Court Opinion

ID: 9695671
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-25 18:27:00.145006+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:20:15.709045
License: Public Domain

HOFFMAN, Judge,
dissenting:
Appellant contends that the court below should have granted appellant’s petition for leave to proceed in divorce without payment of fees and costs.
Susquehanna Legal Services represents appellant in these proceedings without compensation because appellant receives welfare assistance and, therefore, automatically qualifies as indigent. On August 13, 1974, appellant’s affidavit reflected the following income and assets: assorted household furnishings, a 1967 Ford Mustang automobile, no real property, $90 per week from employment, and a supplementary grant of $120 every two weeks from the Department of Public Welfare under the Aid to Families with Dependent Children program. Appellant’s affidavit recited the following expenses and obligations : rent, $60 per month; utilities, $33 to $48 per month; food, $30 per week; clothing, $10 to $20 per month; transportation expenses, $8 per week; babysitting, $30 per week; loan payments, $98 per month (on a balance of $2,353); and miscellaneous bills due, $520 total. Appellant filed his complaint in divorce, application to proceed in forma pauperis, and affidavit of income and expenses on September 30, 1974. On January 9, 1975, the court held a hearing on the application.
The Court of Common Pleas of Montour County holds hearings on all applications to proceed in forma pauper-is, but does not customarily take notes of testimony. *127After the first hearing, the court found that appellant was not indigent within the meaning of Rule 1137, Pa.R. C.P., and ordered that appellant pay $200 toward the costs of the divorce proceedings at the rate of $10 per week. At appellant’s request, the court held a second hearing to permit the transcription of testimony. The second hearing was held on February 27, 1975, and the following facts were adduced: that appellant supported two young children who were in his custody, that he paid $60 per month for rent, that he would soon be paying $70 per month for rent; that he paid $55 per month for utilities; that his present take-home pay was $78 per week; that he received a public assistance supplementary grant of $96 every two weeks; that his income fluctuated seasonally to as much as $101 per week; that appellant paid $30 per week for a babysitter; that food cost $45 per week; that he owed $300 for taxes in 1974; and that all other expenses and income in the previous affidavit were re-affirmed. Further, appellant testified that he was unable to afford to buy clothing for the children. At the conclusion of this hearing, the court again held that appellant was not indigent, but ordered that the costs of $200 be paid at the rate of $25 per month. This appeal followed:
Rule 1137, Pa.R.C.P., provides:
“(a) Prior to the commencement of the action, or at any time during its pendency, upon petition of a party averring his inability to .pay all or part of the costs of the action, the court, upon being satisfied of the truth of the averments of the petition, shall enter an order permitting him to proceed upon payment of only those costs which the court finds he is able to pay. Costs include masters’ fees and stenographic charges. The petition must disclose his full financial condition including his income and property. No filing fee shall be required for the filing of the petition.
“(b) A petition by a plaintiff shall also include a statement of the financial condition of the defendant in-*128eluding income and property, to the extent known to the plaintiff. The petition shall not be denied or delayed because of defendant’s financial ability to pay the costs. The entry of an order relieving the plaintiff from costs of the action, in whole or in part, shall not relieve the defendant from any liability for payment of the costs of the action.
“(c) If the plaintiff has been relieved of the payment of all or part of the costs the court by general Rule or special order may provide the procedure by which the defendant may be required to pay such costs. Such proceedings shall in no manner delay or interfere with the disposition of the plaintiff’s action.”
Rule 1137 implements the United States Supreme Court decision in Boddie v. Connecticut, 401 U.S. 371, 91 S.Ct. 780, 28 L.Ed.2d 113 (1971), which held that a state may not deny access to its divorce courts because of the plaintiff’s inability to pay the costs of the proceedings. See Schoepple v. Schoepple, 239 Pa.Super. 557, 361 A.2d 665 (1976).
In Gerlitzki v. Feldser, 226 Pa.Super. 142, 307 A.2d 307 (1973), our Court interpreted a statute 1 authorizing appeals in forma pauperis from arbitrators’ awards if the appealing party is unable to pay the costs of the suit “by reason of poverty.” We held that: “[t]he Act, moreover, is to be read not with an accountant’s but a housewife’s eyes. ‘Poverty’ does not refer solely to a petitioner’s ‘net worth’ but to whether he is able to obtain the necessities of life. Where, as here, petitioners allege that they have no income except public assistance benefits, and that their net worth is minimal, it appears prima facie that they are in poverty.” 226 Pa.Super. at 144-145, 307 A.2d at 308.
*129In Schoepple v. Schoepple, supra, 239 Pa.Super. at 562, 361 A.2d at 668,2 the lead opinion by Judge Spaeth noted that, “a distinction is to be drawn between the condition of ‘poverty’ (called for by the Act of 1836) and the condition of ‘inability to pay all or part of the costs’ (called for by Eule 1137). Of these two conditions, that of poverty is the more inclusive: one in poverty will not be able to pay costs; one not able to pay costs might not be in poverty (it would depend on the amount of the costs).” Thus, for the purposes of Eule 1137, the hearing judge must weigh the costs of the proceedings in the light of the litigant’s available resources. Further, Schoepple, interpreting Eule 1137, adopted the reasoning of Gerlitzlci, interpreting the Act of 1836, that a petitioner who receives public assistance is prima facie unable to pay costs and, thus, eligible to proceed in forma pauper-is.
Appellant in the instant case receives a partial grant from state and federal funds under the Aid to Families with Dependent Children program (AFDC). “The AFDC program is one of three major categorical public assistance programs established by the Social Security Act of 1935. See U.S. Advisory Commission Eeport on Intergovernmental Eelations, Statutory and Administrative Controls Associated with Federal Grants for Public Assistance 5-7 (1964) . . . The category singled out for welfare assistance by AFDC is the ‘dependent child,’ who is defined in § 406 of the Act, 49 Stat. 629, as amended, 42 U.S.C. § 606(a) (1964 ed., Supp. II), as an *130age-qualified ‘needy child . . . who has been deprived of parental support or care by reason of the death, continued absence from the home, or physical or mental incapacity of the parent, and who is living with’ any one of several listed relatives.” King v. Smith, 392 U.S. 309, 313, 88 S.Ct. 2128, 2131, 20 L.Ed.2d 1118 (1968) (footnote omitted).
The AFDC program is administered by the Department of Public Welfare through County Boards of Assistance under the Act of 1967, June 13, P.L. 31, No. 21, art. 4, § 401 et seq.; 62 P.S. § 401 et seq.: “It is hereby declared to be the legislative intent to promote the welfare and happiness of all the people of the Commonwealth, by providing public assistance to all of its needy and distressed; that assistance shall be administered promptly and humanely with due regard for the preservation of family life ... in such a way and manner as to encourage self-respect, self-dependency and the desire to be a good citizen and useful to society.” -Thus, the Congress and the legislature of the Commonwealth have attempted to provide the necessities of life to children who are needy and deprived of the support of at least one parent. An applicant for public assistance must establish to the satisfaction of the County Board that he qualifies for assistance under a very elaborate body of regulations, which are designed to qualify for assistance only those persons who cannot otherwise provide the basic essentials of life to their dependents. The County Board approves an application for assistance only after careful examination of an applicant’s assets and available income. The approval, therefore, represents an administrative determination by the County Boárd that the AFDC recipient is needy.
In the instant case, appellant, has worked for the same employer for 15 years. His income and the continued absence of his wife from the home qualifies him for assistance under the AFDC program. Thus, there has *131been an administrative determination that appellant’s children are needy and dependent under the Commonwealth’s formula for AFDC eligibility. Appellant’s only significant assets are a nine-year-old car, which he must have to travel to work, and various used household furnishings. Appellant testified that his monthly income from welfare and employment total $549.33 3 and that, due to seasonal fluctuations in earnings, his welfare supplement is adjusted to maintain his income at a constant level. Appellant testified that his monthly expenses total $566.08,4 which include fixed monthly obligations incurred by appellant’s wife. In addition to the $353 in unpaid balances on which appellant pays $98 per month, he owes $820 to other creditors including $300 in unpaid taxes. Review of the testimony indicates that appellant is in very bad financial straits and that the only conceivable way that appellant will be able to provide the necessities of life to his children is to forego litigation.
The clear, unambiguous policy of the United States Congress and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is to provide subsistence to needy, dependent children. Further, it is the intent of Rule 1137 to allow persons unable to pay the costs of litigation to proceed without payment of costs. It is illogical for the courts of this Commonwealth to require litigants who receive federal and state funds to purchase necessities for their children, to divert those funds to the payment of court costs to the county or to be barred from the relief which only the courts can give. I would, therefore, hold, that whenever an individual has qualified administratively for welfare payments, *132he is prima facie indigent within the meaning of Rule 1137. Cf. Schoepple v. Schoepple, supra; Gerlitzki v. Feldser, supra. Having so qualified, he is presumptively indigent, and the burden shifts to the county to show: 1) that the welfare recipient is in fact not presently eligible for assistance; 2) that the recipient has presently available resources such that payment of cost will not reduce his ability to prove the necessities of life to his needy, dependent children, or 3) that the recipient’s financial status is likely to change materially in the foreseeable future such that no hardship will be imposed if waiver of costs is not ordered. Absent such proof, it is an abuse of discretion to order a welfare recipient to pay costs incident to litigation.5
I would, therefore, reverse the order of the lower court, and grant appellant’s petition to proceed in forma pauperis.

. Act of June 16, 1836, P.L. 715, § 28, 5 P.S. § 72.

. In Schoepple v. Schoepple, supra, the lead opinion was authored by Spaeth, J., and joined by Hoffman, J. Price, J., wrote a concurring opinion in which Watkins, P. J., joined. Cercone, J., wrote a concurring opinion, and Van der Voort, J., concurred in the result. Jacobs, J., dissented. The lead opinion suggested the proper standard should be whether the petitioner was presently unable to pay the costs of litigation. The concurring opinions expressed the fears of three judges that such a standard was too generous and would permit persons to squander their resources and still qualify as indigent under the Rule. The holding proposed in this opinion would conflict with neither the lead opinion nor the concurring opinions.

. There is some conflict between the income and expense figures contained in appellant’s petition and those to which he testified at the hearing. These discrepancies are relatively minor and, therefore, do not affect the result. At the hearing, appellant testified that he earned $338 per month and received a supplementary grant of $211.33 per month.

. See note 3, supra. This total is based on monthly expense figures of $70 for rent, $55 for utilities, $178.33 for food, $34.75 for transportation, $130 for babysitting and $98 for loan repayments.

. This is not meant to suggest that persons ineligible for welfare assistance bear any greater burden of proof or that the standards for qualification for welfare and for Rule 1137 are identical.