County of Contra Costa v. Lasky

CARTER, J. Defendant appeals from a judgment against her for $225 in favor of plaintiff county, being $75 per month for the months June, July and August, 1951. The amount represents the alleged liability for those months of defendant, the adult daughter of Mrs. Alta Hachenberger, for support furnished to the latter by plaintiff under the Old Age Security Law. . (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 2000 et seq.)

Prom the stipulation of the parties and the findings of the court it appears defendant is the adult daughter of Mrs. Hachenberger. The latter made due application to plaintiff county and qualified under the Old Age Security Law to receive old age assistance. Plaintiff granted aid and paid Mrs. Hachenberger $75 per month for the months June, July and August, 1951. Thereafter Mrs. Hachenberger moved to another county. When the application was made defendant supplied to the board of supervisors a statement of responsible relative (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 2225) and refused the board’s demand that she contribute to the support of her mother.

Defendant is divorced from her husband and has custody of a minor child. Her sole income is what she receives from her former husband for the support of herself and child, the amount being a percentage of her ex-husband’s earnings as a freelance writer. The court found that during the months for which judgment was rendered against her she received $660.60 per month support money; defendant was buying a home and a 1950 Chrysler, sending her child to a private school, and employing a gardener, yet accumulated $1,400 which she loaned to her former husband on a three-year note; that she was pecuniarily able to contribute $75 per month to the support of her mother.

Defendant contends: (1) That the support received by her from her ex-husband under the divorce decree was not income within the meaning of section 2181 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and with only such income she is not a person pecuniarily able to support her mother within the provisions of section 2224 of that code; (2) that even including that income she is not pecuniarily able to support her mother [508]because of reasonable and necessary expenses and the contrary determination of the trial court is in conflict with the decree in the divorce action, and, in effect, requires her ex-husband to support his former mother-in-law.

Section 206 of the Civil Code provides that it is the duty of the child of any “poor person who is unable to maintain himself by work, to maintain such person to the extent” of his ability. Section 2181 of the Welfare and Institutions Code in 1951 provided: “The board shall upon receipt of the report of the investigation determine the ability of responsible relatives to contribute to the support of applicant and designate the amount of aid, if any, to be granted. The maximum degree of liability of the responsible relative shall be determined by ‘Relatives’ Contribution Scale.’ In determining ability to contribute, the financial circumstances of responsible relatives shall be given due consideration and, in unusual cases, contributions at less than the amount fixed by ‘Relatives’ Contribution Scale’ may be made as the board of supervisors may deem justifiable. A married daughter of the applicant shall not be required to make contributions unless she has income constituting her separate property.”* Under the schedule to which reference is made a responsible relative with a monthly income of $651 to $675 with two persons dependent on the income is supposed to contribute $75 per month to the support of the needy aged person. Section 2224 of the same code provides in part: “The board of supervisors shall determine if the applicant or recipient of aid has within the State a spouse or adult child pecuniarily able to contribute to the support of the applicant or recipient of aid. . . .