New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 10 - HUMAN SERVICES › Chapter 87 - NEW JERSEY SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (NJ SNAP) MANUAL › Subchapter 5 - FINANCIAL ELIGIBILITY; INCOME › Section 10:87-5.10 - Income deductions

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) Deductions from income will be allowed
				only for the following expenses of the household:
1. The standard deduction, specified at
				10:87-12.1(a),
				shall be deducted from income, whether earned or unearned;
2. An amount equal to 20 percent of earned
				income, as defined at
				10:87-5.9, shall be
				deducted;
3. That portion of
				medical expenses in excess of $ 35.00 per month, excluding the cost of special
				diets, incurred by any household member who is elderly or disabled as defined
				at N.J.A.C. 10:87-2.34. Spouses or other persons (that is, essential persons)
				receiving benefits as dependents of the SSI or disability and/or blindness
				recipient are not eligible to receive this deduction. Persons receiving
				"emergency" SSI benefits based on presumptive eligibility are eligible for this
				deduction.
i. The following items are
				allowable medical costs:
(1) Medical and
				dental care including psychotherapy and rehabilitation services provided by a
				licensed practitioner authorized by State law or other qualified health
				professional;
(2) Hospitalization
				or outpatient treatment, nursing care, and nursing home care including payments
				by the household for an individual who was a household member immediately prior
				to entering a hospital or nursing home provided by a facility recognized by the
				State;
(3) Prescription drugs when
				prescribed by a licensed practitioner authorized under State law and other
				over-the-counter medication (including insulin) when approved by a licensed
				practitioner or other qualified health professional; in addition, costs of
				medical supplies, sick-room equipment (including rental) or other prescribed
				equipment are deductible;
(4)
				Health and hospitalization insurance policy premiums. When policies include
				individuals who are not eligible for a medical deduction, only that portion of
				the premiums which covers the individual(s) eligible for the deduction shall be
				deductible. If that portion is not identifiable, then a prorated share may be
				used to determine the allowable amount (see
				10:87-7.7(b) ).
				This deduction only applies when the policy holder is a member of the eligible
				household. The costs of health and accident policies such as those payable in
				lump-sum settlements for death or dismemberment or income maintenance policies
				such as those that continue mortgage or loan payments while the beneficiary is
				disabled are not deductible;
(5)
				Medicare premiums related to coverage under Title XVIII of the Social Security
				Act;
(6) Dentures, hearing aids,
				and prosthetics;
(7) Securing and
				maintaining a seeing eye or hearing dog including the cost of dog food and
				veterinarian bills, as well as the care and maintenance of a dog with a card
				that identifies him or her as a service dog, so designated by the Americans
				With Disabilities Act,
				42 U.S.C. §§
													12101 et seq.;
(8) Eye glasses prescribed by a physician
				skilled in eye disease or by an optometrist;
(9) Reasonable cost of transportation and
				lodging to obtain medical treatment or services.
(A) When a privately owned vehicle is used
				for transportation to obtain medical treatment or services, the reasonable cost
				of transportation shall be calculated by using the State of New Jersey mileage
				reimbursement rate for use of a personal vehicle, as determined by the
				applicable circular published by the New Jersey Department of the Treasury,
				Office of Management and Budget. The State mileage reimbursement rate must be
				used in lieu of the actual expenses of transportation; and
(10) Maintaining an attendant, homemaker,
				home health aide, housekeeper or child care services, necessary because of age,
				infirmity or illness. In addition, an amount equal to the one person benefit
				allotment shall be deducted if the household furnishes the majority of the
				attendant's meals. The allotment for this meal related deduction shall be that
				in effect at the time of initial certification. The CWA shall update the
				allotment amount no later than the next certification. It is not necessary for
				the CWA to update this deduction at the time of the annual allotment
				adjustment. If a household incurs attendant care costs that could qualify under
				both the medical deduction and dependent care deduction, the CWA shall treat
				the cost as a medical expense;
4. Payments for the actual costs for the care
				of a child or other dependent when necessary for a household member to accept
				or continue employment, seek employment in compliance with the job-search
				criteria (or an equivalent effort by those not subject to job-search) or to
				attend training or pursue education that is preparatory to employment, shall be
				deducted. The amount of this deduction shall be the actual cost of such care.
i. Child care payments which the CWA issues
				directly to the household's child care provider shall not qualify the household
				for the dependent care deduction.
ii. Households that pay child care expenses
				are entitled to the dependent care deduction, even when child care is
				disregarded from the WFNJ/TANF grant when determining the countable WFNJ/TANF
				grant for NJ SNAP program purposes (see (a)4 above).
iii. A deduction shall be allowed only in the
				month the expense is billed or otherwise becomes due, regardless of when the
				household intends to pay the expense. For example, child care that is due each
				month shall be included in the household's child care deduction, even if the
				household has not yet paid the expense.
iv. Amounts carried forward from past billing
				periods are not deductible, even if included with the most recent billing and
				actually paid by the household. In any event, a particular expense may only be
				deducted once;
5. A
				household comprised entirely of individuals who are homeless, may be entitled
				to the Homeless Shelter Allowance (HSA).
i. To
				qualify for the HSA, the household shall incur a monthly out-of-pocket housing
				expense. A household that claims the HSA may not claim any other shelter or
				utility deduction.
ii. A homeless
				household may choose to claim actual shelter costs rather than the HSA, if the
				actual costs exceed the HSA. Homeless households wishing to claim actual
				shelter costs shall provide verification of expenses. In the absence of
				verifications of actual shelter costs, the household shall be provided the HSA;
				and
6. Monthly shelter
				costs in excess of 50 percent of the household's income after all other
				deductions in (a)1, 2, 3, and 4 above have been allowed, shall be deducted.
				However, in no event shall the shelter deduction exceed the amount in
				N.J.A.C.
				10:87-12.1(b)  unless the
				household contains a member who is elderly or disabled as defined at
				N.J.A.C.
				10:87-2.34. These households shall receive an
				excess shelter deduction for the monthly costs that exceed 50 percent of the
				household's monthly income after all other applicable deductions. Households
				receiving Title II disability payments for dependents of a disabled individual
				are not eligible for the unlimited excess shelter deduction unless the disabled
				individual is a member of the household.
i.
				Only the following shall be considered in determining the shelter cost
				deduction:
(1) Continuing charges for the
				shelter occupied by the household, including rent, mortgage, condo and
				association fees or other continuing charges, such as equity loans and equity
				lines of credit leading to the ownership of the shelter and loan repayments for
				the purchase of a mobile home, including interest on such payments;
(2) Property tax assessments and insurance on
				the structure itself, but not separate costs for insuring furniture or personal
				belongings. If the separate costs for furniture and personal belongings are not
				identifiable, the entire cost of the insurance is deductible; and
(3) The costs of heating and cooking fuel;
				cooling and electricity; water and sewage; garbage and trash collection fees;
				the basic service fee, 911 fee, subscriber line charge, universal service fee,
				relay center surcharge, wire maintenance fee, plus tax, for one telephone (the
				uniform telephone rate is found at
				10:87-12.1(c)  )
				and fees charged by the utility provider for initial installation of the
				utility. One-time deposits shall not be included as shelter costs.
ii. Shelter costs for a home not
				occupied temporarily by the household because of employment or training away
				from home, illness or abandonment because of a natural disaster or casualty
				loss, shall be deductible (see
				10:87-2.20(c) 
				for verification requirement). The following conditions must be met in order to
				qualify for this deduction:
(1) The household
				must intend to return to the home. In the case of a natural disaster, the case
				shall be re-evaluated, if at the end of a 12-month period the household has not
				returned to the home;
(2) Current
				occupants, if any, of the home must not be claiming the shelter costs of that
				home for NJ SNAP purposes; and
(3)
				The home must not be leased or rented during the absence of the
				household.
iii. Charges
				for the repair of a home which was substantially damaged or destroyed due to a
				natural disaster, such as fire or flood, shall be deductible. Shelter costs
				shall not include charges for home repairs that have been or will be reimbursed
				by private or public relief agencies, insurance companies, or from any other
				source.
iv. Households that incur
				utility cost(s) separate and apart from their rent or mortgage must be provided
				the appropriate standard utility deduction in accordance with the following
				provisions. When a household shares a residence and utility expenses with other
				individuals, each household shall be provided with the full amount of the
				appropriate utility deduction. A household may only receive one of the
				following utility standards:
(1) As required
				by Section 4006 of the Federal Agricultural Reform Act of 2014, the Heating or
				Cooling Standard Utility Allowance (HCSUA) is provided to households that incur
				heating or cooling expenses separate from the rent or mortgage, or to
				households that have received a Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
				(LIHEAP) benefit of greater than $ 20.00 in the past 12 months.
(A) As required by
				7 CFR
				273.9(d)(6)(iii), renters in
				both private and public rental housing who are billed by the landlord on the
				basis of individual usage or who are charged a flat rate separately from their
				rent, are to be provided the HCSUA.
(2) The Limited Utility Allowance (LUA) is
				provided to households that do not incur heating or cooling expenses separate
				from the rent or mortgage, but who do incur at least two utility expenses (such
				as telephone, water, sewerage, etc.).
(3) The Uniform Telephone Allowance (UTA) is
				provided to households that incur a telephone expense, but who do not incur any
				other utility expenses.