35-10-26. Income

(a) General provisions regarding income.

(1) The income of categorically needy individuals who are related to the children, parent/caretaker relative, SoonerPlan family planning program, Title XIX and XXI pregnancy eligibility groups or expansion adults does not require verification, unless questionable. If the income information is questionable, it must be verified. If there appears to be a conflict in the information provided, the worker must investigate the situation to determine if income verification is necessary.

(2) All available income, except that required to be disregarded by law or Oklahoma Health Care Authority's (OHCA's) policy, is taken into consideration in determining need. Income is considered available both when it is actually available and when the applicant or member has a legal interest in a liquidated sum and has the legal ability to make such sum available for support and maintenance. When an individual's income is reduced due to recoupment of an overpayment or garnishment, the gross amount before the recoupment or garnishment is counted as income. The member is responsible for reporting all income, the source, amount and how often received.

(A) Income received on behalf of a member of the benefit group by another individual such as, but not limited to, a guardian or conservator, is considered available to the benefit group.

(B) Money received and used for the care and maintenance of a third party who is not included in the benefit group is not counted as income if it can be identified and verified as intended for third party use.

(C) If it appears any member of the benefit group or an individual whose income is considered when determining eligibility is eligible for any type of income or benefits, the benefit group must be notified in writing by the OHCA. The notice must contain the information that failure to apply for and take all appropriate steps to obtain such benefits within ten (10) days from the date of the notice will result in a determination of ineligibility. An application for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is not required.

(D) If the member and spouse are living together or they are living apart but there has not been a clear break in the family relationship, income received by either spouse and income received jointly is considered as family income. Income cannot be diverted to a household member who is not included in the household size for health benefits. Consideration is not given to an SSI recipient's income in computing eligibility for the AFDC or Pregnancy related unit. The Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) methodology rules determine whose income is considered in a particular household for MAGI eligibility groups as defined in Oklahoma Administrative Code (OAC) 317:35-6-1.

(E) Income which can reasonably be anticipated to be received is considered to be available for the month its receipt is anticipated.

(F) Income produced from resources must be considered as unearned income.

(3) Income that must be verified is verified by the best available information such as pay stubs presented by the member or an interview with the employer. If OHCA is unable to verify income through the Oklahoma Employment Securities Commission, then pay stubs may only be used for verification if they have the member's name and/or social security number indicating that the pay stubs are in fact the member's wages. The stubs should also include the date(s) of the pay period and the amount of income before deductions. If this information is not included, employer verification is required. The worker verifies medical insurance which may be available at the same time that income is verified. When a member of the benefit group accepts employment and has not received any wages, verification (if necessary) of the amount of income to be considered and the anticipated date of receipt must be obtained from the employer and provided to OHCA within ten (10) days. Income which is expected to be received during a month is considered available to the benefit group and is counted in determining eligibility for the month of receipt.

(4) Monies received in a lump sum from any source are considered income in the month received, with the exception of certain lottery or gambling winnings as specified in OAC 317:35-6-55. Changing a resource from one form to another, such as converting personal property to cash, is not considered a lump sum payment. Exception: lump sum payments used to establish dedicated bank accounts by representative payees in order to receive and maintain retroactive SSI benefits for disabled/blind children under age eighteen (18) are excluded as income. The interest income generated from dedicated bank accounts is also excluded.

(A) Whether a source of income is countable for MAGI eligibility groups is determined in accordance with Part 6 of Subchapter 6 of this Chapter.

(B) Whether a source of income is countable is determined in accordance with Part 6 of Subchapter 6 of this Chapter.

(C) When a lump sum is received by a stepparent not included in the household size, only the stepparent's contribution is considered in accordance with the stepparent's liability policy. Income received by a stepparent is considered in accordance with MAGI household and income counting rules.

(D) When a third party reveals that a lump sum payment has been received or is expected to be received by the applicant or member, adverse action notification is given or mailed to the applicant/member and appropriate action taken.

(E) Recurring lump sum income received from any source for a period covering more than one (1) month, that is received in a lump sum recurrently (such as annual rentals from surface or minerals, Windfall Profits tax refund, etc.) is prorated over a period of time it is intended to cover, beginning with the month of receipt of a lump sum payment.

(F) Net income from oil and gas production (gross minus production taxes withheld), received in varying amounts on a regular or irregular basis for the past six (6) months, will be averaged and considered as income for the next six (6) months. In instances where an applicant or a member receives new income from oil and gas production and verification for the past six (6) months is not available, the worker accepts the available verification and averages over the period of time intended to cover. Net income may be verified by seeing the individual's production check stub, or by contacting the oil and gas company. Whether a source of income is countable is determined in accordance with Part 6 of Subchapter 6 of this Chapter.

(5) Income that is based on the number of hours worked, as opposed to income based on regular monthly wages, must be computed as irregular income. The income received irregularly or in varying amounts will be averaged using the past two (2) months to establish the amount to be anticipated and considered for prospective budgeting.

(6) MAGI household rules are used to determine whether a caretaker relative or stepparent is included in a household.

(A) MAGI household and income counting rules are used to determine whether a caretaker relative and his/her spouse or a stepparent are included in the household and whether their income is considered for the children.

(B) MAGI household and income counting rules are used to determine whose income is considered and whether that income is counted. If an individual is eligible in the parent or caretaker relative group, his/her spouse, if living with him/her, is also related to the parent or caretaker relative group.

(7) A stepparent, if living with the parent or caretaker relative, can also be related to the parent or caretaker relative group, regardless of whether the parent is incapacitated or not in the home.

(8) MAGI household and income counting rules are used to determine whose income is considered and whether that income is counted.

(c) Unearned income. Countable earned and unearned income for MAGI eligibility groups is determined in accordance with MAGI income counting rules in Part 6 of Subchapter 6 of this Chapter.

(d) Income disregards. For MAGI eligibility groups, whether a source of income is disregarded is determined in accordance with MAGI income counting rules in Part 6 of Subchapter 6 of this Chapter.

(e) Computing monthly income. In computing monthly income, cents will be rounded down at each step. Income which is received monthly but in irregular amounts is averaged using two (2) month's income, if possible, to determine income eligibility. Less than two (2) month's income may be used when circumstances (e.g., new employment, unpaid sick leave, etc.) would indicate that previous income amounts would not be appropriate to use in determining future income amounts. Income received more often than monthly is converted to monthly amounts as follows:

(1) Daily. Income received on a daily basis is converted to a weekly amount then multiplied by 4.3.

(2) Weekly. Income received weekly is multiplied by 4.3.

(3) Twice a month. Income received twice a month is multiplied by two (2).

(4) Biweekly. Income received every two (2) weeks is multiplied by 2.15.

Disclaimer. The OHCA rules found on this Web site are unofficial. The official rules are published by the Oklahoma Secretary of State Office of Administrative Rules as Title 317 of the Oklahoma Administrative Code. To order an official copy of these rules, contact the Office of Administrative Rules at (405) 521-4911.