FOOD STAMP CERTIFICATION MANUAL Introduction This Appendix was developed for the purpose of providing general information about the guidelines for eligibility for various programs. Reference may be made to this section when the caseworker suspects that an individual may be receiving benefits from any program specified. It may also be used to determine if an individual may be entitled to benefits. Individuals who appear to be eligible should be referred to the proper office to make application. The following types of income are described: Child Support
Payments Child Support Enforcement (CSEU) The Child Support Enforcement Program was established for the purpose of enforcing support obligations owed by absent parents to their children. Services are available to anyone, although individuals who do not receive AFDC must return 13% of the amount collected as a fee. Under the CSEU Program, the State is assigned support rights of individuals who receive AFDC. This permits the State to bring child support actions on its behalf, while at the same time, providing AFDC payments to needy families. Applicants for and recipients of AFDC must cooperate in locating absent parents, establishing paternity, and establishing and enforcing support obligations. A nationwide Parent Locator Service is available through CSEU. It may be used by the State to locate absent parents to enforce child or spousal support obligations, to determine child custody, and to assist in cases of parental kidnapping. Up to $50 of monies collected as child or spousal support on behalf of individuals receiving AFDC are refunded to the individual on a monthly basis. Any money left after the refund is distributed to Federal and State governments as necessary as reimbursement of a portion of the AFDC payment provided. Support collections made on behalf of individuals not receiving AFDC will be paid directly to the family after the 13% fee has been deducted. CSEU may collect past due child support by intercepting monies scheduled to be paid in:
Federal payroll checks and certain Federal pension checks may be garnished to collect child support or alimony. Government Employees Insurance System The Federal government, State government and many local entities have retirement systems that cover some or all of their employees. Most of these systems make payments to qualified employees who are disabled or who retire because of age. Some also provide annuities for survivors. Most civilians who work for the Federal government are covered by the Civil Service Retirement Act, the Federal Employees Health Benefits Act, and the Federal Employees Group Life Insurance Act. Federal employment not covered under other retirement systems is generally covered under the Social Security Act. The Civil Service Retirement Act provide annuities to qualified employees who retire because of age and years of service, involuntary separation not for cause, or disability. Annuities are also payable to the widows and minor children of employees who die and, in certain cases, to the survivors of annuitants. Deferred annuities are payable at age 62 to persons who have been in government service but left it before retirement age if they have not withdrawn their contributions. A minimum of five years civilian service is required for entitlement to annuity benefits on the basis of age or disability retirement. A minimum of 18 months is required for survivor annuities. This Act is administered by the Compensation Group, Office of Personnel Management, Washington, DC 20415. The Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance Act provides insurance benefits for survivors of deceased Federal employees who have not waived coverage under this Act. Generally, life insurance coverage stops 31 days after separation from Federal service, but insured employees may retain coverage if they retire on an immediate annuity either for disability or after at least 12 years of creditable service. Claims are handled by the Office of Federal Employee's Group Life Insurance, 4 E. 24th Street, New York, New York 10010. Conditions for receiving benefits and the amounts of the benefit vary considerably. Usually an employee must have had a considerable period of service to receive a substantial annuity. A person who leaves a job after considerable service, but before retirement age may have the option of having his contributions returned or leaving them in the plan so that they may count toward an annuity at retirement age. Other systems, especially those for police officers and fire fighters provide monthly benefits to survivors, particularly aged widows. Generally however, provision for survivors consists either of a refund of contributions or continuing payments to the survivors of an annuitant. The Railroad Retirement Act and the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act provide protection for persons who work for railroads and certain companies closely connected with the railroad industry. Railroad annuities, which are paid in the event of retirement, disability or death, are payable as early as age 60. Age and length of service determines the point of eligibility. Disability annuities are paid to individuals with at least ten years of railroad employment who are totally disabled and for individuals with at least 20 years of service who become partially disabled. Annuities are also payable to spouses, surviving spouses, children and dependent parents. Effective October, 1981, annuities may be paid to divorced spouses and surviving divorced or remarried spouses. A lump sum may be payable due to the death of a worker if there are no survivors eligible to receive a monthly annuity. Working after entitlement to any type of annuity has begun affects eligibility to receive monthly payments. Some employees may qualify for both a Railroad Retirement annuity and a Social Security benefit. If a determination is made that an employee is entitled to both, a combined payment will be made. A certificate of award will be issued to the beneficiary indicating the Social Security benefit amount and advising that the combined payment will be handled by the Railroad Retirement Board. Railroad Unemployment Insurance The Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act provides benefits to qualified workers who are ill or unemployed. These payments are possible only after other payments have been exhausted (i.e. salary vacation pay, etc.) Qualifications which must be met are based upon:
The duration and amount of payments is limited. Eligibility determination and payment authorizations are initiated by the Railroad Retirement Board. For future information regarding Railroad Retirement contact:
Payments Through the Social Security Administration The Social Security Administration operates offices on the local level to administer the programs authorized by the Social Security Act. At the Social Security office a person may:
The Social Security Administration provides these services free of charge. Social Security Benefits (SSA) Social Security benefits may be paid as:
To receive benefits, a person must file an application and meet certain eligibility requirements. Payments are made by the Treasury Department on a monthly basis. Mode of payment may be:
The following individuals may be entitled to receive Social Security checks.
Disability is defined as:
A disabled worker is entitled to monthly cash benefits beginning with the first month in which the disabled worker meets all of the following conditions:
The waiting period consists of 5 full consecutive calendar months. It begins with the earliest full calendar month (not more than 17 months before the application was filed) throughout which the worker:
The worker is not entitled to benefits for any month in the waiting period. However, no waiting period is required when a worker was previously entitled to disabled worker's benefits or to a period of disability, either of which ended within five years before the month he became disabled. The waiting period is not applicable to eligibility for SSI benefits. Social Security checks paid to retired workers may be adjusted to reflect earnings by the retired worker. A lump-sum death payment of $255 is payable upon the death of an insured worker in the following order of priority:
Applications for lump-sum death benefits must be filed by the beneficiary within a two-year period unless the beneficiary is the widow(er) of the deceased worker, and was entitled to spouse's benefits before the month in which the worker died. Medicare "Hospital Insurance Protection" means that insured persons may have benefits paid for certain hospital and related care services. Persons eligible for Medicare are listed below.
A health insurance identification card is issued to each person entitled to hospital insurance protection. This is known as Part A coverage. No premium is paid for Part A coverage. "Medical insurance protection" means that the insured person may have benefits paid for certain physician's services, (including surgery), home health services, and some other items and services not covered under Part A, hospital insurance protection. The medical insurance protection is financed through premiums paid by each person who enrolls (or by the state where the person is enrolled under a Federal/State agreement) and through contributions appropriated from federal general revenues. A person is generally eligible to enroll in the medical insurance plan if he or she is:
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) SSI is a cash assistance program available to the general public and administered by the Social Security Administration. U.S. citizens or legally admitted aliens residing in this county who qualify as aged (65 or older), blind, or disabled and who meet income and resource criteria may receive SSI. To be eligible for SSI an individual may not have monthly countable income more than the Federal Benefit Rate (FBR). The FBR is established for eligible individuals and eligible couples. The FBR is reduced by one-third when an individual or couple resides in the household of another. This reduction is applicable only if support and maintenance in the form of both food and shelter are provided. The reduction applies only for the months in which the living arrangement exists. The FBR is also reduced if a beneficiary receives food, clothing, or shelter from others. The reduction, which depends on the value of the support received, generally does not exceed one-third of the FBR. Countable resources may not exceed:
Individuals may be disqualified for receiving SSI due to:
Individuals may qualify for both SSI benefits and Social Security benefits if they meet the requirements of each. Individuals who became entitled to a minimum Social Security benefit prior to 1982 continue to receive that benefit. Those who became entitled to a Social Security benefit after 1981 receive an amount based on their earnings in covered employment or self-employment. The amount of an SSI benefit is reduced if other income (including Social Security benefits) is received. The eligibility of each SSI recipient is redetermined periodically to insure that eligibility continues and that payments are in the proper amount. A person may be retroactively entitled to monthly SSA or SSI benefits before the month in which the application was filed. Retirement and survivor claims may be paid retroactively for up to 6 months and disability benefits may be paid retroactively for up to 12 months. Entitlement begins with the first month in which all the requirements were met during the designated period. In some cases, a person may receive retroactive benefits even if he is no longer eligible when the application is filed. In these situations, benefits begin 6 months (or 12 months in certain cases involving disability) prior to the month when the application was filed and end with the month prior to the month eligibility ends. When a person requests benefits in a written statement but dies before filing the application, benefits may be payable for certain months to a survivor whose eligibility depended upon the claimant's entitlement to benefits. The unemployment insurance program provides partial income replacement for a limited period to persons who become unemployed. It is a State-administered program with Federal participation. ESD (Employment Security Division) is responsible for handling the claims of unemployed workers, deciding in each case whether the claimant is entitled to unemployment benefits, and issuing checks to eligible unemployed workers. The general requirements for receiving unemployment insurance (UI) benefits are listed below.
The amount of the weekly UI payment varies according to the benefit formula. Minimum limits and maximum benefits are stipulated. Benefits are payable for partial unemployment. Unemployment benefits can be paid for a maximum of 26 weeks. Additional benefits may be paid for a limited period to workers who have exhausted their regular unemployment benefits during a period of high unemployment. Veterans of service in the U.S. Armed Forces who were discharged under conditions other than dishonorable, are provided more than 40 different benefits and services by the Federal government. Benefits are also paid to a veteran's survivor and, in some circumstances, to the families of living veterans. Some of the benefits administered by the Veterans' Administration are listed below.
An individual's financial status may impose limitations on available services and benefits when the basis of eligibility is not a service-connected disability. Special payments are made by the Veteran's Administration to a widow, widower, divorced wife, parent, or child of a deceased veteran if all of the following conditions are met.
The term "service" means active duty, active duty for training or inactive duty training. Worker's compensation laws ensures medical care and cash benefits to a worker injured in connection with a job or cash benefits to dependents if the worker is killed. All employers with three or more employees must carry worker's compensation insurance with the following exceptions:
It is against the law for the employee to pay any portion of the Worker's Compensation Insurance premium. The employee must be off work more than 7 seven days as a result of a job-related injury to be eligible for weekly benefits. Weekly benefits are paid at 66-2/3 percent of the employee's average weekly wage with a maximum of $175.00 per week. Weekly benefits will continue until the employee is completely healed. If the disability is permanent, compensation will be paid according to the degree of disability. Worker's Compensation will also pay all reasonable and necessary medical costs related to the injury. Death benefits to a widow are usually provided throughout her lifetime unless she remarries and may also be provided to surviving children until they reach a given age. |