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the income is received – weekly, bi-weekly, semi-monthly, or monthly. ACEDS then converts all income to a monthly amount if necessary by multiplying the average payment amount by the average number of payment periods in a calendar month: if payments are received weekly, multiply by 4.3, and round to the nearest cent; if payments are received bi-weekly, multiply by 2.15, and round to the nearest cent; and if payments are received semi-monthly, multiply by 2. If the payments received in a month are not identical, then average the payments and then convert this average figure to a monthly amount. The process of converting earnings or other income to monthly figures evens out a group's earnings so that the timing of paychecks and pay periods does not affect program eligibility. For example, if a person is paid bi-weekly, s/he will receive 26 paychecks in a year. Most months the person will receive 2 paychecks, but in two months s/he will receive 3 paychecks. Without converting bi-weekly pay to an average monthly earnings figure, the group might become ineligible for program benefits in the two months during the year in which the earner receives three paychecks.

When income is received in fewer months than are covered by a contract or agreement, divide the income for the contractual period by the number of months in the period.

If self-employment or rental income is received less often than monthly, convert the self-employment or rental income to a monthly amount based on past or estimated future proceeds.

Example

Ms. Elizondo and her two children apply for MA. Ms. Elizondo works and is paid bi-weekly. In the month of application, she has already received one paycheck for $350 and is expecting to receive a second paycheck for $400. She worked more hours in the second pay period than in the first. The SSR enters both paychecks into ACEDS and indicates that the applicant is paid bi-weekly. ACEDS uses that information to compute a monthly earnings figure. ACEDS performs the following steps:

1. Average the two paychecks to compute average bi-weekly earnings. 2. Convert the bi-weekly earnings to monthly earnings by multiplying the average bi-weekly earnings by 2.15.

In this case, Ms. Elizondo's average bi-weekly earnings are $375. Her countable monthly earnings are computed to be $806.25

Example Mr. Thompson is under contract to renovate a home. The renovation is scheduled to take six months. The contract calls for paying Mr. Thompson $6,000 for the work which will be provided when the work is completed. Divide the $6,000 (contracted earnings) by the contractual period (six). Mr. Thompson is treated as if he earns $1,000 per month during the months covered by the contract.