Alabama Administrative Code › Title 660 - ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES › Chapter 660-4-2 - CERTIFICATION OF ELIGIBLE HOUSEHOLDS › Section 660-4-2-.04 - Income And Deductions

Current through Register Vol. 42, No. 9, June 28, 2024
Specific income and deductions to be considered in determining
				a household's eligibility and benefit level are outlined by Federal Regulation.
				Adopted options and waivers are as follows.
(1) OPTIONS:
(a) Income: All income, except income
			 specifically excluded by federal regulations, is considered in determining
			 household eligibility and benefit level. When a full month's income is
			 anticipated but is received less often than monthly, the income is converted to
			 a monthly figure. The anticipated income is not counted until the month in
			 which the income is received.
(b)
			 Deductions: Monthly shelter costs in excess of 50% of the household's income
			 after all other deductions have been allowed up a maximum limit are the
			 household's shelter deduction except for households that contain an elderly or
			 disabled person (as defined in the Glossary). Such households shall receive an
			 excess shelter deduction for the monthly cost that exceeds 50% of the
			 household's monthly income after all other applicable deductions. If the
			 elderly or disabled member is either hospitalized or institutionalized and is
			 no longer a household member, the household would not qualify for an uncapped
			 shelter deduction. The determination of the shelter expense is automated. See
			 Enter shelter expense in OACIS
SHELTER COSTS
Shelter costs include only the following:
1. Continuing charges for the shelter
			 occupied by the household, including rent, mortgage, condominium (condo) and
			 association fees or other continuing charges leading to the ownership of the
			 shelter such as loan repayments for the purchase of a mobile home, including
			 interest on such payments. Payments on second mortgages and home equity loans
			 are allowable shelter costs regardless of why the money was obtained or how it
			 was used.
2. Property taxes, State
			 and local assessments, and insurance on the structure itself, but not separate
			 costs for insuring furniture or personal belongings.
3. The appropriate standard (SUA/BUA or
			 telephone) for utility expenses. The household is entitled to the Standard
			 Utility Allowance or the Basic Utility Allowance or the telephone standard.
a. An expense paid on behalf of a household
			 under a state law to provide energy assistance shall be considered an
			 out-of-pocket expense incurred and paid by the household.
b. One-time deposits shall not be included as
			 shelter costs.
c. Penalty fees for
			 being late in making payments on utilities, mortgages and/or property taxes are
			 not to be included as a shelter cost or part of a shelter cost. These penalties
			 are not allowable as deductions for food assistance purposes.
4. Shelter costs for the home if
			 temporarily unoccupied by the household because of employment or training away
			 from home, illness, or abandonment caused by natural disaster or casualty loss.
			 Shelter costs may be allowed for the unoccupied shelter if:
a. The household intends to return to the
			 home.
b. The current occupant of
			 the home, if any, must not be claiming the shelter cost for food assistance
			 purposes.
c. The home must not be
			 leased or rented during the absence of the household.
Only one standard can be claimed for both residences. A
				separate SUA/BUA or telephone standard cannot be claimed for each
				residence.
5.
			 Charges for the repair of the home which was substantially damaged or destroyed
			 due to a natural disaster such as a fire or flood. Shelter costs shall not
			 include charges for repair of the home that have been or will be reimbursed by
			 private or public relief agencies, insurance companies, or from any other
			 source.
6. Shelter costs for two
			 residences may be claimed when it is necessary for a household member to be
			 away from home and occupy a second residence for part of the month due to
			 employment or training or illness. Only the standard can be claimed for both
			 residences. A separate standard cannot be claimed for each residence.
G.
Standard Utility
			 Allowance
1.
General
			 Information
The Standard Utility Allowance (SUA) is a standard amount to be
				budgeted monthly for utility expenses that include a heating or cooling
				component. The SUA is determined on an annual basis and any adjustment is
				handled as a mass change effective October 1. See Enter utility expense in
				OACIS The SUA shall be made available only to households who incur heating and
				cooling costs separately and apart from their rent or mortgage. A cooling cost
				which entitles a household to the SUA is a utility expense relating to the
				operation of air conditioning systems or room air conditioners. These
				households include:
a. Residents of
			 rental housing who are billed on a monthly basis by their landlords for
			 individual usage, or who are charged a flat rate separately from their
			 rent.
b. Recipients of direct or
			 indirect energy assistance made under the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Act
			 of 1981 even if these households incur no heating or cooling charges.
c. Recipients of direct or indirect energy
			 assistance, other than LIHEAA, that is excluded as income if the expense
			 exceeds the amount of the assistance.
d. Recipients of direct or indirect energy
			 assistance that is counted as income and incurs a heating or cooling
			 expense.
e. Recipients in public
			 housing with shared meters that are charged for excess utility costs that
			 include either a heating or cooling component.
2.
Entitlement to the SUA
A household which expects to incur a heating or cooling expense
				within the next 12 months will be allowed the SUA. Entitlement to the SUA may
				be verified by documenting the household's statement concerning qualified
				heating or cooling costs that are incurred during the year.
a. If the household has moved and has not
			 established a pattern of energy use, the worker will have to anticipate whether
			 the household will incur a heating or cooling expense in the next 12 months.
			 This can be done by documenting that the household has the ability to incur
			 costs which will entitle it to the SUA.
b. The SUA is not intended for households who
			 incur infrequent and minimal expenses such as:
* A household which has no air conditioners, cuts its own
				firewood for heating, and only incurs the expense of gasoline for a chain saw
				and matches for lighting the fire.
* A household which has no air conditioners and which used only
				electric blankets for warmth.
* A household living in an apartment with no air conditioners,
				but with gas included in the rent payment, has electricity billed separately;
				while the household heats with gas, it runs a blower fan with electricity; this
				household is not entitled to the SUA.
3.
When the Household Moves
The SUA is allowed for the certification period; the household
				is only required to report a change in its shelter deduction when it moves. A
				move by any household using the SUA requires the county department to determine
				the household's entitlement to the SUA at the new address.
a. A household loses entitlement to the SUA
			 when it movesa. and stops incurring separate heating and cooling costs. When
			 the county department becomes aware of such a change, it should take
			 appropriate action, considering the applicable notice requirements, to remove
			 the standard utility allowance from the household's net income computation, or
			 change the standard, as appropriate, if the household establishes entitlement
			 to the BUA or telephone standard.
b. When a household who was not entitled to
			 SUA reports a move, the county department is required to determine if the
			 household would be entitled to the SUA at their new address.
4.
The SUA and Sharing
			 Expense
When utility expenses are shared among different households
				living together in one residence, each household is entitled to receive the
				full SUA if the residence has qualifying heating or cooling costs. All
				households are not required to be participating in food assistance program for
				this purpose.
5. Low Income
			 Home Energy Assistance Act Payments (LIHEAA) and the SUA
A household whose shelter arrangement does not change and who
				receives at least one LIHEAA payment will keep its entitlement to the SUA for a
				full year, the same as a household that incurs heating or cooling costs on a
				regular basis. If a household moves and receives a LIHEAA payment at the new
				address, it would continue to be eligible for the SUA. However, if it moves and
				its circumstances are such that it receives neither a LIHEAA payment nor incur
				out-of-pocket heating or cooling costs it will not receive the SUA.
H.
Basic Utility
			 Allowance
1.
General
			 Information
The Basic Utility Allowance (BUA) is a standard utility amount
				to be budgeted monthly for households who incur utility expenses other than or
				in addition to a telephone expense, but not separate heating or cooling costs
				or LIHEAA payments.
2.
Entitlement to the BUA
To qualify for the BUA a household must be billed for at least
				two utility expenses separate and apart from their rent or mortgage. Qualifying
				expenses include: electricity, fuel for purposes other than heating or cooling,
				water, telephone, sewerage, garbage or trash collection, installation and
				maintenance of a septic tank or a well, or an excess utility cost that does not
				include heating or cooling for households who live in public housing or other
				similar rental units.
3.
The BUA and Sharing Expense
When utility expenses are shared among different households
				living together in one residence each household is entitled to receive the full
				BUA if the residence has qualifying costs. All households are not required to
				be participating in the food assistance program for this purpose.
4.
Telephone Standard
If a household only incurs the cost of a telephone (may be a
				cell phone), they will only be entitled to the telephone standard not the Basic
				Utility Allowance (BUA).
5.
Actual Utility Expense
Households incurring only one utility expense other than a
				telephone or a heating or cooling expense are not entitled to receive a utility
				standard. These households will be given that utility expense as a deduction
				based on an average of the actual expenses incurred and anticipated for the
				certification period. In this situation counties are encouraged to contact the
				State Policy Desk for assistance in determining the deduction.