WAC 182-512-0840 SSI-related medical -- Work and agency-related income exclusions.

Effective April 14, 2014.

The agency excludes the following when determining eligibility for Washington apple health (WAH) SSI-related medical programs:

1. Work related expenses:
   1. That enable an SSI-related person to work; or
   2. That allows a blind or disabled person to work and that are directly related to the person's impairment.
2. First sixty-five dollars plus one-half of the remainder of earned income. This is considered a work allowance/incentive. This deduction does not apply to income already excluded.
3. Any portion of self-employment income normally allowed as an income deduction by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
4. Earned income of a person age twenty-one or younger if that person meets the definition of a student as defined in WAC 182-512-0820.
5. Veteran's aid and attendance, housebound allowance, unusual/unreimbursed medical expenses (UME) paid by the VA to some disabled veterans, their spouses, widows or parents. For people receiving WAH long-term care services, see chapter 182-513 WAC.
6. Department of veterans affairs benefits designated for the veteran's dependent as long as the SSI-related applicant is not the dependent receiving the income. If an SSI-related applicant receives a dependent allowance based on the veteran's or veteran's survivor claim, the income is countable as long as it is not paid due to unusual medical expenses (UME).
7. Payments provided in cash or in-kind, to an ineligible or nonapplying spouse, under any government program that provides social services provided to the person, such as chore services or attendant care.
8. SSA refunds for medicare buy-in premiums paid by the person when the state also paid the premiums.
9. Income that causes a person to lose SSI eligibility, due solely to reduction in the SSP.
10. Tax rebates or special payments excluded under other statutes.
11. Any public agency refund of taxes paid on real property or on food.

WAC 182-512-0860 SSI-related medical -- Income exclusions under federal statute or other state laws.

Effective April 14, 2014.

The Social Security Act and other federal statutes or state laws list income that the agency excludes when determining eligibility for Washington apple health (WAH) SSI-related medical programs. These exclusions include, but are not limited to:

1. Income tax refunds;
2. Federal earned income tax credit (EITC) payments for 12 months after the month of receipt;
3. Compensation provided to volunteers in the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), formerly known as ACTION programs established by the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973. P.L. 93-113;
4. Assistance to a person (other than wages or salaries) under the Older Americans Act of 1965, as amended by section 102 (h)(1) of Pub. L. 95-478 (92 Stat. 1515, 42 U.S.C. 3020a);
5. Federal, state and local government payments including assistance provided in cash or in-kind under any government program that provides medical or social services;
6. Certain cash or in-kind payments a person receives from a governmental or nongovernmental medical or social service agency to pay for medical or social services;
7. Value of food provided through a federal or nonprofit food program such as WIC, donated food program, school lunch program;
8. Assistance based on need, including:
   1. Any federal SSI income or state supplement payment (SSP) based on financial need;
   2. Basic Food;
   3. State-funded cash assistance;
   4. CEAP;
   5. TANF; and
   6. Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) general assistance.
9. Housing assistance from a federal program such as HUD if paid under:
   1. United States Housing Act of 1937 (section 1437 et seq. of 42 U.S.C.);
   2. National Housing Act (section 1701 et seq. of 12 U.S.C.);
   3. Section 101 of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965 (section 1701s of 12 U.S.C., section 1451 of 42 U.S.C.);
   4. Title V of the Housing Act of 1949 (section 1471 et seq. of 42 U.S.C.);
   5. Section 202(h) of the Housing Act of 1959; or
   6. Weatherization provided to low-income homeowners by programs that consider income in the eligibility determinations.
10. Energy assistance payments including:
    1. Those to prevent fuel cutoffs; and
    2. Those to promote energy efficiency.
11. Income from employment and training programs as specified in WAC 182-512-0780.
12. Foster grandparents program;
13. Title IV-E and state foster care maintenance payments if the foster child is not included in the assistance unit;
14. The value of any childcare provided or arranged (or any payment for such care or reimbursement for costs incurred for such care) under the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act, as amended by section 8(b) of P.L. 102-586 (106 Stat. 5035);
15. Educational assistance as specified in WAC 182-512-0760;
16. The excluded income described in WAC 182-512-0770 and other income received by American Indians/Alaska Natives that is excluded by federal law;
17. Payments from Susan Walker v. Bayer Corporation, et al., 96-c-5024 (N.D. Ill) (May 8, 1997) settlement funds;
18. Payments from Ricky Ray Hemophilia Relief Fund Act of 1998, P.L. 105-369;
19. Disaster assistance paid under Federal Disaster Relief P.L. 100-387 and Emergency Assistance Act, P.L. 93-288 amended by P.L. 100-707 and for farmers P.L. 100-387;
20. Payments to certain survivors of the Holocaust as victims of Nazi persecution; payments excluded pursuant to section 1(a) of the Victims of Nazi Persecution Act of 1994, P.L. 103-286 (108 Stat. 1450);
21. Payments made under section 500 through 506 of the Austrian General Social Insurance Act;
22. Payments made under the Netherlands' Act on Benefits for Victims of Persecution (WUV);
23. Restitution payments and interest earned to Japanese Americans or their survivors, and Aleuts interned during World War II, established by P.L. 100-383;
24. Payments made from the Agent Orange Settlement Funds or any other funds to settle Agent Orange liability claims established by P.L. 101-201;
25. Payments made under section six of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act established by P.L. 101-426;
26. Any interest or dividend is excluded as income, except for the community spouse of an institutionalized person; and
27. Working families' tax credit payments under RCW 82.08.0206.

WAC 182-512-0800 SSI-related medical -- General income exclusions.

Effective September 30th 2024.

The agency excludes, or does not consider, the following when determining a person's eligibility for Washington apple health SSI-related medical programs:

1. The first $20 per month of unearned income. If there is less than $20 of unearned income in a month, the remainder is excluded from earned income in that month.
   1. The $20 limit is the same, whether applying it for a couple or for a single person.
   2. The disregard does not apply to income paid totally or partially by the federal government or a nongovernmental agency on the basis of an eligible person's needs.
   3. The $20 disregard is applied after all exclusions have been taken from income.
2. Income that is not reasonably anticipated or is received infrequently or irregularly, whether for a single person or each person in a couple when it is:
   1. Earned and does not exceed a total of $30 per calendar quarter; or
   2. Unearned and does not exceed a total of $60 per calendar quarter;
   3. An increase in a person's burial funds that were established on or after November 1, 1982, if the increase is the result of:
      1. Interest earned on excluded burial funds; or
      2. Appreciation in the value of an excluded burial arrangement that was left to accumulate and become part of separately identified burial funds.
3. Essential expenses necessary for a person to receive compensation (e.g., necessary legal fees in order to get a settlement).
4. Receipts, which are not considered income, when they are for:
   1. Replacement or repair of an exempt resource;
   2. Prepayment or repayment of medical care paid by a health insurance policy or medical service program; or
   3. Payments made under a credit life or credit disability policy.
5. The fee a guardian or representative payee charges as reimbursement for providing services, when such services are a requirement for the person to receive payment of the income.
6. Funds representing shared household costs.
7. Crime victim's compensation.
8. The value of a common transportation ticket, given as a gift, that is used for transportation and not converted to cash.
9. Gifts that are not for clothing or shelter.
10.  In-kind payments. The agency does not consider in-kind income received from someone other than a person legally responsible for the person unless it is earned. Therefore, the following in-kind payments are not counted when determining eligibility for apple health SSI-related medical programs:
    1. In-kind payments for services paid by a person's employer if:
       1. The service is not provided in the course of an employer's trade or business; or
       2. The service is in the form of food that is on the employer's business premises and for the employer's convenience; or
       3. The service is in the form of shelter that is on the employer's business premises, for the employer's convenience, and required to be accepted by the employee as a condition of employment.
    2. In-kind payments made to people in the following categories:
       1. Agricultural employees;
       2. Domestic employees;
       3. Members of the uniformed services; and
       4. Persons who work from home to produce specific products for the employer from materials supplied by the employer.
11. Unearned income withheld, before receipt by the person, for mandatory income tax purposes.

WAC 182-512-0820 SSI-related medical -- Child-related income exclusions and allocations.

Effective June 10, 2019.

1. For the purposes of Washington apple health SSI-related medical eligibility determinations under chapter 182-512 WAC, a child is defined as a person who is:
   1. Unmarried;
   2. Living in the household of the SSI-related applicant;
   3. The natural, adopted or stepchild of the SSI-related applicant or the applicant's spouse;
   4. Not receiving a needs-based cash payment such as TANF or SSI; and
   5. Either:
      1. Age seventeen or younger; or
      2. Age twenty-one or younger and meets the SSI-related definition of a student described in subsection (6) of this section.
2. The agency allows an allocation for the support of a child when determining the countable income of an SSI-related applicant. The allocation is calculated as follows:
   1. For apple health categorically needy (CN) health care coverage, the allocation is deducted from the countable income of a nonapplying spouse before determining the amount of the nonapplying spouse's income to be deemed to the SSI-related applicant. Allocations to children are not deducted from the income of an unmarried SSI-related applicant.
   2. For apple health medically needy (MN) medical coverage, the allocation is first deducted from the income of the nonapplying spouse as described in subsection (2)(a) of this section when the SSI-related applicant is married, and from the income of the applicant when the applicant is not married.
3. The child's countable income, if any, is subtracted from the maximum child's allowance before determining the amount of allocation.
4. Foster care payments received for a child who is not SSI-eligible and who is living in the household, placed there by a licensed, nonprofit or public child placement or childcare agency are excluded from income regardless of whether the client requesting or receiving SSI-related medical is the adult foster parent or the child who was placed.
5. Adoption support payments, received by an adult for a child in the household that are designated for the child's needs, are excluded as income. Adoption support payments that are not specifically designated for the child's needs are not excluded and are considered unearned income to the adult.
6. The agency excludes the earned income of a client age twenty-one or younger if that client is a student. In order to allow the student earned income exclusion, a student must:
   1. Attend a school, college, or university a minimum of eight hours a week; or
   2. Pursue a vocational or technical training program designed to prepare the student for gainful employment a minimum of twelve hours per week; or
   3. Attend school or be home schooled in grades seven through twelve at least twelve hours per week.
7. Any portion of a grant, scholarship, fellowship, or gift used for tuition, fees and/or other necessary educational expenses at any educational institution is excluded from income and not counted as a resource for nine months after the month of receipt.
8. One-third of child support payments received for a child who is an applicant for SSI-related medical is excluded from the child's income. Child support payments that are subject to the one-third deduction may be voluntary or court-ordered payments for current support or arrears.
9. The following gifts to, or for the benefit of, a client under eighteen years old who has a life-threatening condition, from an organization described in section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 which is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of that code, are excluded:
   1. In-kind gifts that are not converted to cash; and
   2. Cash gifts up to a total of two thousand dollars in a calendar year.
10. Veteran's payments made to, or on behalf of, natural children of Vietnam veterans regardless of their age or marital status, for any disability resulting from spina bifida suffered by these children are excluded from income. Any portion of a veteran's payment that is designed as the dependent's income is countable income to the dependent and not the applicant (assuming the applicant is not the dependent).

WAC 182-512-0760 SSI-related medical -- Education assistance.

Effective April 14, 2014.

1. The agency does not count:
   1. Educational assistance in the form of grants, loans or work study, issued from Title IV of the Higher Education Amendments (Title IV – HEA) and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) education assistance programs. Examples of Title IV – HEA and BIA educational assistance include, but are not limited to:
      1. College work study (federal and state);
      2. Pell grants; and
      3. BIA higher education grants.
   2. Educational assistance in the form of grants, loans or work study made available under any program administered by the department of education (DOE) to an undergraduate student. Examples of programs administered by DOE include, but are not limited to:
      1. Christa McAuliffe Fellowship Program;
      2. Jacob K. Javits Fellowship Program; and
      3. Library Career Training Program.
2. For assistance in the form of grants, loans or work study under the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act, P.L. 101-391:
   1. If the person attends school half-time or more, the agency subtracts the following expenses:
      1. Tuition;
      2. Fees;
      3. Costs for purchase or rental of equipment, materials, or supplies required of all students in the same course of study;
      4. Books;
      5. Supplies;
      6. Transportation;
      7. Dependent care; and
      8. Miscellaneous personal expenses.
   2. If the person attends school less than half-time, the agency subtracts the following expenses:
      1. Tuition;
      2. Fees; and
      3. Costs for purchase or rental of equipment, materials, or supplies required of all students in the same course of study.
3. WorkFirst work-study income is not counted.
4. Income received from work study program that is not excluded under subsection (1) of this section is counted as earned income and is subject to earned income disregards as described in WAC 182-512-0840(2).
5. If the person receives Veteran's Administration Educational Assistance:
   1. All applicable attendance costs are subtracted; and
   2. The remaining income is budgeted as unearned income.

WAC 182-512-0770 SSI-related medical -- American Indian or Alaska Native excluded income and resources.

Effective April 16, 2015.

1. The agency excludes the following types of income from being considered when determining eligibility for Washington apple health (WAH) categorically needy (CN) and medically needy (MN) SSI-related programs for American Indians or Alaska Natives:
   1. Distributions from Alaska Native corporations and settlement trusts;
   2. Distributions from any property held in trust, subject to federal restrictions, located within the most recent boundaries of a prior federal reservation, or otherwise under the supervision of the Secretary of the Interior;
   3. Distributions and payments from rents, leases, rights of way, royalties, usage rights, or natural resource extraction and harvest from:
      1. Rights of ownership or possession in any lands described in (b) of this subsection; or
      2. Federally protected rights regarding off-reservation hunting, fishing, gathering, or usage of natural resources.
   4. Distributions resulting from real property ownership interests related to natural resources and improvements that are:
      1. Located on or near a reservation or within the most recent boundaries of a prior federal reservation; or
      2. Resulting from the exercise of federally protected rights related to such real property ownership interests.
   5. Payments resulting from:
      1. Ownership interests in or usage rights to items that have unique religious, spiritual, traditional, or cultural significance; or
      2. Rights that support subsistence or a traditional lifestyle according to applicable tribal law or custom.
   6. Student financial assistance provided under the Bureau of Indian Affairs education programs; and
   7. Any other applicable income exclusion as provided by federal law, regulation, or rule.
2. The agency excludes the following types of resources from being considered when determining eligibility for WAH-CN and WAH-MN SSI-related programs for American Indians or Alaska Natives:
   1. Property, including real property and improvements, that is:
      1. Held in trust, subject to federal restrictions, or otherwise under the supervision of the Secretary of the Interior; and
      2. Located on a reservation, including any federally recognized Indian tribe's reservation, pueblo, or colony, including:
         1. Former reservations in Oklahoma;
         2. Alaska Native regions established by the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act; and
         3. Indian allotments on or near a reservation as designated and approved by the Bureau of Indian Affairs of the Department of the Interior.
   2. Property located within the most recent boundaries of a prior federal reservation for any federally recognized tribe not described in (a) of this subsection;
   3. Ownership interests in rents, leases, royalties, or usage rights related to natural resources (including, but not limited to, extraction of natural resources or harvesting of timber, other plants and plant products, animals, fish and shellfish) resulting from the exercise of federally protected rights; and
   4. Ownership interests in or usage rights to items not covered in (a), (b), or (c) of this subsection that have unique religious, spiritual, traditional, or cultural significance or rights that support subsistence or a traditional lifestyle according to applicable tribal law or custom.
3. When determining eligibility for WAH-CN and WAH-MN SSI-related programs for American Indians or Alaska Natives, the agency counts or excludes amounts received by tribal members from exercise of gaming revenues (per capita distributions) that are retained after the month of receipt based on the type of resource in which the money is retained.  If the amounts are retained in a countable resource (for example, cash, checking account, or savings account), the agency treats the amounts as a countable resource.  If the amounts are converted to an excluded resource (for example, personal property like a refrigerator), the agency treats the amounts as excluded resources.

WAC 182-512-0780 SSI-related medical -- Employment and training programs.

Effective April 14, 2014.

1. The agency excludes income received from the following programs:
   1. Payments issued under the Workforce Investment Act (WIA);
   2. Payments issued under the National and Community Service Trust Act of 1993. This includes payments made through the AmeriCorps program;
   3. Payments issued under Title I of the Domestic Volunteer Act of 1973, such as VISTA, AmeriCorps VISTA, University Year for Action, and Urban Crime Prevention Program; and
   4. All payments issued under Title II of the Domestic Volunteer Act of 1973. These include:
      1. Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP);
      2. Foster Grandparents Program; and
      3. Senior Companion Program.
2. The agency counts training allowances from vocational and rehabilitative programs as earned income when:
   1. The program is recognized by federal, state, or local governments; and
   2. The allowance is not a reimbursement.
3. The agency excludes support service payments received by or made on behalf of WorkFirst recipients.