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2850.00.00 DIVIDENDS, INTEREST, AND ROYALTIES

Payments of dividends, interest, and royalties are considered unearned income. This includes interest on checking accounts and trust accounts.

Dividends that the household has the option of either receiving as income or reinvesting in the trust stock or bond are to be considered as income in the month, they become available to the household. 2850.05.00 INTEREST ON INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNTS

Interest income that is earned on an Individual Development Account (IDA) under the Assets for Independence Act (AFIA), Public Law 106-554, is excluded from income. (See also IPPM 2630.95.00). 2855.00.00 REIMBURSEMENTS

Reimbursements for past or future expenses are exempt if they do not exceed actual expenses and do not represent a gain or benefit. To be exempt, these payments must be specifically intended and used for expenses other than normal living expenses. Normal living expenses include the amount spent for rent or mortgage, personal clothing, and food eaten at home.

Any part of the reimbursement amount that exceeds the actual expense is included as income. However, reimbursements are not considered to exceed actual expenses, unless the AG or the provider indicates the amount is excessive.

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 included as income. Reimbursements from employers over and above the basic wages for necessary job-related expenses are exempt. (f30) 2860.00.00 EDUCATIONAL INCOME DEFINITION

Educational income includes, but is not limited to, grants, scholarships, fellowships, work-study, veterans’ educational benefits, and deferred educational loans (loans received for educational expenses which are to be repaid at a later date, usually after graduation), that is used for tuition and mandatory fees at an institution of post-secondary education, including correspondence schools at that level or a school at any level for the physically or mentally handicapped.

Wages from graduate assistantships are not treated as educational income if they are subject to taxation and are available for meeting the individual's non-educational living expenses; they are budgeted as earned income.

A loan on which repayment must begin within 60 days after receipt is not considered a deferred loan.