Exempt Income

Income from certain sources will be excluded for SNAP eligibility purposes under mandate of law. Only the following will not be considered as income: A. Irregular Income Any income in the certification period that is received too infrequently or irregularly to be reasonably anticipated, but not in excess of thirty dollars ($30) in three (3) months. B. Monies Intended for Non-Household Members Monies received and used for the care and maintenance of a third-party beneficiary who is not a household member. If the intended beneficiaries of a single payment are both household and non-household members, any identifiable portion of the payment intended and used for the care and maintenance of the non-household member shall be excluded. If the non-household member's portion cannot be readily identified, the payment shall be evenly prorated among the intended beneficiaries and the exclusion applied to the non-household member's pro rata share or the amount actually used for the non-household member's care and maintenance, whichever is less. C. Earnings of Children The earned income of children who are under eighteen (18) years of age, who live with their natural parent, adoptive parent, stepparent, or are under the parental control of another household member other than a parent and are students at least half-time in elementary school, high school, or classes to obtain a General Equivalency Diploma (GED), will be considered exempt income. If the student becomes eighteen (18) years of age in the month of application, the income shall be excluded for the month of application and counted the following month. If the student turns eighteen (18) during the certification period, their income shall be excluded until the month following the month in which the student turns eighteen (18). D. Recoupments The following recoupments or repayments from any nonexempt income source shall be exempt as income as follows: 1. Monies withheld from an assistance payment, earned income, or monies received from any nonexempt income source that is voluntarily or involuntarily returned to repay a prior overpayment received from that income source. Only the net income received from these sources shall be considered countable income. However, monies withheld from a federal, state, or local means-tested program (such as Title IV-A, State Old Age Pension), for purposes of recouping an overpayment which resulted from the household's intentional failure to comply with that program's requirements, shall not be exempted as income, and the gross income received from these sources shall be considered countable income. See Section 4.705 for specific instructions. 2. Child support payments received by Title IV-A participants that the household must transfer to the agency administering Title IV-D of the Social Security Act, in order to maintain their Title IV-A eligibility. E. Non-recurring Lump Sum Payments Money received in the form of non-recurring lump sum payments, includes, but is not limited to, income tax refunds, rebates, or credits; retroactive lump-sum Social Security, SSI, public assistance, railroad retirement benefits or other payments; or retroactive lump-sum insurance settlements; or any money an inmate receives upon release from prison, including earnings from work performed while incarcerated and accumulated over the length of the incarceration. State and county diversion payments under Colorado Works shall be excluded as a non-recurring lump sum payment if the payment does not cover more than ninety (90) days of expenses and is not expected to occur again in a twelve (12) month period. Non-recurring lump sum payments shall be counted as resources in the month received, unless specifically excluded from consideration as a resource by other federal laws. Any funds remaining in subsequent months shall be considered a resource. F. Loans 1. All loans from private individuals as well as commercial institutions shall not be considered as income, including educational loans. 2. Monies received from a Reverse Annuity Mortgage (RAM) loan program should be treated as a loan and excluded from income. These loans meet the accepted definition of a loan since there is a verifiable agreement to repay with interest. G. In-Kind Benefits An in-kind benefit is any gain or benefit received by the household that is not in the form of money such as meals, clothing, public housing, or produce from a garden. H. Vendor Payments A payment made on behalf of a household shall be considered a vendor payment whenever a person or organization outside of the household uses its own funds to make a direct payment to either the household's creditors or a person or organization providing a service to the household. Vendor payments are excludable as follows: 1. Such payments include subsidies paid to the households and legally obligated to the landlord, rent or mortgage payments made directly to landlords or mortgagees by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), or payments by a government agency to a child-care institution to provide day care for a household member are also excluded as vendor payments. 2. Monies that are legally obligated and otherwise payable to the household, but which are diverted by the provider of the payment to a third party for household expense, shall be counted as income and not excluded as a vendor payment. The distinction is whether the person or organization making the payment on behalf of a household is using funds that otherwise would need to be paid to the household. 3. Any emergency Public Assistance (PA) or General Assistance (GA) payment that is provided to a third party on behalf of the migrant or seasonal farm worker household, while the household is in the job stream, shall be excluded as income and considered as a vendor payment. These payments would normally be considered as income since the payment is legally obligated to the household. 4. Wages earned by a household member that are garnished or diverted by an employer and paid to a third party for a household's expenses, such as rent, shall be considered as income. However, if the employer pays a household's rent directly to the landlord in addition to paying the household its regular wages, this rent payment shall be excluded as a vendor payment. In addition, if the employer provides housing to an employee, the value of the housing shall not be counted as income. 5. Assistance provided to a third party on behalf of a household by the state or local program shall be considered money payable directly to the household if the assistance is provided in lieu of: a. A regular benefit payable to the household for living expenses under a program funded under Part A of the Social Security Act; or, b. A benefit payable to the household for housing expenses under a state or local general assistance program or other assistance program comparable to general assistance. 6. Assistance payments made to a third party for medical, child-care, or emergency/special assistance would be excluded as a vendor payment. Assistance payments provided by a state or local housing authority would also be excluded as income. 7. Energy assistance payments, other than for the Low-Income Energy Assistance Program

(LEAP) or a one-time payment under federal or state law for weatherization or to repair/replace an inoperative furnace or other heating or cooling device, that are made under a state or local program shall be counted as income. The exclusion will still apply if a down payment is made and is followed by a final payment upon completion of work. If a state law prohibits the household from receiving a cash payment under state or local general assistance (or comparable program), the assistance would be excluded. This applies to either an energy assistance payment or other type of payment. Energy assistance payments for an expense paid on behalf of the household under a state law shall be considered an out-of-pocket expense incurred and paid by the household. Energy assistance payments made under Part A of Title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 through 42 U.S.C. 619) are included as income. 8. Vendor payments which would normally be excluded as income but are converted in whole or in part to a direct cash payment under the approval of a federally authorized demonstration project (including demonstration projects created by a waiver of the provisions of federal law) shall be excluded from income. 9. Monies from alimony or a court-ordered child support payment which are required by a court order (or other legally binding agreement) to be paid to a third party rather than to the household shall be excluded from income as a vendor payment, even if the household agrees to the arrangement. 10. Payments more than the amount specified in a court order (or other legally binding agreement) which are paid to a third party in addition to a court-ordered vendor payment shall also be treated as a vendor payment. I. Reimbursements 1. Reimbursement for past or future expenses, to the extent they do not exceed actual expenses, and do not represent a gain or benefit to the household shall not be considered income. To be excluded, the reimbursement must be provided specifically and used for an identified expense, other than normal living expenses, and used for the purpose intended. When a reimbursement, including a flat allowance, covers multiple expenses, each expense does not have to be separately identified as long as none of the reimbursement covers normal living expenses. Reimbursements for normal household living expenses such as rent or mortgage, personal clothing, or food eaten at home are a gain or benefit and, therefore, are not exempt. 2. No portion of benefits provided under Title IV-A of the Social Security Act, to the extent such benefit is attributed to an adjustment for work related or child care expenses, except for payment or reimbursement for such expenses made under an education, employment, or training program initiated under such Title after September 18, 1988, shall be considered exempt under this provision. 3. The amount by which a reimbursement exceeds the actual incurred expense shall be counted as income. However, reimbursements shall not be considered to exceed actual expenses unless the provider or the household indicates the amount is excessive. 4. Types of reimbursement for expenses include: a. Reimbursement or flat allowances for job or training related expenses, such as travel, per diem, uniforms, and transportation to and from the job or training site including migrant travel. b. Reimbursements for out of pocket expenses of volunteers incurred in the course of their work. c. Medical or dependent care reimbursements. d. Reimbursements received by households to pay for services provided by Title XX of the Social Security Act. e. Reimbursements made to the household for expenses necessary for participation in an education component under the Employment First program. J. Verification Documentation of exempt income may explain a household's ability to maintain itself. Verification of exempt income is necessary only if the income is questionable. For example, when it is questionable that money received is a loan, a simple statement signed by both parties must be obtained which states that the money is a loan and that a repayment is being made or will be made. If the household receives payments on a regular basis from the same source but claims that payments are loans, it may be required that the provider of the loan sign an affidavit stating that repayments are being made or will be made in accordance with an established repayment schedule.