Page 150

When an assistance group applies, do not count the prorated income until it is received. Example 2: Joe receives semiannual land contract installments of $900. This equals a monthly income of $150 ($900 prorated over six months). He becomes eligible in May. He receives payments in January and July each year. Do not budget any prorated income until July, the first month of receipt after Joe becomes eligible. If the group becomes ineligible and reapplies before they receive the next installment, use the same prorated amount as before. Prorated Income Is an Unavailable Asset A source of income which is received in a particular month cannot also be counted as an asset for that same month. This policy also applies to income which has been prorated and will be budgeted over the appropriate prorated period (e.g., 12 months). The client is expected to use this prorated income for their personal needs over an extended period of time. Therefore, any unbudgeted balance is an unavailable asset during the period of time for which the prorated income is being counted. The amount of the unavailable asset will decrease with each month in which the prorated income is budgeted. Example 3: Jay regularly receives a $1200.00 annual payment from a wealthy relative every January. This income is prorated over 12 month so $100 per month is counted as unearned income beginning in January. The initial $1200 payment and any remaining unbudgeted balance is an unavailable asset during the 12 month budgeting period. In January the entire $1200.00 is considered unavailable. In February, $1100.00 is considered unavailable. The unavailable amount will decrease with every month that income from this source is counted. 15.2.3 Fluctuating Income If the amount or frequency of regularly received income is known, average the income over the period between payments. If neither the amount nor the frequency is predictable, do not average; count income only for the month in which it is received. This page last updated in Release Number: 15-01 Release Date: 06/10/2015 Effective Date: 06/10/2015 15.3 Exempt/Disregarded Income "Disregard” and "exempt" in this section mean "do not count.” When calculating the total amount of income a person has received, disregard the following kinds of income: 15.3.1 Adoption Assistance Disregard adoption assistance payments. 15.3.2 Agent Orange Settlement Fund Disregard payments received from the Agent Orange Settlement Fund or any other fund established in settling In Re "Agent Orange" Product Liability Litigation, M.D.L. No. 381 (E.D.N.Y.). Apply this disregard retroactively to January 1, 1989, and continue to disregard these payments for as long as they are identified separately.