Section 704.140 - Noncountable AssetsThe following are not countable assets for Transitional Cash Assistance purposes. They do not effect eligibility.
(A) Highway Relocation assistance payments, Urban Renewal Assistance payments, disaster relief payments used for relocation, and payments from private agencies used for relocation;(B) The filing unit's principal place of residence and the undivided land on which it rests;(C) For TAFDC, the value of one vehicle owned by the filing unit as provided in 106 CMR 704.120(G); For EAEDC, the first $1500 of the equity value of one vehicle as provided in 106 CMR 704.120(G);
(D) Household belongings such as furniture, appliances, household decorations, linens and cookware, personal belongings, such as jewelry, books and toys, even if of more than usual value;(E) Property to which the filing unit has no ready access, such as property the ownership of which is the subject of legal proceedings (e.g., wills being probated, divorce suits, etc.), and irrevocable trust funds placed in trust 12 months or longer before application for Transitional Cash Assistance;(F) Home produce grown or preserved by the filing unit for its own consumption;(G) Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits;(H) A loan verified by a written document, signed by the borrower and the lender, that states the borrower's intent to repay and the conditions of repayment, the terms of which specify the purpose of the loan and which cannot be used to meet current living costs;(I) A grant or scholarship to a student, which cannot be used to meet current living costs;(J) A grant or loan to an undergraduate student for educational purposes made or insured under any program administered by the U.S. Secretary of Education;(K) Student financial assistance provided under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 or under the Bureau of Indian Affairs Education Assistance programs, or student financial aid for costs, such as, but not limited to, tuition, fees, equipment or books, under programs developed pursuant to the Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act;(L) Assets of any member of the household:(1) who receives Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments;(2) in a TAFDC household, for whom state and/or federal foster-care maintenance payments are made, including the child of the foster child when the foster-care maintenance payment includes the child; or(3) in a TAFDC household, for whom state and/or federal adoption assistance is provided except when the person is included as a member of the assistance unit in accordance with 106 CMR 704.305(A)(3);(M) Lands held in trust for Native Americans; property purchased with payments made to Native Americans under Public Laws 92-254, 93-134, 94-540 and 94-114; and funds distributed to, or held in trust for, members of any Indian tribe pursuant to a judgment of the Indian Claims Settlements or the Secretary of the Interior under Public Laws 94-114, 93-134, 96-420, 97-458, 98-64 and 102-71;(N) For each member of the Assistance Unit: (2) the value of a prepaid funeral arrangement, not to exceed $1,500. A prepaid funeral arrangement may include a contract with a funeral director or a separately identifiable trust fund. Use of any portion of this asset for any purpose other than funeral arrangements shall make the balance of the asset countable;
(O) Real Estate that is not the principal residence of the assistance unit, but which the assistance unit is making a good faith effort to sell, as long as: (1) The owner of the real estate signs an agreement on a form specified by the Department to repay the amount of Transitional Cash Assistance benefits received while the real estate was owned by the assistance unit. The amount of the repayment is the net proceeds from the sale or the amount of Transitional Cash Assistance benefits paid, whichever is less. The net proceeds of the sale, when added to all other countable assets at the time of the sale, must exceed the asset limit of the specific Transitional Cash Assistance program for repayment to be required; and(2) The real estate may be excluded for no more than six months from the date of the signing of the agreement. A good faith effort to sell shall be defined as an offer to sell at or about fair market value.
The good faith offer must be verified. Verification shall be by a copy of a newspaper advertisement, letter from a licensed real estate salesperson, or other appropriate document.
If the assistance unit becomes ineligible during the six-month period for categorical or financial reasons other than ownership of real estate, or if the assistance unit fails to sell the real estate at the end of six months, assistance shall be terminated, and all Transitional Cash Assistance benefits paid shall be considered an overpayment.
A client who does not report receiving or buying a piece of real estate, other than that used as the principal residence, within ten days of getting the title to the real estate, shall be considered to have received an overpayment. The period of overpayment shall begin from the date title was received to the date the ownership of the real estate was reported to the Department, as long as the equity value of the real estate when added to all other countable assets is higher than the program limit of the specific Transitional Cash Assistance program. The Department must pursue recovery in accordance with 106 CMR 706.200: Overpayments and Underpayments;
(P) Any portion of a Workers' Compensation, property damage, personal injury, Compensation to Victims of Violent Crimes Act, death settlement or award, except for compensation for lost wages, that is received as a reimbursement for specified items and used to pay for such items. See106 CMR 704.240(B) for verification;(Q) Property that is essential to employment or self-employment shall include, but is not limited to, work-related equipment such as a tradesperson's tools, farming machinery, and property such as farm land. Income from the property is countable;(R) Earned income credits, whether received as an advance payment or as part or all of an income tax refund, in the month of receipt and the following month;(S) Payments to eligible individuals of Japanese ancestry or their survivors under the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 and payments to eligible Aleuts (who were former residents of the Aleutian and Pribilof Islands) or their survivors under the Aleutian and Pribilof Islands Restitution Act pursuant to Public Law 100-383;(T) Agent Orange Settlement Fund payments made to Vietnam veterans or their survivors, pursuant to Public Law 101-201, effective January 1, 1989;(U) The value of Transitional Cash Assistance for the remainder of the cyclical month of issuance. If any or all of the money from these cash benefits is retained beyond the cyclical month of issuance, that amount is a countable asset, except as provided in 106 CMR 706.210: Correction of Overpayments and Underpayments regarding the correction of an underpayment or a fair hearing decision;(V) Payments made under the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act of 1990;(W) Payments credited to an escrow account under the Family Self-sufficiency Program administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) when the filing unit lacks the legal ability to use the money for its support and maintenance;(X) Transitional Assistance Cash benefits from a correction of an underpayment or a fair hearing decision, in the month of receipt and the following month;(Y) For TAFDC clients, the Individual Asset Account maintained for assistance unit members until receipt of such funds upon termination of Full Employment Program employment as provided in 106 CMR 707.180(D); and(Z) Other Department-approved asset accumulation accounts such as the Economic Independence Accounts as defined in 106 CMR 707.111: Economic Independence Accounts.Adopted by Mass Register Issue 1360, eff. 3/9/2018.Amended by Mass Register Issue 1404, eff. 7/1/2019.Amended by Mass Register Issue 1439, eff. 4/1/2021.