No, Florida Didn't Raise Its Child Support Cap to $50K

The child support overhaul raising the combined-income cap from 12,000 dollars to 50,000 dollars is a Washington State law, House Bill 1014, not a Florida law. Florida never passed it. Florida's child support guideline schedule under Section 61.30, Florida Statutes, still tops out at 10,000 dollars of combined monthly net income in 2026, exactly as it did before.

Setting the Record Straight on HB 1014

If you searched for Florida HB 1014 and read that Florida quadrupled its child support income cap from 12,000 dollars to 50,000 dollars effective in 2026, that information is wrong. Several blogs, including a few that carry a Florida attorney byline, have mistakenly attributed this reform to Florida. It is not Florida law.

HB 1014, more precisely Engrossed House Bill 1014, is a Washington State statute. It was signed by Washington's governor in 2025 and amends Washington's child support code. It has no legal effect in Florida. A Florida court cannot and will not apply it.

Separately, the bill that actually carries the number 1014 in Florida's 2026 session is unrelated to family law. Per the Florida Senate's own bill history, Senate Bill 1014 of the 2026 session concerned the provision of municipal utility service to property owners outside municipal limits, and it died during the reconciliation process on March 13, 2026. It never became law, and it had nothing to do with child support.

We have corrected this kind of confusion before, because proposed bills and out-of-state laws are routinely reported as if they govern Florida. For a similar example from the same session, see our reporting on why Florida's SB 1128 did not take effect at /blog/news-news-florida-sb-1128-time-sharing-paternity-july-2026/.

News Hook: What Washington Actually Did

To understand why this story keeps getting misattributed, it helps to know what Washington actually changed, because the reform is genuinely significant, just not in Florida.

Washington's House Bill 1014 expanded the state's economic table, the equivalent of Florida's guideline schedule, so that it now covers combined monthly net income up to 50,000 dollars. The prior ceiling was 12,000 dollars. Washington also raised its self-support reserve and became one of the first states to recognize paid family and medical leave deductions in the child support calculation.

That is a Washington policy choice made under Washington's statutes. Florida operates on an entirely different framework, and none of those numbers apply here.

Legal Implications for Florida Child Support Cases

Because the 50,000 dollar figure has circulated widely, it is worth being precise about how Florida actually calculates child support, so no Florida parent walks into a negotiation with a Washington number in mind.

Florida uses an income-shares model under F.S. 61.30

Florida child support is governed by Section 61.30, Florida Statutes. The state uses an income-shares model, which presumes a child should receive roughly the same proportion of combined parental income the child would have received if the household had stayed intact. The court sums both parents' net incomes, finds the basic obligation on the statutory schedule, and allocates it between the parents in proportion to their share of combined income.

The Florida schedule tops out at 10,000 dollars, not 50,000

The guideline schedule in Section 61.30, Florida Statutes, runs from a low combined monthly net income figure up to 10,000 dollars. That 10,000 dollar ceiling is the real Florida number. It is not 12,000 dollars, and it is certainly not 50,000 dollars.

Income above the schedule is handled by a percentage add-on

Florida does not simply cap support at the 10,000 dollar level. For combined monthly net income above 10,000 dollars, the statute takes the guideline amount at 10,000 dollars and adds a statutory percentage of the income over that threshold, with the percentage varying by the number of children. In other words, high-income Florida families still see support rise above the schedule ceiling, but through a percentage formula rather than an expanded table. That is a meaningfully different mechanism from Washington's approach of extending the table itself to 50,000 dollars.

Florida-Specific Analysis: What Did Not Change in 2026

No 2026 Florida legislation raised the child support income cap. The 10,000 dollar schedule ceiling and the above-schedule percentage add-on remain exactly as they were.

A few pieces of genuine Florida law do continue to shape child support in 2026, and it is worth separating those from the HB 1014 myth:

• The 2023 reforms that adopted a rebuttable presumption of equal, or 50 to 50, time-sharing remain in force, and time-sharing directly affects the support calculation.
• When each parent exercises at least 73 overnights per year, the substantial time-sharing method in Section 61.30(11)(b), Florida Statutes, applies a gross-up factor and computes both parents' obligations before taking the net difference. The parent with the larger obligation pays.
• Florida still uses the terms time-sharing and parenting plan, not custody and visitation, throughout Chapter 61, Florida Statutes.
• Courts may deviate from the guideline amount within limits, with written findings required for larger deviations.

None of those existing rules involve a 50,000 dollar cap. If you see that number tied to Florida, treat it as a red flag that the source has confused Washington law with Florida law.

For couples pursuing an uncontested divorce with children, this myth changes nothing about the process. Both parents still complete a child support guidelines worksheet based on the real Florida schedule, agree on a parenting plan, and submit those documents with the final judgment. For the local walkthrough, see our guide to uncontested divorce with children in Jacksonville at /blog/uncontested-divorce-with-children-jacksonville-florida/.

Practical Takeaways for Florida Residents

Ignore the 50,000 dollar figure in Florida

The 50,000 dollar combined-income cap is a Washington number. In Florida, the guideline schedule stops at 10,000 dollars of combined monthly net income, with a percentage add-on above that. Running your numbers on the Washington figure will produce a support amount a Florida court will not order.

Confirm the state before you trust a headline

Bill numbers repeat across states. HB 1014 exists in more than one legislature. Before relying on any reform, confirm it is a Florida statute, ideally on the Florida Senate or House website, and check that it actually passed rather than dying in committee.

Use the real Florida calculation

Florida child support turns on both parents' net incomes, the number of children, the overnight schedule, and health and childcare costs, applied through Section 61.30, Florida Statutes. For an estimate built on the actual Florida formula, use our Florida child support calculator at /child-support-calculator.

Agreement still controls cost and outcome

Whether or not any state changes its cap, Florida parents who agree keep control of both the parenting plan and the support figure. An uncontested Florida divorce stays a flat 750 dollars at this firm, the same price with or without minor children. A case with children simply adds a parenting plan, a child support guidelines worksheet, and a UCCJEA affidavit. See how the flat fee works at /blog/uncontested-divorce-cost-jacksonville-florida/.

A bill is not a law, and another state's law is not yours

Every session produces bills that make headlines and then fail, and every year another state passes a reform that gets misreported as local. HB 1014 is both at once, a Washington law and a Florida non-event. Your child support obligation is governed by the Florida statutes in effect when your order is entered.

The Bottom Line

Florida did not raise its child support income cap to 50,000 dollars in 2026. That is Washington's HB 1014. Florida's guideline schedule under Section 61.30, Florida Statutes, still tops out at 10,000 dollars of combined monthly net income, with a percentage add-on for higher earners, and no 2026 Florida bill changed it. If your divorce involves children and you both agree on the terms, the fastest and most affordable path remains an uncontested filing built on the correct Florida numbers.