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Title 7: SNAP Page 5 Iowa Department of Health and Human Services Employees’ Manual Chapter D: Resources Countable Resources Revised September 27, 2024 Verifying Resources Document the amount of the household’s countable resources in the case record. Give enough detail to support the basis of the eligibility decision. Joint Ownership Legal reference: 7 CFR 273.8(d), 441 IAC 65.30(234) Determine what share of a jointly owned resource is owned by the client. Count the client’s share towards the household’s resource limit, unless: ▪ The household can establish that all or part of the resource is not available, in which case count only the part that is available to the household; or ▪ The resource cannot be divided, and the household’s access to the resource depends upon the approval of the joint owner who will not allow the household access to the resource; or ▪ The resources are jointly owned by people living in a shelter for battered women and children and a person still living in the abuser’s household, and the resources are controlled by the person still living in the abuser’s household. When a resource is jointly owned by two or more persons, assume that each person owns an equal share, unless this was not the intent of the people who own the resource. This includes resources jointly owned by a FIP or SSI recipient and a person who is not a FIP or SSI recipient. In this situation, do not count the share of the resource that belongs to the FIP or SSI recipient towards the household’s resource limit.

1. Ms. J gets SNAP benefits separately from her roommate Ms. B. They have a joint checking account with a $3,000 balance. Ms. B is a FIP recipient. Ms. J is not. The intent of Ms. J and Ms. B is that half of the money in the checking account belongs to each person. $1,500 counts towards Ms. J’s resource limit. 2. Ms. W, age 56, is legally blind. She lives alone and buys and fixes her own meals, but she is no longer able to see well enough to write personal checks. Ms. W’s daughter, Ms. F, writes the checks for her mother, so Ms. F’s name is on the checking account. This account is not considered to be a resource to Ms. F, because the intent of the relationship is that the money is to be used exclusively for Ms. W. A vehicle is jointly owned whether the words “and” or “or” appear on the registration or title. Both people own the vehicle equally unless that is not the intent of the owners. To determine the value of a jointly held vehicle, follow the policies under Vehicles later in this chapter.