La. Admin. Code tit. 67 § III-1229

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 11, November 20, 2024

Section III-1229 - Income

A. Income is any gain or benefit to a household that has monetary value and is not considered a resource. Count all income in determining pretest eligibility except income from:

1. adoption assistance;

2. earned income of a child, including a minor unmarried parent, who is in school and working toward a high school diploma, GED, or special education certificate;

3. disaster payments;

4. Domestic Volunteer Service Act;

5. earned income credits (EIC);

6. education assistance;

7. energy assistance;

8. foster care payments;

9. monetary gifts up to $30 per calendar quarter;

10. agent orange settlement payments;

11. HUD payments or subsidies other than those paid as wages or stipends under the HUD Family Investment Centers Program;

12. income in-kind;

13. Indian and native claims and lands;

14. irregular and unpredictable sources;

15. lump sum payments;

16. nutrition programs;

17. job training income that is not earned;

18. relocation assistance;

19. loans;

20. supplemental security income;

21. wartime relocation of civilians payments;

22. developmental disability payments;

23. Delta Service Corps post-service benefits paid to participants upon completion of the term of service if the benefits are used as intended for higher education, repayment of a student loan, or for closing costs or down payment on a home;

24. Americorps VISTA payments to participants (unless the value of all such payments, adjusted to reflect the number of hours such volunteers are serving, is equivalent to or greater than the minimum wage);

25. radiation exposure compensation payments;

26. payment to victims of Nazi persecution;

27. restricted income received for a person not in the assistance unit or not in the income unit. Restricted income is income which is designated specifically for a person's use by federal statute or court order and may include RSDI, VA benefits and court ordered-support payments;

28. crime victim compensation program payments to an applicant/recipient whose assistance is necessary, in full or in part, because of the commission of a crime against the applicant, and to the extent it is sufficient to fully compensate the applicant for losses suffered as a result of the crime;

29. effective October 1, 2004 additional pay received and made available to the household by a member of the United States Armed Forces deployed to a designated combat zone;

30. effective March 1, 2006, interest income;

31. effective March 1, 2006, dividend income;

Exception: Dividends received from a resource-exempt trust fund will not be excluded as income.

32. any payments other than wages received as a result of the Mississippi Canyon 252 well incident in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, 2010; or

33. grant funded research payments.

B. Need Standards Deduction. This deduction as described in §1229. F.3.b is applied to the income of an alien sponsor when determining eligibility and benefits of an alien.

1. The need standards are as follows.

Size of Household	Current Need Standard
1	$245
2	472
3	658
4	809
5	955
6	1,089
7	1,217
8	1,347
9	1,471
10	1,595
11	1,731
12	1,870
13	2,005
14	2,146
15	2,291
16	2,444
17	2,564
18	2,727

2. To determine the need standard amount for households exceeding 18 persons, the need standard amount for the number in excess of 18 shall be added to the need standard amount for 18 persons.

C. Earned Income Deductions. Each individual in the income unit who has earned income is entitled to the following deductions only:

1. standard deduction of $120;

2. $900 time-limited deduction. This deduction is applied for six months when a recipient's earnings exceed the $120 standard deduction. The months need not be consecutive nor within the same certification periods. The deduction is applicable for a six-month lifetime limit for the individual;

3. dependent care deduction. Recipients may be entitled to a deduction for dependent care for:

a. an incapacitated adult;

b. a child who is included in the filing unit; or

c. effective May 1, 2006, the amount charged by a child care provider that exceeds the CCAP maximum for a child in care.

D. Flat Grant Amounts, effective January 1, 2022

Number of Persons	Flat Grant Amount
1	$244
2	$376
3	$484
4	$568
5	$654
6	$732
7	$804
8	$882
9	$954
10	$1,024
11	$1,102
12	$1,180
13	$1,260
14	$1,340
15	$1,424
16	$1,514
17	$1,582
18	$1,678
18+	See NOTE 1

NOTE 1: To determine the amount for households exceeding 18 persons, add the flat grant amount for the number in excess of 18 to the flat grant amount for 18 persons and subtract $100.

E. Payment Amount

1. For FITAP basic assistance, the budgetary deficit is the amount remaining after subtracting applicable income from the total assistance needs (flat grant amount). Round down to the next lower dollar of the budgetary deficit to determine the payment amount. Prorate the initial assistance payment from the date of application if otherwise eligible.

2. Within the limits of appropriations, a FITAP household may also receive a nonrecurrent, short-term (NRST) benefit that meets the regulatory definition (45 CFR 260.31(b)(1)) to mitigate the impact of a specific crisis situation broadly affecting needy families or a specific episode of need affecting a specific family, such as an economic crisis, disaster, pandemic, etc. The department has flexibility to respond with a sufficient and appropriate response regarding the duration of payments up to four months, type of payment (lump-sum or monthly installments), number of NRST benefits provided for different episodes of crisis or need, payment amount for each NRST benefit, and any lifetime limits imposed for eligible families.

F. Income of Alien Sponsors

1. In determining the eligibility and benefits of an alien with an affidavit of support executed under 213A of the INA (8 U.S.C. 1183 a), the income of the sponsor and the sponsor's spouse shall be considered except as follows in §1229. F a-b. This attribution shall continue for the period prescribed in 8 U.S.C. 1631.

a. Indigence exception: if an alien has been determined indigent, as provided in 8 U.S.C. 1631(e), the amount of income of the sponsor or the sponsor's spouse which shall be attributed to the alien shall not exceed the amount actually provided for a period beginning on the date of such determination and ending 12 months after such date.

b. Special rule for battered spouse and child: if an alien meets the requirements of the special rule for a battered spouse or child, as provided in 8 U.S.C. 1631(f), and subject to the limitations provided therein, the provisions of §1229. F.1 shall not apply during a 12-month period. After a 12-month period, the batterer's income shall not be considered if the alien demonstrates that the battery and cruelty as defined in 8 U.S.C. 1631(f)(1) has been recognized in an order of a judge or administrative law judge or a prior determination of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, and that such battery or cruelty has, in the department's opinion, a substantial connection to the need for benefits.

2. The department has opted not to apply the deeming rule of 42 U.S.C. 608 in determining the eligibility and benefits of non-213A aliens.

3. The gross countable income of a sponsor and the sponsor's spouse shall be deemed to be the unearned income of an alien minus the following deductions:

a. 20 percent of the total earned income not to exceed $175;

b. The appropriate need standard amount for the sponsor, spouse, and any other persons living in the home whom the sponsor claims or could claim as a dependent for federal income tax purposes;

c. Total amounts the sponsor or spouse pays to anyone not living in the household but whom the sponsor or spouse claims or could claim as a dependent for federal income tax purposes; and

d. Total verified alimony or child support the sponsor or spouse pays to persons not living in the household.

G. Income of Alien Parent. When determining eligibility, income of an alien parent who is disqualified is considered available to the otherwise eligible child. The needs and income of disqualified alien siblings are not considered in determining the eligibility of an otherwise eligible dependent child.

La. Admin. Code tit. 67, § III-1229

Promulgated by the Department of Social Services, Office of Family Support, LR 25:2449 (December 1999), amended LR 26:1342 (June 2000), LR 26:2831 (December 2000), LR 31:2956 (November 2005), LR 32:1616 (September 2006), LR 32:1912 (October 2006), LR 34:2678 (December 2008), amended by the Department of Children and Family Services, Economic Stability and Self-Sufficiency Section, LR 36:2524 (November 2010), amended by the Department of Children and Family Services, Economic Stability Section, LR 40:1675 (September 2014), Amended by the Department of Children and Family Services, Economic Stability Section, LR 421651 (10/1/2016), Amended by LR 44444 (3/1/2018), Amended LR 47, Amended by the Department of Children and Family Services, Economic Stability Section, LR 471840 (12/1/2021), LR 471842 (12/1/2021).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with 42 USC 601 et seq., and 10602(c), R.S. 36:474, R.S. 46:231.1(B), R.S. 46:231.2, P.L. 108-447, Act 16, 2005 Reg. Session, and 7 CFR 273.2(j).