Unrelated Adult Male

[43-109.2]

Definitions

Unrelated Adult Male (UAM)

Regulations and procedures regarding the UAM apply only to the UAM who is not a roomer, boarder or lodger and who lives with a CalWORKs family and the mother is the needy caretaker relative. The UAM must be 18 or older and CANNOT BE RELATED to any member of the CalWORKs family, i.e., persons living in the home who could be included for aid payment and/or eligibility determination. Refer to Related Males below.

Note: The mother MAY NOT exclude herself from the AU to avoid applying UAM regulations. However, the SSI/SSP mother, the illegal alien mother, etc., is excluded and the UAM regulations are never applied to such cases.

Unrelated Adult “Female”

If an unrelated adult “female” is living in the home, she DOES NOT have the responsibilities of the UAM. She does not have to sign a statement or make a minimum financial contribution; however, if she has no income or resources and refuses to apply or is found ineligible for public assistance (including GA) the payee must be referred for possible misuse of CalWORKs funds. Refer to Suspected Misuse of CalWORKs Funds. If the unrelated adult female makes a voluntary contribution to the AU, that contribution is net income to the AU. Refer to Room and Board if she is a roomer and/or boarder.

Related Males

If the man living in the home is related to the eligible child by blood, marriage or adoption and is within the fifth degree of relatedness, then that man is considered to be a related male and is not a Unrelated Adult Male. Refer to Caretaker Relative Requirements [EAS 82-808] for a complete listing of these individuals.

Example Example The divorced husband of a CalWORKs mother's sister is now living with the CalWORKs mother as her boy friend. He is still the children's uncle, meets the “related” criterion and is not a UAM.

Unmarried Father

When a CalWORKs mother and her separate child(ren) live with a man who is the unmarried father of their common child, and ONLY the mother and her separate child are on aid, he is considered a UAM. If he makes any funds available to her for her needs or the needs of her separate child, those monies must be considered income. Refer to Net Income from the UAM [EAS 44-113.5].

Mandatory inclusion must be based on the circumstances unique to that family when determining AU composition. If the common child has a basis of deprivation, (i.e., the father is unemployed or the mother is incapacitated) then an evaluation must be completed to determine if the child meets the non-linking eligibility factors. If the common child meets both linking and non-linking factors, then the common child becomes a mandatory AU member. If the common child is only deprived and not needy, then neither the common child or the unmarried father are included in the AU.

Example Example A mother has one child with an absent parent deprivation and she receives CalWORKs for herself and the separate child. She lives with the unmarried father and their common child, who are not eligible to be in the AU as there is no basis of deprivation. There is no requirement that the unmarried father, who is considered a UAM, make funds available to her and her separate child. The income of the unmarried father is not used in the CalWORKs budget, unless he actually makes any monies available to her.

Roomer and Boarder

A person who sleeps and eats in the CalWORKs home is considered a room and boarder. This person must have separate sleeping facilities which could be considered a rental unit. Examples of a rental unit are a separate bedroom or porch. The couch in the living room is not considered a rental unit. If the recipient states that she and the children sleep together in one room and the unrelated male is a roomer and sleeps in the bedroom usually used by the child, this statement must be accepted. Document the situation completely on the SC 163. Get the mother's statement on a "Sworn Statement" (GEN 853) if the situation is questionable. The CalWORKs recipient does not have to make the rental unit available on the open market.

The acceptable rate for a person receiving room and board to pay is determined by using the CalWORKs food allowance (income in-kind amount) for one person plus the cost of one room (add the total cost of rent and utilities or house payment, utilities, insurance, taxes, etc., and divide by the number of rooms in the home exclusive of bathrooms, closets, etc.).

Example Example The house payment is $600 and utilities are $80 which equals $680 divided by 4 rooms (living room, 2 bedrooms, kitchen) in the house equals $170 plus the amount of the CalWORKs food allowance for one ($92). The acceptable lodger payment would be $262.

If the UAM pays less than the acceptable amount, the recipient must be referred to DA-Welfare Fraud Division for misuse of funds.

Roomer

A roomer is a person who only sleeps in the CalWORKs home. All the information pertaining to the roomer/boarder applies except that the amount of the CalWORKs food allowance is not required.

Boarder

A boarder is a person who eats in the CalWORKs home. The person must have an actual residence other than the CalWORKs home which is documented in the Journal Detail page of CalSAWS. The acceptable payment is the CalWORKs food allowance for one. A referral for misuse of funds to DA-Welfare Fraud must be made if the payment is less than this amount. This income must be reported, with verification, on the SAR 7 and is applied to the CalWORKs budget per income regulations.

Unrelated Adult Male

Definitions