The Washington Basic Food program (Basic Food) is a
federally funded nutrition program to help low-income individuals and families
buy food. This rule is a summary of the rules for Basic Food.
(1)When you apply for Basic Food, we decide
who is in your assistance unit (AU) based on the requirements under WAC
388-408-0034 and
388-408-0035.
(2)To be eligible for Basic Food benefits,
your AU must meet the eligibility requirements of:
(a)The most current version of the Food and
Nutrition Act of 2008;
(b)Federal
regulations adopted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition
Services (FNS) related to the supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP);
and
(c)Standards FNS publishes each
year for income limits, resource limits, income deductions, and benefit amounts
for SNAP.
(3) To be
eligible for Basic Food benefits, each AU member must:
(a) Meet the citizenship or alien status
requirements of WAC
388-424-0020.
(b)Be a resident of the state of Washington
as required under WAC
388-468-0005;
(c) Give us their Social Security number as
required under WAC
388-476-0005;
(d) Give us proof of identity as required
under WAC
388-490-0005;
(e)Meet the Basic Food work requirements
under chapter
388-444 WAC; and
(f)Meet the eligibility criteria for strikers
as described under WAC
388-480-0001.
(4)To be eligible for Basic Food,
your AU must:
(a)Have total monthly income
before taxes and deductions at or under the gross monthly income standard under
WAC
388-478-0060. We don't use income
that isn't counted under WAC
388-450-0015 as part of your AU's
gross monthly income;
(b)Have net
income at or under the net monthly income standard under WAC
388-478-0060. We subtract
deductions allowed under WAC
388-450-0185 to determine your
AU's net monthly income.
(c)Have
resources we must count under WAC
388-470-0055 that are at or below
your AU's resource limit under WAC
388-470-0005;
(d) Report changes of circumstances as
required under WAC
388-418-0005; and
(e) Complete a mid-certification review and
provide proof of any changes if required under WAC
388-418-0011.
(5)If your AU is categorically
eligible for Basic Food under WAC
388-414-0001, your AU can have
income over the gross or net income standard, and have resources over the
resource limit and still be eligible for benefits.
(6)If your AU has income at or under the
gross income standard or is categorically eligible for Basic Food, we determine
if you are eligible for Basic Food and calculate your monthly benefits as
described under WAC
388-450-0162.
(7) If an eligible person in your AU is
elderly or disabled, some rules may help your AU to be eligible for Basic Food
or to receive more Basic Food benefits. These include:
(a) Resources limits and excluding certain
resources under chapter
388-470 WAC;
(b) An excess shelter deduction over the
limit set for AUs without an elderly or disabled individual under WAC
388-450-0190;
(c)A deduction for a portion of the
out-of-pocket medical expenses for the elderly or disabled individual as
described under WAC
388-450-0200; and
(d)Being exempt from the
gross monthly
income standard under WAC
388-478-0060.
(8)For Basic Food,
elderly means a person who is age sixty or older;
(9)For Basic Food,
disabled
means a person who:
(a)Receives
SSI;
(b)Receives disability
payments or blindness payments under Title I, II, XIV, or XVI of the Social
Security Act;
(c)Receives
disability retirement benefits from a state, local or federal government agency
because of a disability considered permanent under section 221(i) of the Social
Security Act;
(d) Receives state
general assistance benefits based on blindness or disability criteria under
chapter
388-449 WAC;
(e)Receives
disability benefits from the Railroad Retirement Act under sections 2(a)(1)(iv)
and (v) and:
(i) Meets Title XIX disability
requirements; or
(ii) Is eligible
for medicare.
(f)
Receives disability-related medical assistance under Title XIX of the Social
Security Act;
(g) Is a veteran and
receives disability payments based on one hundred percent disability;
(h) Is a spouse of a veteran and:
(i) Either needs an attendant or is
permanently housebound; or
(ii) Has
a disability under section 221(i) of the Social Security Act and is eligible
for death or pension payments under Title 38 of the U.S.C..
(10)If a person in your
household attends an institution of higher education and does not meet the
requirements to be an eligible student under WAC
388-482-0005, we do not count
this person as a member of your AU under WAC
388-408-0035.
(11) If your AU currently receives food
benefits under WASHCAP or lives on or near an Indian reservation and receives
benefits from a tribal food distribution program approved by FNS, your AU is
not eligible for food assistance benefits through the Washington Basic Food
program.
(12)If a person in your AU
is ineligible for any of the following reasons, we count the ineligible
person's income as described under WAC
388-450-0140:
(a) Able-bodied adults without dependents who
are no longer eligible under WAC
388-444-0030;
(b)Persons fleeing a felony prosecution,
conviction, or confinement under WAC
388-442-0010;
(c)Persons who do not attest to citizenship
or alien status as defined in WAC
388-424-0001;
(d)Persons who are ineligible aliens under
WAC
388-424-0020;
(e)Persons disqualified for an intentional
program violation under WAC
388-446-0015;
(f)Persons who do not provide a Social
Security number when required under WAC
388-476-0005; or
(g)Persons who failed to meet work
requirements under chapter
388-444 WAC.
