Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024
(a) For budgetary purposes, the number of
persons in the public assistance household are those persons who the applicant,
recipient or a representative indicates wish to receive public assistance and
who reside together in the same dwelling unit. The applicant or recipient must
include his or her minor dependent children in the application. When a minor
dependent child is named as an applicant for public assistance, his or her
natural or adoptive parents and blood-related or adoptive brothers and sisters
(who are also minor dependent children) must also apply for public assistance
and have their income and resources applied toward the public assistance
household if they reside in the same dwelling unit as the applying minor
dependent child. A person required to be added to the public assistance
household is deemed to be included in the application already on file as of the
date the person joins the household, either by birth, adoption, or by moving
into the dwelling unit of the existing public assistance household. For the
purposes of this subdivision, a minor dependent child is a child who is under
18 years of age. Parents and siblings who are SSI recipients, stepbrothers and
stepsisters, ineligible sponsored aliens, aliens who fail to meet the
citizenship and alienage requirements in section
349.3(a)
of this Title, individuals ineligible due to the lump sum provision of section
352.29(h)
of this Part, or children who are receiving adoption subsidies which are exempt
under section
352.22(p)
of this Part are not required to apply in accordance with this subdivision. The
public assistance household may also include persons who are temporarily absent
from such household, such as children or minors attending school away from home
whose full needs are not otherwise met.
(b) For purposes of determining the amount to
be included in the standard of need for shelter under section
352.3
of this Part and fuel for heating under section
352.5 of this
Part for persons in permanent housing, if permitted under Federal law and
regulations, the public assistance household includes any child entering foster
care who was eligible for and in receipt of assistance and care as a member of
the household in and for the month of entry into foster care. Such child must
be included in the household pending preparation of the child services plan
pursuant to Part 428 of this Title and at any time thereafter that the child
remains in foster care and the child services plan includes a goal of discharge
of the child to a member of the household.
(c) Three-generation households.
(1) With respect to an applying dependent
child whose parent is under age 18 and living with the child, the dependent
child and such minor parent are considered members of the same public
assistance household. The local district must deem any income of the minor
parent's own nonapplying parent(s) to be available to such public assistance
household when they reside together in the same dwelling unit. Such income must
be deemed available to the same extent as income of a stepparent under section
352.14
of this Part.
(2) With respect to
an applying dependent child whose parent is between the ages of 18 and 21 and
living with the child, the dependent child and such parent are considered
members of the same public assistance household. The local district must deem
any income of the nonapplying parents of the 18-to 21- year-old parent to be
available to such parent if they reside together in the same dwelling unit.
Such income must be deemed available to the minor parent to the same extent as
income of a stepparent under section
352.14
of this Part. However, such income must not be deemed available to the applying
dependent child.
(d)
Treatment of sanctioned persons.
(1) The needs
of an individual required to be in the public assistance household pursuant to
subdivision (a) of this section must not be considered and the needs of the
family must be determined based on the remaining persons in the public
assistance household when:
(i) the individual
willfully fails or refuses to furnish or apply for a social security number for
each member of the household pursuant to section
369.2(b)(1)
or section
370.2(c)(3)
of this Title;
(ii) Repealed and
Reserved
(iii) the individual fails
or refuses to apply for or use employee group health insurance benefits
pursuant to section
349.6
of this Title.
(2) When
an individual who is required to be in the public assistance household pursuant
to subdivision (a) of this section, or who is the caretaker of a dependent
child, fails to comply with the requirements of section
351.2(i)
of this Title or willfully and without good cause fails or refuses to comply
with the requirements of Part 385 of this Title, the public assistance benefits
otherwise available to the household of which such individual is a member will
be reduced pro rata.
(3) When an
individual who is a member of a household without dependent children fails to
comply with the requirement of section
351.2(i)
of this Title, or willfully and without good cause fails or refuses to comply
with the requirements of Part 385 of this Title, the public assistance benefits
otherwise available to the household of which the individual is a member will
be reduced pro rata.
(4) When an
individual fails to cooperate in establishing paternity or in establishing,
modifying or enforcing a support order pursuant to section
369.2(b)(1)
or section
370.2(c)(9)
of this Title, and the individual does not have good cause for such failure or
is not otherwise excepted from so cooperating, the public assistance otherwise
available to the household of which such individual is a member will be reduced
by 25 percent.
(e)
(1) Treatment of income and resources of
nonapplying or ineligible parent or spouse. Unless required to be in the public
assistance household pursuant to subdivision (a) of this section, legally
responsible relatives of a dependent child or spouse may choose whether or not
to apply for assistance. The income and presence in the home of a legally
responsible relative who chooses not to apply for or who is ineligible for
assistance for a reason other than a sanction subject to subdivision (d) of
this section must be considered. Such persons include, but are not limited to,
persons who are ineligible by reason of their immigration status or their
receipt of nonrecurring lump sum income. The public assistance budget for a
household residing with such a legally responsible relative is calculated as
follows:
(i) The needs of the public
assistance household are calculated as if the nonapplying or ineligible person
were applying for assistance as a member of the public assistance
household.
(ii) The pro rata share
of the amount calculated in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph which is
attributable to the nonapplying or ineligible person is determined.
(iii) If the nonapplying or ineligible
person's income is less than his or her pro rata share of the amount in
subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, such person' s needs and income are not
counted when calculating the budget deficit or surplus of the public assistance
household, and only the needs and income of the persons actually applying are
considered.
(iv) If the nonapplying
or ineligible person's income is equal to or greater than his or her pro rata
share of the amount in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, such person's needs
and income are counted when calculating the budget deficit or surplus of the
public assistance household, as if the person were applying for
assistance.
(v) For purposes of the
preceding subparagraph, the income of a recipient of SSI who is not applying
for public assistance and who is the parent of a home relief applicant or
recipient who is under the age of 21 or who is the spouse of a home relief
applicant or recipient is considered to be equal to his or her pro rata share
of the amount in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, and any amounts of his or
her income which would otherwise exceed such pro rata share are
disregarded.
(vi) The resources of
the public assistance household include the nonapplying person's resources
regardless of the amount of such person's income. With respect to a nonapplying
person who is in receipt of SSI, resources which are exempt for purposes of SSI
are not taken into consideration.
(f) When an applicant for or recipient of
public assistance refuses to cooperate in applying for or accepting SSI
benefits for himself or herself or for a member of the public assistance
household, the needs of such individual shall be eliminated from the grant, and
the needs of the family shall be determined based on the remaining persons in
the grant. If, however, such individual is physically or emotionally unable to
complete the SSI application process, the local department of social services
shall provide any services which are necessary to insure that the individual is
assisted in making the SSI application. In such instance, that individual shall
not be denied public assistance and care.
(g) Intentional program violation penalties.
When an applicant for or a recipient of public assistance is found to have
committed an intentional program violation (public assistance-IPV) either
through an administrative disqualification hearing or by a court of appropriate
jurisdiction, or has signed either a waiver of right to an administrative
disqualification hearing or a disqualification consent agreement, his or her
needs cannot be considered for the following periods when determining the
amount of assistance:
(1) for six months for
the commission of a first public assistance-IPV;
(2) for 12 months for the commission of a
second public assistance-IPV, or when the offense results in the wrongful
receipt of benefit is in an amount between $1,000 and $3,900;
(3) for 18 months for the commission of a
third public assistance-IPV or when the offense results in the wrongful receipt
of benefits in an amount in excess of $3,900;
(4) for five years for the commission of a
fourth or subsequent public assistance-IPV;
findings of the commission of intentional program
violations in the ADC and HR programs prior to August 20, 1997 must be
considered in determining the sanction to be imposed for a public
assistance-IPV;
(5) any
sanction imposed by this subdivision will remain in effect unless and until the
finding upon which the sanction was imposed is reversed by a court of
appropriate jurisdiction; or
(6)
the income and resources of an individual disqualified from receiving
assistance under this subdivision, but not his or her needs, must be budgeted
against the needs of anyone who is in the sanctioned person's filing unit or
anyone applying for or in receipt of assistance for whom the sanctioned person
is legally responsible.
