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do not become impoverished as a result the obligation to pay income toward the Medicaid cost of care. The method for determining what type of spousal and family allowance and the amount also varies depending on family structure and living arrangements. 1. Monthly Non-LTSS Spousal Allowance – In instances in which the LTSS beneficiaries is married and the spouse is not requesting or receiving Medicaid LTSS, the monthly spousal allowance is established by: a. Determining gross income of the spouse. The gross income of a non-LTSS spouse is the total of earned and the unearned income, without applying the disregards and exclusions used when determining income eligibility. b. Calculating shelter costs. The shelter costs for maintaining the household of a non-LTSS beneficiary’s principal place of residence are calculated by adding together monthly rental or mortgage payments (principal and interest), taxes and insurance, condominium or cooperative required maintenance charges, and the standard utility allowance, as applicable. The minimum is the Community Spouse Housing Allowance set annually by the Federal government. c. The standard utility allowance. The standard utility allowance, as updated annually in 218-RICR-20-00-1, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, serves as a proxy for utility costs when calculating shelter costs without respect to actual costs incurred by a non-LTSS spouse. This allowance is only included in the computation of shelter costs if the non-LTSS spouse is responsible for paying such expenses. d. Excess shelter allowance. To determine the excess shelter allowance, the sum of all shelter costs is deducted from the minimum monthly maintenance of need allowance. Any expenses above the standard constitutes the excess shelter allowance and is added to the minimum monthly maintenance of needs allowance and the determination proceeds as follows: (1) If there is no excess shelter allowance or the sum of the excess shelter allowance and the minimum monthly maintenance of needs allowance are at or below the standard minimum allowance standard established for the year, the minimum monthly maintenance of needs allowance is used as the basis for determining the monthly spousal allowance.