Eligibility for Public Assistance After You Get A Job:

Even after you get a job, you may still be eligible for public assistance. While you might not be able to receive as much as you did before, you may still be able to get something. The amount of money you will be allowed to receive depends on your "earned income disregard" and can be an important supplement to your income.

IMPORTANT:

What are
Earned Income Disregards?

An earned income disregard is money that DSS disregards or considers "invisible" for public assistance budgeting purposes.

The size of your earned income disregard varies according to whether you have a child in your household or not.

There is no time limit for earned income disregards; they will last as long as you are still working and earning less than 185% of the state standard of need. For a family of four, 185% of the standard of need is $1272 per month. This means that a family of four must earn less than $1272 per month to qualify for the disregards.

How Earned Income Disregards Work for Families:

If you have a child in your household:
        1 Subtract $90.00 from your gross income (that is, before taxes)
        2 Subtract 47% of what is left over

       For Example:
      Mr. and Mrs. Jones have only one child. Their public assistance grant is $577 a month.
        Mrs. Jones just got a job at Urban Plumbing. She will earn $1000.00 a month.

1 HRA will disregard the first $90.00 of Ms. Jones's earnings, leaving $910.00: ($1000.00 - $90.00 = $910.00)

2 HRA will then disregard another $419.00:
(47% of $910.00 = $428.00)

3 This leaves only $482.00 for HRA to budget against the Jones's grant: ($910.00 - $428.00 = $482.00)!

4 HRA then subtracts $482.00 from the original $577.00 grant to get $95.00. This figure ($95.00) is the amount of money that the Jones's will get from public assistance per month.

Now, instead of having $577.00 to spend each month, the Jones's will have gross income of $1095.00. (Taxes will be deducted, but the family may qualify for Earned Income Tax Credit, Child and Dependent Care Credit, and Child Tax Credit.)

                                                        NOTE:
The Jones's will still be eligible for medicaid and food stamps, as well. If the Jones's were receiving a Jiggetts rent supplement they would get to keep that, too!

A Note to SINGLE ADULTS and CHILDLESS COUPLES

If You are Working and Are Not Getting Earned Income Disregards:

If you are not getting the proper Earned Income Disregards, call your case worker and let him or her know immediately.

You may also wish to request a fair hearing by:
            1 calling (212) 417-6550, or
            2 visiting the Fair Hearing Office at
               14 Boerum Place (Brooklyn), 1^st Floor

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