245.03 Criteria for Exemption from ABAWD Work Requirements (FSM)

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An ABAWD is exempt from ABAWD work requirements if the ABAWD meets one of the exemptions from SNAP work requirements. For a list of exemptions from SNAP work requirements see PART 809, WORK REGISTRATION AND EXEMPTIONS FROM SNAP WORK REQUIREMENTS.

ABAWD individuals are also exempt from ABAWD work requirements if the ABAWD is:

·      a member of a SNAP household that includes a child under age 18 who lives in the home, or who is temporarily absent from the home and intends to return, regardless of the ABAWD individual’s relationship to or responsibility for the minor child, and regardless of the minor child’s eligibility for SNAP benefits.

The child under age 18 must be considered a member of the ABAWD individual’s SNAP household or would be considered a member of the ABAWD individual’s household if not excluded or disqualified from being a member in that household.

If the child is excluded from receiving SNAP in one household because the parents have 50/50 custody and the child is already receiving SNAP in the other parent’s household, both parents are exempt from ABAWD work requirements.

An ABAWD work exemption is not allowed if the child under age 18 is a non-household  member (purchasing and preparing food separately from the ABAWD individual) who happens to share a residence with the ABAWD individual;

·        under the age of 18 or is age 53 or older;

·        pregnant;

·        residing in certain areas with a high unemployment rate and/or lack of available jobs. Towns exempt through September 30, 2024 include Hale’s Location, Pinkham’s Grant, Stark, Stratford, North Stratford, and Stratford Hollow;

·        homeless; an individual is considered to be homeless if they lack a fixed and regular nighttime residence or if their primary residence is:

o  a supervised shelter designed to provide temporary accommodations (such as a welfare hotel or congregate shelter);

o  a halfway house or similar institution that provides temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized;

o  a temporary accommodation for not more than 90 days in the residence of another individual; or

o  a place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings (a hallway, a bus station, a lobby, or similar places);

·        a veteran, which means an individual who served in the United States Armed Forces (such as Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, Coast Guard, and National Guard), including an individual who served in a reserve component of the Armed Forces, and who was discharged or released therefrom, regardless of the conditions of such discharge or release;

·        an individual aged 24 or younger who was in foster care in any State at the age of 18 (or higher age if the State offers extended foster care to a higher age); or

·        medically certified as physically or mentally unfit for employment.

–   An individual is medically certified as physically or mentally unfit for employment if they:

o  are receiving temporary or permanent disability benefits issued by governmental or private sources;

o  are obviously mentally or physically unfit for employment; or

o  if the unfitness is not obvious, provide a statement from a medical professional that verifies the individual is physically or mentally unfit for employment.

An individual verified to meet an exemption at any time during a month is considered to be exempt for the entire month.

An individual who is exempt from ABAWD work requirements is not automatically eligible for SNAP benefits. The individual must also be eligible for SNAP benefits in all other respects.

Loss of Exemption Status

If an individual loses an exemption, reevaluate the individual’s eligibility under ABAWD policy and take the appropriate case action.

Exemption After Loss of Eligibility for Failure to Meet ABAWD Work Requirements

An individual who loses eligibility for SNAP benefits due to failure to meet ABAWD work requirements, but who later becomes exempt from those work requirements, is no longer subject to ABAWD work requirements until the exemption no longer exists.

References: 7 CFR 273.7(b); 7 CFR 273.24(c); 7 USC 2015(o)(3); FNS Waiver #00006279