3003-2       NON-COUNTABLE (EXEMPT) INCOME

3003-2 A.       NON-COUNTABLE (EXEMPT) INCOME

1. Title IV Higher Education Act and Bureau of Indian Affairs Grants and Awards

The total amount of any grant, scholarship, or award issued under any program funded under Title IV of the Higher Education Act or under a BIABureau of Indian Affairs student assistance program is not counted as income in determining eligibility or benefit amount.

Payments that fit this category include:

• Pell Grants
• State Student Incentive Grants (SIGStudent Incentive Grants)
• Academic Achievement Incentive Scholarships
• Byrd Scholars
• Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunities Grants (FSEOGFederal Supplemental Educational Opportunities Grants)
• Federal Educational Loans (Federal PLUS Loans, Perkins Loans, Stafford Loans, Ford Loans, etc.)
• Upward Bound
• Gear Up (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs)
• LEAPLeveraging Educational Assistance Partnership (Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership)
• SLEAPSpecial Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership (Special Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership)
• Work-Study Programs

Verify that the source of the education assistance is Title IV or BIABureau of Indian Affairs by viewing the individual's award letter. Contact the awarding institution if the award letter is not available or is unclear.

2. Other Education Assistance

Education assistance that is not funded under Title IV of the Higher Education Act or the BIABureau of Indian Affairs student assistance program funds is excluded as income if it is used or will be used for paying tuition fees, or other necessary education expenses at any educational institution, including vocational, technical, and correspondence schools, and schools for people with disabilities.

Exception:

Any portion of education assistance that will NOT be used or set aside for paying tuition, fees, or other necessary education expenses is countable unearned income.

3. Earned Income from the 2020 Census

Earned income from temporary employment with the 2020 Census is considered exempt income through October 31, 2021.

4. Work-Study Earned Income

College or university students may be enrolled in a work-study program in which they attend school part-time and work part-time at a job. Any income an applicant or recipient earns from employment in a work-study program will not be counted as income.

This disregard applies to both adults and children. The caseworker must verify that part-time employment of an applicant or recipient who claims to be in a work-study program is in fact a work-study job and not an individually acquired regular part-time job.

5. Loans

All bonafide loans, including educational, personal, and commercial loans, are disregarded as income. A bonafide loan is a debt that the borrower has an obligation to repay and expresses his or her intention to repay.

The bonafide nature of a loan must be verified and documented in the case file. Commercial and educational loans can normally be verified by seeing a copy of the written loan agreement or a document identifying the payment as a loan. In the case of personal loans, the verification must provide, at minimum, acknowledgment by the borrower and lender that an obligation to repay the loan exists, and acknowledgment by the borrower that they intend to repay the loan (with or without interest).

If it is determined the funds received are not from a bonafide loan (there is repayment obligation or the borrower has no intention of repayment), the amount received may or may not be countable income, depending on the source of the funds. All or some of the money may be exempt, such as a charitable contribution or excluded vendor payment, or counted as unearned income, such as a gift received directly from the source.

6. In-Kind Income

Any gain or benefit that is not in the form of money is exempt income, such as shelter, produce from a garden, clothing, non-cash employee benefits such as the Legal Trust benefit provided to State of Alaska employees, and non-cash assistance such as the Medicare Part D Low-Income Subsidy.

Exception:

Any payments made by a non-custodial parent to the household to pay for household expenses are countable. See MS 3003-1 B 3 of this manual for more information.

7. Wages Held

Wages held by an employer without the employee's approval are exempt income, except for garnishments.

8. Recoupments

Recoupments are funds withheld from a benefit program, voluntarily or involuntarily, to repay a prior overpayment from that program. The amount withheld for a recoupment is not counted when determining the gross income from any benefit source.

The amount and reason for withheld funds from any source must be verified in order to determine if the funds were withheld due to a garnishment or a recoupment. Refer to HAP MS 3003-1C for information on garnishments.

9. Public Housing and Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Subsidies

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUDHousing & Urban Development), through AHFCAlaska Housing Finance Corporation or a Native or Regional Housing Authority, and FHAFarmers Home Administration make payments directly to a landlord for rent and/or utility costs. These payments are excluded vendor payments. The portion of the rent or utility bills paid by this payment is not allowed as a shelter expense.

However, when households that are in public housing or that receive Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher subsidies are responsible for paying utility costs, the AHFCAlaska Housing Finance Corporation or the Native or Regional Housing Authority may make a payment to the household. This payment is called a utility allowance or utility reimbursement and is included as income.

10. Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act Income

ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act corporation payments to shareholders are exempt.Native corporation Elder benefits are exempt.

11. Student Reimbursements or Allowances

12. Reimbursements

Reimbursements for past or future expenses, to the extent they do not exceed actual expenses and do not represent a gain or benefit to the household, are exempt. Reimbursements will not be considered to exceed actual expenses unless the provider or the household indicates the amount is excessive. Non-countable reimbursements include:

• Payments, including TANFTemporary Assistance to Needy Families supportive service payments, for job or training related expenses such as travel costs, per diem, uniforms, and transportation to and from the job or training site.
• Payments for medical expenses.

13. Monies Received for Care of Third Parties

Funds provided and used for the care of a third party beneficiary who is not a household member (third party payee) are exempt. For example, a household receives child support for a child not living in the home. The household sends the child support to the child. This child support is not income to the household. This also includes situations where separate households share rent and one household receives a rent payment from the other and pays the landlord. The household that pays the landlord would not have the money counted as income that was given to it by the other household to pay the rent.

14. ATAPAlaska Temporary Assistance Program Benefits

ATAPAlaska Temporary Assistance Program benefits are only countable to the HAPHeating Assistance Program household when the parent or caretaker relative receiving the benefit on behalf of the child(ren) are included in the HAPHeating Assistance Program household.

15. Earnings of Elementary and Secondary Students Under Age 18

Earned income of a student is exempt when an individual:

• Is under age 18; and,
• Lives with his or her parents or is under parental control of an adult household member; and,
• Is currently enrolled at least half-time in elementary or secondary school. This exclusion continues during semester breaks and summer vacation.

Note:

Applicants 18 years of age - When looking at applications with a household member that is 18 years old, use the date and signature of the application to determine if the person was 18 years old at the time the application was signed.

16. Volunteer Payments

Payments made under any program of the CNCSCorporation for National and Community Service are excluded income. This income may be identified under a number of program names, including, but not limited to, AmeriCorps, AmeriCorps-VISTAVolunteer In Service To America, AmeriCorps-NCCPNational Civilian Community Corps, National Senior Volunteer Corporation, Retired & Senior Volunteer Corps, Foster Grandparents Program, Senior Companion Program, and Vista Volunteer Income (a.k.a. Domestic Volunteer Service Act).

Payments received for support services or reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses, such as lunches or transportation, made to an individual or volunteer are non-countable, exempt income.

17. Costs of Producing Self-Employment Income

These costs are exempt.

18. Mature Alaskans Seeking Skills Training (MASST) Payments

Allowances, earnings and payments from an employer and funded by the MASSTMature Alaskans Seeking Skills Training are exempt income. The MASSTMature Alaskans Seeking Skills Training program, federally known as the SCSEPSenior Community Service Employment Program, is administered under Title V of the Older Americans Act, P.L. 100-175.

19. General Relief Assistance Payments

State of Alaska GRAGeneral Relief Assistance program payments paid on behalf of the household to a vendor for household expenses such as rent, food, fuel, clothing, utilities, house repair, transportation, and burial are exempt.

BIABureau of Indian Affairs GRAGeneral Relief Assistance program burial payments made to a vendor are excluded as income.

20. Major Disaster and Emergency Assistance

Any federal major disaster and emergency assistance or any comparable disaster assistance provided by states, local governments, or disaster assistance organizations are exempt. Verification is not required unless the source of the funds is questionable.

21. Income Excluded by Federal Law

Income excluded by federal law is exempt. Refer to a partial listing of these income types in Addendum C.

22. Income Tax Returns

Federal income taxes are exempt.

23. Victims of Crime Compensation Payments

Any payment received from a fund established by a State to aid victims of crime is excluded from income.

24. Cash Gifts

Cash gifts under $20 per person per month are non-countable.

25. Social Security Advances

This income is a loan from a financial institution to a person receiving direct deposit Social Security income. It is paid to the bank when the monthly SSASocial Security Administration benefit is received.

26. JOBSJob Opportunities and Basic Skills Allowances

Allowances received under the Alaska JOBSJob Opportunities and Basic Skills Program.

27. SNAPSupplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Hold Harmless Payments

28. Veteran's Benefits Provided to Children of Vietnam Veterans (including adult children) who were born with the congenital defect spina bifida.

29. Veteran's Benefits Paid to Children of Women Vietnam Veterans Born with Certain Other Birth Defects

30. Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend

31. Alaska's Senior Benefits

32. Jury Duty Payments Issued Directly to the Employer

33. Reimbursement of Medical Expenses

34. Income from a Reverse Mortgage

35. Rebates

36. The Portion of a Military Retirement Payment which goes to an Ex-Spouse Under a Divorce Decree Property Settlement is not Counted as Income to the Retiree

Note:

Alimony is countable to the person receiving it, not the person paying it.