New Median Income Standards increased by 3.16% — for all 50 states?! — as of May 1, 2012

Under the 2005 bankruptcy law, BAPCPA, being under the median income for your state means lots of things, including a shorter plan period if you're in Chapter 13, and if you're in Chapter 7, being below the median frees you from the burden of completing the hardest parts of the means test.

The justice department has released its new median income numbers for all 50 states, to be applied to means tests in Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcies starting on May 1, 2012.

In an odd twist, unlike other revisions, where each state's median income figures rose and fell with it's own economic wellbeing, this latests revision of figures has an odd twist -- all 50 states for family sizes 1 through 4 has the identical percentage increase of 3.16 percent.

As of this writing is is not clear why these median income figures seem to be divorced from actual data this time around. Also not clear if this is a one time occurrence or can be expected to happend again.

LegalConsumer.com has prepared a handy widget where you can view your state's median income figures as they must be applied in the means test, and you can see what they'll rise to May 1, 2012.