EMERGENCY RULES
SOCIAL AND HEALTH SERVICES
(Economic Services Administration)
(Division of Assistance Programs)
Date of Adoption: June 6, 2001.
Purpose: Amend existing rules and create a new rule to implement federal regulations for sponsored aliens.
Amending WAC 388-470-0060 How do the resources of my sponsor affect my eligibility for cash or food assistance benefits? The text of this section was unintentionally left out of WSR 01-12-057.
Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Amending WAC 388-470-0060 How do the resources of my sponsor affect my eligibility for cash or food assistance benefits?
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 74.04.050, 74.04.057, 74.04.510.
Other Authority: Title 7, Chapter II, Part 273 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
Under RCW 34.05.350 the agency for good cause finds that state or federal law or federal rule or a federal deadline for state receipt of federal funds requires immediate adoption of a rule.
Reasons for this Finding: The United State Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) published new regulations on how to count the income of an alien's sponsor to the alien. FNS published these rules in Title 7, Chapter II, Part 273 of the Code of Federal Regulations. States are required to implement these changes by June 1, 2001.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 1, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making:
New 0,
Amended 0,
Repealed 0;
Pilot Rule Making:
New 0,
Amended 0,
Repealed 0;
or Other Alternative Rule Making:
New 0,
Amended 1,
Repealed 0.
Effective Date of Rule:
Immediately.
June 6, 2001
Brian H. Lindgren, Manager
Rules and Policies Assistance Unit
2950.1(2) A sponsor is any person or organization that signed an affidavit of support on behalf of the alien to allow the alien entry for permanent residence.
(3) The sponsor's countable resources are determined by:
(a) Totaling the countable resources of the sponsor and the sponsor's spouse (if they are living together); and
(b) Subtracting fifteen hundred dollars.
(4) Subsection (3) above does not apply when:
(a) The alien is receiving cash or food assistance as a member of the sponsor's assistance unit;
(b) An alien is sponsored by an organization; or
(c) An alien is not required to have a sponsor.
(5) The sponsor's countable resources are counted towards the alien's resource limit until:
(a) The three year time period expires; or
(b) The sponsor dies.
(6) For medical programs, the resources of the sponsor are excluded resources unless:
(a) The sponsor is a member of the alien's assistance unit; or
(b) The sponsor actually contributes resources to the alien's assistance unit)) The United States Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) require that most people have a sponsor to enter the country as a permanent resident. A sponsor is a person or agency who agreed to meet the needs of the sponsored person. The department uses a process called deeming to count part of the sponsor's resources to the person they sponsored.
(1) If INS required your sponsor to sign the affidavit of support form I-864 or I-864A, we count some of your sponsor's resources when we decide if you are eligible for benefits. We do not count your sponsor's resources if you are exempt from the deeming process under WAC 388-450-0156.
(2) If your sponsor's spouse signed the affidavit of support, we count some of their resources when we decide if you are eligible for benefits. We do not count the resources of your sponsor's spouse if you are exempt from the deeming process under WAC 388-450-0156.
(3) You must cooperate with the deeming process in order to be eligible for benefits. You must do the following to cooperate with the process:
(a) Give us the name and address of your sponsor;
(b) Get your sponsor to cooperate with us while we determine your eligibility and benefits; and
(c) Give us the information and proof we need to decide:
(i) If we must deem resources to your assistance unit (AU); and
(ii) The amount of resources we deem to your AU.
(4) If you refuse to cooperate with the deeming process, the other adult members in your AU must cooperate. If the same person sponsored everyone in your AU, your entire AU is not eligible for benefits until you or another member of your AU cooperates.
(5) We decide the amount of your sponsor's resources to count by:
(a) Totaling the countable resources of the sponsor and the sponsor's spouse (if the spouse signed the affidavit of support) under chapter 388-470 WAC;
(b) Subtracting fifteen hundred dollars; and
(c) Counting the remaining amount as a resource that is available to you.
(6) If you can show that your sponsor has sponsored other people as well, we divide the result by the total number of people who they sponsored.
(7) We continue to count your sponsor's resources when we determine your eligibility for benefits until you are exempt from deeming under WAC 388-450-0156.
[Statutory Authority: RCW 74.04.050, 74.04.055, 74.04.057 and 74.08.090. 98-16-044, 388-470-0060, filed 7/31/98, effective 9/1/98. Formerly WAC 388-510-1030.]