Section 144-301-500-FS 555-1 - Treatment of Income1.GENERAL RULEFor purposes of determining eligibility and benefit level the income already received during the certification period and any income which can be reasonably anticipated during the remainder of the certification period is taken into account. If the amount of income anticipated or month of receipt is uncertain, that portion of the household's income which is uncertain is not counted. For example, a household anticipating income from a new source, such as a new job or pending TANF benefits, may not be sure of the timing or amount of the first payment. Such income is not anticipated unless there is reasonable certainly concerning the month in which it will be received and what the amount will be. When the exact amount is not known, only that portion of it which can be anticipated with reasonable certainty is considered as income.
NOTE: For households with members who are funded by Federal and State funds, see Section 44411.
The best estimate of income is based on the recipient's and the Department's reasonable expectations and knowledge of current, past and future circumstances. The best estimate of income, is based on the concepts of significant and non-significant income changes and the income averaging techniques described below. The method of determining the best estimate of income must be clearly documented in the case record.
2.SIGNIFICANT INCOME CHANGESA. Significant income changes are defined as changes in sources of income or in amounts greater than $125 per month which are:(1) expected to continue into the future; or(2) short term, but will continue long enough to affect at least one allotment.B. Some examples of significant income changes include starting a job, gaining a new source of unearned income, losing a job or unearned income, changes in the rate of return on investments that are expected to persist, permanent or long term changes in hours worked and/or rate of pay, permanent full-time employment, beginning to work piece-work or overtime, promotion, changing employers, short term plant closings or periods of absence without compensation, and other similar changes.C. The Department shall use information about past significant changes of a continuous nature in estimating future income. For example, if an individual received an increase in the hourly wage in the recent past, the wages received prior to the pay raise are not used in determining the best estimate of future income. An average of the hours worked per week multiplied by the new hourly wage must be used in determining the estimate.3.NON-SIGNIFICANT INCOME CHANGESA. Non-significant income changes are defined as temporary, very short term variations in the earned or unearned income amount caused by a situation which is not of an ongoing nature or which is of a variable nature.B. Some examples are changes in the rate of return on investments that are not expected to persist, previously anticipated fluctuations in wages, occasional changes in wages due to unpredictable overtime, unpaid absences, or occasional illness.C. When non-significant income changes occur during the certification period, they often do not impact eligibility or benefits.D. Unless the income is averaged, it is counted as income only in the month it is received. Whenever a full month's income is anticipated but is to be received on a weekly or biweekly basis, it is converted to a monthly amount by multiplying weekly amounts by 4.3 and biweekly amounts by 2.15. When less than a full month's income is anticipated, the actual amount of anticipated monthly income is used.E. With the exception of migrant farm worker households which are destitute, households may elect to have income averaged. Households which, by contract or self-employment derive their annual income in a period of time shorter than a year have that income determined in accordance with Section 444-2. F. Households receiving scholarships, deferred loans, or other educational grants have such income averaged over the period for which it was provided. (See Section 444-7(2).)G. Nonrecurring lump sum payments are counted as assets starting in the month they are received. They are not counted as income in determining SNAP eligibility and benefits amounts.H. Annuities and lottery winnings that are paid annually are averaged over a 12 month period.I. Wages held at the request of the employee are considered income in the months they would otherwise have been paid. Wages held by an employer as a general practice are not counted until they are expected to be received. Advances on wages are counted when reasonably anticipated.J. Households receiving income on a recurring monthly or semimonthly basis do not have their countable monthly income varied merely because of changes in mailing cycles or pay dates or because weekends or holidays cause additional payments to be received in a month.4.INCOME AVERAGINGThe steps below are followed to determine the best estimate of income.
A. All earned and unearned income received within a minimum time frame of four weeks immediately preceding the application or review must be verified even if not all four weeks' income is used to calculate the best estimate. If not all pay stubs for the four week period are available, but the gross income can be verified for each pay interval through year-to-date information, the four week period's income is deemed to be verified.
B. The Department shall determine, through a careful review of the income documentation and discussion with the individual, if there have been any significant income changes during the four week period. If there have been, and the changes are of a continuous nature, the changes must be taken into consideration when determining the best estimate. For example, if an individual has received an increase in hourly rate, the new hourly rate must be multiplied by the appropriate number of hours (either stable or averaged) to determine the anticipated income.C. The Department shall determine if any significant income changes are expected in the future. If yes, and the exact nature of the significant income change is known, the Department shall use that information in determining the best estimate of income.D. The Department shall determine, through careful review of the documentation, the case record, and discussion with the individual if any of the income received is not expected to be representative of the future. For instance, the first pay check of new employment may not represent a full pay period, or a missing week's income may represent a summer plant closing which is not anticipated to occur in the next certification period. Non-representative income (or lack of income) is not used in calculating the best estimate. The case record must be clearly documented to explain why any income was not used, and to show how the best estimate was figured.E. If income fluctuates to the extent that a four week period is not expected to provide the best estimate of income for the future review period, the Department may use information covering a longer period of time. If the income is from self-employment the Department may use the most recent tax year's income.F. The final step is to average the income representative for the eligibility period. If there were significant income changes, averaging is used only for the period of time not affected by the significant change-e.g., if the rate of pay increased, only the hours worked are averaged. The average hours multiplied by the increased rate of pay is then used to determine eligibility and benefits for the one time and prospective periods. NOTE: If income does not fluctuate it is not necessary to average the income.
10-144 C.M.R. ch. 301, § 500-FS 555-1