Household Composition

Definitions

The following definitions are required for understanding and determining household composition.

Elderly or Disabled [63-102(e)(i)]

An individual who:

1. Is 60 years of age or older.
2. Receives SSI benefits under Title XVI, or disability or blindness payments under Title II of the Social Security Act.
3. Receives disability RETIREMENT benefits from a governmental agency because of a disability considered permanent under Section 221(i) of the Social Security Act. [Refer to “Elderly or Disabled [63-102(e)(i)],” page 9-1].]
4. Receives Interim Assistance pending the receipt of SSI, provided that eligibility to receive those benefits is based on disability or blindness criteria that is at least as stringent as those used under Title XVI of the Social Security Act.
5. Receives disability-related medical assistance under Title XIX (Medi-Cal) of the Social Security Act.
6. Is a veteran with a service-connected or non-service-connected disability rated by the Veteran's Administration (VA) as total, or who is paid as totally disabled under Title 38 of the United States Code.
7. Is a veteran OR the surviving spouse of a veteran, considered by the VA to be in need of regular aid and attendance, or permanently housebound as defined in Title 38 of the United States Code.
8. Is a surviving child of a veteran and considered by the VA to be permanently incapable of self-support under Title 38 of the United States Code.
9. Is a surviving spouse or surviving child of a veteran and considered by the VA to be entitled to compensation for a service-connected death, or pension benefits for a non-service connected death under Title 38 of the United States Code,
   AND
   Has a disability considered permanent under Section 221(i) of the Social Security Act. (See NOTE).

   1. Note: “Entitled” means those persons who are eligible for these benefits, but who may or may not yet be receiving them.

10. Receives an annuity payment under Section 2(a)(i)(iv) of the Railroad Entitlement Act of 1974;
    AND
    Is determined to be eligible for Medicare by the RRB.

    1. Note: Eligibility for Medicare must be specifically requested from the RRB. (Less than 50% are eligible.)

11. Receives an annuity payment under Section 2(a)(i)(v) of the Railroad Entitlement Act of 1974;
    AND
    Is determined to be disabled based on the criteria used under Title XVI (SSI) of the Social Security Act;
    AND
    Qualifies for Medicare.

Refer to Separate Household Test for Elderly and Disabled Person [63-402.16, 63-1101.10] for information regarding requirements for elderly/disabled individuals to be a separate household.

Note: Verification of #3 and #7, above.

In order to verify disability in definitions #3 and #7, the SSA current list of disabilities may be used by the EW. This list is called the MINE list. Refer to The Medical Improvement Not Expected (MINE) List below.

• If it is obvious to the EW that the individual has a disability listed on the MINE list, the household will be considered to have a verified disability. Verification from SSA or a doctor is not required if adequate documentation of the disability determination is entered on the Maintain Case Comments window. The documentation must include the number of the obvious MINE disability.

• If the disability is not obvious to the EW, the household must provide a statement from a physician or certified psychologist, stating that the individual has one of the MINE impairments. The EW must specifically request the MINE listing number.

The Medical Improvement Not Expected (MINE) List*

The MINE list, developed by the SSA, applies to individuals with impairments in which no improvement is expected. These are extremely severe impairments determined on the basis of experience in administering the disability programs to be at least static, but more likely to be progressively disabling either by reason of the impairment itself or impairment complications and which are unlikely to improve. Impairments which currently are not expected to improve are listed below.

*Effective February, 1986

 

MINE/Permanent Impairment Listing Codes
Impairment and Number	Listing Code
Arthritis of one major joint in each Upper Extremity	1.04
Disorders of the Spine (Arthritis manifested by Ankylosis) or Fixation at 30 degrees or more)	1.05A
Amputation or permanent loss of use of two limbs	1.09
Amputation of leg at hip	1.10A
Amputation of leg or foot because of Diabetes or Peripheral Vascular Disease	1.10B
Statutory blindness, except if due to cataracts or detached Retina - markedly reduced ability to see objects not correctable by surgery, other treatment, or glasses	2.02, 2.03A/B
Loss of Visual Efficiency (visual efficiency of better eye after best correction 20 percent or less)	2.03C, 2.04
Hearing Impairments (Hearing not restorable by a Hearing Aid)	2.08A/B
Chronic Obstructive Airway Disease	3.02
Ischemic Heart Disease with chest pain of cardiac origin	4.04A/B
Arteriosclerosis Obliterans or Thromboangiitis	4.13
Chronic liver disease with Esophageal Varices resulting in massive hemorrhage or requiring Shunt operation	5.05A/B
Impaired renal function due to Chronic Progressive Disease, incurable kidney disease (documented by persistent adverse objective findings) resulting in severely reduced function which may require Dialysis or transplant	6.02
Diabetes Mellitus with Manifestations as required by the applicable listing	9.08
Central nervous system vascular accident, with manifestations as required by the applicable listing more than 3 months postvascular accident	11.04
Parkinsonian Syndrome, with disturbance of movement, gait, or station as required by the applicable listing	11.06
Cerebral Palsy, with Manifestations as required by the applicable listing	11.07
Spinal cord or nerve root lesion resulting in Paraplegia or Quadriplegia, damage to the spinal cord or major branches resulting in markedly reduced function in two or more extremities	11.08
Multiple Sclerosis, damage to the nervous system due to areas of inflammation which recur and may progress to interference with function of the nervous system, including severe weakness, paralysis	11.09
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis	11.10
Anterior Poliomyelitis, with interference in swallowing, breathing, speech, or motor function as described in the applicable listing	11.11
Muscular Dystrophy, a chronic progressive disease causing irreversible wasting of the muscles with a significant effect on the ability to use the arms and/or legs	11.13
Degenerative disease, such as Huntington's Chorea, Friedreich's Ataxia, and Spinocerebellar Degeneration, with manifestations as required by the applicable listing	11.17
Chronic brain syndrome (Organic Brain Syndrome) with manifestations as required by the applicable listing	12.02
Functional psychotic disorders if institutionalized in a licensed Mental Hospital for past 12 Months without releases that would indicate improvement	12.03
Functional nonpsychotic disorders if institutionalized in a licensed Mental Hospital for past 12 months without releases that would indicate improvement	12.04
Severe mental retardation, with manifestations as required by the applicable listing	12.05A, B or C
Age 55 and over with following conditions that meets Listing: Arthritis of major weight bearing joint Organic loss of speech Diffuse Pulmonary Fibrosis Other restrictive ventilatory disorders Chronic Venous insufficiency Scleroderma or progressive system Sclerosis Tabes Dorsalis Subacute combined cord degeneration Springomyelia Ischemic heart disease (chest pain of cardiac origin)	1.03A 2.09 3.04 3.05 4.12 10.05 11.15 11.16 11.19 4.04C/D
NOTE: All impairments listed above are applicable only to cases originally allowed as meeting the listings. The impairments listed below do not have a specific listing equivalent.
Amputation of a limb, current age 55 or older
Age 55 and over with two substantiated Myocardial Infractions

Felony Drug Conviction

AB 1468 repeals the existing prohibition from receipt of CalWORKs and CalFresh benefits for individuals convicted in state or federal court after December 31, 1997 of a dug related felony. AB 1468 enacts statutory changes to the CalWORKs and CalFresh programs so that individuals with a prior felony drug conviction become eligible to receive benefits, so long as the individual is compliant with the terms of his or her probation or parole. With the enactment of AB 1468, individuals with a prior felony drug convictions are eligible for CalFresh benefits effective April 1, 2015.

Applicants and recipients with prior felony drug convictions must be in compliance with the terms of their parole or probation in order to be eligible to receive CalFresh benefits. Therefore, any member who has found by a court of law to be in violation of probation or parole is ineligible for CalFresh.

Intake process

When applicants and recipients declare in the CalFresh application that no member of their household is found by a court of law to be in violation of probation or parole, no other verification is required.

Continuing process

Households who do not request assistance for a drug felon in their household, must be reviewed for possible eligibility during their recertification. If the drug felon is eligible, they must be added to the CalFresh household on the first of the month following the discovery of eligibility.

When recipients are in violation of the terms of their parole or probation, they must be discontinued from the aid. When the EW receives the DA 1 from the investigator, the EW must review the case and discontinue the parole or probation violator at the end of the month of discovery with a 10 day timely notice, if appropriate. No additional verification shall be required of individuals to verify the status of an applicant or recipient's parole or probation.

Reminder: The FFM report provides counties with information for current recipients who are fleeing felons or parole or probation violators. Currently, the State sends the FFM report to the County SIU and an investigator sends the “Public Assistance Fraud Match” (DA 1) to the EW. The EW is required to review the case and discontinue the parole or probation violator, if appropriate.

For more information regarding the process for FFM, Refer to Common Place Handbook Chapter 5.11

Fleeing Felon and Persons in Violation of Probation or Parole Violation
[63-102f.(3), 63-102p.(2) & 63-402.224 (a&b)]

Individuals who are fleeing felons and persons in violation of their probation or parole are included as members of the household for the purpose of defining a household. However, such individuals are ineligible to receive CalFresh and are treated as excluded members.

Note: Fleeing felons and probation/parole violators are treated in the same manner as individuals disqualified for an IPV.

Fleeing Felon

“Fleeing Felon” is defined as an individual who is fleeing to avoid prosecution, custody or confinement after conviction of a crime or attempt to commit a crime, that is considered a felony under the law where the individual is fleeing.

An individual is considered a fleeing felon when a federal, state, or local law enforcement officer, acting in an official capacity, presents an outstanding felony arrest warrant that conforms to one of three NCIC Uniform Offense Classification codes, to the County obtain information on the location of and other information about the individual named in the warrant. The information may also be discovered while working the Fleeing Felon Match report. An individual is a fleeing felon when a warrant for arrest is presented with one of three NCIC codes.

The three NCIC codes are:

• Escape (4901)
• Flight to Avoid (prosecution, confinement, etc.) (4902)
• Flight-Escape (4999)

Note: A felony is considered a high misdemeanor under the law of the state of New Jersey.

Definition of Probation/Parole Violation

To be considered a probation or parole violator, an impartial party, such as a judge or officially sanctioned tribunal, must determine that the individual violated a condition of his or her probation or parole imposed under federal or state lase and that federal, state, or local law enforcement authorities are actively seeking the individual to enforce the conditions of the probation or parole.

Actively Seeking for the Verification of Probation/Parole Violation

To determine if an individual is in violation of probation or parole, counties must verify that law enforcement is actively seeking the individual. Once the verification that an individual is a probation or parole violator and is being actively sought has been attained, the County must take immediate action to terminate or deny CalFresh benefits.

Verification Procedures

SIU contacts the law enforcement agency and allow the agency 20 calendar days from the date of the inquiry to respond to a request for information about the conditions of a probation or parole violation, and whether the law enforcement agency is actively seeking the individual.

The following steps are required:

• If The Law Enforcement Agency does not indicate that it intends to enforce the felony warrant or arrest the individual for the probation or parole violation within 30 days of the date of the County’s request for information, then the County must determine that the individual is NOT a probation or parole violator and document the household’s case file accordingly.
• If the Law Enforcement Agency indicates that it does intend to enforce the felony warrant or arrest the individual for the probation or parole violation within 30 days of the date of the county’s request for information, postpone taking any action on the case until the 30-day period has expired.
• Once the 30-day period as expired, the County must verify with the law enforcement agency whether it has attempted to arrest the probation or parole violator.
  • If It has, then the EW takes action to deny the applicant, or discontinue the probation/parole violator.
  • If it has NOT taken any action within 30 days, then the must NOT consider the individual a probation or parole violator and take NO further action. Document the case file accordingly.

ExampleExample

ExampleExample

IPV Disqualified [63-402.223]

An individual disqualified from the CalFresh for committing an IPV (Intentional Program Violation).

Live-in Attendant [63-402.212]

An individual who resides with a household to provide medical, housekeeping, child care, or other similar personal services.

Living Together

For CalFresh purposes, the determination that child and parent live together is not limited to sharing the same residence, but maintaining the dependent relationship between child and parent. A dependent relationship can be established in EITHER of two ways:

• If a child and parent reside on the same parcel of land and do not live in separate and distinct living quarters they are living together. Separate and distinct living quarters include different buildings with self-contained living facilities, different units within the same building with self-contained living facilities, and mobile homes that are affixed to the land. To be considered affixed to the land the mobile home would have to have some type of permanent foundation sunk into the earth.
• If a child or parent repeatedly uses the kitchen, bathroom or sleeping facilities of his/her parent or child they are living together. Repeatedly using is defined as a majority of usage of any such type of facility.

Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers, Cannery Workers [63-102m(8), 63-102s(1)]

Classifications

Migrant Farmworker

• Does not live at home, and
• Travels from place-to-place, changing residences to seek agriculturally-related work (follows the crops).

Seasonal Farmworker

• Within the certification period, works seasonally in an agriculturally-related activity in the county where the household normally 
• lives, and
• Does not travel from place-to-place.

Cannery Worker

• Does not work on a farm.
• Is not considered a migrant or seasonal farmworker.

Others [63-402.213]

Other individuals who share living quarters with the household but who do not customarily purchase food and prepare meals with the household. For example, if the applicant household shares living quarters with another family to save on rent but does not purchase and prepare food together with that family, the members of the other family are not members of the applicant household.

Parental Control [63-102p(1)]

A minor child will be considered under the “parental control” of the adult with whom he/she resides unless one of the following conditions exists:

• The minor has entered into a valid marriage, whether or not such marriage has terminated by dissolution.
• The minor is on active duty with any of the armed forces of the United States of America.

Note: A person who was in the armed forces but was discharged before reaching the age of 18 could still be considered under parental control.

• The minor has been emancipated by a court order.

If none of the above conditions exist then whether or not a minor should be considered under the “parental control” of the adult with whom he/she resides will be determined using the following criteria. The Eligibility Worker must assess the relative importance of the criteria below to each individual case in determining whether or not parental control exists:

• The minor is economically self-supporting and managing his/her own affairs.
• The closer a minor is to 18 years the more significant age becomes in the determination of parental control.
• The minor is absent from the adult with whom he/she is residing for significant periods of time and comes and goes without the adult's approval.

The factors which establish whether or not a child is under “parental control” must be documented on the Maintain Case Comments window.

Residents of Institutions [63-402.4]

Individuals who reside in an institution and receive the majority of their meals, over 50% of three meals daily, as part of the institution's normal services are not CalFresh eligible, except for:

Residents of any federally subsidized housing for the elderly.

• Participants of drug or alcoholic treatment and rehabilitation programs who must reside at a treatment center. [Refer to “Eligibility [63-402.4],” page 29-1].]
• Disabled or blind persons who reside in a group living home and receive benefits under Title II of the Social Security Act.
• A woman or woman with children who temporarily reside in a battered women's home.
• Residents of foster family settings are considered as members of the household providing foster care.
• Residents of shelters for homeless persons.

Roomer [63-402.211]

An individual to whom a household furnishes lodging, but not meals, for compensation.

Sponsor

A person who has executed an affidavit of support or similar agreement on behalf of the alien as a condition of the alien's admission to the U.S. as a permanent resident on or after 2/1/83.

Sponsored Alien [63-102]

Those aliens lawfully admitted for permanent residents as immigrants and supported by a sponsor.

Spouse [63-102]

Either of two individuals who would be defined as married to each other under applicable state law or who are cohabitating and are holding themselves out to the community as husband and wife by representing themselves as such to relatives, friends, neighbors, or tradespeople.

Note: The concept of “cohabitating and holding themselves out to the community as husband and wife” does NOT apply to same sex relationships/marriages.

SSN Disqualified [63-402.222]

Individuals disqualified for refusal or failure, without good cause, to provide or obtain an SSN as required in Section 63-404.4.

Striker [63-402.8]

A striker is anyone involved in a strike or concerted stoppage of work by employees (including a stoppage by reason of the expiration of a collective-bargaining agreement) or any concerted slowdown or interruption of operations by employees.

The following persons will not be considered strikers:

• Employees whose workplace is closed by an employer in order to resist demands of employees (e.g., a lockout).
• Employees unable to work as a result of striking employees.
• Employees not wanting to cross a picket line due to fear of personal injury or death.
• Individuals exempted from work registration by Section 63-407.2 on the day prior to the strike, other than those exempt solely on the grounds that they are employed.
• Employees whose employers have hired permanent replacements for the striking employees' jobs. (The fact that the striking employees are offered other jobs does not affect their status as they must be able to return to the same job).

Thrifty Food Plan [63-102t.(2)]

The diet required to feed a family of four persons consisting of a man and a woman 20 through 54, a child 6 through 8, and a child 9 through 11 years of age, determined in accordance with the Secretary of Agriculture's calculations. The cost of such diet shall be the basis for uniform allotments for all households regardless of their actual composition, except that the Secretary will make household-size adjustments in the Thrifty Food Plan taking into account economies of scale.

UAMs (Unrelated Adult Males) [63-402]

Whenever the CalWORKs worker determines that an URAM is residing with a family applying for or receiving CalWORKs, each case must be examined individually to assess whether the URAM is a roomer or boarder, a household member or a separate household.

Related Topics

SSI/SSP Recipients