SR 01-10 Dated 03/01

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTER-DEPARTMENT COMMUNICATION

 

SIGNATURE DATE:

February 12, 2001

FROM:

OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR Mary Anne Broshek

AT (OFFICE):

Division of Family Assistance

TO:

DFA Supervisors

 

SUBJECT:

Release of a Federally-Mandated Increase in the Excess Shelter Expense Disregard for Nontarget Food Stamp Households; Policy Clarification to the Treatment of Unearned Income in the Food Stamp Program; Revised Food Stamp Manual (FSM) Chapters 400 and 600

EFFECTIVE DATE:

March 1, 2001

 

SUMMARY

 

This SR releases a federally-mandated increase, from $300 to $340, in the maximum excess shelter expense deduction allowed when determining Food Stamp eligibility and benefit amount for households that do not meet "target population" criteria. Current regulations allow a deduction from household income equal to the amount of verified unreimbursed monthly shelter costs that exceed 50% of the assistance group's adjusted income, up to the maximum shelter deduction. FSM 601, Table I, Food Stamp Deductions, and 611.01, Computing Eligibility, have been revised accordingly.

 

In addition, an unrelated policy clarification was made to FSM 409, Common Types of Resources: Lump Sum Payment: Nonrecurring, in response to recent clarifications of current federal regulations issued by Food and Nutrition Services.

 

POLICY

 

Revised Food Stamp Manual Topics

 

Part 409 COMMON TYPES OF RESOURCES: LUMP SUM PAYMENT: NONRECURRING

Part 601 TABLE I, INCOME LIMITS, PAYMENT STANDARDS, AND ALLOTMENTS: Food Stamp Deductions

Section 611.01 Computing Eligibility

 

Excess Shelter Deduction Increase

 

The maximum excess shelter expense deduction has increased from $300 to $340 effective March 1, 2001 for all new applications, and at the next case recomputation or recertification on or after that date for current food stamp recipients.

 

The following revisions were made to the Food Stamp Manual to reflect these changes:

 

·   FSM Part 601, INCOME LIMITS, PAYMENT STANDARDS, AND ALLOTMENTS, Table I, Food Stamp Deductions, was updated with the new excess shelter deduction amount.

·   A link to Table I, the Food Stamp deduction table, was added to step 6 of the "Net-Income Test" in FSM 611.01, Computing Eligibility.

 

Unrelated Policy Clarifications

 

In a recent clarification of existing policy concerning budgeting of unearned income, Food and Nutrition Services specified that money received in the form of a non-recurring lump-sum payment, including retroactive lump sum payments such as back-owed child support, is not counted as income. Back child support was added as an example of this type of income to FSM 409, Common Types of Resources: Lump Sum Payment: Nonrecurring.

 

IMPLEMENTATION

 

The revised policy released by this SR is effective March 1, 2001 for all initial applications and at the next case recomputation or redetermination, whichever is sooner, occurring on or after March 1, 2001 for all current food stamp recipients. New HEIGHTS has been programmed to apply the new excess shelter maximum as indicated by the policy released in this SR.

 

CLIENT NOTIFICATION

 

No special client notification is planned or needed.

 

TRAINING

 

No training is planned or needed due to the procedural nature of this SR.

 

DISPOSITION

 

This SR may be deleted or destroyed once its contents have been noted and the revised manual topics released by this SR have been posted to the On-Line Manual.

 

DISTRIBUTION

 

This SR will be distributed according to the electronic distribution list for Division of Family Assistance policy releases. This SR, and revised On-Line Manuals, will be available for agency staff in the On-Line Manual Library, and for public access on the Internet at http://www.dhhs.state.nh.us/PMIndex.htm, effective March 2, 2001.

 

This SR, and printed pages with posting instructions, will be distributed under separate cover to all hard copy holders of the Food Stamp Manual.

 

DFA/JBV:s