Effective Date of Rule: January 1, 2008.

     Purpose: The department is amending this rule to remove barriers and increase accessibility for clients seeking children's and pregnancy medical assistance, per new state law RCW 74.09.470.

     Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Amending WAC 388-450-0085.

     Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 74.04.050, 74.04.057, 74.08.090, and 74.09.470.

     Under RCW 34.05.350 the agency for good cause finds that immediate adoption, amendment, or repeal of a rule is necessary for the preservation of the public health, safety, or general welfare, and that observing the time requirements of notice and opportunity to comment upon adoption of a permanent rule would be contrary to the public interest.

     Reasons for this Finding: Adding this language to the rule reduces barriers and streamlines and reforms agency procedures mandated by the passage of SSB 5093. The emergency rule is necessary while the permanent rule-making process, initiated under WSR 08-01-020, is completed.

     Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 1, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0;      Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 1, Repealed 0.

     Date Adopted: December 17, 2007.

Stephanie E. Schiller

Rules Coordinator

     For cash, Basic Food, and family medical programs:

     (1) We ((decide how much of your self-employment income to count by:)) must count actual income in the month of application.

     (a) Adding together your gross self-employment income and any profit you make from selling your business property or equipment;

     (b) Subtracting your business expenses as described in subsection (2) below; and

     (c) Dividing the remaining amount of self-employment income by the number of months over which the income will be averaged.

     (2) We subtract one hundred dollars as a business expense even if your costs are less than this. If you want us to subtract your actual costs of more than one hundred dollars, you must list and give us proof of your expenses for us to count them. We never allow the following expenses:

     (a) Federal, state, and local income taxes;

     (b) Money set aside for retirement purposes;

     (c) Personal work-related expenses (such as travel to and from work);

     (d) Net losses from previous periods;

     (e) Depreciation; or

     (f) Any amount that is more than the payment you get from a boarder for lodging and meals.

     (3) If you have worked at your business for less than a year, we figure your gross self-employment income by averaging:

     (a) The income over the period of time the business has been in operation; and

     (b) The monthly amount we estimate you will get for the coming year.

     (4) For cash and medical assistance, if your self-employment expenses are more than your self-employment income, we do not use this "loss" to reduce income from other self-employment businesses or other sources of income to your assistance unit.

     (5) For Basic Food, we use a "loss" from self-employment farming or fishing income to reduce other sources of income only if you meet the following three conditions:

     (a) Someone in your assistance unit is a self-employed farmer or fisher;

     (b) Your gross yearly income from farming or fishing is or is expected to be at least one thousand dollars; and

     (c) Your allowable costs for farming or fishing are more than your income from farming or fishing.

     For children's and pregnancy medical programs:

     (6) If you have worked long enough at the business to file a federal tax return last year and it represents your current income, we figure your gross self-employment income by:

     (a) Adding together your gross self-employment income from your return and any profit you make from selling your business property or equipment;

     (b) Subtracting your allowable business expenses except as described in subsection (2) above; and

     (c) Average the income over the period the income covers.

     (7) If you have worked at your business for less than a year or if you did not file a federal tax return in the last year, we figure your gross self-employment income by:

     (a) Adding together your gross self-employment income and any profit you make from selling your business property or equipment, over the period of time the business has been in operation within the last year;

     (b) Subtracting your allowable business expenses except as described in subsection (2) above; and

     (c) Averaging the income we estimate you will get for the coming year.

[Statutory Authority: RCW 74.04.050, 74.04.055, 74.04.057, 74.04.510, 74.08.090, and 7 C.F.R. 273.9 and 273.11. 06-08-045, § 388-450-0085, filed 3/30/06, effective 5/1/06. Statutory Authority: RCW 74.04.050, 74.04.055, 74.04.057, and 74.04.510. 03-13-045, § 388-450-0085, filed 6/11/03, effective 8/1/03. Statutory Authority: RCW 74.08.090 and 74.04.510. 01-19-020, § 388-450-0085, filed 9/11/01, effective 10/1/01; 99-16-024, § 388-450-0085, filed 7/26/99, effective 9/1/99. Statutory Authority: RCW 74.04.050, 74.04.055, 74.04.057 and 74.08.090. 98-16-044, § 388-450-0085, filed 7/31/98, effective 9/1/98.]

© Washington State Code Reviser's Office