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BEM 210 6 of 20 FIP GROUP COMPOSITION BPB 2026-002 1-1-2026

BRIDGES ELIGIBILITY MANUAL STATE OF MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES

definition of a dependent child, making her brother and mother mandatory FIP EDG members. Exception: The client has the option to exclude a new spouse from the FIP Certified Group for up to 18 months after the month the marriage took place. See the marriage exemption section of this policy item. Refusal of any FIP EDG member to provide information needed to determine FIP eligibility causes ineligibility for the entire FIP EDG. Exception: Failure to cooperate with the following eligibility requirements have specific penalties, not always FIP denial or closure: • Employment and/or family self-sufficiency requirements. • Social Security Numbers. • Child Support. • Third Party Liability. • Caretaker’s failure to report a child’s absence timely. • School attendance. • Criminal justice requirements. See Failure to Report Child’s Absence in this item and BEM 223, 228, 230A-233B, 255 and 257 for penalties for failure to meet these requirements. There are circumstances in which a FIP certified group contains no dependent child; see FIP Certified Groups with No Child in this item. Who May be a FIP Caretaker? A legal parent or stepparent living with a dependent child is always the child’s caretaker, unless the parent is a minor. See Multi-Gener- ation and Combined Groups in this item for exceptions regarding minor parents. A person other than a legal parent or stepparent may be a caretaker only when the dependent child has no legal parent or stepparent in the home. A caretaker in the child’s home, other than a parent or stepparent must be one of the following: 1. A relative who is at least age 18 and legally related to the child by blood, marriage or adoption, as any of the following: