Is it legal to have a 14 yr old pay a household bill? In Calif.?

Question

I have a cousin that I have always been pretty close to. Recently we had a disagreement. Her 14 yr old daughter just got her first after school job.With her second paycheck, my cousin made her pay a utility bill. Now she says when her son gets a job he will be made to pay one bill as well. She has a full-time job, somehow manages to get a food stamp card,the county pays 70% of her rent, and her ex pays over $1,300 a month child support for her yougest two kids. Does anyone think she is doing something illegal?

There are other ways to teach the value of money. Until a child is 18, they are your responsibilty to care for. I can understand making her buy certain things that aren't necessary or what I did with my daughter (she is 18 now) is make her open a savings account. She had to save $100 of every paycheck and buy her own 'extras'. But then again, I'm not on welfare like my cousin has been in some form or another for 15 years! Oh, my daughter had enough money to get an apartment and a car when she turned 18! It wasn't spent on my phone or electric bill! How's that for the value of money?

Answer 1

I am having a hard time understanding how this is any of your business...? You can decide how to raise your own kids.

Answer 2

It's Indiana, the cornhole state. First thing, who is making the collection contacts? If it is the hospital then you might get somewhere by talking to the billing office, which you should have done when your child left the hospital and set up some kind of payment plan. If the hospital has already sold the account to a collection agency then you need to find out, by asking around, what is the going rate that collection agencies pay for those accounts, it is usually about twentyfive cents on the dollar, maybe less. You never pay the collection agency more than what they paid for the account. The hospital has already written it off on their bad debts, they get nothing more than what the collector paid for the account. Nother thing, is the collection agency even in Indiana, probably not. The next time they call you take the phone, you ask them how to contact them by USPS then you write them a letter telling them not to contact your minor child, nor you, nor your employer, nor any other person. The only official notice to them must come through the mail. You can forward copies of the letter to the credit reporting agencies.

Answer 3

No, I think it's a great idea. I got my first job as a carhop at a Sonic Drive-In when I was 15, and in return for not doing my share of the chores (because I was working after school and on weekends), I paid one of the bills. It's a great way to teach a child the value of a dollar. It sure helped me -- plus it got me out of scrubbing the toilet!

That said, if this woman works full-time AND gets the county to pay her rent, plus gets food stamps, there might be some fraud involved there.

~Edit: Yea, it sounds to me like you're just looking for a way to stick it to your cousin, of whom you clearly disapprove and really dislike. Sure, there are lots of ways to teach a child the value of a dollar -- and this is one of them. Get over yourself.

Answer 4

It is not illegal. It is a way to teach the value of money. However, I agree to the fact she sounds like she is working the system though as far as everything else.

Answer 5

its not good to teach such discipline at a young age like that. It makes the child feel powerless in front of a parent, and that child will be scared to death of the parent if they don't come up with the money. No, i disagree with that sort of discipline. I dont know about it being legal or not. Its just sick if you asked me, poor kid.

Answer 6

i don't think she's doing anything illegal , but i do understand the bill paying part!!!! i think its ok for the daughter to start helping and learn the concept of bill paying but i don't think she should have to pay a hole bill maybe split it in half. @ that age responsibility should start being shown...

Answer 7

And how is this your business?

If your cousin has not lied to the county about her income or the size of her household, I don't see any crime here. It's expensive to live and raise teenagers in CA and it sounds like she has her hands full.

Kids old enough to have jobs are old enough to learn that it costs money to put a roof over their head and food in their mouths. There is nothing wrong with teaching children that being in a family comes with responsibility.

If you want to stay "pretty close" to your cousin, stop looking for ways to get her in trouble with the law and mind your own business.

Answer 8

nope country is in a crisis you got be prepare for the worse

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The review is one of several studies Congress commissioned in May, when it agreed to fund the war for several more months but demanded that the Bush administration and outside groups assess U.S. progress in the war.

Answer 9

I don't know if it's illegal, but she's definitely working the system. Sounds to me like your cousin is very selfish and self centered. terrible qualities to have. It will catch up to her eventually.

Answer 10

umm its not illegal to have your children help you out with the bills....they are teenagers and need to learn the importance of money management anyways.......not to mention you said that you and ur cousin were really close but now your not and it kinda seems like ur bagging on her....well whateva..point is...shes not doing anything wrong and more parents should be making their teens help out with bills...we live in a expensive world...