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Title 7: SNAP Page 54 Iowa Department of Health and Human Services Employees’ Manual Chapter E: Income Deductions Revised February 13, 2026 Shelter Expenses

4. Julie is homeless and stays with friends. They do not charge her any rent, but she must pay half of the utility bill (including heat). Since this is an expense of residing with her friends, she is entitled to choose between the homeless standard or the big SUA. Julie has some income, and SPAD shows that use of the big SUA as a utility deduction would result in slightly higher benefits than the homeless standard. Julie states she wants to use actual expenses, so you request verification of the utilities she is responsible for.

Julie does not return the verification of the utility expense by the due date. Therefore, no utility deduction is allowed. In addition, since she chose to use actual, she is not entitled to the homeless standard.

Two weeks later, Julie contacts you and says she was not able to get verification of the utility expense and she would rather get the homeless standard. Document this change in the case and allow the homeless standard starting with the next benefit month. 5. Rick is homeless and stays with friends. They charge him $50 to stay on their couch. He does not have a phone or pay any utilities. Since the homeless shelter deduction is larger than his actual expenses, explain this option to him. Assuming he wants to use the standard, no further verification of his shelter costs is required. Document the case with his choice and allow the homeless standard. REMINDER: A homeless person who is temporarily residing in the home of another person is only considered homeless for the first 90 days. After living with someone for more than 90 days, it is no longer considered temporary and therefore the person is not homeless (7-A). When processing an application for someone who is staying with friends, you will need to clarify that they have been there less than 90 days before allowing the homeless standard deduction. Households are not required to report address changes. However, if the situation has not changed at the next certification, the household would no longer qualify for the homeless standard deduction. Standard Deduction Legal reference: 7 CFR 273.9(d)(1) Allow a standard deduction for the applicable household size by using the following chart: Household Size Standard Deduction 1 $209 2 $209 3 $209 4 $223 5 $261 6+ $299