Legal Question in Family Law in Kansas

If your divorce addressed responsibility for transporting the minor children, those provisions remain in effect until modified by the Court. It is typical for the party that is about to begin their parenting time to pick the children up. That would mean that you would pick them up on Friday at 3pm to begin your weekend parenting time, and she would pick them up on Sunday at 6pm to begin her parenting time. If there is no provision about paying her gas money, you are not obligated to do so.

If transporting the children is not addressed in your divorce decree, but it does set out your parenting time, you would be within your rights to inform your ex that it is up to her to pick up the children on Sunday if she wishes to begin her parenting time then, and you will not be providing her with gas money. That approach may or may not be advisable in practice.

Moving the children 30 miles out of town could constitute a change in circumstances to justify modifying the parenting plan to either include transportation provisions or modify the existing provisions. Typically, the courts will order the parties to evenly divide the time and expense required for transporting the children back and forth.

If you are ordered to provide more than half of the transportation, you may be entitled to receive a credit on your child support obligation. While I'm not sure if 30 miles is sufficient to qualify, there is a child support credit available for long distance parenting time when one party provides more than half of the transportation.

I hope that this response has been helpful.