Income - Allocation and Deeming

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Revised March 18, 2013

Purpose: This section includes cash assistance, medical assistance, and Basic Food rules and procedures for allocating the income of ineligible or non-AU members to an AU, allocating the income of AU members to non-members, and deeming a sponsor's income to AUs with a sponsored immigrant.

WAC 388-450-0095	Allocating income--General.
WAC 388-450-0100	Allocating income--Definitions.
WAC 388-450-0105	Allocating the income of a financially responsible person included in the assistance unit.
WAC 388-450-0106	How does the department count my income if someone in my family cannot get assistance because of their alien status?
WAC 388-450-0112	Does the department allocate the income of an ABD cash client to legal dependents?
WAC 388-450-0115	Does the department allocate the income of a financially responsible person who is excluded from the assistance unit?
WAC 388-450-0116	How does the department count my income if I cannot get assistance because I am an alien ?
WAC 388-450-0120	Does the department allocate the income of financially responsible parents to a pregnant or parenting minor?
WAC 388-450-0130	Does the department allocate the income of a nonapplying spouse to a caretaker relative?
WAC 388-450-0137	Does the department allocate income of an ineligible spouse to an ABD cash client?
WAC 388-450-0140	How does the income of an ineligible assistance unit member affect my eligibility and benefits for Basic Food?
WAC 388-450-0145	Income of a person who is not a member of a food assistance unit.
WAC 388-450-0155	How does being a sponsored immigrant affect my eligibility for cash, medical, and food assistance programs?
WAC 388-450-0156	When am I exempt from deeming?
WAC 388-450-0160	How does the department decide how much of my sponsor's income to count against my benefits?

ACES PROCEDURES

See Interview - (DEEM) Allocations / Deeming Screen

See Income Eligibility and Budgeting - Special Income Situations - Income Allocation Cash - Financially Responsible Person Not Included in AU Because of Alien Status

WAC 388-450-0095

Effective November 1, 2011

WAC 388-450-0095 Allocating income--General.

This section applies to TANF / SFA, RCA, PWA, and ABD cash assistance programs.

Allocation is the process of determining how much of a financially responsible person's income is considered available to meet the needs of legal dependents within or outside of an assistance unit.
In-bound allocation means income possessed by a financially responsible person outside the assistance unit which is considered available to meet the needs of legal dependents in the assistance unit.
Out-bound allocation means income possessed by a financially responsible assistance unit member which is set aside to meet the needs of a legal dependent outside the assistance unit.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

CLARIFYING INFORMATION

Unmarried persons are not legally or financially responsible for each other.
A stepparent's responsibility for support ceases when death or divorce has terminated the marriage.

WORKER RESPONSIBILITIES

Determine if there is income possessed by someone outside the assistance unit that must be allocated to meet the needs of the assistance unit.
Determine if there is income possessed by someone included in the assistance unit that must be allocated to meet the needs of someone outside the assistance unit.
Refer to the appropriate section listed below for specific allocation rules and worker responsibilities.

WAC 388-450-0100

Effective November 1, 2011

WAC 388-450-0100 Allocating income--Definitions.

The following definitions apply to the allocation rules for TANF / SFA, RCA, PWA, and ABD cash programs:

"Dependent" means a person who:
1. Is or could be claimed for federal income tax purposes by the financially responsible person; or
2. The financially responsible person is legally obligated to support.
"Financially responsible person" means a parent, stepparent, adoptive parent, spouse or caretaker relative.
A "disqualified assistance unit member" means a person who is:
1. An unmarried pregnant or parenting minor under age eighteen who has not completed a high school education or general education development (GED) certification and is not participating in those educational activities which would lead to the attainment of a high school diploma or GED;
2. An unmarried pregnant or parenting minor under age eighteen who is not living in a department-approved living situation;
3. The financially responsible person who does not report to the department within five days of the date it becomes reasonably clear that the absence of a child will exceed ninety days;
4. A person who has been convicted in federal or state court of having made a fraudulent statement or representation about their place of residence in order to receive assistance from two or more states at the same time as defined in WAC 388-446-0010; and
5. A person who has been convicted of unlawfully receiving public assistance as defined under WAC 388-446-0005.
"Ineligible assistance unit member" means an individual who is:
1. Ineligible for cash assistance due to the citizenship / alien status requirement in WAC 388-424-0010;
2. Ineligible to receive assistance under WAC 388-442-0010 for having been convicted after August 21, 1996, under federal or state law, of possession, use or distribution of a controlled substance;
3. Ineligible to receive assistance under WAC 388-442-0010 for fleeing to avoid prosecution or custody or confinement after conviction for a crime or attempt to commit a crime;
4. Ineligible to receive assistance under WAC 388-442-0010 for violating a condition of probation or parole which was imposed under a federal or state law as determined by an administrative body or court of competent jurisdiction;
5. The spouse of a woman who receives cash benefits from the PWA program; and
6. The adult parent of a minor parent's child.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

WAC 388-450-0105

Effective September 12, 2002

WAC 388-450-0105 Allocating the income of a financially responsible person included in the assistance unit.

This section applies to TANF / SFA, RCA and RMA. Refer to WAC 182-506-0010 for the rules concerning the treatment of income of a financially responsible person for medical programs.

The income of a financially responsible person included in the assistance unit is countable to meet the needs of the assistance unit after the income is reduced by the following:

Any applicable earned income incentive and work expense or deduction for the financially responsible person in the assistance unit, if that person is employed;
The payment standard amount for the ineligible assistance unit members living in the home; and
An amount not to exceed the department's standard of need for court or administratively ordered current or back support for legal dependents.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

CLARIFYING INFORMATION

See WAC 388-450-0106 for rules about allocating income of members who are excluded because of alien status.
For the definition of a financially responsible person for medical assistance programs. See WAC 182-506-0010. Do not allow a payment standard deduction for disqualified assistance unit members.

WORKER RESPONSIBILITIES

To determine an assistance unit's eligibility and benefit amount, allocate the income of a financially responsible person included in the assistance unit to meet the needs of legal dependents living either in or out of the home.
Determine the countable earned income by deducting the applicable work incentive or work expense and any applicable dependent care deduction for employment related child care expenses, as specified in WAC 388-450-0170, from the financially responsible person's gross earned income.
Combine the financially responsible person's countable earned income and countable unearned income.
Subtract the appropriate payment standard for an assistance unit based on the number of ineligible assistance unit members. Do not include persons excluded from the assistance unit due to disqualification.
To meet the needs of each legal dependent not living in the home, deduct the lesser of the department's one-person need standard or the actual amount paid for court or administratively ordered support.
Subtract the remaining income from the assistance unit's applicable payment standard.

EXAMPLE

A mother and one of her children receive TANF cash benefits. The mother is employed and pays $275 court-ordered support for a child not living in her home. The mother has two other children who are not included in the assistance unit as they are probation violators. The mother receives $1,500 gross income each month from her employment.
$1,500	Gross earned income
÷ 2	Work incentive
$ 750	Countable earned income
- 385	Two-person pmt std (2 ineligible children)
$ 365
- 275	Paid support for child living outside the home
$ 90	Countable income

$385	Two-person pmt std
- 90	Countable income
$295	Grant amount
In this example, the mother's countable earned and unearned income exceeds the payment standard for herself and her eligible child and would render the assistance unit ineligible for cash benefits. However, as the mother has three dependent children she is financially responsible for, her income is reduced to allocate for their needs, allowing her and her child to be eligible for benefits.

EXAMPLE

A husband and wife apply for TANF for themselves and their two children. The husband receives unemployment compensation (UC) of $800 each month of which DCS garnishes $275 for a child living outside the assistance unit.

$800	Gross UC
- 275	DCS garnishment
$525	Countable UC

$562	Four-person pmt std
- 525	Countable UC
$37	Grant amount

In this example, the husband's gross UC exceeds the payment standard. However, the husband has one dependent he is financially responsible for which allows the assistance unit to be eligible for TANF.

EXAMPLE

Following the previous example, except the wife's gross earned income is $800 per month and the ineligible husband earns $600 gross income per month.

Ineligible Husband		Wife
$600	Gross earned income	$800	Gross earned income
- 90	Work expense	÷ 2	Work incentive
$510	Countable earned income	$ 400	Countable earned income
$ - 385	Two-person pmt std	+ 125	Available from husband's income
$125	Available to assistance unit	$ 525
		- 200	Paid support for child living outside the home
		$ 325	Countable income

$478	Three-person pmt std
- 325	Countable income
$153	Grant amount

In this example, the ineligible husband's countable earned and unearned income exceeds the payment standard for himself and child. As such, the difference is available to the assistance unit and added to the assistance unit's countable earned and unearned income.

EXAMPLE

Following the previous example, except the parents are not married.

An employed mother and two children are receiving TANF cash benefits. She pays $200 child support each month for a child living outside the home. The father of the two TANF children resides in the home also. He is employed and not included in the assistance unit because he is a drug related felon. The father also has his daughter residing in the home, she is a probation violator.

Ineligible Father		Mother
$600	Gross earned income	$800	Gross earned income
- 90	Work expense	÷ 2	Work incentive
$510	Countable earned income	$ 400	Countable earned income
- 385	Two-person pmt std	+ 125	Available from husband's income
$125	Available to assistance unit	$ 525
		- 200	Paid support for child living outside the home
		$325	Countable income

$478	Three-person pmt std
- 325	Countable income
$153	Grant amount

In this example, the ineligible father's countable earned and unearned income exceeds the payment standard for himself and his ineligible child. As such, the difference is available to meet the needs of his eligible TANF children and added to the assistance unit's net income.

WAC 388-450-0106

Effective December 1, 2011

WAC 388-450-0106 How does the department count my income if someone in my family cannot get assistance because of their alien status?

This section applies to TANF/SFA, RCA, and RMA. We count your income differently if you are applying for medical assistance only. See WAC 182-506-0010.

If you are included in the assistance unit and you are financially responsible for someone, as defined in WAC 388-450-0100 who does not meet the alien requirements described in WAC 388-424-0010, we do not count all of your income. We subtract some of it so that you can use that part to help support the people who cannot get assistance. To figure out how much we count, we take the following seven steps:

We start by only counting fifty percent of your earned income, as defined in WAC 388-450-0030;
We add all of your unearned income, as defined in WAC 388-450-0025.
We subtract the difference between the following payment standards (payment standards can be found in WAC 388-478-0020):
1. One that includes both eligible assistance unit members and those who cannot get assistance because of their alien status; and
2. One that includes only the eligible assistance unit members.
We subtract the payment standard for the number of people who are ineligible for reasons other than alien status, as defined in WAC 388-450-0100 (4)(b) through (f).
We subtract any court or administratively ordered child support you pay for legal dependents. This includes both current and back support. The amount cannot be more than the need standard in WAC 388-478-0015 for the number of dependents.
We subtract any employment-related child care expenses you have.
Then, we count whatever is left as unearned income.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

CLARIFYING INFORMATION

If an immigrant was sponsored into the United States, use WAC 388-450-0155, WAC 388-450-0156, and WAC 388-450-0160 to see how much of the sponsor's income we count.
In each of the following examples, the financial responsibility rules for medical assistance units are used when determining eligibility for a medical assistance program for the excluded family members. Do not count the cash grant income of other family members when determining medical program eligibility for excluded family members.

EXAMPLE

A legal alien mother and one U.S. citizen child receive TANF cash benefits. The mother is employed and pays $200 court-ordered support for a child not living in the home. mother has two other children who are excluded from the assistance unit because of their alien status. The mother receives $1,000 gross earned income each month from her employment.
$1,000	Gross earned income	$562	Four-person pmt std
÷ 2	Work incentive	- 385	Two-person pmt std
$ 500	Countable earned income	$177	Diff. between 2 & 4 person pmt std
- 177	Diff. between 2 & 4 person pmt std
$ 323
- 200	Paid support for child living outside the home
$ 123	Countable income

$ 385	Two-person pmt std
- 123	Countable income
$ 262	Grant amount
The family has also applied for medical assistance for the two excluded undocumented alien children with an emergent condition
$1,000	Gross earned income
- 90	Work expense deduction
$910
- 200	Paid support for child living outside the home
$ 710.	Net income - compare to 200% FPL for family of 4
Certify both children for F 09 medical.

EXAMPLE

An employed mother and her two children receive TANF cash benefits. The mother pays $200 support each month for a child living outside the home. Her husband is excluded from the AU because of his alien status. One of their children is also excluded from the AU because of her alien status.
$1,100	Wife’s gross earned income	$648	Five-person pmt std
÷ 2	Work incentive	- 478	Three-person pmt std
$ 550	Wife’s countable earned income	$170	Diff. between 3 & 5 person pmt std
- 170	Diff. between 3 & 5 person pmt std
$ 380
- 200	Paid support for child living outside the home
$ 180	Countable income

$ 478	Three-person pmt std
- 180	Countable income
$ 298	Grant amount
The family has also applied for medical assistance for the undocumented alien father and child excluded because of alien status. The child is pregnant.
$1,100	Wife’s gross earned income
- 90	Work expense deduction
$1,010
- 200	Paid support for child living outside the home
$ 810	Net income - compare to 185% FPL for family of 5.
Certify the child for P04 medical. The father is ineligible for a medical program.
The father reapplies the following month after receiving injuries in an automobile accident. The father remains TANF-related.
$1,100	Wife’s gross earned income
÷ 2	Work incentive
$ 550
- 200	Paid support for child living outside the home
$ 350	Net income - compare to 5 person CNIL standard.
Certify the father for the alien emergency medical program FCertify the father for the alien emergency medical program F.

EXAMPLE

An employed mother and her two children are receiving TANF cash benefits. The father of the two TANF children also resides in the home. He is not included in the AU because of his alien status. The mother also has a 17-year old son who lives in the home but is not included in the AU because he is a probation violator. The mother receives $1,400 gross earned income each month.
$1,400	Wife’s gross earned income	$562	Four-person pmt std
÷ 2	Work incentive	- 478	Three-person pmt std
$ 700	Wife’s countable earned income	$ 84	Difference between 3 & 4 person pmt std
- 84	Difference between 3 & 4 person pmt std
$ 616
- 305	One-person pmt std (for son’s needs who is a probation violator)
$ 311	Countable income

$ 478	Three-person pmt std
- 311	Countable income
$ 167	Grant amount
The family also wants medical for the undocumented father and the17-year old son. The son is not an excluded person for TANF-related medical. The father does not have an emergency medical condition.
$1,400	Wife’s gross income
÷ 2	Work incentive
$ 700	Net income - compare to the 5 person grant standard.
Certify the 17-year old son for FCertify the 17-year old son for F
A few months later, the mother’s income increases to $1,600 per month. With a net family income of $800, the child is income ineligible for FO4 medical. Review for FO6 medical. $1,600 - $90 = $1,510 which is under the 200% FPL for a family of 5.

EXAMPLE

For Cash Only A recently married client and her child receive TANF cash benefits. The new husband is an undocumented alien. The client has earnings of $1,200 per month. The husband earns $300 per month. Calculate the client’s cash income per WAC 388-450-0106. Calculate the undocumented alien’s cash income per WAC 388-450-0116. Combine the calculated totals for the countable income. For Basic Food Only The same client also receives Basic Food benefits. Count all her income and a prorated share of the undocumented alien’s income. Divide his earnings by the number of people in the AU, subtract the 20% disregard, and the total is his countable income.
$ 300	Gross earned income
÷ 3	People in the AU
$ 200	Countable earned income
- 20%	Subtract the 20% Disregard
$ 180	Countable income

WAC 388-450-0112

Effective November 1, 2011

WAC 388-450-0112 Does the department allocate the income of an ABD cash client to legal dependents?

This section applies to the Aged, Blind, or Disabled (ABD) cash assistance program.

1. The income of an ABD cash client is reduced by the following:

a. The ABD cash earned income disregard as specified in WAC 388-450-0177; and

b. An amount not to exceed the department's standard of need for court or administratively ordered current or back support for legal dependents.

2. When a ABD cash client in a medical institution, alcohol or drug treatment center, congregate care facility or adult family home has income, the income is countable to meet the client's needs after the income is reduced by the following:

a. The payment standard amount for the nonapplying spouse and legal dependents living in the home; and

b. The standard of assistance the client is eligible for while in an alternative care facility.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

CLARIFYING INFORMATION

For treatment of income of a nonapplying spouse, see WAC 388-450-0137.

WORKER RESPONSIBILITIES

To determine a ABD client's net countable earned income, apply rules in WAC 388-450-0177.
Combine the countable earned income with the countable unearned income.
When a General Assistance client is in a medical institution, alcohol or drug treatment center, congregate care facility, or adult family home has income, deduct the payment standard applicable for the nonapplying spouse and legal dependents living in the home.

NOTE:

This deduction only occurs when a ABD client is in a medical institution, alcohol or drug treatment center, congregate care facility, or adult family home.

Worker Responsibilities

Deduct the lesser of the department's one-person need standard or the actual amount paid for court or administratively ordered support, to meet the needs of each legal dependent not living in the home.
Subtract the remaining income from the ABD client's applicable payment standard.

ABD Client in Alternate Living Situation

Deduct from the income of an ABD client in a medical institution, alcohol or drug treatment center, congregate care facility, or family home, the appropriate payment standard for the nonapplying spouse and legal dependents living in the home.
Deduct from the remaining income of 1. above the amount that meets the needs of the ABD client living in the alternate living situation.
The remainder is applied to the client's participation toward cost of care.

WAC 388-450-0115

Effective November 1, 2011

WAC 388-450-0115 Does the department allocate the income of a financially responsible person who is excluded from the assistance unit?

This section applies to TANF / SFA, RCA and PWA programs.

The income of a financially responsible person excluded from the assistance unit is available to meet the needs of the assistance unit after the income is reduced by the following:

A ninety dollar work expense deduction from the financially responsible person(s) excluded from the assistance unit who is employed;
The payment standard amount for the ineligible assistance unit members living in the home; and
An amount not to exceed the department's standard of need for court or administratively ordered current or back support for legal dependents.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

CLARIFYING INFORMATION

See WAC 388-450-0116 for rules on allocating the income of a financially responsible person excluded from the assistance unit because of their alien status.
Do not allow the 50% work incentive for a financially responsible person excluded from the assistance unit.
This rule also applies to TANF/SFA-related medical programs, as specified in WAC 182-503-0510 (2). The rules of this section also apply to the RMA program.
For the definition of a financially responsible person for medical assistance programs, see WAC 182-506-0010.
Do not allow a payment standard deduction for disqualified assistance unit members.

WORKER RESPONSIBILITIES

To determine an assistance unit’s eligibility and benefit amount, allocate the income of a financially responsible person who is excluded from the assistance unit to meet the needs of legal dependents living in the home and outside the home.
Determine the countable earned income by deducting the $90 work expense and any applicable dependent care deduction for employment related child care expenses, as specified in WAC 388-450-0170, from the gross earned income of the employed financially responsible person who is excluded from the assistance unit.
Combine the countable earned income and countable unearned income of the excluded financially responsible person.
Subtract the appropriate payment standard for an assistance unit based on the number of ineligible assistance unit members. Do not include persons excluded from the assistance unit due to disqualification.
To meet the needs of each legal dependent not living in the home, deduct the lesser of the department’s one-person need standard or the actual amount paid for court or administratively ordered support.
Consider the remaining income as available to meet the needs of the assistance unit members.

EXAMPLE

A mother and one child receive TANF cash benefits. The mother pays a court ordered support payment of $160 each month for a child living outside the home. mother's husband, and father of the TANF child, resides in the home with his 19-year old child, for whom he is financially responsible. The husband is excluded from the assistance unit as he is a fleeing felon. He also pays $100 per month support for a dependent child living outside the home.
Ineligible Husband		Eligible Wife
$890	Husband's gross earned income	$315	Available income from her husband
- 90	Work expense	- 160	Wife's paid support for her child living outside the home
$800	Countable earned income	$155	Countable income
- 385	Two-person payment standard (ineligible husband and his ineligible child)
$415
- 100	Husband's paid support for his child living outside the home
$315	Amount to be allocated to the assistance unit

$385	Two-person payment standard
- 155	Countable income
$230	Grant Amount

WAC 388-450-0116

Effective August 13, 2004

WAC 388-450-0116 How does the department count my income if I cannot get assistance because I am an alien ?

This section applies to TANF / SFA, RCA, and RMA programs. We count your income differently if you are applying for medical assistance only. See WAC 182-506-0010.

Some people cannot get assistance because they do not meet the alien requirements described in WAC 388-424-0010. If you do not meet those requirements but you are financially responsible for someone in the assistance unit, as defined in WAC 388-450-0100, we count some of your income as part of the assistance unit's income. To figure out how much we count, we take the following seven steps:

We start by only counting fifty percent of your earned income, as described in WAC 388-450-0030.
We add all of your unearned income, as described in WAC 388-450-0025.
We subtract the difference between the following payment standards:
1. One that includes both eligible assistance unit members and those who cannot get assistance because of their alien status; and
2. One that includes only the eligible assistance unit members.
We subtract the payment standard for the number of people who are ineligible for reasons other than alien status, as defined in WAC 388-450-0100 (4)(b) through (f) .
We subtract any court or administratively ordered child support you pay for legal dependents. This includes both current and back support. The amount cannot be more than the need standard in WAC 388-478-0005 for the number of dependents.
We subtract any employment-related childcare expenses you have.
Then, we count whatever is left as unearned income.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

CLARIFYING INFORMATION

If an immigrant was sponsored into the United States, use WAC 388-450-0155, WAC 388-450-0156, and WAC 388-450-0160 to see how much of the sponsor's income we count.
In each of the following examples, the financial eligibility rules for medical assistance units in WAC 182-506-0010 are used when determining eligibility for a medical program for the excluded family members. Do not count the cash grant income of other family members when determining medical program eligibility for excluded family members.

EXAMPLE

A TANF AU consists of a citizen mother and two children. Also in the household is the undocumented father. He is employed and receives $700 earnings.
$700	Husband’s gross earned income	$562	Four-person pmt std
÷ 2	Work incentive	- 478	Three-person pmt std
$350	Husband’s countable earned income	$ 84	Diff. between 3 & 4 person pmt std
- 84	Difference between 3 & 4 person pmt std
$266	Countable income

$478	Three-person pmt std
- 266	Countable income
$212	Grant amount
While the undocumented father remains TANF-related, he does not have an emergency medical condition. He is not eligible for a medical program.

EXAMPLE

A TANF AU consists of a mother and father who were legally admitted under IRCA and their citizen child. Also residing in the home is their undocumented child. The father is employed and receives $700.
$700	Husband’s gross earned income	$562	Four-person pmt std
÷ 2	Work incentive	- 478	Three-person pmt std
$350	Husband’s countable earned income	$84	Diff. between 3 & 4 person pmt std
- 84	Difference between 3 & 4 person pmt std
$266	Countable income

$478	Three-person pmt std
- 266	Countable income
$212	Grant amount

EXAMPLE

A TANF AU consists of a mother who was legally admitted under IRCA and her citizen child. The child’s father was legally admitted under IRCA and employed receiving $700 earnings. He is also a fleeing felon. The couple’s undocumented child also resides in the home. This child is pregnant.
$700	Husband’s gross earned income	$478	Three-person pmt std
- 90	Work expense	- 385	Two-person pmt std
$610	Husband’s countable earned income	$93	Diff. between 3 & 4 person pmt std
- 93	Difference between 3 & 4 person pmt std
$517
- 305	Husband’s needs
$212	Countable income

$385	Two-person pmt std
- 212	Countable income
$173	Grant amount
In this situation, the father is allowed a one-person payment standard for his needs because he is a legal alien. The couple’s undocumented child is allowed only the difference between the payment standard which would include the child if she were a citizen and the payment standard for eligible citizen assistance unit members. Determine the medical program eligibility for the family members excluded from the cash grant. For the purposes of medical eligibility, the father is not an excluded family member.
$700		Husband’s gross earned income
÷ 2		Work incentive
$350		Net income - compare to the 4 person CNIL standard.
Certify the father for F04 medical. Certify the child for P04 medical.

EXAMPLE

A household consists of a needy mother and father who were legally admitted under IRCA, their undocumented minor child and her U.S. citizen child. The undocumented minor child is employed and receives $700 earned income. The minor parent was recently hospitalized for an emergent condition. If the minor parent is the primary caretaker of her child, the minor parent would receive a grant for her child after allocating her income:
$700	Minor parent’s gross earned income	$385	Two-person pmt std
÷ 2	Work incentive	- 305	One-person pmt std
$350	Minor parent’s countable earned income.	$80	Diff. between 1 & 2 person pmt std
- 80	Difference between 1 & 2 person pmt std
$270	Countable income

$305	One-person pmt std
- 270	Countable income
$ 35	Grant amount
In this situation, the parents of the minor parent are not eligible for cash assistance as they do not have an eligible child in the home and would not be eligible for a TANF-related medical program. If, however, major mom was determined to be the primary caretaker relative of her grandchild, major mom and the grandchild would be eligible for TANF.
$700	Minor parent’s gross earned income	$478	Three-person pmt std
÷ 2	Work incentive	- 385	Two-person pmt std
$350	Minor parent’s countable earned income	$93	Diff. between 2 & 3 person pmt std
- 93	Difference between 2 & 3 person pmt std
$257	Countable income

$385	Two-person pmt std
- 257	Countable income
$128	Grant amount
Determine eligibility for the alien emergency medical program for the undocumented minor mother. Under the financial responsibility rules, the minor mother and her child are considered as a medical assistance unit.
$700	Minor parent’s gross earned income
- 90	Work incentive
$610	Net income - compare to the 2 person CNIL
Certify the minor mother for F09 medical.

WAC 388-450-0120

Effective November 1, 2011

WAC 388-450-0120 Does the department allocate the income of financially responsible parents to a pregnant or parenting minor?

This section applies to TANF/SFA, RCA and PWA programs.

The income of nonapplying financially responsible parent(s) of a pregnant or parenting minor is countable to meet the needs of the minor and the child(ren) after the income is reduced by the following:

A ninety dollar work expense from the financially responsible parent's gross income from employment;
An amount not to exceed the department's standard of need for:
1. The financially responsible parent and dependent living in the home who are not applying for or receiving cash benefits and not a disqualified individual; and
2. Court or administratively ordered current or back support for legal dependents.
Spousal maintenance payments made to meet the needs of individuals not living in the home.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

CLARIFYING INFORMATION

For situations involving a pregnant minor or minor parent living with his or her parent, the mandatory assistance unit requirement is not affected by marriage, military service or court-ordered emancipation of the pregnant minor or minor parent, see WAC 388-408-0015.

WORKER RESPONSIBILITIES

Deduct a $90 work expense from each parent or stepparent's gross earned income.
Combine the net countable earned income for each parent with the parent and stepparent's gross countable unearned income.
Deduct the appropriate need standard for an assistance unit which contains the nonapplying parent and stepparent and any other individuals who:
1. Are living in the home who is not excluded from the assistance unit due to disqualification; and
2. Are legal dependents of the nonapplying parent or stepparent.
Deduct the lesser of the department's one-person need standard or the actual amount paid for court or administratively ordered support, to meet the need of each legal dependent not living in the home.
Deduct spousal maintenance payments made to meet the needs of individuals not living in the home.
The remaining income is available to meet the needs of the pregnant or parenting minor and children of the parenting minor.
Subtract the remaining income from the pregnant or parenting minor's appropriate payment standard.

EXAMPLE

A household consists of an unmarried parenting minor, her child, the minor's mother and father, and the minor's sister. The unmarried parenting minor is requesting assistance for herself and her child. The minor's father is employed full-time. His gross income is $1,520. Her mother is also employed and receives $850 each month. The family has no other income. The minor's father pays $500 a month court-ordered support for the support of a daughter not living in the home. Her mother also pays $300 a month for the support of a 14-year-old son living with his uncle. The minor is responsible for paying rent each month.
$2,370	Parent's monthly gross income ($1,520 + $850)
-180	$90 work expense (for each employed parent)
$2,190	Parent's net income
$1,244	Three person need standard (mother, father, minor's sister)
+500	Father's court ordered support
+300	Mother's court ordered support
$2,044	Total of need standard and outside support

$2,190	Parent's net income
- 2,044	Minus need standard and outside support
$ 146	Available income to minor and child

$ 385	Two person grant standard (minor and child)
-146	Minus available income to minor and child
$ 239	Minor's two person grant amount

WAC 388-450-0130

Effective November 1, 2011

WAC 388-450-0130 Does the department allocate the income of a nonapplying spouse to a caretaker relative?

This section applies to TANF/SFA, PWA, and RCA programs.

The community income of the nonapplying spouse and applying spouse is combined. See WAC 388-450-0005 to determine what income is available as community income.
Subtract a one person payment standard as specified in WAC 388-478-0020.
The remainder is allocated to the caretaker relative.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

WORKER RESPONSIBILITIES

When residing together, allocate the income of a nonapplying spouse to meet the needs of the applying spouse who requests inclusion in the assistance unit as a needy caretaker relative of specified degree (e.g., a grandparent applying with a grandchild or an aunt applying with a niece/nephew).
Determine the community income of both caretaker relatives, as specified in WAC 388-450-0005.
Subtract a one-person payment standard from the couple's community income.
Subtract the remaining income from the assistance unit's applicable payment standard to determine the grant amount.

EXAMPLE

Aunt applies for assistance for her nephew and herself as a needy caretaker relative of specified degree. The aunt's husband also resides in the home. Their income consists of his retirement pension of $600 per month. Determine eligibility as follows:
$600	Total community income
- 305	One-person payment standard
$295	Countable Income
$385	Two-person payment standard
- 295	Countable income
$90	Grant amount
In this situation, it would be to the household's advantage to deny assistance to the needy caretaker relative as the child alone would be eligible for a grant amount of $305.

NOTE:

If the allocated income of the nonapplying spouse decreases the payment standard to less than the payment standard without the needy relative, advise the needy relative of the option to receive cash benefits for the eligible child(ren) only.

WAC 388-450-0135

Error processing SSI file

CLARIFYING INFORMATION

A nonapplying spouse doesn't receive the earned income incentive deduction and there is no longer a work expense deduction for ABD.

WAC 388-450-0137

Effective November 1, 2011

WAC 388-450-0137 Does the department allocate income of an ineligible spouse to an ABD cash client?

This section applies to the Aged, Blind, or Disabled (ABD) cash assistance program.

When an ABD cash client is married and lives with the nonapplying spouse, the following income is available to the client:
1. The remainder of the client's wages, retirement benefits or separate property after reducing the income by:
  1. The ABD cash work incentive deduction, as specified in WAC 388-450-0177; and
  2. An amount not to exceed the department's standard of need for court or administratively ordered current or back support for legal dependents.
2. The remainder of the nonapplying spouse's wages, retirement benefits and separate property after reducing the income by:
  1. An amount not to exceed the department's standard of need for court or administratively ordered current or back support for legal dependents; and
  2. The payment standard amount as specified under WAC 388-478-0033 which includes ineligible assistance unit members.
3. One-half of all other community income, as provided in WAC 388-450-0005.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

WAC 388-450-0140

Effective August 1, 2010

WAC 388-450-0140 How does the income of an ineligible assistance unit member affect my eligibility and benefits for Basic Food?

The department decides who must be in your Assistance Unit (AU) under WAC 388-408-0035. If an AU member is ineligible for Basic Food under WAC 388-408-0035, this affects your AU's eligibility and benefits as follows:

We do not count the ineligible members to determine your AU size for the gross monthly income limit, net monthly income limit, or maximum allotment under WAC 388-478-0060.
If an AU member is ineligible because they are disqualified for an intentional program violation (IPV), they failed to meet work requirements under chapter 388-444 WAC, or they are ineligible fleeing felons under 388-442-0010:
1. We count all of the ineligible member's gross income as a part of your AU’s income; and
2. We count all of the ineligible member's allowable expenses as part of your AU's expenses.
If an AU member is an ineligible ABAWD under WAC 388-444-0030, is ineligible due to their alien status, failed to sign the application to state their citizenship or alien status, or refused to get or provide us a Social Security number:
1. We allow the twenty percent earned income disregard for the ineligible member's earned income;
2. We prorate the remaining income of the ineligible member among all the AU members by excluding the ineligible member's share and counting the remainder to the eligible members; and
3. We divide the ineligible member's allowable expenses evenly among all members of the AU when the ineligible member has income except that we do not divide the standard utility allowance (SUA). We allow the full SUA based on the total number of members in your AU.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

CLARIFYING INFORMATION

How to count an ineligible AU member’s income and resources:

Count all the income and resources for ineligible members disqualified for:	An Intentional Program Violation (IPV); Failing to comply with a work program under chapter 388-444 WAC; Fleeing a felony charge or conviction; or Violating a condition of probation or parole.
Count a prorated share of the income and all of the resources for AU members who are ineligible because they:	Are ineligible ABAWDS under WAC 388-444-0030; Are undocumented aliens; Are aliens who were determined ineligible under welfare reform; Failed to declare their citizenship or alien status on the application Failed to sign the application; or Refused to get or provide a Social Security number.
Disregard the ineligible member's income if their student status is the only reason they are ineligible.

NOTE:

If a client is ineligible under conditions in both a. and b., count their Income and / or resources at the full amount (a.), not the prorated amount (b.).

2. How an ineligible member affects the SUA:

We allow the full SUA for the Basic Food AU.

WAC 388-450-0145

Effective September 1, 1998

WAC 388-450-0145 Income of a person who is not a member of a food assistance unit.

A cash payment made to a food assistance unit from a person who is not a member of the assistance unit is counted as unearned income.
The following types of income are not available to the assistance unit:
1. The nonmember's income; and
2. Payments made by a nonmember to a third party for the benefit of the assistance unit.
When the nonmember's earnings are not clearly separate from the earnings of food assistance unit members, the earnings are:
1. Divided equally among the working persons, including the nonmember; and
2. The portion of the nonmember is not counted.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

CLARIFYING INFORMATION

Non-members are persons in a residence who:

Are not related or otherwise required to be part of the assistance unit. See ASSISTANCE UNITS; and
Do not purchase and prepare meals together.

WORKER RESPONSIBILITIES

Income of assistance unit non-members:
1. Verify the source and amount of the income.
2. Use the rules in WAC to attribute income to the non-member.
3. Budget the remaining income for the assistance unit.
Expenses of assistance unit non-members:
1. Obtain a statement from the assistance unit that declares how household expenses are shared.
2. Clearly document that non-members:
  1. Share expenses; or
  2. Make cash payments to the assistance unit for the non-member's share of expenses; or
  3. Make payments to a third party (vendor payments); or
  4. Have no obligation for household expenses.
3. If shared household expenses cannot be separated:
  1. Divide the total expenses of the residence by the total number of household members including the non-assistance unit member;
  2. Multiply the answer by the number of non-members to determine their prorated share; and
  3. Do not allow the non-member's prorated share as a household expense.
Income of an ineligible student for Basic Food: Income received by an ineligible student is not available to an assistance unit as follows:
1. Earned income of an ineligible student is not available to the other eligible members of the Basic Food AU unless the ineligible student makes it available; and
2. Income received by the ineligible student on behalf of others is not available to the AU unless the ineligible student makes it available. Such income includes, but is not limited to:
  1. Veterans' Administration (VA) educational benefits; and
  2. Other benefits received where the amount depends on the number of dependents.

WAC 388-450-0155

Effective November 1, 2001

WAC 388-450-0155 How does being a sponsored immigrant affect my eligibility for cash, medical, and food assistance programs?

The following definitions apply to this section:
1. "INS" means the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service.
2. "Sponsor" means a person who agreed to meet the needs of a sponsored immigrant by signing an INS Affidavit of Support form I-864 or -864A. This includes a sponsor's spouse if the spouse signed the affidavit of support.
3. "Sponsored immigrant" means a person who must have a sponsor under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to be admitted into the United States for residence.
4. "Deeming" means the department counts a part of the sponsor's income and resources as available to the sponsored immigrant.
5. "Exempt" means you meet one of the conditions of WAC 388-450-0156. If you are exempt:
  1. You do not need to provide us information about your sponsor's income and resources; and
  2. We do not deem your sponsor's income or resources to you.
If you are a sponsored immigrant and you are not exempt, you must do the following to be eligible for benefits even if your sponsor is not supporting you:
1. Give us the name and address of your sponsor;
2. Get your sponsor to provide us the information we need about their income and resources; and
3. Give us the information and proof we need to decide:
  1. If we must deem income to your assistance unit (AU); and
  2. The amount of income we deem to your AU.
If you are not eligible for benefits because we do not have the information we need about your sponsor, we do not delay benefits to the unsponsored people in your AU who are eligible for benefits. We do not count your needs when we decide if your AU is eligible for benefits, but we count:
1. All earned or unearned income you have that is not excluded under WAC 388-450-0015; and
2. All deductions you would be eligible for under chapter 388-450 WAC.
If you refuse to provide us with the information we need about your sponsor, the other adult members in your AU must provide the information. If the same person sponsored everyone in your AU, your AU is not eligible for benefits until someone in your AU provides us the information we need.
If you are an ineligible member of your AU, but you must be the AU under chapter 388-408 WAC, we do not deem your sponsor's income or resources to the AU.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

CLARIFYING INFORMATION

An Affidavit of Support is a form completed by the sponsor of a prospective immigrant as evidence that the immigrant is not likely to become a "public charge", i.e. primarily dependent on public assistance.
Old affidavits of support: USCIS previously used an I-134 affidavit of support for people who sponsored a family member. We only deem a sponsor's income to a sponsored immigrant if the sponsor completed the I-864 or I-864A.
When the USCIS requires an affidavit of support: The USCIS requires a US citizen to complete an affidavit of support in order to bring a relative into the US as an immigrant. USCIS also requires the affidavit when an immigrant enters the US on an employment-related immigration petition.
The USCIS has detailed information on-line about who must have the affidavit at: http://www.uscis.gov/USCIS/Resources/F3en.pdf
A sponsor's liability: A sponsor may be responsible to repay benefits the department pays for a sponsored immigrant. The process for this is not set at this time. A sponsor is not liable to repay benefits for a period when:
1. The sponsor is a member of the sponsored immigrant's AU; or
2. The sponsored immigrant starts to receive benefits after they become a US citizen or have 40 qualifying quarters of work.
When a sponsored AU member withholds sponsor information: Sponsored AU members may choose to withhold information about their sponsor. However, they become ineligible AU members as a result.

WORKER RESPONSIBILITIES

Check to see if the client is exempt from deeming under WAC 388-450-0156.
If the client isn't exempt, help them get the information they need to deem the sponsor's income:
1. Get as much information as possible about the client's sponsor including name, last known address, phone number; and
2. Attempt to contact the sponsor and get the information you need; or
3. If you can't get more current information, use the affidavit of support to decide the sponsor's income and resources. Get a copy of the affidavit from the client, the client's sponsor, USCIS, or the Attorney General.
4. If you can't get a copy of the affidavit of support, try to get another from of verification. Don't delay benefits if you can verify the information from another source.
If the sponsored immigrant is unwilling or unable to provide their sponsor's information, determine eligibility and benefits for the rest of the unsponsored AU members. Don't include the needs of the sponsored immigrant, but include the immigrant's actual income and resources.

NOTE:

Lack of verification of income and resources from a sponsor does not affect eligibility for the unsponsored household member. Do not delay, deny, or terminate benefits to unsponsored AU members based on lack of sponsor verification.

WAC 388-450-0156

Effective November 1, 2011

WAC 388-450-0156 When am I exempt from deeming?

If you meet any of the following conditions, you are permanently exempt from deeming and we do not count your sponsor's income or resources against your benefits:
1. The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) does not require you to have a sponsor. Immigrants who are not required to have a sponsor include those with the following status with United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS):
  1. Refugee;
  2. Parolee;
  3. Asylee;
  4. Cuban/Haitian entrant; or
  5. Special immigrant from Iraq or Afghanistan.
2. You were sponsored by an organization or group as opposed to an individual;
3. You do not meet the alien status requirements to be eligible for benefits under Chapter 388-424 WAC;
4. You have worked or can get credit for forty qualifying quarters of work under Title II of the Social Security Act. We do not count a quarter of work toward this requirement if the person working received TANF, Basic Food, SSI, CHIP, or nonemergency Medicaid benefits. We count a quarter of work by the following people toward your forty qualifying quarters:
  1. Yourself;
  2. Each of your parents for the time they worked before you turned eighteen years old (including the time they worked before you were born); and
  3. Your spouse if you are still married or your spouse is deceased.
5. You become a United States (U.S.) Citizen;
6. Your sponsor is dead; or
7. If USCIS or a court decides that you, your child, or your parent was a victim of domestic violence from your sponsor and:
  1. You no longer live with your sponsor; and
  2. Leaving your sponsor caused your need for benefits.
You are exempt from the deeming process while you are in the same AU as your sponsor;
For children and pregnancy medical programs, you are exempt from sponsor deeming requirements.
For Basic Food, you are exempt from deeming while you are under age 18.
For state family assistance, Aged, Blind, or Disabled cash assistance, pregnant women assistance (PWA),state-funded Basic Food benefits, and state-funded medical assistance for legal immigrants you are exempt from the deeming process if:
1. Your sponsor signed the affidavit of support more than five years ago;
2. Your sponsor becomes permanently incapacitated; or
3. You are a qualified alien according to WAC 388-424-0001 and you:
  1. Are on active duty with the U.S. armed forces or you are the spouse or unmarried dependent child of someone on active duty;
  2. Are an honorably-discharged veteran of the U.S. armed forces or you are the spouse or unmarried dependent child of a honorably-discharged veteran;
  3. Were employed by an agency of the U.S. government or served in the armed forces of an allied country during a military conflict between the U.S. and a military opponent; or
  4. Are a victim of domestic violence and you have petitioned for legal status under the Violence Against Women Act.
If you, your child, or your parent was a victim of domestic violence, you are exempt from the deeming process for twelve months if:
1. You no longer live with the person who committed the violence; and
2. Leaving this person caused your need for benefits.
If your AU has income at or below one hundred thirty percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), you are exempt from the deeming process for twelve months. This is called the "indigence exemption". You may choose to use this exemption or not to use this exemption in full knowledge of the possible risks involved. See risks in subsection (9) below. For this rule, we count the following as income to your AU:
1. Earned and unearned income your AU receives from any source; and
2. Any noncash items of value such as free rent, commodities, goods, or services you receive from an individual or organization.
If you use the indigence exemption, and are eligible for a federal program, we are required by law to give the United States attorney general the following information:
1. The names of the sponsored people in your AU;
2. That you are exempt from deeming due to your income;
3. Your sponsor's name; and
4. The effective date that your twelve-month exemption began.
If you use the indigence exemption, and are eligible for a state program, we do not report to the United States attorney general.
If you choose not to use the indigence exemption:
1. You could be found ineligible for benefits for not verifying your sponsor's income and resources; or
2. You will be subject to regular deeming rules under WAC 388-450-0160.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

CLARIFYING INFORMATION

SSA qualifying work quarters: SSA decides how much income someone must earn in order to earn a qualifying quarter of work. See WAC 388-424-0008 for information on how to decide if someone has 40 qualifying quarters of work.

If an immigrant has 40 qualifying quarters of work using the spouse's work quarters, the immigrant keeps the exemption even if the immigrant divorces the spouse at a later date.

Children and pregnant women are exempt from sponsor deeming for medical benefits.
Children are exempt from deeming for Basic Food: For Basic Food, we do not deem a sponsor's income or resources to children in the sponsored immigrant's household even if the child is a sponsored immigrant or a U.S. citizen. When the child turns age 18, we must deem the sponsor's income unless the child is exempt for some other reason. See example of deeming of sponsor's income under WAC 388-450-0160 when there are exempt children in the sponsored immigrant's household.
Deeming is time-limited for state-funded benefits: For state funded benefits, we only deem a sponsor's income to the immigrant for five years from the date the sponsor signed the affidavit of support. For federal benefits, we continue deeming a sponsor's income and resources until the immigrant is exempt from deeming under WAC 388-450-0156.
Using in-kind income: We do not deem in-kind income to the client. We add the sponsored immigrant's in-kind and other income outside of ACES and compare against 130% of the FPL to decide if the client is exempt from the deeming process. The United Stated Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) publishes the federal poverty level on the Internet at: http://www.poverty.us/Poverty-Guidelines.html
Value of in-kind income: We use the amount someone would normally pay for items or services (the market rate) as the value of free rent, commodities, goods, or services when we look at a client's in-kind income to decide if they are exempt from the deeming process.
Alien Emergency Medical: If a non-citizen isn't eligible for other medical benefits, that person may be eligible for AEM. We don't deem a sponsor's income or resources for AEM. See WAC 388-438-0110.
Special Immigrants: Immigrants from Iraq or Afghanistan who were granted Special Immigrant status under section 101 (a)(27) of the INA are not required to have a sponsor, and therefore, not subject to deeming rules.
Renewing Indigence Exemptions: While indigence exemptions expire at the end of 12 months, they may be renewed for additional 12-month periods if the eligibility criteria are met.
Reporting Indigence Exemptions: The requirement to report indigence exemptions to the U.S. Attorney General described in WAC 388-450-0156 (7) applies only to recipients of federal benefits and is only done after giving them the opportunity to opt out and decline the exemption. Sponsored immigrants must be told the consequences of opting out of the deeming exemption to avoid indigence reporting. Although recipients of state benefits are also eligible for the exemption, they will not be reported. See Worker Responsibilities #5 for instructions.
Sponsored Immigrants Prior to 12/19/97: For the purpose of income deeming, a sponsored immigrant is defined as an immigrant for whom a person (the sponsor) has signed an affidavit of support (Form I-864 or I-864A) on behalf of the immigrant pursuant to section 213A of the INA. These forms were not used prior to 12/19/97, so legal permanent residents with this status on or prior to 12/19/97 are exempt from deeming.

WORKER RESPONSIBILITIES

When a sponsor abandons an immigrant:
1. If the sponsor abandoned the client, look to see if the client meets the exemption for having income at or below 130% of the FPL and explain to the client about the requirement to notify the U.S. Attorney General if they decide to use the indigence exemption.
2. If the client meets this exemption, the department must notify the U.S. Attorney General only after giving the client the opportunity to opt out and decline the exemption. See Notifying U.S. Attorney General.
Deciding if a sponsor is permanently incapacitated:

Unless it is questionable, accept the client's statement that the sponsor is permanently incapacitated. If you think the sponsor may not be incapacitated, request a note from the sponsor's doctor.
When a sponsored immigrant gets long-term care services: See WAC 388-513-1325, WAC 388-513-1340, and WAC 388-513-1350 for information on how to treat income and resources for a client who gets long-term care services.
Deciding if the AU has more than 130% of FPL:
1. Start with the AU's earned and unearned income;
2. Add any cash or in-kind benefits the client receives from any source.
3. The result is the client's total cash and in-kind income.
4. Multiply the current FPL based on the client's AU size by 1.3.
5. Compare the total cash and in-kind income to 130% of FPL.
6. If the client's total income is at or below 130% of FPL, exempt the client from deeming for 12 months. See Notifying the U.S. Attorney General.

EXAMPLE

A sponsored-immigrant family of four applies for benefits. The family gets $250 a month from their sponsor and stay in an apartment furnished by the sponsor's church. The apartment has been rented for $600 a month. The husband earns $450 a month and the wife earns $200 monthly.
$450	Husbands income
200	Wife's income
250	Monthly income from sponsor
+600	In-kind income (free-rent) from church
$1500	Total cash and in-kind income

1509	2002 Monthly FPL for a family of four
X 1.3	130%
$1961	130% of FPL to decide on exemption
In this example, the client's cash and in-kind income of $1500 is less than $1961. The client is exempt from the deeming process for twelve months. This exemption can be renewed if the client's income remains at or under 130% of the monthly FPL.

EXAMPLE

A sponsored-immigrant family of two applies for benefits. The sponsor does not give them money, but they give the clients $300 work of food and household items each month. The immigrant earns $1200 monthly from their job.
$1200	Immigrant's income
+300	In-kind income from sponsor
$1500	Total cash and in-kind income

$995	2002 Monthly FPL for two people
x 1.3	130%
$1294	130% of FPL to decide on exemption
In this example, the client's cash and in-kind income of $1500 is more than $1294. The client is not exempt from the deeming process. Calculate how much of the sponsor's income to deem under WAC 388-450-0160.

NOTE:

A client is not automatically eligible for benefits by being exempt from deeming.

Notifying the U.S. Attorney General:
1. Each time you approve federal benefits for a client who is exempt from deeming for having income at or below 130% of the FPL, the department program staff must notify the U.S. Attorney General (USAG). Before taking steps to notify program staff, explain to the client:

the purpose of the 130% FPL household income determination;
that they have the right to "opt out" of the deeming exemption; and
that the consequences of not giving their consent to the USAG notification is the department counting a part of their sponsor's income toward the budget used to decide their eligibility and benefit level.

b. If the client gives their consent to the USAG notification take the following steps:

Write a memo with the following information:

Name of the sponsored immigrant(s) who have been approved for federal benefits;
Name of the sponsor;
That you decided the immigrant is exempt from deeming because their combined cash and in-kind income is at or below 130% of the federal poverty level; and
Start date of the 12-month exemption from deeming requirements.

Send the memo to:

Administrator
Program Planning & Policy Section
Community Services Division
Mail Stop 45470

Document that the client is exempt from deeming and that you referred the case to program staff to notify the Attorney General.
Set a user-generated alert to review the exemption in twelve months.

NOTE:

Don't refer a client if they are exempt for any reason other than having income under 130% of FPL (e.g., the client was sponsored by an organization.) Don't refer a client who is receiving only state benefits.

WAC 388-450-0160

Effective August 1, 2010

WAC 388-450-0160 How does the department decide how much of my sponsor's income to count against my benefits?

We must count some of your sponsor's income as unearned income to your assistance unit (AU) if:
1. Your sponsor signed the INS affidavit of support form I-864 or I-864A; and
2. You are not exempt from the deeming process under WAC 388-450-0156
We take the following steps to decide the monthly amount of your sponsor's income we deem as your income and count against your benefits:
1. We start with your sponsor's earned and unearned income that is not excluded under WAC 388-450-0015;
2. If your sponsor's spouse signed the affidavit of support, we add all of the spouse's earned and unearned income that is not excluded under WAC 388-450-0015;
3. We subtract twenty percent of the above amount that is earned income under WAC 388-450-0030;
4. For cash and medical assistance, we subtract the need standard under WAC 388-478-0015. We count the following people who live in your sponsor's home as a part of your sponsor's AU to decide the need standard:
  1. Your sponsor;
  2. Your sponsor's spouse; and
  3. Everyone else in their home that they could claim as a dependent for Federal income tax purposes.
5. For food assistance, we subtract the maximum gross monthly income under WAC 388-478-0060. We count the following people that live in your sponsor's home as a part of your sponsor's AU to decide the maximum gross monthly income:
  1. Your sponsor;
  2. Your sponsor's spouse; and
  3. Everyone else in their home that they could claim as a dependent for Federal income tax purposes.
6. If you can show that your sponsor has sponsored other people as well, we divide the result by the total number of people who they sponsored including any member of your household that is exempt from deeming according to WAC 388-450-0156.
After we have decided how much income to deem to you, we count the greater amount of the following against your benefits:
1. The amount of income calculated from deeming; or
2. The amount of money your sponsor actually gives you for your needs.

This is a reprint of the official rule as published by the Office of the Code Reviser. If there are previous versions of this rule, they can be found using the Legislative Search page.

WORKER RESPONSIBILITIES

Calculate the amount of income to deem for cash assistance, medical programs, or Basic Food as follows:

Total the sponsor's countable earned income (and the earned income of the spouse if appropriate). Subtract 20% from this amount.
Total the sponsor's countable unearned income (and the unearned income of the spouse if appropriate) and add this to the result above.

For cash assistance and medical programs: Subtract the need standard based on the number of people in the sponsor's AU (WAC 388-478-0015 );

For Basic Food: Subtract the maximum gross monthly income based on the number of people in the sponsor's AU (WAC 388-478-0060 );

If the sponsor completed an I-864 or I-864A for more than one person:
1. For Basic Food, divide the countable income by the number of immigrants that are sponsored by the sponsor and any U.S. citizen children in the immigrant's household under the age of 18;
2. For cash and medical assistance, divide the countable income by the number of immigrants that are sponsored by the sponsor;
3. Multiply by the number of non-exempt immigrants they sponsored that are in this AU.
Document the calculation you just completed:

EXAMPLE

The client is a single sponsored immigrant. The client's sponsor and their spouse have combined earned income of $2300 and $231 unearned income each month. The sponsor, their spouse, and 12-year old son live in the sponsor's home. The sponsor has signed an I-864 for one other immigrant.
Cash Assistance and Medical Programs		Basic Food
$1840	$2300 earnings - $460 (20%) = $1840	$1840	$2300 earnings - $460 (20%) = $1840
+ 231	Unearned income	+ 231	Unearned income
$2071	Combined earned and unearned income	$2071	Combined earned and unearned income
- 1763	Need standard for 3 people	-1984	Maximum gross monthly income
$ 308	Income deemed from the sponsor	$ 87	Income deemed from the sponsor
/ 2	# of immigrants for whom sponsor signed I-864	/ 2	# of immigrants for whom sponsor signed I-864
$154	Income we deem to the client for cash assistance and medical programs	$ 44	Income we deem to the client for Basic Food

EXAMPLE

The client is a single pregnant sponsored immigrant with no income. The client's sponsor and the spouse have combined earned income of $2800 each month. They have no unearned income. The sponsor and the spouse live alone. The sponsor hasn't signed any other affidavit of support.
Cash Assistance and Medical Programs		Basic Food
$2240	$2800 earnings - $560 (20%) = $2250	$2240	$2800 earnings - $560 (20%) = $2250
- 1428	Need standard for 2 people	- 1579	Maximum gross monthly income for 2 people
$812	Income we deem to the client for cash assistance and medical programs	$661	Income we deem to the client for Basic Food

NOTE:

Because the deemed income is under 185% of the FPL, the pregnant woman is eligible for pregnancy medical benefits.

EXAMPLE

Example with exempt children in the household: A Basic Food household consists of one sponsored adult, one sponsored child, and one U.S. citizen child. After applying the allowable disregards and deductions to the sponsor’s income, $900 of the sponsor’s income is deemed to the household.

For Basic Food: Divide the deemed income by the number of sponsored immigrants and all children in the Basic Food household, and count only the portion for the sponsored adult.

$900 ÷ 3 (1 adult, 2 children) = $300

$300 x 1 sponsored adult = $300 (amount budgeted against the BF household)