Lump Sum Payments
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This section has information about lump sum payments.
Policy
One time nonrecurring Lump sum(g) payments are not countable as unearned or earned income. FAA treats nonrecurring lump sum payments as a resource.
Lump sum payments include back payments for initial months or restored benefits. Lump sum payments are paid by, and are not limited to, any of the following:
●Assistance Payments
●Child Support
●Social Security Administration
●Veterans Administration (VA) benefits
●Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits
●Railroad Retirement (RR) benefits
●Indian Gaming Industry Per Capita Disbursements
●Profit Sharing Dividends
Recurring lump sum payments that can be anticipated, are countable as unearned income.
Countable income is used to determine an income budget. (See Income Budgeting to see how FAA determines the income budget.) FAA needs to know about income that is both countable and not countable to determine whether a budgetary unit’s income is exceeding their expenses. (See Income Eligibility for more information about how FAA uses countable and not countable income.)
Procedures
When a payment is received that combines a lump sum payment with the regular ongoing unearned income, complete all of the following:
●Determine the amount for the payment of ongoing unearned income.
●Determine whether the going income is countable or not countable as unearned income. See Income Types for income type information.
●Treat the nonrecurring lump sum payment as a resource. See Example 1.
Recurring lump sum payments are budgeted using the type of income being received.
When the participant is present, have them sign the Authority to Release (FAA‑1765A) form to contact any companies or businesses involved. The FAA-1765A can be faxed or emailed to the participant's employer when it is not possible to use the Application for Benefits (FAA-0001A) or the HEAplus Authority to Release signed statement.
Verification
System interface and the case file(g) must be reviewed before verification is requested. No additional verification is needed when AZTECS interface or HEAplus hubs have verified the information.
The participant has the primary responsibility for providing verification. (See Participant Responsibilities – Providing Verification for additional policy.)
For NA, all of the following income is required to be verified before eligibility is determined:
●Reported on a new application, during the interview of a new application, or changes reported before the eligibility determination of a new application.
●Changes after an eligibility determination of a new application (e.g., a renewal application, mid approval contact, etc.) and any of the following apply:
The source of the income has changed.
The income is questionable(g) or unclear(g).
The reported income amount has changed by $51 or more.
The previous verification in the case file is more than 59 calendar days old.
For CA, all income is required to be verified before determining eligibility.
Examples of verification that can be used for lump sum payments include, and are not limited to, any of the following:
●Assistance payments records
●AZTECS INTERFACE INQUIRY MENU (ININ) for verification of SSA or SSI income
●Benefit award letters from SSA, Statement of Earnings VA, and other agencies
●Bank records
●Agency or payer providing the income
●Court records or court orders
●DCSS documents or print outs
●Signed statement from the agency or payer providing the income
●Participant Statement verification when one of the following occur:
Obtaining documented or collateral contact verification may cause harm or undue hardship(g) for the participant.
When all of the following occur:
●Other attempts to obtain the verification have failed. This includes documented and collateral contact verification.
●The participant has requested assistance from FAA.
●The worker has evaluated the request for assistance and cannot obtain the verification from another acceptable source.
●The participant statement is not questionable(g).
AZTECS Keying Procedures
When a payment combines a lump sum payment with the regular ongoing unearned income payment, complete all of the following:
●Key the appropriate income type code on the appropriate screen for the source of unearned income.
●Key the lump sum on LIAS as a liquid asset.
Document the case file(g) thoroughly to support keyed codes, amounts, and frequencies. See the AZTECS Data Entry Guide for instructions on keying the AZTECS income screens.
NOTE Documentation must support determinations of eligibility and benefit level. Document in sufficient detail to ensure that any reviewer can assess whether the determination is reasonable and accurate. Include specific information regarding the reason the income is determined to be normal. (See Budgeting Income Documentation Requirements for additional information.)
Examples
1) Mary applied for NA on 12/03/22. She lives alone. She received approval for her Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits on 11/02/22. Mary’s SSI benefit is $600 per month. On 12/01/22, Mary received a payment of $1500. The payment included the $600 regular ongoing payment for 12/22. The remainder of the payment is a lump sum back payment for previous months.
The $600 SSI payment is countable as unearned income and the $900 is a liquid asset for December.
On UNIN, key SI in the TY field and key 600.00 in the AMOUNT field.
On LIAS, key LS in the TY field and key 900.00 in the VALUE field.
Legal Authorities
AAC R6-12-101 (55)
AAC R6-12-505
AAC R6-12-905.
7 CFR 273.9 (c) (8)
last revised 05/13/2023