Current through Reg. 50, No. 13; March 28, 2025
(a) Definitions. The following words and
terms when used in this section shall have the following meanings, unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise.
(1)
Assets--All items of monetary value owned by an individual, excluding personal
possessions.
(2) Resources--Both
liquid and non-liquid assets a person can convert to meet his immediate needs.
As established by the Health and Human Services Commission (commission),
resources are either countable or exempt.
(A)
Liquid resources are resources that are readily negotiable, such as cash,
checking or savings accounts, savings certificates, stocks, or bonds.
(B) Non-liquid resources include vehicles,
buildings, land, or certain other property.
(3) Accessible resource--A resource that is
legally available to the household.
(4) Inaccessible resource--A resource that is
not legally available to the household.
(5) Personal possessions--Furniture,
appliances, jewelry, clothing, livestock, farm equipment, and other items if
the household uses them to meet personal needs essential for daily
living.
(6) Real property--Land and
any improvements on it.
(7) Fair
market value--The amount of money an item would bring if sold in the current
local market.
(8) Equity--The fair
market value of an item minus all money owed on it and the cost associated with
its sale or transfer.
(b)
Resource Limit. The total value of non-exempt resources available to the
household cannot exceed:
(1) $3,000 for
households which include the applicant or a relative living in the home who is
aged or disabled; or
(2) $2,000 for
all other households.
(c)
The following criteria will be used to determine the household's resource limit
category.
(1) A related person is a person
who meets the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) relationship
criteria, either biologically or by adoption.
(2) An aged person is a person age 60 or
older as of the last day of the month for which benefits are being
requested.
(3) A disabled person is
a person who meets the TANF disability criteria.
(d) In determining eligibility:
(1) a county must not consider the value of
the applicant's homestead;
(2) a
county must consider as a resource the value of a vehicle under
commission-established guidelines;
(3) a county must consider a household
ineligible for assistance if the household transfers title of a countable
resource for less than its fair market value within three months before
application or any time after certification to reach resource eligibility
guidelines;
(4) a county must
consider as a resource real property other than a homestead and must count that
property in determining eligibility;
(5) a county may disregard the applicant's
real property if the applicant agrees to the terms of an enforceable obligation
negotiated with the county to reimburse the county for all or part of the
benefits received under the County Indigent Health Care Program; and
(6) resources from non-household members or
disqualified household members are excluded, unless a county chooses to include
the resources of a person who executed an affidavit of support on behalf of a
sponsored alien, as defined in §
363.57(a)(4) of
this subchapter (relating to Income), and the resources of the person's spouse,
as authorized by Health and Safety Code, §
61.008(a)(6).
(e) If a county chooses to include the
resources of a person who executed an affidavit of support on behalf of a
sponsored alien and the resources of the person's spouse, the county shall
adopt written procedures for processing the resources of the sponsor and the
sponsor's spouse.