Current through Vol. 42, No. 1, September 16, 2024
(a)
Converting income. When the household receives income more often
than monthly, the worker converts the income to a monthly amount as indicated
in (1) through (5) of this subsection. When the amounts to be converted differ,
such as fluctuating daily, weekly, or biweekly amounts, the worker averages the
income per (c) of this Section. The worker carries cents through all steps and
then rounds the monthly income amount to the nearest dollar with one cent
through 49 cents rounded down and 50 cents through 99 cents rounded up.
(1)
Daily. The worker converts
income received on a daily basis to a weekly amount. When there is a
consistency in days worked each week and a regularity of pay dates, the worker
multiplies the weekly income by 4.3. When there is no consistency, refer to (5)
of this subsection for irregular income processing.
(2)
Weekly. The worker
multiplies income received weekly by 4.3.
(3)
Twice a month. The worker
multiplies income received twice a month by 2.
(4)
Biweekly. The worker
multiplies income received every two weeks by 2.15.
(5)
Irregular income. The worker
does not convert income received at irregular intervals by 4.3, 2, or 2.15,
when there is no consistency in the work offered or when pay is received.
Instead, the worker adds all irregular income received in the calendar month
together to arrive at a monthly average. When more than one month of irregular
income is available, the worker totals the income and divides it by the number
of months used.
(b)
Anticipating income. For the purpose of determining the
household's eligibility and monthly benefit allotment, the worker takes into
account the income already received by the household and any anticipated income
the household is reasonably certain to receive during the certification period
per Section 273.10(c)(1) of Title 7 of the Code of Federal Regulations (
7 C.F.R.
§
273.10) .
(1)
Application month income. In
the application month, the household's anticipated income may be less than a
full month's wages. In this case, the worker uses actual or actual anticipated
income for the month of application. When the person receives an extra paycheck
in the application month due to a third or fifth week and the income is
ongoing, the worker converts the income to anticipated income for the
application month. For the remaining months of the certification period, the
worker averages and converts the income to a monthly amount.
(2)
Uncertain income. The worker
does not count income when the date and amount to be received is uncertain.
Examples of uncertain income include, when a household's anticipated income is
from a new job and the date and amount of the first paycheck is not known or
when a household member recently applied for public assistance or unemployment
benefits and does not know if or when the initial payment may be made.
(A) The worker does not consider the
anticipated payment unless there is reasonable certainty concerning the month
the payment will be received and the amount of the payment.
(B) When some, but not all, household income
is not known, the portion that can be anticipated with reasonable certainty
must be considered as income.
(C)
When the worker can reasonably anticipate income receipt, but the monthly
amount fluctuates, the worker may elect to average the income per (c) of this
Section.
(D) Households are advised
to report all changes in gross monthly income as required.
(3)
Income received in the past
30-calendar days. Income received during the past 30-calendar days may
be used as an indicator of income anticipated to be available to the household
during the next certification period. Past income is not used to anticipate
future income for any month in which an income change occurred, can be
anticipated, or terminated.
(4)
Regular employment. When the head of the household or other
members of the household have regular employment, income from previous months
is a good indicator of the amount of income to anticipate for the application
month and subsequent months. When the household or collateral contact supplies
information indicating future income will differ substantially from the
previous month's income, the worker uses the information to make a reasonable
estimate of the anticipated income.
(5)
Withheld wages. Wages
withheld at the request of the employee are considered income to the household
in the month the wages would otherwise be paid by the employer. Wages withheld
by the employer as a general practice, even when in violation of the law, are
not counted as income to the household unless the household anticipates it will
ask for and receive an advance, or the household anticipates that it will
receive income from previously held wages. Advances on wages are counted as
income when they can be reasonably anticipated.
(c)
Averaging income.
Households, except for destitute and migrant or seasonal farm worker
households, may have their income averaged per 7 C.F.R. § 27310(c)(3). To
determine the household's eligibility, the worker adds all other income to the
averaged monthly income and subtracts applicable income exclusions and
deductions in the normal manner.
(1)
Fluctuating income. Households with fluctuating income may elect
to have the income averaged.
(A) When the
household indicates the most recent 30-calendar day's income is representative
of anticipated future earnings, the worker uses this income to compute gross
monthly income.
(B) When the
household indicates the most recent 30-calendar days of income is not
representative of anticipated future income, the worker averages additional
months of income to compute a representative anticipated monthly gross
income.
(C) Income received more
often than monthly is converted to a monthly income prior to determining a
monthly average. The number of months used to arrive at the average income need
not be the same as the number of months in the certification period. For
example, when fluctuating income for the past 30-calendar days and the month of
application are known and, with reasonable certainty, are representative of the
income fluctuations anticipated for the coming months, the income for the two
months may be averaged and projected over the certification period.
(2)
Employment contract and
self-employment. When households derive their annual income by contract
or self-employment in a period of time shorter than one year, the worker
annualizes the income over a 12-month period. These households may include
school employees, sharecroppers, farmers, and other self-employed households.
These provisions do not apply to migrant or seasonal farm workers or to
contracted employees who receive income on an hourly or piece work
basis.
(d)
Income
from the Social Security Administration (SSA). The Oklahoma Department
of Human Services receives income information from SSA regarding SSA and
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefit recipients through automated data
exchange records. When using the:
(1)
Beneficiary and Earnings Data Exchange System (BENDEX) to verify SSA benefits,
the worker drops any cents from the gross benefit amount; or
(2) State Data Exchange System (SDX) to
verify SSI, the worker rounds any cents to the nearest dollar to determine
countable gross income.
Amended at 21 Ok Reg
841, eff 4-26-04; Amended at 27 Ok Reg 1241, eff
6-1-10
