4001 Family Budget Group

Assume there is no income. Family budget group is the total number of persons whose needs and income are budgeted together. This will always include the following: 1. Married and civil union couples if they live together and are both eligible for a grant. 2. Couples who do not have legally recognized marriages/civil unions but who live together as husband and wife or spouses and are both eligible for a grant. NOTE: In GA, couples will be considered as living together as husband and wife if: a. They say they are joined by a civil union or marriage even if the marriage/civil union cannot be verified, or b. They are recognized as parties to a civil union, spouses, or husband and wife in the community, or c. One partner uses the other's last name, or d. They state they intend to marry/join in a civil union, or e. They jointly hold resources. 3. Parents and their eligible children. Family budget groups will consist of more than one assistance unit when all budget group members are not placed in the same assistance unit. In those instances, the need standard for the family cannot exceed the TANF need standard for the budget group size as specified in Section 4007.2. (See DSSM 3028 for a definition of an assistance unit) In households that include a caretaker, the caretaker's children and other children that are the caretaker's responsibility, the caretaker's needs and income and those of his/her children are always budgeted together. The needs and income of any other children in the home will be considered separately. In these situations, the separate budget groups can be combined to form a single family budget group only when the following conditions are met: A. Assistance would be denied to any of the recipients by maintaining separate budget groups. B. The caretaker understands the implications of combining the budget groups (i.e., lower assistance payments.) and chooses to have his/her needs and income and those of his/her children considered with the needs and income of any other children in the home. 14 DE Reg. 304 (10/01/10) 15 DE Reg. 1498 (04/01/12)