Have you ever wondered how wage garnishment is figured? The State of Arizona has all the documents available at a self service section of their website. By clicking on the link you can get the entire packet, or take a look at the various documents within the packet.
This example is taken from the court document called a Non-Exempt Earnings Statement. If your employer receives one of these, they are required by law to garnish your wages. I assume not all garnishments are calculated the same way, so realize that the following is only one example.
Mr. Jones works 40 hours a week, makes $10.00 an hour, and lives in Arizona, where the mandatory taxes are social security, medicare, federal and state. Minimum wage is currently $7.25. Take the amount you make, subtract the mandatory taxes (social security, medicare, federal, state) to come up with your first subtotal.
| Line | Description | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 1a | Gross Earnings per pay period | $400.00 |
| 1b | Disposable Earnings (Gross Earnings less deductions required by law) | $307.30 |
| 1c | Enter 25% of line 1b | $76.83 |
| 2 | The current federal minimum wage (Currently $7.25/hour). Enter one of the following, using an appropriate pay period: weeky (30 x minimum wage), biweekly (60 x minimum wage), semimonthly (65 x minimum wage), monthly (130 x minimum wage). | $225.00 |
| 3 | Subtract line 2 from 1b and enter | $82.30 |
| 4 | Enter the amount from line 1c or line 3, whichever is smaller | $76.83 |
| 5 | Enter the amount withheld from the Judgment Debtor's earnings because of a court ordered Assignment for the Support of a Person (child support, spousal maintenance) or a Garnishment of Levy for the Collection of Taxes. | $0.00 |
| 6 | Subtract line 5 from line 4 and enter here. THIS IS THE AMOUNT OF NONEXEMPT EARNINGS YOU ARE TO WITHHOLD AND FORWARD TO THE JUDGMENT CREDITOR WITH THIS STATEMENT | $76.83 |
Once you have that subtotal, multiply it by 25%.
Next you're going to take what amounts to 75% of the hours you are paid for, and multiply by minimum wage. For example, if you work 40 hours a week, 75% of 40 hours is 30 hours. If you are paid every two weeks, you'll be taking 80 hours multiplying by 75% to come up with 60 hours.
Now subtract the minimum wage amount (E) from your net wages after mandatory deductions (C).
Look at D and F and take whichever amount is smaller.
If you are already paying for a previous judgment, or are paying child support, subtract this amount.
The resulting figure is the amount your employer is required by law to remove (garnish) from your paycheck.
Here are a couple of other examples:
Mr. Smith makes $19.25 per hour, working 40 hours a week.
| Line | Description | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 1a | Gross Earnings per pay period | $770.00 |
| 1b | Disposable Earnings (Gross Earnings less deductions required by law) | $591.55 |
| 1c | Enter 25% of line 1b | $147.89 |
| 2 | The current federal minimum wage (Currently $7.25/hour). Enter one of the following, using an appropriate pay period: weeky (30 x minimum wage), biweekly (60 x minimum wage), semimonthly (65 x minimum wage), monthly (130 x minimum wage). | $225.00 |
| 3 | Subtract line 2 from 1b and enter | $366.55 |
| 4 | Enter the amount from line 1c or line 3, whichever is smaller | $147.89 |
| 5 | Enter the amount withheld from the Judgment Debtor's earnings because of a court ordered Assignment for the Support of a Person (child support, spousal maintenance) or a Garnishment of Levy for the Collection of Taxes. | $0.00 |
| 6 | Subtract line 5 from line 4 and enter here. THIS IS THE AMOUNT OF NONEXEMPT EARNINGS YOU ARE TO WITHHOLD AND FORWARD TO THE JUDGMENT CREDITOR WITH THIS STATEMENT | $147.89 |
Mr. Magoo makes $15.00 per hour, and is paid semi-monthly (two times each month).
| Line | Description | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 1a | Gross Earnings per pay period | $1300.00 |
| 1b | Disposable Earnings (Gross Earnings less deductions required by law) | $998.72 |
| 1c | Enter 25% of line 1b | $249.68 |
| 2 | The current federal minimum wage (Currently $7.25/hour). Enter one of the following, using an appropriate pay period: weeky (30 x minimum wage), biweekly (60 x minimum wage), semimonthly (65 x minimum wage), monthly (130 x minimum wage). | $487.50 |
| 3 | Subtract line 2 from 1b and enter | $511.22 |
| 4 | Enter the amount from line 1c or line 3, whichever is smaller | $249.68 |
| 5 | Enter the amount withheld from the Judgment Debtor's earnings because of a court ordered Assignment for the Support of a Person (child support, spousal maintenance) or a Garnishment of Levy for the Collection of Taxes. | $0.00 |
| 6 | Subtract line 5 from line 4 and enter here. THIS IS THE AMOUNT OF NONEXEMPT EARNINGS YOU ARE TO WITHHOLD AND FORWARD TO THE JUDGMENT CREDITOR WITH THIS STATEMENT | $249.68 |
Have you ever had your wages garnished? I knew of a man who had been married twice, and had children with both women. His wages were being garnished at his job for child support to both women. He lived in a studio apartment because that was all he could afford. I have mixed feelings on this situation. On the one hand, the father should contribute to the care of his children, on the other hand he shouldn't have to live in destitute conditions in order to maintain that support. My own father ran away when I was five and hid for years because he didn't want to pay child support. I always felt that was a less than honorable way for a grown man to react to the realities of his life. After all, he was the one that was fooling around on my mom and decided he couldn't be tied down to one woman.
This post is simply for the interest of sharing information regarding garnishment, I am not a professional. Please note that although the State of Arizona has official paperwork available through self service portals, it is still advised that you consult with a professional in this field.