SR 21-20 Dated 07/21

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES – DIVISION OF ECONOMIC AND HOUSING STABILITY

This SR releases the annual July updates to the Financial Assistance to Needy Families (FANF) Standard of Need (SON) used to determine the period of ineligibility for FANF cases receiving lump sum income and eligibility and benefit amount for FANF cases with deemed income.

RSA 167:7, II mandates annual updates to the SON to reflect changes in the cost of living, as implemented at administrative rule He-W 658.01. The FANF SON represents an approximate monthly amount that it would cost a family in NH for basic living necessities, including food, utilities, and rent. However, this figure is not used in the FANF eligibility or benefit determination process for most FANF applicants.

Pursuant to RSA 167:77-g, the maximum monthly cash benefit is equal to 60% of the federal poverty guidelines (FPG). For 2021, BFA has determined that the amount of money a household of four needs for basic living expenses in NH, the SON, is $5,161 per month, whereas the 2021 maximum benefit that BFA provides for that same household is $1,325 per month. This translates into a $3,836 discrepancy between the figure BFA has determined it costs a family of four to live per month in NH, and the dollar amount BFA is providing for this family to meet those identified living expenses. Or, put another way, the $1,325 maximum payment standard we allow for a household of four is only 26% of what we have determined to be the actual cost of monthly living expenses for that family.

· open FANF cash, FANF medically needy, and FANF In and Out cases with a non-sanctioned deemer.

The SON is used to determine the period of ineligibility for cases receiving lump sum income, and eligibility and benefit amount for cases with deemed income. An increase in the SON may result in shorter periods of ineligibility for;

· those cases that are currently FANF-ineligible due to receipt of lump sum income, and

· in less income being counted as available for FANF medical assistance–only cases with deemed income.

· those cases that are currently FANF ineligible due to receipt of lump sum income, and

· in more income being counted as available for those FANF medical assistance–only cases with deemed income.

The maximum SON equals the Basic Maintenance Needs Allowance (BMNA) plus $342, the weighted average of the maximum shelter payment allowances. The 2021 BMNA and SON are noted below:

Family Size	BMNA	MAX SON (BMNA + $342)
1	$1,505	$1,847
2	$2,944	$3,286
3	$3,939	$4,281
4	$4,819	$5,161
5	$5,629	$5,971
6	$5,975	$6,317
7	$6,322	$6,664
8	$6,670	$7,012
9	$7,017	$7,359
10	$7,364	$7,706
11	$7,711	$8,053
12	$8,060	$8,402
13	$8,366	$8,708
14	$8,971	$9,013
15	$8,977	$9,319
16	$9,283	$9,625
17	$9,588	$9,930
18*	$9,894	$10,236

*To find the 2021 BMNA for household sizes over 18, add $302 for each additional person. Multiply that resulting sum by 1.2%. Add the resulting product to the original figure calculated for the HH size over 18, and then round down to the nearest whole dollar.

*To find the 2021 SON for household sizes over 18, calculate the BMNA per the above paragraph; add actual shelter costs, if incurred, up to the maximum shelter allowance of $342.

Individuals who receive lump sum payments are ineligible for assistance for the number of months resulting from dividing the lump sum amount (plus any other monthly income) by the SON. Clients whose cases were closed or denied due to receipt of lump sum income may reapply or request a recalculation due to the increase in the SON. If requested, the District Office must recalculate the client’s period of ineligibility. A new Notice of Decision (NOD) will be generated if the recalculation results in a different period of ineligibility.

The SON is used for FANF deeming from parents, including ineligible alien parents, alien sponsors, and three generation deeming. Due to the increase in the SON, less deemed income is counted as available to the assistance group (AG). New HEIGHTS will automatically recalculate benefit amounts for open cases with deemed income during this Mass Change. AGs whose cases were closed or denied due to excess deemed income may reapply or request to have their eligibility redetermined due to the increase in the SON. If requested, the District Office must recalculate the AG’s eligibility.

New HEIGHTS will update the reference table with the new figures effective July 1, 2021, and will use the new amounts for any cases computed or recomputed beginning on or after that date.

Clients Denied or Closed Prior to 7/1/21 Due to Deemed Income or Receipt of Lump Sum

No District Office action is necessary unless a client requests to have their eligibility redetermined or their period of ineligibility recalculated. If a client requests this recalculation, the current SON released by this SR and effective July 1, 2021 will be automatically applied during the recalculation. If the client’s eligibility for assistance or length of ineligibility changes during the recalculation, a new NOD will be generated.

New HEIGHTS ran an initial query to identify all open/on-going cash cases with a non-sanctioned deemer and all deductible cases with a non-sanctioned deemer whose grant amounts or spenddowns will change during the mass change and identified approximately 138 cases that may be impacted. The cases identified will be recomputed during the daily production run on the evening of June 16, 2021 Cases with deemed income whose grant amounts or spenddowns change will receive the appropriate message reflecting the new benefit level.

Because less deemed income may be counted as available in some cases, medical assistance only cases with a non-sanctioned deemer, and cases with a non-sanctioned deemer currently eligible for FANF cash assistance but not actually receiving the grant because the amount is under $10 per month, may now become eligible for a cash grant for the first time.

The latter cases described that do not have sufficient Benefit Issuance information during the daily production run of June 16^, 2021 will appear on the MC Exception Report (NMC550RA) with the Reason for Exception listed as “No BI Payment Information.” District Offices must rerun eligibility and supply the missing Benefit Issuance information when that screen appears in the driver flow.

NOTE: The $10 minimum grant cases confirmed after the mass change will receive a standard opening message from New HEIGHTS. District Offices are not required to refer these cases to the NHEP team, as New HEIGHTS will have already referred mandatory NHEP participants to the NHEP team.

The following reports will be available with any July Mass Change related information beginning June 16^, 2021.

This report lists all cases that the Mass Change ran successfully through confirmation. It contains the following information: D.O., Worker Name, Client Name, and Case Number.

This report lists cases that were selected for computation during the Mass Change, but were not confirmed due to some discrepancy in data. These cases require further District Office action. The report contains the following information: D.O., Worker Name, Client Name, Case Number, Reason for Exception, and Mass Change Type.

New HEIGHTS will implement the SON updates on June 16, 2021 during the annual July Mass Change, effective July 1, 2021. The SON revisions identified in this SR are effective July 1, 2021, and will apply to all cases processed on or after that date.

Assistance groups experiencing a change in eligibility due to the mass change will receive the following text in the “Explanation” section of the Notice of Decision (NOD):

On July 1, the Financial Assistance to Needy Families Standard of Need, the resource deduction for families with a medically needy severely disabled child, and the Child Care income limits changed. Your benefits, as shown in the old and new budgets below, may have been adjusted to reflect this or other changes that occurred in your case. He-C 6910.18; He-W 641.04(e); He-W 658.01; RSA 167:3-c, X; RSA 167:7, II

NOTE: The above text: “...the resource deduction for families with a medically needy severely disabled child,...” was noted in the NOD for this mass change, however, this language refers to Children with Severe Disabilities (CSD) Medical Assistance category, which no longer exists, an SR is forthcoming.

In addition to the client notice referenced above, clients will be notified, as needed, about the updates in the SON at the next case action or upon request.

This SR may be destroyed or deleted after its contents have been noted and the revised manual topics released by this SR have been posted to the On-line manuals.

This SR will be distributed according to the electronic distribution list for BFA policy releases. This SR, and revised On-Line Manuals, will be available for agency staff in the On-Line Manual Library, and for public access on the Internet at www.dhhs.nh.gov/dfa/publications.htm, effective July 1, 2021.

FROM:	OFFICE OF THE ADMINISTRATOR IV, BFA Debra Sorli
BFA SIGNATURE DATE:	June 17, 2021
AT (OFFICE):	Bureau of Family Assistance
TO:	All BFA Staff
SUBJECT:	July 2021 Increase to Financial Assistance to Needy Families (FANF) Standard of Need (SON)
EFFECTIVE DATE:	July 1, 2021