Department of Human Services: Chapter 4: 4.8 thru 4.12

Chapter 4: Determining Countable Income

Children's Earnings 4.8

AR: Do not count the earnings of an unmarried child who is living with a person who provides care or supervision and who is under 21.

TANF

For applicants/recipients, disregard all of the monthly gross earned income of each child who is a full-time student or a part-time student provided s/he is not employed full-time (see Section 4.4: School Attendance and Student Status in Part IV).

See TANF

Do not count the earns income of any household member:

Who is under age 18,
Who is an elementary or secondary school student (or is attending GED classes), and
Who lives with a natural, adoptive, or step-parent or is under the parental control of a household member other than a parent.

This exclusion continues to apply during temporary interruptions in school attendance due to semester or vacation breaks, provided the child's enrollment will continue following the break.

Do not count either the earned or unearned income of ineligible students except for income that the ineligible student actually contributes to group members.

Exclude payments from on-the-job training programs under the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of 1998 (successor to the Job Training Partnership Act) to persons under 19 years of age who are under the parental control of another adult group member, regardless of school attendance and/or enrollment. For the purpose of this provision, earnings include monies paid by the WIA and monies paid by employers.

If you cannot determine the portion of a FS group's earning that is the child's, prorate the total among the earners and exclude one share as attributable to the child.

In an ongoing case, begin counting the earnings in the month after the minor reaches his/her 18th birthday.

Example

Darlene assists her parents in a street vendor business, and the profits are shared. Prorate the net earnings and exclude one-third as attributable to Darlene.

Darlene turns 18 in the initial application month, count what she earns on or after her birthday.

Child Support 4.9

ALL	Child support is the voluntary or court-ordered payment of money by the absent parent(s) for the living expense of his/her child(ren). Medical, dental, child care, and educational expenses can also be covered. Child support may be paid directly to the child's caretaker, paid through the court to the caretaker, or paid to the Child Support Services Division (CSSD.) CSED sends the family: All support collected, if the family never received TANF; Support received in excess of the amount that CSSD may legally retain if the family received AFDC/TANF in the past; or Up to the first $150 in total child support collected by CSSD for the family, if the family currently receives TANF. This is called a "pass-through" payment. Pass-through payments started in April 2006, but families' eligibility for pass-throughs is retroactive to October 1, 2005.
MA	AR: Count all child support received and any payments from CSSD as unearned income but exclude the first $150 of total child support received by the group. AX: See AR. SR: Count two-thirds of child support received by an SR child as unearned income. QM: N/A MC: See AR.
TANF	TANF recipients must turn in all child support received directly from the absent parent or through the court to CSSD. CSSD is responsible for collecting all child support for the group. Treat child support received by a family as follows: For TANF applicants, count voluntary child support, any CSSD "excess" payments received by the group, and any CSSD pass-through payments as unearned income in determining potential eligibility, and disregard the first $150. Next, if the group meets the income test, determine the amount of the grant by including child support in excess of $150 as countable income for TANF for two months. This allows CSSD time to begin retaining support (see Chapter 2: Child Support Requirements in Part V.) for TANF recipients who begin receiving child support, count the child support as income for the first two months that can be affected, after timely and adequate notice, unless CSSD begins retaining support before the two-month period ends. During this two-month period, disregard the first $150 in total child support received by the group. After two months, the SSR should assume that CSSD is collecting the group's child support. If the SSR learns that this is not the case, the SSR should inform CSSD that child support is being paid to the family. The SSR may continue to count the child support received after the second month only when the adult has failed to cooperate with CSSD requirements with respect to the child on whose behalf support is being received and the group is subject to a child support sanction. When the non-custodial parent pays support for two consecutive months that exceeds the TANF grant by more than $150, the TANF grant is terminated. If in a single month, CSSD provides and excess payment (i.e., the child support payment is greater than the amount of the TANF grant), the payment is counted as unearned income.
GC	Count all child support received by the group as unearned income. If the group receives CSSD payments, count the payments as unearned income.
FS	Exclude all child support payments that are required to be transferred to CSSD in accordance with an official agreement between CSSD and the assistance group or caretaker. Count as unearned income: All child support payments received by the assistance group when there is no official agreement with CSSD; The first $150 in child support payments to the assistance group that is not counted for TANF or MA; and Any CSSD child support payments to the assistance group or caretaker, including pass-through payments.

Disability Benefits 4.10

ALL	Refer to the specific sections in this chapter for policies regarding: Social Security Benefits – Old Age, Survivors, Disability Insurance (OASDI) (Section 4.42). Rehabilitation Services Administration payments (Section 4.35). Railroad Retirement Board Benefits (Section 4.31). Supplemental Security Income (SSI) (Section 4.46). Worker's Compensation (Section 4.57). Other disability benefits are benefits paid to workers absent from work due to illness or injury. These are usually paid through the person's or employer's insurance. Regular wages received while on sick leave are not considered disability benefits but rather are treated as earnings.
MA	Count as unearned income the gross benefit minus any monthly or monthly averaged premium the person must pay to continue receiving the benefits.
TANF	See MA.
GC	See MA.
FS	Count the benefits paid through the person's or employer's insurance as earnings if the person is still considered an employee and plans to continue to work and the employer contributes part of the premium or benefit. Count the benefits as unearned income if either of these conditions is not met.

Domestic Volunteer Service Payments 4.11

ALL	Payments are made to volunteers in programs under Title I, Title II, and Title III of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (P.L. 93-113). Title I programs include: VISTA. University Year for Action. Urban Crime Prevention Program. Title II programs include: Foster Grandparents. Senior Companion. Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP). Older American Volunteer Program. Title III programs include Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) and Active Corps of Executives (ACE).
MA	Exclude payments from all Title I, II, and III programs.
TANF	See MA.
GC	See MA.
FS	Count Title I payments as earnings if the person was not receiving FS, TANF, GC, or SSI (in any jurisdiction) when s/he joined the volunteer program. Deduct from the countable amount any portion that is a reimbursement. Exclude Title II payments. Count Title III payments from SCORE and ACE as earned income.

Donations 4.12

ALL

A donation is money received from a private, nonprofit organization based on need as determined by the contributing agency. Exclude non-recurring cash gifts of $600 or less quarterly, not to exceed $600 per household per quarter, and small payments paid to women who receive pre-natal and well-baby care. Count any remainder as unearned income. Donations which are reimbursements may be excludable above the $600 limit (See Section 4.36: Reimbursements in this Chapter.)

Ms. Allen and her two children receive $379 in TANF benefits each month. The family also receives FS. In September, Ms. Allen's church provided money to needy families to help buy school clothes for the new school year. The family's TANF and FS benefits are just enough for her to pay rent, buy food, and needed personal items. She does not have enough to buy school clothes each September and relies on donations and hand-me-downs from family and neighbors to clothe her children. The church gives her $200 to buy clothes. Since this is under $600, the income is excluded. If Ms. Allen receives other donations within a three month period that includes September, the amount of donations over $600 would be counted as unearned income.

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