Example 3 – household with legal immigrants

Answer to Example 3

Mr. and Mrs. Lee are legal immigrants. They are not veterans and they do not yet have 40 quarters of work, individually or combined. They are not elderly or under age 18 and are not disabled. Therefore, they are ineligible for federal SNAP benefits. However, the Lees are eligible for the California Food Assistance Program (CFAP), which looks and acts just like the federal SNAP program. Since they arrived in the U.S. after August 22, 1996, their eligibility may be time-limited. (See the discussion about “qualified immigrants” in the section of this Guide about immigrant eligibility for details.) The Parks are U.S. citizens and can apply for CalFresh benefits for themselves and the baby. The CalFresh household consists of all five people.

Mrs. Park is exempt from work requirements as the parent responsible for the care of a child under age six, but the rest of the CalFresh household must meet the work requirement or register for work. An applicant has to register for work unless he already works at least 30 hours per week or works a job that pays at least 30 times the federal minimum wage per week. ($10.50 x 30 = $315). Mr. Park does not have to register for work, but the Lees do. (See the section of this Guide detailing more information about these work requirements.)

Income and allotment

Step by step, here is how the calculations would be made:

  1. Gross monthly earned income for this household is $1,333, i.e., 4.3 times the total weekly earnings (4.3 x ($160 + $100 + $50) = $1,333).
  2. There is no other income.
  3. The gross monthly income of $1,333 falls well below the maximum of $3,078 for a five member household.
  4. Gross monthly earned income is $1,333.
  5. The earned income deduction is 20% of the gross monthly earned income, or $266 ($1,333 x 20% = $266.60).
  6. Therefore, net earned income for the household is $1,067 ($1,333 – $266).
  7. The total net income is $1,067.
  8. Now, subtract the standard deduction of $199 for a household of five, yielding $868 ($1,067 – $199).
  9. There are no dependent care costs.
  10. There are no child support payments.
  11. There are no elderly or disabled members, so any medical expenses the Lees or Parks may have are not deductible.
  12. The adjusted income is $868.
  13. The Parks and Lees can add $18 for a telephone allowance (TUA) (this amount has been reduced effective FY 2016), since they are not eligible to claim the standard utility allowance (SUA) (which includes the phone allowance).
  14. Total shelter costs are $418 ($400 for rent + $18 for TUA).
  15. Half the adjusted income is $434 ($868 ÷ 2).
  16. Excess shelter costs are $0 ($418 in shelter cost – $435 for half adjusted income = -$17). Negative values indicate no excess costs, since the household is paying less than half their adjusted income toward shelter costs.
  17. Monthly net income is $868.
  18. $868 is way less than the $2,368 maximum net income for a household of 5, so the household is eligible.
  19. Multiplying the household’s net income by 0.3 yields $261 ($868 x 0.3 = $260).
  20. The adjusted CalFresh income is $261.
  21. The household’s monthly CalFresh allotment is $511 ($771 – $260).