WAC 388-450-0215 How does the department estimate my assistance unit's income to determine my eligibility and benefits?

1. We decide if your assistance unit (AU) is eligible for benefits and calculate your monthly benefits based on an estimate of your AU's gross monthly income and expenses. This is known as prospective budgeting.
2. We use your current, past, and future circumstances for a representative estimate of your monthly income.
3. We may need proof of your circumstances to ensure our estimate is reasonable. This may include documents, statements from other people, or other proof as explained in WAC 388-490-0005.
4. We use one of two methods to estimate income:
   1. Anticipating monthly income (AM): With this method, we base the estimate on the actual income we expect your AU to receive in the month (see subsection (5)); and
   2. Averaging income (CA): With this method, we add the total income we expect your AU to receive for a period of time and divide by the number of months in the period (see subsection (6)).
5. Anticipating monthly income: We must use the anticipating monthly method:
   1. For the month you apply for benefits unless:
      1. We are determining eligibility for children's medical programs as listed in WAC 388-505-0210 (3) through (6) or pregnancy medical as listed in WAC 388-462-0015. For children's and pregnancy medical we can use either method; or
      2. You are paid less often than monthly (for example: you are paid quarterly or annually). If you are paid less often than monthly, we average your income for the month you apply. Section (6) explains how we average your income.
   2. When we estimate income for anyone in your AU, if you or anyone in your AU receive SSI-related medical benefits under chapter 388-475 WAC.
   3. When we must allocate income to someone who is receiving SSI-related medical benefits under chapter 388-475 WAC.
   4. When you are a destitute migrant or destitute seasonal farmworker under WAC 388-406-0021. In this situation, we must use anticipating monthly (AM) for all your AU's income.
   5. To budget SSI or social security benefits even if we average other sources of income your AU receives.
6. Averaging income: When we average your income, we consider changes we expect for your AU's income. We determine a monthly amount of your income based on how often you are paid:
   1. If you are paid weekly, we multiply your expected income by 4.3;
   2. If you are paid every other week, we multiply your expected income by 2.15;
   3. In most cases if you receive your income other than weekly or every other week, we estimate your income over your certification period by:
      1. Adding the total income for representative period of time;
      2. Dividing by the number of months in the timeframe; and
      3. Using the result as a monthly average.
   4. If you receive your yearly income over less than a year because you are self employed or work under a contract, we average this income over the year unless you are:
      1. Paid on an hourly or piecework basis; or
      2. A migrant or seasonal farmworker under WAC 388-406-0021.
7. If we used the anticipating monthly income method for the month you applied for benefits, we may average your income for the rest of your certification period if we do not have to use this method for any other reason in section (5).
8. If you report a change in your AU's income, and we expect the change to last through the end of the next month after you reported it, we update the estimate of your AU's income based on this change.
9. If your actual income is different than the income we estimated, we don't make you repay an overpayment under chapter 388-410 WAC or increase your benefits unless you meet one of the following conditions:
   1. You provided incomplete or false information; or
   2. We made an error in calculating your benefits.