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30 5.4 TANF MANUAL 7/22 Page 44

a. Home Energy Assistance - Payments made directly to a household for home heating or cooling provided by suppliers of home energy, such as electric and gas companies and fuel oil dealers, must be counted as income.* When payments are received jointly by a household composed of TANF and non-TANF individuals, including SSI recipients, the TANF assistance unit's pro rata share, based on the total number of persons in the household, must be considered as income to the TANF unit.

The pro rata share of non-TANF and SSI individuals is not to be counted.** Note: Payments made through the Virginia Energy Assistance Program administered by local departments of social services are not considered home energy assistance and are disregarded per Section 305.4.A.16.

b. Public Assistance Benefits Received From Another State - It is possible for individuals who move from another state to Virginia to receive assistance from both states in the same month. However, the assistance paid by the state of prior residence must be considered in determining eligibility and benefit amount in Virginia. The amount of assistance received by the assistance unit from the former state is to be treated as unearned income in the month received.

Example 1: An applicant applies in Virginia on August 30 and receives a payment from Pennsylvania for $100 in September which covers the period of the last week of August and the first week of September. If the assistance unit is eligible for assistance in September and the S0A is $489, the $100 of unearned income is subtracted from $489, for a payment of $389.

Example 2: A Group II locality receives an application on September 2 requesting assistance for a parent and two children. The family received a TANF payment from another state on September 1 for $100 covering the period September 1-15, and the case is terminated in the former state effective September 15. The agency determines eligibility on September 10 (date of authorization). The first payment is calculated as follows:

$489 - $100 = $389 - monthly deficit $389/30 = $12.96 - daily rate $12.96 x 21 days = $272.16 -prorated deficit $272 payment (rounded down)

c. Royalties are considered unearned income.

d. Interest earned on cash assets in excess of $10 a month, such as a bank account or certificate of deposit, is considered unearned income in the month received (available) unless anticipated to be received less often i.e., quarterly, annually, etc., in which case it may be prorated over the period earned if requested by the applicant/recipient. Guidance in Section 305.1. B.2 is applicable in determining if the income is "reasonably certain" to be received and, if so, the methods available to use to calculate the anticipated amount. Exception: Interest accrued on exempted Virginia Individual Development Accounts (VIDA) or Assets for Independence Act (AFIA) funds is not countable income.

* 45 CFR 233.20(a)(3)(xiv) ** 45 CFR 233.53(c)(2)

TANF Transmittal 74