1505 Resources | TANF

Georgia Division of Family and Children Services
TANF Policy Manual

Policy Title:

Resources

Effective Date:

January 2020

Chapter:

1500

Policy Number:

1505

Previous Policy Number(s):

MT 23

Updated or Reviewed in MT:

MT-52

Requirements

Resources are assets available to the assistance unit (AU) which can be converted to cash to meet daily living expenses. These assets must be taken into consideration in determining financial eligibility.

Basic Considerations

Eligibility based on resources is determined by resolving the following questions:

Whose resources are considered?
Who owns the resource?
Is the resource available to the AU to meet its needs?
Is the resource included or excluded?
What is the value of the resource?

Resources which are available to an AU are used to determine financial eligibility at the following times:

application
review
when the agency becomes aware of a change.

Consideration of Resources

The resources of the following individuals are used to determine financial eligibility:

AU members
disqualified individuals
penalized individuals
ineligible parents.

The resources of an SSI recipient are not considered in determining eligibility.

Resource Limits

The state of Georgia has established $1000.00 as the resource limit for the Georgia TANF program. In order for an AU to receive TANF benefits, the available resources to the AU must be equal to or less than $1000.00.

Ownership of the Resource

It is assumed that a resource belongs to the individual in whose name it is titled unless the AU can prove otherwise.

The burden of proof in establishing that a resource does not belong to an individual rest with that AU.

Convincing evidence such as the following must be provided to rebut ownership:

legal documents which substantiate the claim,
statements from other individuals in a position to substantiate the AU member’s claims.

Jointly Owned Resources

A resource that is jointly owned with a non-AU member is considered available to the AU in its entirety if both of the following conditions apply:

The AU has the right to dispose of the property.
The AU can dispose of the resource without the consent of the other owner.

A resource which is jointly owned with a non-AU member is excluded if all of the following apply:

The resource cannot be practically subdivided.
Access is dependent on the agreement of the other owner.
The joint owner states in writing that s/he is unwilling to dispose of the resource.

A portion of a jointly owned resource is included if the AU can prove it has access to and may dispose of a portion of the resource and can obtain the value of that portion for living expenses.

If a resource is owned by individuals in different AUs, the resource is considered available to each owner in equal shares.

Jointly Owned Bank Accounts

A jointly owned bank account is divided among the individuals who own it.

When an AU member is named on a joint bank account with a non-AU member solely for convenience or emergency, the joint account is excluded as a resource to the AU member if the other individual, or someone who is in a position to know, verifies that s/he has deposited all the money in the account and all withdrawals are used for the non-AU member’s benefit.

Accessibility of the Resource

A resource is considered available when the AU has the legal ability to liquidate the resource and to use the proceeds.

Resources which are inaccessible to the AU or which the AU cannot legally liquidate are excluded.

Examples of excludable resources include the following:

security deposits on rental property or utilities,
property in probate,
real estate which the AU is making a good faith effort to sell,
resources jointly owned by an AU member who is a victim of domestic violence and by the individual who victimized the AU member if access to or sale of the resource is dependent on the agreement of both owners,
money placed in an account for AUs residing in public housing or receiving Section 8 assistance and participating in the Family Self Sufficiency Program as long as the AU does not have legal access to the money,
money placed in an Individual Development Account (IDA).

This list is not all-inclusive.

Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy is a condition in which a debtor, either voluntarily or invoked by a creditor, is judged legally insolvent, and the debtor’s remaining property is administered and distributed to his/her creditors by a bankruptcy court.

The AU’s resources are included only if the AU can liquidate the resource and retain the proceeds. The bankruptcy court must be contacted to determine whether the AU has this ability.

Countable Resources

Chart 1510.1 Treatment of Resources, indicates whether a specific resource is used in the eligibility determination.

Only those resources which are available to the AU at the time that eligibility is being determined are counted.

A payment or money is not counted as a resource in the same month the payment or money is counted as income.

Commingled Resources

Excluded resources may be commingled with countable resources. The portion of the commingled funds that can be identified as excluded resources retain the exclusion. Funds that cannot be identified as excluded resources must be counted in their entirety.

Conversion of Resources

If an excluded resource is converted to a countable resource, accrual rights apply. The value of the resource is applied to the resource limit the month following the month the resource is converted but no later than the second month, depending on when timely notice expires.

Proceeds from the sale of capital goods are considered income. Refer to Chart 1530.1, Types of Income.

If a countable resource is converted to cash, the cash is counted toward the resource limit.

Money Received for the Replacement/Repair of a Resource

Money received from a third party, such as an insurance company, that is intended to pay for the replacement or repair of a resource is excluded if the following criteria are met:

It is used for the replacement or repair of the resource.
It is used or contracted to be used for the repair or replacement of the resource within six months of receipt.

Any amount not used for the specified replacement or repair or not used within six months is considered income to the AU. Any amount not used as specified and that exceeds the federal poverty level is budgeted as a lump sum in the month received. Refer to Section 1650, Budgeting Lump Sum Income.

Acquisition of a Resource

Accrual rights apply in determining the first month in which a newly acquired resource is considered in determining financial eligibility. The value of the resource is applied to the resource limit the month following the month the resource is acquired.

The value of a resource is determined by using one of the following:

cash value
fair market value
equity value.

Cash Value

Cash value is the amount available to the AU if the resource is converted to U.S. funds. In some cases, a penalty may be applied for early withdrawal of funds. The amount of the penalty is deducted from the value of the resource to determine the cash value available to the AU.

Fair Market Value

Fair market value is the amount for which the item can sell on the open market in the geographic area involved.

Equity Value

Equity value is the fair market value less legal debts or encumbrances.

If the owner has financed the purchase of a resource with a loan, the current payoff amount of the loan must be verified by the lender to determine indebtedness.

Proof of this legal debt or encumbrance must be in writing and signed by the lien holder or lender. It must describe the property and indicate the amount of the debt.

Determining Appreciation/Depreciation

The appreciation or depreciation of a resource is considered in determining the resource value.

Appreciation is an increase in the value of a resource because of any of the following:

improvements to the property
normal market increases
interest accrued.

Appreciation is determined by subtracting the value of the resource at the time the owner obtained it from the current value of the resource. The difference is the appreciated amount.

Depreciation is a decrease in the value of a resource because of any of the following:

destruction of property in a storm, fire, or other reason
long term use of the resource (e.g., vehicles).

Depreciation is determined by subtracting the current value of the resource from the value at the time the owner obtained it. The difference is the depreciated amount.

The value of a resource is determined by using one of the following:

cash value
fair market value
equity value.

Transfer of Resources

A transfer of resources includes selling, swapping, trading or giving away a countable resource for less than the fair market value.

There is no penalty for transferring resources. Only resources owned by the AU at the time of the eligibility determination are considered.

Verification

The value of the following resources must be verified:

jointly owned property,
real property,
some vehicles. Refer to Chart 1515.1 to determine if the value of a vehicle is excluded or included and therefore subject to verification,
all resources when the total value as stated by the AU exceeds $750,
when interest paid from a resource totals $10.00 or more a month.

For all other countable resources, the AU member’s statement regarding the type and value of a resource is accepted unless the information provided conflicts with other information available to the agency.

The resources listed above must be verified at application, standard review or when a change occurs.

The most current information available is used to verify the value of a resource in determining eligibility.

Sources which may be used to determine ownership and the value of a resource include the following:

bank record
deeds
property records
tax records
tag receipts
insurance policies
stock quotes in newspapers
statements from individuals in a position to verify the value of a resource.

This list is not all-inclusive.

Documentation

For each type of resource document the following:

type
owner
value
source of verification
exclusions or exemptions
calculation of fair market value and/or equity value.

Procedures

Determining Eligibility on Resources

Follow the steps below to determine whether the AU meets the resource limit:

Step 1	Determine whose resources must be considered.
Step 2	Determine if the resources are available to the AU.
Step 3	Determine if the resource must be counted.
Step 4	Calculate the total countable resources. If the total countable resources are less than or equal to the resource limit, continue the eligibility determination process. If the total countable resources exceed the resource limit, deny or terminate cash assistance.