Library: Policy

OKDHS:10-1-17. Income disregards

Issued 3-30-98

Income that is disregarded in determining eligibility for AFDC is:

(1) The coupon allotment under the Food Stamp Act of 1977;
(2) Any payment received under Title II of the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970;
(3) Education Grants (including work study), scholarships, etc., that are contingent upon the student regularly attending school. The student's classification (graduate or undergraduate) is not a factor;
(4) Loans (regardless of use) if a bona fide debt or obligation to pay can be established. Criteria to establish a loan as bona fide includes an acknowledgment of obligation to repay or evidence that the loan was from an individual or financial institution in the loan business. If the loan was from a person(s) not in the loan business, the borrower acknowledgment of obligation to repay (with or without interest) is required to indicate that the loan is bona fide. If the loan agreement is not written, Form Adm-103 (new form number 08AD103E), Loan Verification, should be completed by the borrower attesting that the loan is bona fide and signed by the lender verifying the date and amount of loan. When copies of written agreements or Form Adm-103 (new form number 08AD103E) are not available, detailed case documentation must include information that the loan is bona fide and how the debt amount and date of receipt was verified;
(5) Indian payments (including judgment funds or funds held in trust) and distributed per capita by the Secretary of the Interior (BIA) or distributed by the tribe subject to approval by the Secretary of the Interior. Also, any interest or investment income accrued on such funds while held in trust or any purchases made with judgment funds, trust funds, interest or investment income accrued on such funds. Any income from mineral leases, from tribal business investments, etc., as long as the payments are paid per capita. For purposes of this paragraph, per capita is defined as each tribal member receiving an equal amount. However, any interest or income derived from the principal or produced by purchases made with the funds after distribution is considered as any other income;
(6) Special allowance for school expenses made available upon petition in writing from trust funds of the student;
(7) Benefits from State and Community Programs on Aging (Title III). Income from the Older American Community Service Employment Act (Title V), including AARP and Green Thumb organizations as well as employment positions allocated at the discretion of the Governor of Oklahoma, is counted as earned income. Both Title III and Title V are under the Older Americans Act of 1965 amended by P.L. 100-175 to become the Older American Act amendments of 1987;
(8) Unearned income received by an AFDC child, such as a needs based payment, cash assistance, compensation in lieu of wages, allowance, etc., from a program funded by the Job Training and Partnership Act (JTPA) including Job Corps income. Also, JTPA earned income received as wages, not to exceed six months in any calendar year;
(9) Payments for supportive services or reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses made to individual volunteers serving as foster grandparents, senior health aids, or senior companions, and to persons serving in the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) and Active Corps of Executives (ACE);
(10) Payments to volunteers under the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (VISTA), unless the gross amount of VISTA payments equals or exceeds the state or federal minimum wage, whichever is greater;
(11) The value of supplemental food assistance received under the Child Nutrition Act or the special food service program for children under the National School Lunch Act;
(12) Any portion of payments, made under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to an Alaska Native, which are exempt from taxation under the Settlement Act;
(13) If an adult or child from the family group is living in the home and is receiving SSI, his or her individual income is considered by the Social Security Administration in determining eligibility for SSI. Therefore, that income cannot be considered by the Department as available to the AFDC group. Likewise, consideration is not given to the SSI payment in determining the AFDC grant;
(14) Experimental Housing Allowance Program (EHAP) payments made under Annual Contributions Contracts entered into prior to January 1, 1975, under Section 23 of the U.S. Housing Act of 1937, as amended;
(15) Earnings of an AFDC child who is a full-time student are disregarded for a period not to exceed six months per calendar year. This disregard applies to both the "gross income maximum" and computation of the grant. At the end of the six months, the earnings are counted only for the "gross income maximum" test;
(16) The first $50 of the current monthly AFDC child support paid by the absent parent for the AFDC unit. Only one disregard is allowed regardless of the number of parents paying or amounts paid. An additional disregard is allowed if payments for previous months were paid when due but not received until the current month;
(17) Government rental or housing subsidies by governmental agencies, e.g., HUD (received in-kind or in cash) for rent, mortgage payments or utilities;
(18) Reimbursements from an employer for out-of-pocket expenditures and allowances for travel or training to the extent the funds are used for expenses directly related to such travel or training, and uniform allowances if the uniform is uniquely identified with company name or logo;
(19) LIHEAP payments for energy assistance and payments for emergency situations under Emergency Assistance to Needy Families with Children;
(20) Advance payments of Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or refunds of EITC as a result of filing a federal income tax return;
(21) Payments made from the Agent Orange Settlement Fund or any other fund established pursuant to the settlement in the In Re Agent Orange Product Liability Litigation, M.D.L. No. 381 (E.D.N.Y.);
(22) Payments made from the Radiation Exposure Compensation Trust Fund as compensation for injuries or deaths resulting from the exposure to radiation from nuclear testing and uranium mining;
(23) Federal major disaster and emergency assistance provided under the Disaster Relief Act of 1974, and comparable disaster assistance provided by states, local governments and disaster assistance organizations;
(24) Interests of individual Indians in trust or restricted lands; and
(25) Income up to $2,000 per year received by individual Indians, which is derived from leases or other uses of individually-owned trust or restricted lands shall not be counted as income. Any remaining disbursements from the trust or the restricted lands are considered as income.