Exempt Resources

In determining the resources of an individual (and spouse, if applicable), the following items are exempt from consideration:

Residence

The home, and any adjoining land in which the individual has ownership interest and serves as the individual’s principal place of residence is exempt from being considered a countable resource.

Personal Effects

Household goods and personal effects are exempt resources if their total equity value is $2,000 or less.

Exception: Wedding rings, engagement rings, and/or any devices such as wheelchairs or hospital beds, regardless of value, are exempt from consideration in determining the value of resources.

Vehicle

One car may be exempt if it is:

Necessary for employment,
Necessary for medical treatment,
Modified for use by a handicapped person,
Used for necessary transportation to perform essential daily activities, or
Worth less than $4,500 at current market value. (If the market value exceeds $4,500, only the excess is counted against the resource limit.)

Note: The CMV of a vehicle may be determined by accessing the on-line Kelley Blue Book website. http://www.kbb.com

[Refer to the CalWORKs Handbook, “Kelley Blue Book (KBB) Value,” page 15-18 for detailed instructions on the use of on-line Kelley Blue Book website.]

Exception: Any other vehicles are considered to be non-liquid resources. The equity in the other vehicles is counted as a resource.

Property for Self-Support

Certain property that produces income either in cash or in-kind is considered essential to self-support and may be excluded as a countable resource.

Property of a Trade or Business

Business property includes the necessary capital and operating assets of a business (e.g., real property, buildings, inventory and equipment.). The value of this type of property is exempt.

Non-Business Property

Up to $6,000 Equity - Any Rate of Return

Non-business property used to produce goods or services essential to daily activities, such as land used to produce vegetables for consumption by the individual’s household, is exempt property.

Up to $6,000 Equity - 6% Rate of Return

Non-business income-producing property, such as rental property is exempt if there is at least a 6% rate of return. There are some exceptions to the 6% rate of return, but individuals will usually have more than $6,000 equity in rental property, which makes it a countable resource.

Plan for Achieving Self-Support (PASS)

A blind or disabled individual under age 65 may set aside income or resources, and have them excluded in order to fulfill a Plan for Achieving Self-Support (PASS). The plan must be in writing and approved by the County. Any money saved for a PASS must be kept separate from other resources.

Note: Because a PASS is only available to persons under age 65, this situation is uncommon in the CAPI population. If it does occur, a Social Worker must be involved in establishing an appropriate plan.

Insurance

The CSV of life insurance policies may be excluded if the total face value of all policies on one person do not exceed $1,500. Otherwise, the cash surrender values of life insurance policies will count as a resource.

Burial Funds

Burial funds up to $1,500 are exempt resources. These include:

Revocable burial contracts
Burial trusts
Other burial arrangements
Cash and/or accounts which must be identifiable as burial funds and not commingled with other funds
Other financial instruments with a definite cash value clearly designated for the individual’s (or spouse’s) burial expenses and kept separate from non-burial related assets (e.g., burial insurance).

Property not included in the above list is not considered burial funds.

Burial Fund Requirements

Up to $1,500 of a revocable burial fund may be excluded. This amount is reduced by the value of any irrevocable burial fund and by the face value of any excluded life insurance policy. Any increased value of the burial fund due to interest earned is also excluded as long as the interest remains in the fund.

If the recipient uses the burial funds for some other purpose, the individual’s future CAPI benefits will be reduced by an amount equal to the amount used for another purpose.

Under state law, a CAPI recipient/applicant can sign a contract with a funeral home placing up to $1,800 in an irrevocable burial contract or a trust. Legitimate irrevocable burial trusts are not counted as a resource because the individual has no legal access to the money.

Burial Space

The value, with no limit, of burial spaces for the individual and immediate family is excluded from countable resources. Immediate family means: recipient’s spouse, minor and adult children, siblings, parents, and/or spouses of those individuals.

The following are defined as burial spaces:

Plots,
Gravesites,
Crypts,
Mausoleums,
Urns,
Niches, and
Other customary repositories of bodily remains.

Also excluded from countable resources are necessary and reasonable improvements, such as

Vaults,
Headstones,
Markers,
Burial containers, and
Arrangements for opening/closing the gravesite.

Retroactive Aid Payments

For 6 months from the date of receipt, retroactive payments from the following are excluded resources:

Title II Social Security,
Supplemental Security Income / State Supplementary Payment (SSI/SSP); and
Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants (CAPI).

9-Month Exclusion

The items below are excluded from consideration as countable resources for a period of 9 months following the month of receipt:

Payments received as compensation for expenses or losses suffered as a result of a crime; and

Relocation assistance.

Other Excluded Resources

Other excluded resources include:

Payments or benefits paid under other Federal statute;
Disaster relief assistance;
Housing assistance; and
Earned Income Tax Credits.