430-4        ASSETS THAT ARE NOT RESOURCES

430-4 A.   SOME ASSETS ARE NOT RESOURCES

Not all of an individual's assets are resources for APAAdult Public Assistance purposes.  Assets are not resources if the individual does not have:

1. Any ownership interest; or
   
   
2. The legal right, authority, or power to liquidate them; or
   
   
3. The legal right to use the assets for his or her own support and maintenance.
   

430-4 B.   AN ASSET THAT IS NOT A RESOURCE MAY PRODUCE INCOME

Any money that a person receives from a nonresource is counted as income in the month received, unless it is otherwise excluded.  For example, if an individual is the beneficiary of a trust which is not his or her resource, and the trust pays the individual a monthly allowance, the allowance is income to the individual.

430-4 C.   ASSETS THAT ARE NOT RESOURCES MAY BECOME RESOURCES

In certain situations, an asset that is not a resource may become one at a later date or vice versa.  The distinction must be made because an asset that is not a resource does not count against the resource limit while an asset that is a resource does count against the resource limit.

Example:

At the time of his divorce in 1998, Mr. Thomas, an APAAdult Public Assistance recipient, was the sole owner of the house in which his ex-wife and their two children are living.  Under terms of the divorce decree, Mr. Thomas must pay the property taxes on the property and maintain it as a home for his ex-wife and their two children until the youngest child reaches age 18 in 2004.  The decree also specifies that he is free to sell the property after the youngest child's eighteenth birthday.

Although Mr. Thomas clearly owns the property, he is legally barred from selling it until 2004.  Therefore, it is not a resource until the month after his youngest child reaches age 18.