DCSS child support calendars in the Hall of Justice (Department 55), in Menifee (Department M304) and at the Larson Justice Center in Indio (Department 2J)¹⁸. For the buildings, see which Riverside County courthouse takes your family law case.

Good to know The court’s Self Help Legal Services helps people without lawyers with changing an order, stipulations, DCSS forms and opening a DCSS case, by virtual appointment (riverside.courts.ca.gov/appointments) or email ([email protected])¹⁹. The flyer is revised November 6, 2023 and says the service is closed on holidays and the last Friday of every month, so confirm that with the court¹⁹.

For an unmarried child 18 or older who is a full-time high school student and not self-supporting, the duty of support continues until the child completes the 12th grade or turns 19, whichever comes first; a physician-documented medical condition can excuse the full-time requirement⁷. Support also ends if the child marries, joins the military, is emancipated or dies¹.

A court can modify or terminate a support order “at any time as the court determines to be necessary”, and a modification can be made retroactive to the date the notice of motion was filed²⁰²¹. The self-help guide puts it plainly: the judge “can only change the support amount as far back as the day you filed”¹. If the parents disagree, the request is made with form FL-300; if they agree, they submit a written agreement for the judge to sign¹. On a DCSS case the steps differ and the agency must approve an agreement¹.

DCSS also reviews orders. Either parent or a guardian may ask, at no charge, and the page says “Generally, a modification is possible if the support order would change by 20% or $50, whichever is less”⁹. If the agency declines, the parent may still go to court with the Family Law Facilitator’s help⁹.

Unpaid support accrues 10% interest per year⁵. Collection of past-due support continues until the balance, including interest, is paid in full⁵. The DCSS FAQ lists these enforcement tools: driver’s license suspension, passport denial or revocation, interception of tax refunds and other income, and liens⁵. When a court orders or changes support, section 5230 provides that it includes an earnings assignment order, which has an employer deduct support from pay²². The Riverside court’s FAQ describes the earnings assignment and, for a garnishment that should stop when a child turns 18 and graduates or reaches 19, an Income Withholding for Support and an ex parte application (form FL-430)⁸.