PERMANENT RULES
SOCIAL AND HEALTH SERVICES
(Economic Services Administration)
Effective Date of Rule: Thirty-one days after filing.
Purpose: The department is amending WAC 388-450-0015 What types of income does the department not use to figure out my benefits? Child support is currently a deduction from a household's countable gross income for Basic Food assistance. The department is exercising an option from the 2002 farm bill to treat child support payments made to someone outside of the home as an income exclusion prior to administering the gross income test.
Currently, some households are denied for Basic Food assistance for excess gross income, even when up to 50% of their income is paid out in child support. These families are now unable to qualify for food assistance due to income that they have no access to because it is paid out in child support. This change will enhance the division of child support's mission to collect child support and will enhance the community services division's mission to assist low-income families to access the Basic Food program.
Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Amending WAC 388-450-0015.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 74.04.005, 74.04.050, 74.04.055, 74.04.057, 74.04.510, and 74.08.090.
Other Authority: P.L. 107-171, section 4101.
Adopted under notice filed as WSR 09-12-117 on June 3, 2009.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 1, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 1, Repealed 0.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: July 10, 2009.
Stephanie E. Schiller
Rules Coordinator
4101.2(1) There are some types of income we do not count to figure out if you can get benefits and the amount you can get. Some examples of income we do not count are:
(a) Bona fide loans as defined in WAC 388-470-0045, except certain student loans as specified under WAC 388-450-0035;
(b) Federal earned income tax credit (EITC) payments;
(c) Federal economic stimulus payments that are excluded for federal and federally assisted state programs;
(d) Title IV-E and state foster care maintenance payments if you choose not to include the foster child in your assistance unit;
(e) Energy assistance payments;
(f) Educational assistance we do not count under WAC 388-450-0035;
(g) Native American benefits and payments we do not count under WAC 388-450-0040;
(h) Income from employment and training programs we do not count under WAC 388-450-0045;
(i) Money withheld from a benefit to repay an overpayment from the same income source. For Basic Food, we do not exclude money that is withheld because you were overpaid for purposely not meeting requirements of a federal, state, or local means tested program such as TANF/SFA, GA, and SSI;
(j) Legally obligated child support payments received by someone who gets TANF/SFA benefits;
(k) One-time payments issued under the Department of State or Department of Justice Reception and Replacement Programs, such as Voluntary Agency (VOLAG) payments; and
(l) Payments we are directly told to exclude as income under state or federal law.
(m) For cash and Basic Food: Payments made to someone
outside of the household for the benefits of the assistance
unit using funds that are not owed to the household; ((and))
(n) For Basic Food Only: The total monthly amount of all legally obligated current or back child support payments paid by the assistance unit to someone outside of the assistance unit for:
(i) A person who is not in the assistance unit; or
(ii) A person who is in the assistance unit to cover a period of time when they were not living with the member of the assistance unit responsible for paying the child support on their behalf.
(o) For medical assistance: Only the portion of income used to repay the cost of obtaining that income source.
(2) For children's, family, or pregnancy medical, we also do not count any insurance proceeds or other income you have recovered as a result of being a Holocaust survivor.
[Statutory Authority: RCW 74.04.005, 74.04.050, 74.04.055, 74.04.057, 74.04.510 and 74.08.090. 09-09-103, § 388-450-0015, filed 4/20/09, effective 4/21/09; 06-07-078, § 388-450-0015, filed 3/13/06, effective 5/1/06. Statutory Authority: RCW 74.04.050, 74.04.055, 74.04.057, 74.04.510, 74.08.090 and Public Law 106-419. 05-03-078, § 388-450-0015, filed 1/17/05, effective 2/17/05. Statutory Authority: RCW 74.08.090 and 74.04.510. 02-14-022, § 388-450-0015, filed 6/21/02, effective 6/22/02. Statutory Authority: RCW 74.04.050, 74.04.057, 74.08.090, 74.09.530 and 2000 2nd sp.s. c 1 § 210(12). 01-18-006, § 388-450-0015, filed 8/22/01, effective 9/22/01. Statutory Authority: RCW 74.08.090 and 74.04.510. 99-17-025, § 388-450-0015, filed 8/10/99, effective 10/1/99. Statutory Authority: RCW 74.04.050, 74.04.055, 74.04.057 and 74.08.090. 98-16-044, § 388-450-0015, filed 7/31/98, effective 9/1/98. Formerly WAC 388-505-0590.]