(A) The county
agency shall use gross income for the purpose of determining child care income
eligibility and family copayment, including gross earned income and gross
unearned income.
(B) "Gross
earned income" means the total amount of gross earnings received in a
month by all of the employed individuals in the family including wages legally
obligated to all members of the family but which are diverted to a third party.
(C) Gross earnings
include payments received before taxes and other deductions by an individual
for services performed as an employee, or by an individual who is
self-employed.
(1) Gross earnings
received by an employee means wages, salary, back pay, bonuses and awards paid
by employer, commissions, severance pay, payments from job corps, work training
programs, on-the-job training programs, sick leave paid as wages, annual leave,
holiday and vacation pay.
(2) State temporary
disability insurance and temporary workers' compensation payments are
considered gross earnings when such payments meet all of the following
conditions:
(a) The payment is
employer-funded.
(b) The payment is
made to an individual who remains employed during recuperation from a temporary
illness or injury pending return to the job.
(c) The payment is
specifically characterized under state law as a temporary wage replacement.
(3) Gross
self-employment earnings means the total profit from a business enterprise.
(a) The total
profit from the self-employment business enterprise is determined by deducting
the self-employment expenses, which are those expenses directly related to
producing the goods or services, from the gross receipts, or by using a
standard fifty per cent deduction from gross self-employment.
(b) Personal
business and/or entertainment expenses are not allowable deductions.
(c) Individuals who
are self-employed and have no countable income shall provide written
verification documenting how they are meeting basic living expenses, including
but not limited to, food, housing, utilities and transportation. Failure to
provide sufficient documentation shall result in the denial or termination of
child care benefits. This documentation shall be used in determining authorized
hours in paragraph (C)(3)(d) of this rule.
(d) For approved
self-employment activities, the hours applied to the publicly funded child care
authorization shall be for no more hours than it would take an individual to
earn the same amount of money working at the federal minimum wage. This shall
be calculated by using the self- employed individual's determined or estimated
monthly gross earnings divided by 4.3 weeks in a month and again by the federal
hourly minimum wage. The resulting number, rounded up to the nearest whole
number, is the maximum weekly hours which can be applied to the authorization
for the self-employment approved activity.
(4) Individuals who
are unemployed shall provide written verification documenting how they are
meeting basic living expenses including but not limited to food, housing,
utilities and transportation. Failure to provide sufficient documentation shall
result in the denial or termination of child care benefits.
(D) Income excluded
from gross earned income.
(1) The gross
earnings of a minor child in the family who is a full-time student as defined
by the school, unless the minor is a parent.
(2) Alimony or
child support payments paid by a family member. The amount paid, up to the amount
ordered, is excluded.
(3) The verified
amount which is being garnished from the income.
(4) Earnings
received under the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 for participation in
the "Americorp Vista" program.
(5) Federal work
study income as referenced in rule 5101:4-4-13 of the Administrative Code.
(6) All income,
including in kind benefits, excluded under the supplemental nutrition
assistance program (SNAP) regulations, as set forth in rule 5101:4-4-13 of the
Administrative Code.
(7) Any other income
amounts that federal statutes or regulations require be excluded.
(8) Any income
earned by a person receiving supplemental security income (SSI).
(E) "Gross
unearned income" means the total amount of unearned income that is
received in the month by all members of the family. Unearned income is income
that is not gross earned income or is not gross earned income from
self-employment, as defined in this rule. Unearned income includes cash
contributions received by the family from absent caretakers, persons,
organizations or assistance agencies, social security administration (SSA)
disability, death or retirement benefits, and child support payments.
(F) Income excluded
from gross unearned income.
(1) SSI payments.
(2) Federal, state
or local foster care maintenance payments.
(3) Federal, state
or local adoption assistance payments.
(4) Kinship
permanency incentive (KPI) payments made in accordance with the requirements of
rule 5101:2-40-04 of the Administrative Code.
(5) Payments made
with county funds to increase the amount of cash assistance an assistance group
receives in accordance with section 5107.03 of the Revised Code.
(6) Child support
payments paid by a family member for a child outside the family. The amount
paid, up to the amount ordered, is excluded.
(7) Alimony paid
pursuant to a court order.
(8) Contributions
for shared living arrangements. These include cash payments received by a
family from an individual who is not a family member but who resides in the
household and shares responsibility for the household expenses through an
informal arrangement. The cash payment given to the family is not available to
the family because the payment represents the non-family member's share of the
household expenses.
(9) Bona fide loans
from any source, including rural housing loans made by federal housing
administration (FHA).
(10) Experimental
housing allowance program payments made under annual contributions on contracts
entered into prior to January 1975, under section 23 of the U.S. Housing Act of
1937.
(11) HUD community
development block grant funds paid under Title I of the Housing and Community
Development Act of 1974 (public law 93-383).
(12) Home energy
assistance support and maintenance paid in cash or in-kind, public laws 97-377
(December 21, 1982), 97-424 (January 6, 1983), and 98-21 (April 20, 1983).
(13) Income tax
refunds received by any of the family members.
(14) The verified
amount which is being garnished from the income.
(15) Earned income
tax credit (EITC) payments when received as part of an income tax refund.
(16) The value of
surplus commodities donated by the department of agriculture.
(17) Benefits
received under Title VII, nutrition program for the elderly, Older Americans
Act of 1965, Public Law 93-150.
(18) Retroactive
payments made as a result of a state hearing.
(19) Escrow accounts
established or credited as the direct result of the assistance group's
involvement in family self-sufficiency on or after May 15, 1992.
(20) Ohio works
first (OWF) cash payment for support services, pursuant to section 5107.66 of
the Revised Code.
(21) Prevention,
retention and contingency (PRC) payments.
(22) The value of
SNAP allotments.
(23) Money received
in the form of a nonrecurring lump sum payment including, but not limited to,
retroactive lump sum social security, SSI or pension benefits; retroactive lump
sum insurance settlements; retroactive lump sum payment of child support
arrearage; refunds of security deposits on rental property or utilities;
publicly funded child care overpayment reimbursements; or PRC payments not
defined as cash assistance.
(24) Income excluded
under the SNAP regulations, as set forth in rule 5101:4-4-13 of the
Administrative Code, unless the income is included under the provisions of this
rule.
(25) Any other income
amounts that federal statutes or regulations require be excluded.
(G) Calculation of
the family's gross monthly income.
(1) When
determining eligibility and copayment for child care benefits, the county
agency shall calculate the family's gross monthly income.
(2) Income shall be
converted into a monthly amount. All cents shall be dropped prior to
multiplying the individual's earned and unearned income by the appropriate
conversion factor listed in this paragraph. Hourly rates which contain cents
are not rounded but are multiplied in the exact amount. Conversion shall be
performed using the following factors:
(a) Income received
on a weekly basis is multiplied by 4.3.
(b) Income received
biweekly (every two weeks), is multiplied by 2.15.
(c) Income received
semimonthly (twice a month), is multiplied by 2.
(3) If an
individual has fluctuating income, the income shall first be averaged to arrive
at a figure to be converted into a monthly amount, according to the following
procedures:
(a) If the employed
individual works the same number of hours per pay period, that number of hours
shall be used in computing the individual's gross monthly income. The gross
monthly income shall be computed by either using the gross earnings listed on
the individual's pay stubs or by multiplying the number of hours per pay period
by the hourly rate of pay. This figure is used to convert the income into a
monthly amount.
(b) If the employed
individual has fluctuating income, the income shall be averaged. The averaged
amount is used in converting the income into a monthly figure. When possible,
the county agency shall average the income received in the preceding four
weeks.
(c) When the income
from the prior four week period is not representative of current or future
income, the county agency shall project income based on a best estimate. The
best estimate shall consider the following variables which may affect the
determination. These variables include:
(i) There are more
than four weeks of pay stubs available and the individual states that an
average of a longer period of time is more representative, because the income
received in the most recent four weeks was less or greater than the average.
The county agency shall use all available income related information for the
immediately preceding three month period.
This includes situations when the individual disagrees with the
use of income from the past four week period as representative of future
income. The county agency shall use all available income related information,
including the individual's projection of future earnings, to determine a
representative figure. Some pay stubs reflect year-to-date earnings, which is
an acceptable method of determining average income for longer than the four
week period.
(ii) If there are
fewer than four weeks of pay stubs available, the county agency shall use all
available income related information to arrive at a representative figure. This
includes situations when the employed individual disagrees with the use of
earnings from the past four week period as indicative of future earnings.
(iii) If there are
no pay stubs available because the employment is new, the county agency shall
require written documentation from the employer. The documented amount shall be
converted to gross monthly income as directed in this rule.
(4) If income is
sporadic, the income for a period of one year shall be used to determine an
average adjusted monthly income. An example of sporadic income is
commission-based income. When income is from work that normally involves seasonal
periods of unemployment, the family's adjusted monthly income shall be
determined from the adjusted annual income of the family divided by twelve
months.
(5) For situations
in which an individual has self-employment income, the county agency shall determine
the gross earnings for the month based on an estimate of the individual's gross
annual earnings.
(a) The
self-employed individual shall provide copies of the tax return from the
previous year as well as current business records in order to project annual
gross income.
(i) The income
shown on the previous year's tax return shall be used to estimate earnings for
the current and future months.
(ii) The gross
monthly earnings shall be determined by dividing the previous year's tax return
by the number of months the individual was self-employed the previous year.
(iii) Estimation of
self-employment income shall be used when the individual has been self-employed
for some time, the gross earnings have remained fairly constant, and there is
no anticipated change in the individual's circumstances.
(b) If the
individual contests the estimate of income from self-employment based solely on
information on the previous year's tax return, the individual shall provide a
projected estimate of gross earnings for the current taxable year, based upon
current business records. When the individual cannot estimate gross earnings
for the current taxable year based on current business records, the county
agency shall accept the individual's best estimate. Using the individual's best
estimate of income for the current taxable year, the county agency shall
allocate one-twelfth of the gross annual income equally into each month of the
taxable year.
(c) If the
individual contests the county agency estimate of the income from self-employment
based solely on information on the previous year's tax return but does not
provide a projected estimate of gross earnings for the taxable year based on
current business records, the county agency shall project the earnings based on
the gross earnings listed on the previous year's tax return.
(i) If the
individual does not have a tax return from the previous year, the county agency
shall project an estimate of the individual's annual gross earnings from
self-employment based on the individual's current business records. The county
agency shall determine that one-twelfth of the projected gross earnings from
self-employment shall be allocated monthly.
(ii) In the absence
of both previous year's tax return and current business records, the county agency
shall require the individual to provide a written best estimate of his or her
projected annual income and expenses. The county agency shall then determine
that one-twelfth of the projected annual gross earnings from self-employment
shall be distributed into all months of the taxable year.
(H) Documentation
and verification of the family's gross monthly income.
(1) The county
agency shall document and verify all sources of income. If possible, documents
used should be copied and attached to the application. If copies of documents
cannot be obtained, the county agency shall describe the document viewed and
the pertinent information contained therein.
(2) Acceptable
documentation of all sources of income may include pay stubs, business records,
correspondence or data from the social security administration, data from the
Ohio bureau of workers' compensation and data from providers of pension
benefits. If the income received is in cash without a receipt, a contact with
the employer is required. The county agency may contact individuals or agencies
with receipt of a signed JFS 01138 "Application for
Child Care Benefits" (rev. 6/2016) or both the JFS 01121 "Early
Childhood Education Eligibility Screening Tool" (3/2016) and the JFS 01122
"Publicly Funded Child Care Supplemental Application" (6/2016)application as defined in rule 5101:2-16-30 of the
Administrative Code or other signed written consent by the caretaker, in
order to obtain all pertinent information regarding family income.
(3) The caretaker
shall provide documentation of the source and amount of any income received
unless such information is already available to the county agency. Failure to
cooperate in the development of documentation for any source of income received
is acceptable grounds for a delay in the processing of an application or a
determination of eligibility. If this failure continues beyond thirty days from
the date of application, the application shall be denied. Denial of an
application does not prohibit the caretaker parent from reapplying for child
care benefits.
Effective: 10/1/2017
Five Year Review (FYR) Dates: 5/1/2019
Certification: CERTIFIED ELECTRONICALLY
Date: 09/15/2017
Promulgated Under: 119.03
Statutory Authority: 5104.38
Rule Amplifies: 5104.38
Prior Effective Dates: 4/1/90 (Emer.), 6/22/90, 5/1/91 (Emer.),
7/1/91, 11/1/91 (Emer.), 1/20/92, 6/17/94 (Emer.), 9/16/94, 12/26/95, 10/1/97
(Emer.), 12/30/97, 1/1/99, 2/22/02, 2/1/07, 2/1/08, 7/1/2009, 8/28/2011,
5/4/14, 2/22/15, 9/28/15, 6/26/2016