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Page | 171 At the point in time the household is made aware of the resource, the resource will be considered available to them from that time forward. This applies regardless of the manner in which the household is made aware of the resource.

9400 RESOURCE EXCLUSIONS

The following list of resource exclusions is all inclusive:

A. Exclude the home and surrounding property that is not separated from the home by intervening property owned by others.  Public rights of way, such as roads which run through the property and separate it from the home, will not affect the exemption of the property.  The home and surrounding property remain exempt when temporarily unoccupied because of employment, training for future employment, illness, or inhabitability caused by casualty or natural disaster, if the household intends to return.  Households not currently owning a home who own or are purchasing a lot on which they intend to build or are building a permanent home will receive an exclusion for the value of the lot and, if it is partially completed, for the home.  Property essential to the self-employment of a household member engaged in training will continue to be excluded for one year from the date the household member terminates his/her self-employment from farming/ranching.

B. Exclude household goods, personal effects, including such items as furniture, appliances, jewelry, and the cash value of life insurance policies.

C. The cash value of pension plans, and tax deferred education savings plans will be excluded per the charts below:

Retirement Plan/Account Type and Internal Revenue Code Section # What is it? Pension or traditional plan – Section 401(a) Employer based retirement plan that promises retirees a certain benefit upon retirement, regardless of investment performance Cash Balance Plan – Section 401(a) Employer based “hybrid” plan that combines features of defined benefit and defined contribution plans Keogh Plan – Section 401(a) Individuals who are self-employed Employee Stock Ownership Plan – Section 401 (a) Similar to profit sharing plan, benefits are offered in the form of employer’s stock Money Purchase Pension Plan – Section 401(a) Employer-based defined contribution plan under which annual contributions are fixed by a set formula Example: Jane’s grandfather purchased CDs for Jane’s children but never told Jane or the children of the existence of the CDs. The CDs were not considered available to the household until Jane was informed of their existence. Once Jane is made aware of the CDs, they are counted as a resource. In this situation, no claim would have been created for the months Jane was unaware of their existence.