468 Neb. Admin. Code, ch. 2, § 009

Current through September 17, 2024

Section 468-2-009 - INCOME

Income is considered when determining eligibility for Aid to Dependent Children.

009.01EARNED INCOME. Earned income is money received from wages, tips, salary, commissions, profits from activities in which an individual is engaged as a self-employed person or as an employee. It also includes earnings over a period of time for which settlement is made at one given time, as in the instance of farm crops or poultry. Earnings so received are prorated for the same number of ensuing months as was included in the earning period.

Reimbursement for employment-related expenses such as mileage, lodging, or meals is not considered earned income.

009.01(A)EARNED INCOME DISREGARDS. The following disregards are considered when determining eligibility for Aid to Dependent Children:

009.01(A)(i)SELF-EMPLOYMENT DISREGARD. Self-employment income is allowed disregards to gross income before application of the disregards applied during the Aid to Dependent Children payment calculating process.

009.01(A)(i)(1)STANDARD DISREGARD FOR SELF-EMPLOYMENT. For individuals in the Aid to Dependent Children unit who incur expenses related to producing goods or services but provide no tax return to document such expenses, the Department applies a standard disregard of 49% to the gross income and does not calculate actual expenses.

009.01(A)(i)(2)ITEMIZED DISREGARDS FOR SELF-EMPLOYMENT. For individuals in the Aid to Dependent Children unit who incur operating expenses related to producing goods or services which are itemized on their tax return, the actual allowable operating expenses are deducted from gross income.

009.01(A)(ii)CHILD CARE DISREGARD. If an individual in the Aid to Dependent Children unit requires child care in order to participate in education, training or employment, a referral for Child Care Subsidy payment of child care is made. If the individual or the child care arrangements do not qualify for Child Care Subsidy payment or the individual chooses not to receive child care through Child Care Subsidy, the actual cost of child care is disregarded from earned income up to the maximum allowed.

009.01(B)EARNED INCOME CREDIT (EIC). Some low income wage earners are eligible for a tax credit which may be paid in one of two forms:

(i) Advanced Earned Income Credit (AEIC) - a periodic credit paid with the employee's wages; or

(ii) Earned Income Credit (EIC) - an amount claimed as a credit when filing a federal income tax return.

009.01(C)CONTRACTUAL INCOME. Income paid on a contractual basis will be prorated over the number of months covered under the contract, even if the individual is paid in fewer months than the contract covers.

009.02UNEARNED INCOME. Unearned income is any cash benefit that is not the direct result of labor or services performed by the individual as an employee or a self-employed person. If an individual in the Aid to Dependent Children unit receives a benefit for an individual who is not in the unit and does not give the benefit to the individual, it is counted as income to the individual in the Aid to Dependent Children unit.

009.02(A)CHILD, SPOUSAL, AND CASH MEDICAL SUPPORT. Child, spousal, and cash medical support are considered unearned income only in the following circumstances:

(1) Initial eligibility and payment are being determined. Any support paid by the Nebraska Child Support Payment Center or received directly by the client before the approval date is considered;

(2) An excess disbursement of support; and

(3) Distributed arrearages collected for months where the custodial parent was not an Aid to Dependent Children recipient.

009.02(A)(i)CHILD SUPPORT PAID FOR A MINOR PARENT. If a noncustodial parent pays support for his or her child and that child is a minor parent who is receiving assistance, child support is treated as follows. If the parent of the minor is not receiving assistance and:

(1) Gives the child support to the minor parent, the child support is treated as unearned income in the minor's grant; or

(2) Does not give the child support to the minor parent, the child support:

(a) Is included in the deeming process if the minor is living with his or her parent; or

(b) Is not counted in the budget of the minor parent if he or she is living independently.

009.02(B)CONTRIBUTIONS. Some monetary contributions to the household are considered as unearned income available to meet the family's basis needs.

009.02(B)(i)FROM AN INDIVIDUAL NOT IN THE HOUSEHOLD. If an individual who is not living in the household gives money to the unit, the income must be counted in the budget. The following are not considered contributions:

(1) Direct vendor payments for shelter;

(2) Energy assistance;

(3) Emergency assistance;

(4) General Assistance;

(5) Crisis assistance from a community agency, service agency, or an individual; or

(6) Any other payments to a third party made on behalf of the household unit.

009.02(B)(ii)FROM AN INDIVIDUAL IN THE HOUSEHOLD. The standard of need is not reduced when a self-supporting individual and an individual in the Aid to Dependent Children unit are living in the same household; however, money received by an individual in the Aid to Dependent Children unit in exchange for room and board is considered income.

009.02(C)SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME (SSI) BENEFITS. Supplemental Security Income benefits are considered unearned income but the Supplemental Security Income payment is not used when determining eligibility for the Aid to Dependent Children unit.

009.03LUMP SUM BENEFITS. Lump sums are not considered income. Any unspent remainder is considered a resource in the month following the month of receipt or report. If an individual in the unit receives several checks from the same source in one month, the amounts are totaled and considered a lump sum. When a unit receives a lump sum in the month of application, the lump sum is counted in the first month possible.

009.03(A)EXCEPTION. The unspent portion of a Retirement, Survivors, and Disability Insurance or Supplemental Security Income retroactive payment is excluded for six months following the month of receipt.

009.04REQUIREMENT TO APPLY FOR POTENTIAL INCOME BENEFITS. Potential income is defined as income based on entitlement or need which is usually determined by an administering agency as a result of an application for benefits by the individual. A recipient, other than a child who is a full-time student, is required to apply for and accept benefits within 60 days after being notified of their possible eligibility and provide verification of such. If the individual fails or refuses to make application within 60 days after notification or refuses to accept benefits for which he or she has been determined eligible, ongoing eligibility for Aid to Dependent Children cannot be determined and the case will be closed.

009.04(A)VETERAN'S BENEFITS. Recipients who are veterans, their spouses, and the widows of veterans may be eligible for Aid and Attendance services. This service may be available and is to be explored if the individual is in a nursing home, residing in his or her own home, in an Adult Foster Home, or other alternate arrangement when the individual requires aid with daily living activities.

009.05INTERCEPTED, WITHHELD, OR GARNISHED INCOME. Procedures have been set up to withhold unemployment compensation benefits payable to an absent parent when he or she has a debt to the State. If income, earned or unearned, is being garnished, the garnishment is not deducted from income to determine eligibility. If unearned income is being reduced because of a previous overpayment, the amount of the benefit before the deduction of the overpayment is considered as income.

009.05(A)EXCEPTION. The amount after deduction of the overpayment is used if the recipient received both Aid to Dependent Children and the other benefit at any time during which the overpayment occurred and the overpaid amount was included in the Aid to Dependent Children budget.

009.06INCOME OF AN INELIGIBLE OR SANCTIONED INDIVIDUAL. The income of sanctioned or undocumented alien parents and sanctioned 16 or 17-year-olds is used in determining eligibility for Aid to Dependent Children.

009.07SELF-EMPLOYMENT TERMINATION. When an individual engages in different types of self-employment, it is not considered a termination of income if the individual stops one type of work.

009.08INCOME AS IT APPLIES TO RESOURCES. Income received by an individual during any one month for maintenance costs must not be considered a resource for that month. Any income not spent for maintenance is considered a resource in the subsequent month.

009.09EXCLUDED INCOME. The following are excluded forms of income:

(A) Earnings of a child age 18 or younger and in school;

(B) Indian Land Lease;

(C) Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rental and utility subsidies under Section 8 of the Housing Act, including lump sums or monthly payments;

(D) $10 a month per individual for each of the following income types:

(i) Declared cash winnings;

(ii) Interest and dividends (may be prorated on a monthly basis);

(iii) A gift that marks a special occasion;

(iv) Small insignificant children's cash allowances;

(v) Income from securities and investments; and

(vi) Interest on Series H savings bonds and other bonds which pay dividends or interest.

(E) Home produce from garden, livestock, and poultry used by the household for their own consumption;

(F) Income received from foster care payments;

(G) Payments from Title I Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) for classroom training;

(H) Earnings for a student received from the employer or compensation in lieu of wages under a Title I Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act program;

(I) Title I Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act program allowance paid to the individual or vendor payments made to the provider for supportive services such as transportation, meals, special tools, and clothing. This includes temporary Welfare-to Work payments and work experience payments made through Workforce Development;

(J) Any payment received under the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970;

(K) Any student financial assistance;

(L) A bona fide loan from any source;

(M) Payments to an individual participating in training or school attendance subsidized by the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation;

(N) Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP);

(O) The value of federally donated foods;

(P) Indian judgment funds distributed as per capita payments to members of Indian tribes or held in trust by the Secretary of the Interior, interest and investment income accrued on Indian judgment funds while held in trust, and purchases made with the funds;

(Q) Payments from the Nutrition Program for the Elderly (NPE);

(R) Payments for services or reimbursement of expenses to volunteers serving as foster grandparents, senior health aides, or senior companions, Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE), Active Corps of Executives (ACE) and any other programs under Title II and III ( Public Law 93-113);

(S) Federal and state income tax refunds;

(T) Payments to AmeriCorps volunteers;

(U) For the first six months, the unspent portion of retroactive Retirement, Survivors Disability Insurance (RSDI) benefits (counted as a resource after six months);

(V) Energy payments;

(W) The value of assistance from a Child Nutrition Act or National School Lunch Program;

(X) Earned Income Tax Credit (EIC);

(Y) Advanced Earned Income Credit (AEIC);

(Z) Income from Experience Works Senior Community Service employment and any other income received under Title V of the Older Americans Act;

(AA) Agent Orange settlement payments;

(BB) Payments made under the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act;

(CC) In-kind income received by Job Corps participants for food and shelter;

(DD) Benefits under Public Law 104-204 for children of Vietnam veterans who were born with spina bifida;

(EE) Payments made from any fund established as a result of the case of Susan Walker v. Bayer Corporation, et. al to hemophilia patients who are infected with human immunodeficiency virus;

(FF) Payments to individuals due to their status as victims of Nazi persecution;

(GG) Assistance received under a federal statute because of catastrophe declared to be a major disaster by the President of the United States and any interest earned on the assistance is excluded for nine months from the date of receipt. The initial ninemonth period will be extended for a reasonable period up to an additional nine months when circumstances beyond the individual's control prevent the individual from having the necessary repairs or replacement of damaged property completed;

(HH) Short-term disability payments verified as being applied to medical bills;

(II) Health insurance payments verified as being paid directly to recipient for the reimbursement to a vendor; and

(JJ) Third Party Medical Payments paid directly to the individual that is refunded to the provider or the Department as reimbursement for a specified service.

009.10INCOME OF SPONSORS OF ALIENS. One-hundred percent of the income and resources of a sponsor, and sponsor's spouse if they are living together, is considered when determining the eligibility of an alien who applies for Aid to Dependent Children if the sponsor has signed an affidavit of support under Section 213A of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The sponsor's income and resources will be considered available to the alien until the alien:

(1) Becomes a United States citizen;

(2) Has worked 40 qualifying quarters of coverage as defined under Title II of the Social Security Act as required by Section 435 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), codified at 21 United States Code (U.S.C.) §1645, and the alien did not receive any federal means tested public benefit during that time period.

009.10(A)DEFINITION OF A SPONSOR. A sponsor is an individual who:

(i) Is a citizen or national of the United States or an alien who is lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence;

(ii) Is 18 years of age or older;

(iii) Lives in any of the 50 states or the District of Columbia; and

(iv) Is the person petitioning for the admission of the alien under Section 204 of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

009.10(B)ALIEN DUTIES. As an eligibility requirement, the alien is responsible for:

(i) Providing income and resource information from the sponsor; and

(ii) Obtaining the necessary cooperation from the sponsor.

009.10(C)SPONSOR OF MORE THAN ONE ALIEN. When an individual is a sponsor of two or more aliens who are living in the same home, the amount of income and sources of the sponsor, and sponsor's spouse if living with the sponsor, is divided equally among the aliens. When an individual sponsors several aliens but not all apply for Aid to Dependent Children, the sponsor's total income and resources are applied to the needs of the aliens who apply for assistance.

009.10(D)EXCEPTION TO COUNTING SPONSOR'S INCOME. If a sponsored immigrant demonstrates that he or she or his or her child(ren) have been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by a spouse or a parent or by a member of the spouse or parent's family who is residing in the same household as the alien, counting the sponsor's income may be waived if a judge, an administrative law judge, or Citizenship and Immigration Services recognize the battery or cruelty.

009.10(E)INDIGENT IMMIGRANTS. If an immigrant is unable to obtain food and shelter, taking into account the immigrant's own income plus any cash, food, housing, or other assistance provided by other individuals including the sponsor(s), the amount counted must be the amount actually provided to the immigrant by the sponsor. If the immigrant is determined indigent, the amount which must be counted will be the amount actually provided to the immigrant by his or her sponsor(s) for a period beginning with the date of determination and ending 12 months after the determination date. Each instance of indigence is renewable for an additional 12-month period.

009.10(E)(i)REPORTING INDIGENT IMMIGRANTS. When an immigrant is determined indigent, the United States Attorney General is notified of each determination, including the names of the sponsor and sponsored immigrant.

468 Neb. Admin. Code, ch. 2, § 009

Amended effective 8/29/2022