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West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Chapter 3

West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Page 82 Chapter 3 Eligibility Determination Groups

To determine whether to exclude the adopted child, complete the following steps: Step 1: Determine the amount of the benefit, excluding the needs of the adopted child. Step 2: Determine the amount of the benefit, including the needs and non-excluded income of the adopted child. If the amount in Step 2 is less than the amount in Step 1, the adopted child must be excluded from the AG. If the amount in Step 2 is greater than the amount in Step 1, the adopted child must be included in the benefit group. Example 1: Mr. and Mrs. Tulip are eligible for $360 from the former AFDC Program for themselves and their three children. They adopt Sam and he receives $200 non-excluded adoption assistance. Step 1: $360-AFDC AG of five, excluding Sam Step 2: Sam's $200 non-excluded adoption assistance reduces the amount of AFDC a six-person AG would receive from $413 to $213. Because $213 is less than $360, and the benefit is reduced, Sam must be excluded from the AG. Example 1.1: Same as the preceding example, except Sam receives non- excluded adoption assistance of $50. Step 1: $360 AFDC AG for five, excluding Sam Step 2: Sam's $50 non-excluded adoption assistance reduces the AFDC six-person AG payment of $413 to $363. Because $363 is greater than $360, and the benefit is not reduced, Sam is included in the AG.

• Individuals who are ineligible due to failure to fulfill an eligibility requirement. This includes the following individuals: NOTE: Any portion of the adoption assistance which is excluded, using the above criteria, is also excluded prior to determining if the AFDC/U benefit would have been reduced if the needs of the adopted child are included. NOTE: West Virginia's adoption assistance payments do not meet the above criteria.