FILED MAY 20, 2025 In the Office of the Clerk of Court WA State Court of Appeals, Division III
IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON
DIVISION THREE
In the Matter of the Marriage of ) ) No. 39913-3-III SARAH OURADA, ) ) Respondent, ) ) v. ) UNPUBLISHED OPINION ) SEAN AMESTOY, ) ) Appellant. )
STAAB, J. — Sean Amestoy appeals an order modifying his child support
obligation, raising three issues on appeal. First, Amestoy contends the trial court erred
when it concluded that full-time employment was defined as a 40-hour work week, and
as a result, imputed income to him after finding that his 35-hour average work week was
considered part-time work. Second, he argues the trial court erred when it divided his
healthcare premium by four (to account for his wife, their child (F.A.), and his wife’s two
children from a prior relationship) before crediting his child support obligation because
the premium was a flat rate and he was required to carry insurance on F.A. Finally, he
claims the court erred when it ordered the parents to share equally in extraordinary No. 39913-3-III In the Matter of the Marriage of Ourada v. Amestoy
expenses related to the child’s club gymnastics without finding necessity or evaluating
the parents’ ability to pay.
We agree with Amestoy and hold that the court abused its discretion in concluding
that “full-time” is defined as 40-hours per week and that it must impute income to any
parent working less than 40 hours per week. We also agree that the trial court failed to
consider and did not make findings that the parents had the ability to pay for
extraordinary expenses before ordering Amestoy to pay for the child’s gymnastics
expense beyond his child support obligation. However, we affirm the trial court’s
calculation of Amestoy’s health insurance credit.
BACKGROUND
Sean Amestoy and Sarah Ourada have one child together, F.A. An original child
support order was entered on October 5, 2015. Several years later, Ourada filed a petition
to modify the child support order based on changed incomes. In addition to child
support, Ourada requested that Amestoy share in the expenses related to F.A.’s club
gymnastics. Ourada explained that F.A. had been involved in gymnastics since she was
two years old, was now competing, and had recently been invited to move up to a higher
competitive level. She estimated the monthly tuition for this activity to be $277, which
did not include expenses for meets, camp, or uniforms.
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Amestoy responded and requested a deviation based on either a four-child family
or a two-child family. He noted that he supported his wife, F.A., and his wife’s two
children from a prior relationship.
Amestoy also requested a worksheet deduction for his health insurance premium
payment since he covered F.A. on his insurance. In addition to F.A., Amestoy carried his
wife, and the two children from his wife’s prior relationship on his insurance. He
submitted his paystubs and a benefits rate sheet showing that his health care premiums
through his employer were based on a flat rate of “Employee + Family” that did not
differentiate based on the number of family members covered. His weekly paystubs
included a deduction for health insurance premiums.
Finally, he noted that while he had always supported F.A.’s involvement in
gymnastics, the additional expense was relatively significant and he could not afford it.
He pointed out that F.A.’s grandfather, Ourada’s father, had been paying for F.A.’s
gymnastics expenses but had recently passed away.
Both parties filed financial declarations showing that they each operated on a
monthly deficit. Amestoy submitted paystubs from 2020 to 2023 showing his hourly
wage, hours worked, and deductions. He calculated his actual full-time income based on
an average work week of 35 hours. Additionally, he noted that he paid $209 per month
in health insurance premiums for his family, including his wife and all three children.
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His financial declaration showed a monthly deficit, which he was making up in the short-
term through proceeds from the sale of his house.
At the modification hearing, the court concluded that it was required to impute
income to both parties because they were working part-time. The court explained the
following:
So, when we’re looking at the income of the parties which is where I need to start the analysis, I start with really what is the most clear information that I have regarding pay. And for both parties, I think there is some availability of overtime. But when I’m looking at your year-to-date paystubs in comparison to your previous years paystubs and the amounts of overtime and whatnot that would have been or had been earned in those capacities, what was most compelling to the court on both of the parties was simply your hourly rate. Your hourly rates of pay, Ms. Ourada at 17 an hour, Mr. Amestoy with the base of 23.10 plus the 1.50 shift differential. So, what I did to start my analysis was really take a peak at what that would be at, annualized at 40 hours a week. Because the statute is very clear that if a party is not working full-time that the court needs to take any part-time wages and extrapolate them out. When I talked about overtime previously, you both have had overtime in your paystubs even in this year. And so, what that tells me is that you do and are able to work 40 hours a week at your current rates of pay. So that’s what I started your base incomes at was at your current rates of pay, a full 40 hours. I didn’t cut them back to 35 because the statute is pretty clear that I need to pull that out to a full 40. When I pull that out to a full 40, I think that for me is the cleanest interpretation of both of your incomes.
Rep. of Proc. (RP) at 22-23 (emphasis added).
Using the imputed incomes, the court calculated Ourada’s net monthly income to
be $2,557 and Amestoy’s net monthly income to be $3,470. Combining the parents’ net
income, the court determined that Amestoy earned 57.6 percent to Ourada’s 42.4 percent.
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The court granted a deviation from Amestoy’s calculated share of support based
on his support of one other child. While noting that Amestoy did not have a legal
obligation to support his wife’s children, the court indicated that the size of Amestoy’s
family did come into play for purposes of insurance.
After discussing income and determining a base support amount, the court then
addressed the issue of Amestoy’s health insurance premium:
So, $457.74 is our base support amount. I then looked at the health insurance that Mr. Amestoy pays. I calculated it a little bit different than Ms. Base. But again, I looked at the family rate and subtracted out the employee rate, the family other than Mr. Amestoy, I think there was five, well I divided it by four to divide out the wife’s portion and the three children’s portion, which . . . 110.32 would be the weekly amount that would make [F.A.’s] amount 27.58 a week. I multiplied that by 52 weeks, divided it by 12 and came up with 119.51. So, when I plug in what Mr. Amestoy’s obligation would be which would be 57.6 percent of that that would add $68.81 to his current obligation of 457.74, which would be 526.55 and then subtracted the full amount of what he’s paying which is 119.51, which results in a new child support amount of $407.04.
RP at 25-26.
Finally, the court moved on to discuss the gymnastics expenses. The court granted
Amestoy a step-in1 between the new support amount and the old support amount,
1 This allowed Amestoy to ease into his new child support amount. “The step-in is half the difference between the new support amount and the old support amount.” Clerk’s Papers at 28. The court allowed Amestoy to pay this amount in June through December and thereafter it would become the full amount.
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partially because it was ordering that the parties share in the expense of gymnastics. The
court discussed its reasoning behind the shared cost:
This is a longstanding activity of the child. It is appropriate that a child be able to engage in a sport, some type of extracurricular activity. It’s best if both parents are involved and go to the meets and enjoy what their child has done. It is very clear to me that the parties agree that this is an activity for their child to engage in. I think Mr. Amestoy even said he built a beam in their house, that he is, you know, really proud of his daughter how well she’s doing. The only dispute is what it costs. And that piece is not fair or appropriate to [F.A.]. [F.A.] is entitled to have both of her parents’ support of a reasonable activity. It is the reasonableness of the expenses that I think is the question.
But if [F.A.] is as good as the parties are telling me, what level she is engaging in now, that track could lead her to college scholarships as long as she stays healthy. Gymnastics is brutal on the body. So long as she stays healthy and competitive, she could compete for any number of colleges which if not elite gymnastics, as least college level gymnastics. There are some really, really good teams in Washington State as well as surrounding states. I know we’re a little bit far off from that now, but that is a trajectory that does come to mind when talking about competitive sports. I do know that club sports can get more expensive as you move forward. But I think right now we’re at where we’re at. The parties can talk about which meets to go to and if they don’t agree, again, some meets [are] appropriate, maybe all meets aren’t appropriate. Maybe Ms. Ourada would need to fund some of them on her own if Mr. Amestoy doesn’t agree. But disagreeing with all of them would be veto power that he is not entitled to under joint decision making. So, that is something that was contemplated in your parenting plan and I have to take that as acknowledgement that this is a longstanding and agreed upon activity, which makes it reasonable and necessary for [F.A.] to maintain that.
I will take the parties at, or I should say, Ms. Ourada at her request to share those expenses as opposed to by the percentages of what I have now calculated as 57, almost 58 and 42 percent. So, 57.6 and 42.4. I’ll take her at her 50/50, I think that is appropriate that the parties both share in those expenses in the agreed expenses. As she progresses through elite
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gymnastics if that is what her path is, I think we all have, well we have knowledge either personally or in our future professional lives of what club sports can look like as you progress and move forward and that those expenses can get pretty tight. Neither of your incomes tell me that much more than what you’ve described [to] me today is likely to be reasonable moving forward so you’re really going to have to agree as each level increases what the family has decided to do. If you have a dispute, bring it to court, that is then, again mediation first, and then to court to decide if the two of you cannot [agree] on how to progress [F.A.] through her sport of choice.
RP at 28-30. In addition, the court agreed that “if there is another sponsorship,
scholarship, [or] third party paying, . . . that would reduce both parties’ obligations.” RP
at 32.
Amestoy appeals.
ANALYSIS
1. STANDARD OF REVIEW
This court “reviews child support modifications for abuse of discretion.” In re
Marriage of Bundy and Rush, 12 Wn. App. 2d 933, 937, 460 P.3d 1111 (2020). “Abuse
of discretion occurs when a decision is manifestly unreasonable or is based on . . .
untenable reasons.” Id. (alteration in original) (quoting In re Marriage of Chandola, 180
Wn.2d 632, 642, 327 P.3d 644 (2014)). A decision will be considered “unreasonable or
untenable ‘if [the] factual findings are unsupported by the record,’ the superior court
applied an incorrect legal standard, ‘the facts do not meet the requirements of the correct
standard,’ or the superior court’s decision lies ‘outside the range of acceptable choices
7 No. 39913-3-III In the Matter of the Marriage of Ourada v. Amestoy
given the facts and the legal standard.’” Id. (quoting State v. Rundquist, 79 Wn. App.
786, 793, 905 P.2d 922 (1995)). Additionally, this court “treat[s] the superior court’s
findings of fact as verities on appeal so long as those findings are supported by
substantial evidence.” Id. (quoting Chandola, 180 Wn.2d at 642).
2. IMPUTED INCOME
Amestoy contends the trial court abused its discretion in calculating his income by
imputing additional wages when he was already working full time at 35 hours per week,
and there was no finding that he was underemployed for the purpose of reducing his child
support. We agree.
Review of this issue requires the court to interpret the statute that discusses
imputing income. Construction “of a statute is a question of law that we review de
novo.” State v. Engel, 166 Wn.2d 572, 576, 210 P.3d 1007 (2009). When we interpret a
statute, this court’s “fundamental objective is to ascertain and give effect to the
legislature’s intent.” Lenander v. Dep’t of Ret. Sys., 186 Wn.2d 393, 405, 377 P.3d 199
(2016). “Where the language of a statute is clear, legislature intent is derived from the
[plain] language of the statute.” Engel, 166 Wn.2d at 578. With these principles in mind,
we turn to the statute in question.
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Under RCW 26.19.071(6), a court imputes income to a parent that it determines is
either voluntarily unemployed or underemployed. To make this determination, a court
looks at that parent’s
assets, residence, employment and earnings history, job skills, educational attainment, literacy, health, age, criminal record, dependency court obligations, and other employment barriers, record of seeking work, the local job market, the availability of employers willing to hire the parent, the prevailing earnings level in the local community, or any other relevant factors.
RCW 26.19.071(6).
However, the statute also provides that the “court shall not impute income to a
parent who is gainfully employed on a full-time basis, unless the court finds that the
parent is voluntarily underemployed and finds that the parent is purposely
underemployed to reduce the parent’s child support obligation.” RCW 26.19.071(6).
Here, the trial court imputed income to Amestoy after finding that he was working
part-time. This finding is based on the court’s conclusion that “full-time” requires a 40-
hour work week, noting that “I didn’t cut them back to 35 because the statute is pretty
clear that I need to pull that out to a full 40.” RP at 23.
Contrary to the court’s conclusion, “[f]ull-time” “does not necessarily mean forty
hours per week.” RCW 26.19.011(6). Instead, the statute defines “full-time” to “mean[ ]
the customary number of maximum, nonovertime hours worked in an individual’s
historical occupation, industry, and labor market.” RCW 26.19.011(6). While the trial
9 No. 39913-3-III In the Matter of the Marriage of Ourada v. Amestoy
court considered the parties’ prior overtime work, there is no indication that the court
considered the factors set forth in RCW 26.19.011(6), and there is no finding that 40
hours per week was the customary number of maximum nonovertime hours in Amestoy’s
occupation, industry and labor market. This was an abuse of discretion.
Ourada acknowledges that it is not necessary for a parent to work 40 hours per
week to have gainful full-time employment, but contends that the evidence in this case
supports a finding that Amestoy was working less than full-time. This may be true, but
the court did not find that Amestoy was working part-time based on the factors set forth
in RCW 26.19.011(6).
Ourada further argues that even if Amestoy was working full-time, the court’s
decision to impute income was not an abuse of discretion because it was clear that
Amestoy was underemployed for the purpose of reducing his child support obligation.
Again, this may be true, but the trial court did not make this finding or base its decision to
impute income on this basis. As an appellate court, we do not make this finding. Dalton
M, LLC v. N. Cascade Tr. Servs., Inc., 2 Wn.3d 36, 53, 534 P.3d 339 (2023).
On remand, if the court finds that Amestoy is gainfully employed on a full-time
basis under RCW 26.19.011(6), then it cannot impute income to him unless it also finds
that he is voluntarily underemployed for the purpose of reducing his child support
obligation. RCW 26.19.071(6).
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3. HEALTH CARE INSURANCE CREDIT
Amestoy argues that the trial court erred by limiting his child support credit to
F.A.’s pro-rata share of the health insurance premium. He contends that he should
receive a credit for the full premium because he is required to cover F.A., and his
premium does not increase because he also covers his wife and her two children. We
disagree and find no abuse of discretion.
This court “review[s] child support modifications for abuse of discretion.” Bundy,
12 Wn. App. 2d at 937. While ordinary health care expenses are included in the child
support schedule, health care costs are not included in the economic table. In re
Marriage of Goodell, 130 Wn. App. 381, 392, 122 P.3d 929 (2005) (citing RCW
26.19.080(2)). “Monthly health care costs shall be shared by the parents in the same
proportion as the basic child support obligation.” RCW 26.19.080(2). The court must
identify the insurance premium along with extraordinary healthcare expenses, if any, on
the child support worksheet. Goodell, 130 Wn. App. at 392. The parent who pays the
insurance premium will be entitled to a credit against their obligation for paying the
monthly premium. Goodell, 130 Wn. App. at 392.
In Goodell, a similar argument was raised with respect to calculating the monthly
premiums and the court determined it was not an abuse of discretion based on how the
court calculated the amount. 130 Wn. App. at 391-92. There, the father paid $304 for
insurance that covered himself and his children. Goodell, 130 Wn. App. at 392-93. The
11 No. 39913-3-III In the Matter of the Marriage of Ourada v. Amestoy
court subtracted $25, which was the cost for the father’s premium, leaving $279 as the
premium for the three children. Goodell, 130 Wn. App. at 393. The court then divided
that amount by three, which resulted in a $93 credit against his child support obligation.
Id. Importantly, the father’s employer did not charge him a premium per child, but
instead, for all children at a flat rate. Id. Thus, the court held that the methodology used
to determine a fair allocation of the $304 among the father and his three children “[was]
not unreasonable.” Id.
Like Goodell, Amestoy paid a family rate rather than a specific amount per child.
While the court would have been within its discretion to give Amestoy a credit for the
full premium, it was also within the court’s discretion to give credit for only F.A.’s pro-
rate share of the premium.
4. EXTRACURRICULAR EXPENSES
Amestoy contends the trial court erred by ordering him to contribute to F.A.’s
extraordinary expenses for club gymnastics without finding that the expenses are
necessary and without determining his ability to pay the expenses. We agree.
Trial courts have the discretion to determine the “reasonableness” and “necessity”
of extraordinary expenses. RCW 26.19.080(4). RCW 26.19.080(4) states that a “court
may exercise its discretion to determine the necessity for and the reasonableness of all
amounts ordered in excess of the basic child support obligation.” “To exceed the basic
child support obligation, the trial court must [first] determine that [the] additional
12 No. 39913-3-III In the Matter of the Marriage of Ourada v. Amestoy
amounts are reasonable and necessary, considering . . . ʻthe special medical, educational
and financial needs of the children.’” In re Marriage of Aiken, 194 Wn. App. 159, 172,
374 P.3d 265 (2016) (quoting In re Marriage of Daubert, 124 Wn. App. 483, 496, 99
P.3d 401 (2004)). Then, “[t]he court must also determine whether the additional amounts
are commensurate with the parties’ income, resources, and standard of living.” Id.
The trial court determined that the extra expenses related to F.A.’s gymnastics
were reasonable and necessary. These findings were supported by evidence that F.A. had
been involved in the sport for a majority of her life, was moving up competitive levels,
and had the possibility to qualify for college scholarships.
However, the court did not place a cap on these additional expenses or enter
findings that the additional expenses were commensurate with the parties’ income,
resources, and standard of living. As Amestoy points out, he and his wife have one child
in common (F.A.) and they have two of her children living with them. Both Amestoy
and Ourada supplied financial declarations showing they each operated on a monthly
deficit. In addition, Amestoy provided undisputed evidence that F.A.’s gymnastics
expenses had been previously sponsored by a different family member.
Ourada argues that the court’s order considered Amestoy’s finances. She points
out that the order requires the parents to agree on which meets will be jointly paid, giving
Ourada the option to fully fund those meets for which Amestoy does not agree to pay.
While the court considered the parties finances, it did not make the requisite finding.
13 No. 39913-3-III In the Matter of the Marriage of Ourada v. Amestoy
And while there is some flexibility on which meets will be funded, this ignores the other
expenses such as monthly tuition and uniform expenses.
Along with finding that extraordinary expenses not included in the child support
calculation are reasonable and necessary, the court must also find that a parent has the
ability to pay the additional expense. State ex rel. J.V.G. v. Van Guilder, 137 Wn. App.
417, 430, 154 P.3d 243 (2007). This requires the court to look at the actual cost and
consider the supporting parent’s income and expenses, including support of other family
members. Here, the court’s failure to find that Amestoy had the ability to pay the new-to-
him expenses was an abuse of discretion.
We reverse the court’s order of child support because the order is based on the
improper conclusion that full-time work requires 40 hours per week and thus Amestoy’s
35-hour average work week was considered part-time work. On remand, the court shall
determine if Amestoy is working full-time based on the factors set forth in RCW
26.19.011(6).
In addition, we reverse the court’s order imposing undefined extraordinary
expenses for gymnastics. On remand, the court can decide whether to consider any
additional evidence in determining whether Amestoy can afford the additional expense.
Otherwise we affirm the trial court’s calculation of Amestoy’s credit for health insurance
premiums.
14 No. 39913-3-III In the Matter of the Marriage of Ourada v. Amestoy
Reversed and remanded.
A majority of the panel has determined this opinion will not be printed in the
Washington Appellate Reports, but it will be filed for public record pursuant to RCW
2.06.040.
_________________________________ Staab, J.
WE CONCUR:
_________________________________ Fearing, J.
_________________________________ Lawrence-Berrey, C.J.