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Vermont Department for Children and Families Reach Up Eligibility Rules Economic Services Division 2200 68

2249.1 Contributions (08/01/2024, 23-28)

a. Regular and predictable contributions, in the form of cash or in-kind, shall be considered unearned income.

b. Occasional small gifts and/or irregular contributions shall be disregarded in budgetary computations, provided the amounts do not exceed $30 per participant every three months.

c. Contributions to a third party on behalf of a Reach Up household do not count as unearned income if the payment is not otherwise owed to the household.

2250 Distribution of Child Support (08/01/2024, 23-28)

a. Office of Child Support (OCS) distributes current child support payments to the Department, which has been collected on behalf of Reach Up households.

b. The Department then distributes the child support payments, to the Reach Up household for whom child support has been collected, at the beginning of the second month following the month in which the child support payment was received by OCS.

2250.1 Family Bonus Payment (08/01/2024, 23-28)

a. The family bonus payment is the first $100 from child support collected by OCS in any calendar month and distributed to the Department on behalf of a Reach Up household.

b. The Department pays the family bonus to the custodial parent without affecting Reach Up eligibility or decreasing the amount of the benefit.

c. $100 is the maximum family bonus payment paid to a Reach Up household in a single calendar month, even when more than one noncustodial parent pays child support on behalf of that Reach Up household.

d. In no case shall the family bonus amount exceed the amount of child support paid on behalf of the members of the Reach Up household.

2250.2 Parent Share Payment (08/01/2024, 23-28)

a. The parent share payment is the amount in excess of $100 from child support collected by OCS in any calendar month and distributed to the Department on behalf of a Reach Up household.

b. The parent share payment shall be: 1. Deducted from the Reach Up benefit prior to any recoupment for the second month following the month in which OCS received the child support and distributed it to the Department; and 2. Paid to the Reach Up household according to the Reach Up benefit payment schedule (rule 2214.1).

2250.3 Child Support Arrearage Collected (08/01/2024, 23-28)