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West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Chapter 4

West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Page 135 Chapter 4 Income

or will be spent, the date spent or to be spent, and the nature of the life-threatening situation. The final decision is made by the DFA Policy Unit. If the Worker has any doubt about referring a case to the DFA Policy Unit, he must make the referral. ➢ Procedures The period of ineligibility is shortened as follows: Step 1: Determine the original amount of the lump-sum payment. Step 2: Subtract the amount unavailable due to circumstances beyond the control of the AG. The result is the new lump-sum payment amount. Step 3: Calculate the length of the new period from the original first month of the ineligibility using the new lump-sum payment amount. If the family becomes eligible as a result of the recomputations, it is treated like any other applicant. Benefits are prorated from the date of application. Retroactive or corrective payment is not made for any period between the time the lump sum became unavailable and the date eligibility is reestablished. It is the unavailability of the lump-sum payment amount itself that is explored, not the loss of goods purchased with the lump sum. Control of Use of Funds Example: A WV WORKS family of four receives a lump-sum payment in April. It is determined that they are ineligible for six months. In June, they report to the local office that they used most of the lump- sum amount to pay back money owed to the wife's parents who made trailer payments for them for several months so they would not lose the trailer. Because the use of the money was under the control of the AG, the period of ineligibility is not shortened. Birth Example: Same situation as above except that the family used most of the lump sum to pay for the birth of a new baby. The use of the money was under the control of the AG, so the period of ineligibility cannot be shortened for this reason. However, the case must be submitted to the DFA Policy Unit for consideration as a life-threatening situation. Trust Fund Example: A WV WORKS family receives a lump-sum payment of $12,000. The client sets up a trust fund for each of his children in the amount of $4,000 each. The trust funds stipulate that the children may not receive any of the money until they turn 21 years of age. Use and control of the lump-sum