What is a wage garnishment?
A wage garnishment is a legal process in which an employer, court, or government agency withholds a portion of an employee’s wages in order to pay a debt or satisfy a financial obligation. In the state of Florida, wage garnishments are governed by the Collection Defense Law, which is designed to protect employees from unrestricted garnishment of wages. Under the Collection Defense Law, the garnishment of wages is limited to 25 percent of the employee’s net disposable income. In addition, any garnishment amount must be less than the employee’s net disposable income for the month. If the employee’s wages are garnished by more than 25 percent, the employee has the right to file a request for a hearing with the court or government agency where the garnishment was issued in order to claim an excessive garnishment. In addition, the Collection Defense Law states that in certain circumstances, such as when an employee is the primary source of income for a household, the garnishment amount may be reduced to 15 percent of net disposable income. Finally, the Collection Defense Law requires that all garnishments of wages be paid first before the payment of any other debts and obligations. This means that once the garnishment amount is deducted, the employee’s remaining wages must be paid to the employee before any other debts or obligations can be paid.
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