Opinion
No. C6-99-1926.
Filed June 27, 2000.
Appeal from Renville County District Court, File No. F09054.
John Kallestad, Beccue Kallestad, (for appellant)
Jon C. Saunders, Anderson, Larson, Hanson Saunders, PLLP, (for respondent)
Considered and decided by Schumacher, Presiding Judge, Harten, Judge, and Shumaker, Judge.
This opinion will be unpublished and may not be cited except as provided by Minn. Stat. § 480A.08, subd. 3 (1998).
UNPUBLISHED OPINION
Appellant Suzanne Honzay contends that the district court erred by failing to make adequate findings to support its modification of the magistrate's child support order. We reverse and remand.
FACTS
Alleging that respondent Larry Jordet's income had substantially increased, appellant Suzanne Honzay moved to increase the amount of child support Jordet was required to pay.
A child-support magistrate granted the motion and increased Jordet's monthly obligation from $288 to $407.60. The magistrate found that Jordet's monthly net income had increased from $842.41 to $1,390.25. The magistrate also found that Jordet was obligated to pay support for another child and that obligation required an adjustment of Jordet's monthly income to $1,202. To that amount, the magistrate applied the child-support guidelines in Minn. Stat. § 518.551, subd. 5 (1998).
Jordet moved for review by the district court. The court modified Jordet's monthly medical-insurance deduction from $78.98 to $157.96, vacated the magistrate's adjustment of income because of Jordet's second support obligation, and decreased Jordet's monthly child-support obligation to Honzay to $293.54. Honzay appeals.
DECISION
Modification of child support is within the district court's discretion and will not be reversed absent an abuse of discretion. Kuronen v. Kuronen, 499 N.W.2d 51, 53 (Minn.App. 1993), review denied (Minn. June 22, 1993). This court will reverse the district court's decision for abuse of that discretion only when the district court's resolution of the issue is against logic and the facts on the record. Id.
If a district court modifies any findings of a child-support magistrate, the court must itself make specific findings or conclusions as to the modifications. Minn.R.Gen.Pract. 372.05, subd. 2. Here, the court made specific findings as to the modification of Jordet's net monthly income. The court also stated that it considered the needs of all of Jordet's children in determining an appropriate child-support amount. But the court made no findings to support reduction of the magistrate's award by $114. Under Minn. Stat. § 518.551, subd. 5(i) (1998), an obligor's income is the only required finding where support awarded is consistent with the child-support guidelines. But here, the support was not consistent with the guidelines. Rather, it was $100 below the proper guidelines calculation ($1,310 x .3 = $393).
Because the court made no finding to support a child-support award $100 below the guidelines amount, we reverse and remand.