432-4        RETAINED CASH PAYMENTS AND IN-KIND PAYMENTS

432-4 A.   RETROACTIVE SSISupplemental Security Income AND RSDIRetirement, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (Social Security) PAYMENTS

Any amounts retained from retroactive Social Security Retirement, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (RSDIRetirement, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (Social Security)) and SSISupplemental Security Income benefits are excluded from resource consideration for nine consecutive calendar months following the month of receipt.  This exclusion does not apply to retroactive APAAdult Public Assistance payments.

Interest earned by funds excluded under this provision is not excluded.

A dedicated account is an account set up for certain past due SSI monthly payments made on or after August 23, 1996 for SSISupplemental Security Income recipients under the age of 18.  SSISupplemental Security Income requires a representative payee establish and maintain these accounts in a financial institution.  No other funds are allowed to be deposited in the account except for certain subsequent past-due benefits.  The use of funds from dedicated accounts is restricted to specific purchases.  The restriction continues to apply when the child turns 18, remains eligible for benefits, and goes into direct payment.  Any misuse of funds is recoverable by SSASocial Security Administration from the payee. Representative payees and recipients 18 or older with dedicated accounts must report annually on the activity of funds in the account to ensure deposits and expenditures are in compliance with the law.  They must continue to report until the account is depleted or eligibility for benefits terminate. Any unauthorized expenditures made knowingly by an individual who is his/her own payee will be deducted from future SSISupplemental Security Income payments.  Funds in a dedicated account are exempt resources as long as the funds remain in the dedicated account.  

432-4 B.   PAYMENTS TO VICTIMS OF NAZI PERSECUTION

Payments received from any source by individuals because of their status as victims of Nazi persecution are excluded from resources.

Interest earned on unspent payments is not excluded from resources.

432-4 C.   FEDERAL DISASTER ASSISTANCE

Any unspent assistance received under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (formerly the Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act of 1974), or some other federal statute, because of a presidentially declared major disaster, is permanently excluded from resources.

Interest earned by funds excluded under this provision is also excluded from both income and resources.

Verification.  

Acceptable proof of federal disaster assistance is documentation or a collateral contact with the source of the payment which specifies that the assistance is provided under federal statute because of a presidentially-declared disaster.

432-4 D.   CASH RECEIVED FOR THE REPAIR OR REPLACEMENT OF LOST, DAMAGED, OR STOLEN EXCLUDED RESOURCES

Cash received from any source for the repair or replacement of lost, damaged, or stolen excluded resources are themselves excluded resources for 9 calendar months following the month of their receipt.

Interest earned by funds excluded under this provision is also excluded as income and resources for the period during which the funds themselves are excluded.

432-4 E.   FOOD

The value of the SNAPSupplemental Nutrition Assistance Progam allotment provided under the Food Stamp Act of 1977; the value of assistance provided under the National School Lunch Act; the value of assistance provided under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966; and the value of federally donated foods distributed under section 32 of Public Law 74-320 or section 416 of the Agriculture Act of 1949 are excluded.

432-4 F.   COMPENSATION TO VOLUNTEERS

Compensation of any kind that is provided under the Domestic Volunteers Service Act is excluded from resources.  This includes payments to people who are volunteers in the Foster Grandparents Program, Senior Companion Program, Retired Senior Volunteer Program, Cooperative Volunteer Program (RSVPRetired Senior Volunteer Program), Senior Volunteer Program, and Volunteers in Service to America Program (VISTAVolunteers in Service to America).

432-4 G.   REMUNERATION FOR OUT-OF-POCKET EXPENSES

Remuneration for out-of-pocket expenses to people who are volunteers in the Corps of Retired Executives (CORECorps of Retired Executives), or in the Active Corps of Executives (ACEActive Corps of Executives), is excluded from resources.

432-4 H.   FEDERAL HOUSING ASSISTANCE

The value of any assistance paid with respect to a dwelling unit is excluded from income and resources if paid under the United States Housing Act of 1937, the National Housing Act, Section 101 of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965, or Title V of the Housing Act of 1949.

The federal government through the Office of Housing and Urban Development (HUDOffice of Housing and Urban Development) and the Farmers Home Administration (FmHAFarmers Home Administration) provides many forms of housing assistance.  This assistance may include subsidized housing, loans for renovations, mortgage and investment insurance, guaranteed loans and mortgages, and loans for construction, improvement, or replacement of farm homes and other buildings.  This assistance may be provided directly by the federal government or through other entities such as local housing authorities and non-profit organizations.

Any housing assistance in which HUDOffice of Housing and Urban Development or FmHAFarmers Home Administration funding is involved is subject to this exclusion.  In Alaska, housing assistance which qualifies for this exclusion includes:  Section 8 housing assistance, housing assistance provided by the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation (AHFCAlaska Housing Finance Corporation), and housing assistance in rural areas provided by various Native housing authorities.

432-4 I.     FEDERAL RELOCATION ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS

Relocation assistance provided under the federal Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Act of 1970 is excluded from resources.

This exclusion applies to relocation assistance provided to persons displaced by any federal or federally assisted project.  Relocation assistance may be furnished directly by a project or through an agency, such as a housing authority, designated for the purpose of providing relocation assistance.  (Refer to manual section 432-4J below for policy on the treatment of relocation assistance provided by a state or political subdivision for a project that does not have any federal involvement.)

Interest earned on unspent relocation assistance payments is not excluded from either income or resources.

Verification.  

To be excluded from resources under this provision, evidence must show that the payment is relocation assistance.  Acceptable evidence includes:
 
• A letter or check stub that indicates the reason for the payment; or

• Any other document that indicates the reason for the payment; or

• A collateral contact with the federal project or agency that issued the relocation assistance payment.

432-4 J.   LIMITED EXCLUSION OF STATE OR LOCAL RELOCATION ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS

Unspent relocation assistance provided by a state or local government for a project that does not have any federal involvement is excluded from resources for 9 calendar months following the month of receipt.

Interest earned on unspent relocation assistance payments is not excluded from either income or resources.

Verification.  To be excluded from resources under this provision, evidence must show that the payment is relocation assistance.  Acceptable evidence includes:

• A letter or check stub that indicates the reason for the payment; or

• Any other document that indicates the reason for the payment; or

• A collateral contact with the state or local agency that issued the relocation assistance payment.

432-4 K.   EDUCATION ASSISTANCE

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 the Title IV of the Higher Education Act or under a Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIABureau of Indian Affairs) student assistance program is excluded from resources, regardless of use.

Payments that fit this category include:

• Pell Grants

• State Student Incentive Grants (SIG)

• Academic Achievement Incentive Scholarships

• Byrd Scholars

• Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunities Grants (FSEOG)

• 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)

• LEAP (Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership)

• SLEAP (Special Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership)

• Work-Study Programs

Verification.  

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

Educational Assistance from public or private agencies that is not received under Title IV of the Higher Education Act, or under a Bureau of Indian Affairs student assistance program, is excluded from resources for nine calendar months only to the extent that the assistance is used or set aside to pay for school attendance costs.

Educational assistance that falls into this category includes Department of Veterans Affairs educational assistance and scholarships from Native organizations.

Educational assistance that is provided directly to an applicant or recipient in the form of cash by a private individual, such as a parent, is considered to be a gift and is also excluded from resources under this provision.

School attendance costs are tuition and fees, including costs for rental or purchase of any equipment, materials, or supplies required by all students in the same course of study.  School attendance costs also include allowances for books, supplies, transportation, and miscellaneous personal expenses necessary for a student to attend school on at least a half-time basis.

From the total amount of educational assistance, subtract all expenses paid or reasonably anticipated to be paid for school attendance costs, including expected child care costs necessary for the client to attend school.

Any remaining funds are considered a resource the month following their receipt, unless otherwise excluded.

Verification.  

Verify the total amount of all educational assistance provided by a public or private agency, which is not received under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, or under BIABureau of Indian Affairs student assistance programs, by viewing documentation from the school or from the source of the assistance.

432-4 L.   ALASKA NATIVE CLAIMS SETTLEMENT ACT (ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act) ASSETS

The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act) excludes the following items from the resources of an Alaska Native, or from the resources of a descendant of an Alaska Native:

1. Alaska Native Fund distributions.  

Distributions from the original Alaska Native Fund are excluded from resources regardless of the amount distributed.

2. Stock.  

Any stock issued or distributed by an ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act corporation (including stock issued as a dividend or distribution on stock) is excluded from resources.

3. Partnership Interests.  

A partnership interest received from an ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act corporation is excluded from resources.  However, income received as a result of a partnership interest is treated as a cash distribution.  (See #6 below.)

4. Land.  

Any land or any interest in land received from an ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act corporation (including any land or any interest in land received as a dividend or distribution on stock) is excluded from resources.  This includes any land or interest in land inherited by a descendant.  Any house or related structure (such as a garage, tool shed, outhouse, or lean-to) that is permanently attached to the land is also excluded, even if it is not used as a home.  If such a house is rented, the rental income will count for APAAdult Public Assistance purposes

5. Interest in a settlement trust.

Any interest in a settlement trust received from an ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act corporation is excluded from resources.

6. Cash distributions.  

For the purpose of this exclusion, cash distributions from ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act corporations are distributions that are made to a class of individuals, such as all shareholders, or all elders.  Cash distributions do not include cash payments that are made to individuals or households for a specific purpose such as wages, a door prize, or a general assistance payment from the corporation.

This exclusion does not apply to any funds received as a result of the investment or deposit of an individual's ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act payments after they are distributed to the shareholders.

1. Any cash distributions (including cash dividends on stock) received from ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act corporations are totally excluded if they were received before February 3, 1988.  

2. For cash distributions received February 3, 1988 or later, the total of all distributions received from ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act corporations in a calendar year are excluded up to $2,000 per individual.  This means that an individual can accrue up to $2,000 per calendar year from all ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act distributions received that year and not have the money counted as a resource for that year or any subsequent year.  For example, an individual who keeps at least $2,000 in cash distributions from ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act corporations each year for 4 consecutive years may have a total of $8,000 excluded from resources.
   
   If the individual keeps more than $2,000 from any year's distribution, the amount exceeding the $2,000 exclusion for that year is a countable resource.  If the individual keeps less than $2,000 from any year's distributions, only the amount retained from that year's distribution qualifies for that year's exclusion.

NOTE:

ANCSAAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act dividends direct deposited into a trust are still countable income for SSI purposes.  This income cannot be legally assigned to a trust.

432-4 M.   OTHER EXCLUSIONS OF PAYMENTS TO INDIANS

For APAAdult Public Assistance and SSISupplemental Security Income purposes, various federal statutes provide for the exclusion of certain payments made to members of Indian tribes and groups.  Some statutes pertain to specific tribes or Indian groups while others apply to certain types of funds.  The following types of payments made to Indian tribes and groups are excluded from both income and resources:

1. Per capita distribution payments by the Blackfeet and Gros Ventre tribal governments to members, which resulted from judgment funds to tribes, are excluded under Public Law 92-254.

2. Per capita distribution payments made by the Secretary of the Interior or by the Indian tribe itself to members of Indian tribes who were due judgment funds are excluded under Public law 93-134.  This does not include payments of funds distributed or held in trust according to public laws enacted before October 19, 1973.

3. Receipts derived from certain trust lands and distributed to members of designated Indian tribes are excluded under Public Law 94-114.  These lands, mineral rights, and receipts are excluded from income and resources, unless they were subject to the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920 and distributed before October 17, 1975.
   
   These Indian trust lands are all located in the lower 48 states in the states of Idaho, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.  A list of lands conveyed to Indian tribes under Public Law 94-114 is maintained in the Director’s Office.  If a case worker becomes aware of funds that may be derived from this source, he or she must contact the APAAdult Public Assistance Policy Specialist for specific directions on the treatment of these funds.

4. Per capita payments made to, or held in trust for, members of the Grand River Band of Ottowa Indians are excluded under Public Law 94-540.

5. Judgment funds, including interest and investment income which accrues on Indian judgment funds while held in trust, and initial purchases made with distributed judgment funds, are excluded under Public Law 97-458.

6. Per capita distributions of funds held in trust by the Secretary of the Interior to members of an Indian Tribe are excluded under Public Law 98-64.  These per capita payments may be distributed by the Secretary of the Interior or by the tribe itself.  In Alaska, distributions of this type have been made by the Metlakatla Indian Community.

7. All money and lands transferred to the members of the Puyallup Tribes under the Puyallup Tribe of Indians Settlement Act of 1989 are excluded under Public Law 101-41.

432-4 N.   WORLD WAR II RESTITUTION FUNDS

Any funds retained from restitution payments made by the U.S. Government to individual Japanese-Americans and to Aleuts (or, if deceased, payments made to their survivors) who were interned or relocated during World War II are excluded from resources under Public Law 100-383.  Restitution payments paid to individual Japanese-Canadians who were interned or relocated during World War II by the Canadian Government are also excluded from resources.

This exclusion also applies to any funds received as a result of the investment or deposit of a restitution payment to eligible Aleuts.

However, any payments subsequently received and retained from a trust established by the Secretary of the Interior appropriated for Aleut residents are counted as a resource.  The trustees may use these trust funds for the benefit of the elderly, disabled, seriously ill, students in need of scholarships, the preservation of Aleut cultural heritage and historical records, the improvement of community centers in affected Aleut villages and other purposes to improve conditions of Aleut life.

Verification.

The Director’s Office maintains a list of individuals who have received Aleut reparation payments.  The case worker may contact the APAAdult Public Assistance Policy Specialist to verify an individual's receipt of Aleut reparations payments.  Documents in the client's possession may be used to verify Japanese-American or Japanese-Canadian payments.
 

432-4 O.   AGENT ORANGE SETTLEMENT FUNDS

Any funds retained from Agent Orange settlement payments are excluded from resources under Public Law 101-201 and 101-239.  Distribution of Agent Orange settlement payments began in March 1989 and ended in 1994. Qualifying veterans received at least one payment a year for the life of the program.  Qualifying survivors of deceased veterans received a single lump sum payment.

Any funds received as a result of the investment or deposit of Agent Orange settlement payments are not excluded from resources.

432-4 P.   VICTIMS' COMPENSATION PAYMENTS

Monies retained from payments received from a fund established by a State to aid victims of crime are exempt as a resource for 9 months.

Interest earned on unspent victims' compensation payments is not excluded from either income or resources.

432-4 Q.   EARNED INCOME TAX CREDITS AND CHILD TAX CREDITS

Unspent federal tax refunds or payments made by an employer that are related to the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITCEarned Income Tax Credits) or the Child Tax Credit are excluded from resources for the 12 calendar months following the month the refund or payment is received.

Interest Earnings:  Interest earned on unspent tax refunds related to the EITCEarned Income Tax Credits or the Child Tax Credit is not excluded from resources.

432-4 R.   GIFTS OF DOMESTIC TRAVEL TICKETS

Under Public Law 101-239, the value of a domestic travel ticket received by an individual or spouse is excluded from resources if the ticket is received as a gift and not converted to cash.  Domestic travel is travel among the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands.  The travel ticket may be for transportation by air, land, or sea.

If the ticket is converted to cash, it becomes unearned income in the month it is converted, and a resource in the month following the month it is converted to cash.

Gifts of non-domestic travel tickets, such as airline tickets to Japan or the Philippines, which can be converted to cash, are not excluded from resources under this provision.

432-4 S.   ENERGY EMPLOYEES OCCUPATIONAL ILLNESS COMPENSATION PAYMENTS

The Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Act provides compensation to individuals who develop illnesses as a result of employment at certain federally owned facilities in which radioactive materials were used.  These payments, if retained, are exempt resources.

432-4 T.   RADIATION EXPOSURE COMPENSATION TRUST FUND

Fallout emitted during the U.S. Government’s atmospheric nuclear testing in Nevada during the 1950s and during a brief period in 1962 exposed some individuals to doses of radiation that put their health at risk.  In addition, some individuals employed in uranium mines from 1947 through 1971 were exposed to large doses of radiation.

Public Law 101-426 created the Radiation Exposure Compensation Trust Fund and authorizes the Department of Justice to make compensation payments to individuals (or their survivors) who were found to have contracted certain diseases after exposure.  The payments will be made as a one-time lump sum.  Generally, the exposure occurred in parts of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming.

Unspent payments from the Radiation Exposure Compensation Fund are excluded from resources.

432-4 U.   INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNT (IDAIndividual Development Account)

An Individual Development Account (IDAIndividual Development Account) is a special bank account that helps an individual save for his or her education, the purchase of a first home, or to start a business.  An individual contributes money from his or her earnings to an IDAIndividual Development Account .  These contributions are then matched with money from another source.  The matching money helps the individual reach his or her goal sooner.

An individual’s contributions, as well as any matching funds, that are deposited into a TANFTemporary Assistance to Needy Families (Federal) -funded IDAIndividual Development Account or Demonstration Project IDAIndividual Development Account are excluded from resources.  Any interest earned on these funds is also excluded from resources.  IDAIndividual Development Accounts that are not funded by either TANFTemporary Assistance to Needy Families (Federal) or Demonstration Project monies are not excluded from resources.

TANFTemporary Assistance to Needy Families (Federal) -funded IDAIndividual Development Account .  The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 authorized states to use money from their TANFTemporary Assistance to Needy Families (Federal) grant to carry out a program to fund IDAIndividual Development Accounts.

Demonstration Project IDAIndividual Development Account .  The Assets for Independence Act (enacted on January 27, 1998) created a Federal Demonstration Project to test the effectiveness of IDAIndividual Development Accounts in improving the lives of participating low-income persons.  This Act provides for Demonstration Project monies to carry out a program to fund IDAIndividual Development Accounts.

432-4 V.   PAYMENTS TO PERSONS CAPTURED AND INTERNED BY NORTH VIETNAM

The Department of Defense provides payments to certain persons who were captured and interned by North Vietnam.  If the individual is deceased, payment may be made to a surviving spouse or, if none, to surviving children (including biological and adoptive children) in equal shares.  The amount payable is a one-time payment of up to $50,000.  These payments are excluded from resources.

432-4 W.   RICKY RAY HEMOPHILIA RELIEF FUND

The Ricky Ray Hemophilia Relief Fund Act of 1998, Public Law 105-369, provides for a single payment of $100,000 to:

• Individuals with a blood-clotting disorder who may have contracted an HIVHuman Immunodeficiency Virus infection from a blood transfusion;

• Current and former spouses of these individuals who also contracted an HIVHuman Immunodeficiency Virus infection;

• Children of these individuals who also contracted an HIVHuman Immunodeficiency Virus infection; and

• Surviving spouses, children, and parents of the above.

Unspent payments from the Ricky Ray Hemophilia Relief Fund are excluded from resources.

432-4 X.   VIETNAM VETERANS’ CHILDREN WITH SPINA BIFIDA

A 1996 study by the National Academy of Sciences found evidence associating parental exposure to herbicides in Vietnam with increased risk of spina bifida in their children.  Spina bifida is a congenital birth defect characterized by defective closure of the bones surrounding the spinal cord.  

Public law 104-204 authorizes the Department of Veterans Affairs (VADepartment of Veterans Affairs) to provide benefits, including a monthly monetary allowance, to certain Vietnam veterans’ children who suffer from spina bifida.   VADepartment of Veterans Affairs payments made to or on behalf of such children are excluded from resources.

432-4 Y.  FEDERAL INCOME TAX RETURNS

Federal income tax returns received after December 31, 2009 are exempt as a resource for 12 months from the date of receipt.