We now make "too much money" for FS

[an_aurora]

:

My income went up by $300/month and now we don't qualify. What I don't get is, our rent went up by $600/month but they don't care how much your bills are. We were only spending $100/month out of pocket and were barely getting by :.

[Purple Sage]

I'm sorry, mama. I hate how the system "works."

[Smithie]

Cripes. How did your rent go up $600? Did your landlord add another room? (I'll bet not!)

[Snugglebunnymama]

Yeah, AFAIK they don't care about what you pay for rent. They would say "find something cheaper." We had FS many years ago, and I remember I couldn't understand why they didn't seem to care that we paid what we did in rent (and it wasn't anything fancy- nothing NEAR the house we live in now or anything even close). I was told that they give a certain "allotment" (kinda like a "deduction") for rent and utilities, and that was it--regardless of what you REALLY were paying for rent/utilities.


(and outta curiosity- how did your rent go up so much? Did you just move to a different place or something? Man... )

[an_aurora]

No our rent didn't suddenly increase, we just moved out of a friend's house and into our own place. This was in January, and this month our $$ didn't get put on our card like normal, so DH went in and she said we no longer qualify.

[mumstheway]

Have you checked into WIC?

[an_aurora]

Yes we were on WIC but stopped since we don't drink milk or juice, and it's alot of hassle for peanut butter, eggs, and beans.

[momof2kiddos]

I am sorry to here this. It really sucks how the system works sometimes. It just irks me. I hope things work out for you.

[AlwaysByMySide]

I have the same problem. Because I'm self-employed, if I have a good month, it throws everything out of whack. We just got kicked off, and in two weeks, unless something ridiculous happens, we'll qualify for them again.

I also hate that welfare/TANF (in my state) requires working 40 hours a week. When I work 40 hours a week, I make too much to be on welfare, but can still only barely make ends meet after paying for childcare for two kids under 5.

Love welfare reform.

[mommaof5]

It totally makes no sense!

[an_aurora]

It makes no sense to me either. I hate that they discourage people from going to school. I mean, we are trying to finish our degrees so we can actually support ourselves and not have to rely on welfare! I went from a registry position, where I was working FT and not getting benefits, to a full-time position and that's what made the difference. Plus we were paying $500/month in child care, even though we were supposed to be getting assistance with that they never processed it so we paid that out of pocket. It took them four months to get us our food stamps money in the first place, and DH doens't get any since he doesn't work enough (he was working 16 hours a week, on the weekends, while going to school FT).

[SunshineJ]

I'm so sorry- that sucks and the fs system they have set up is seriously flawed. When DH and I both lost our jobs in September, it was a nightmare. There was a delay on my unemployment, so we were only living off of DH's and sinking fast. The guy at the social services office was either overwhelmed or lazy (or both) and didn't get our request processed in the 30 days. By the time all was said and done, it was 2 months later, I was getting my unemployment and we were then making too much to qualify. For a family of 4 with nothing but unemployment coming in. (Trust me, I'm in one of the bottom 10 lowest paying states, we're not rolling in it!) Nevermind DH and I only ate one snack a day so we could feed the kids for that 2 months! Grrr!

Sorry didn't mean to hijack your thread Just wanted to commiserate, I know how difficult they can be to work with!

[an_aurora]

Hijack away!

[mrs*kewpie*pie]

i don't understand how your rent is not fatcored in? i'm pretty sure it is here. i know its always on the form anyways "how much do you pay..." and you have to list out your rent and utilities + other bills too

i think i would file an appeal if i was you

[an_aurora]

I have no idea, DH was the one that went to the office while I was sleeping (I work nights, and get home about 8:30 am, so I sleep most of the day) and the lady told him that they only go off the gross income, and expenses don't count. When we first applied though we had to provide proof of everything, and list our expenses, so I'm not sure why that would change.

[Sierra]

Originally Posted by mrs*kewpie*pie

i don't understand how your rent is not fatcored in? i'm pretty sure it is here. i know its always on the form anyways "how much do you pay..." and you have to list out your rent and utilities + other bills too

I just applied. I had listed all our expenses. It asked for these expenses and the form indicated that expenses would be considered.

Nope, they just consider gross pay, as someone else said.

We have some extraordinary expenses, particularly medical bills (I have two chronic medical conditions, and my ds also has some special medical issues). In the end, we were told that based on income, we came in above the limit. I asked them to please consider our expenses, and they said that would only make a difference in a few specialized situations, such as if one of us qualified for disability (ds might, but applying for that would complicate some other programs he is in, so I won't). I also asked if there was any way to make a special consideration for us because I am taxed at a higher rate due to my type of work. I take home far less than my gross pay each month. They do not make consideration for a large difference between net and gross pay, even upon special request. They only count gross pay.

[an_aurora]

Oh no that is an awful situation

[Smithie]

They only count gross pay in this state, too - for both TANF and WIC as far as I can ascertain. It's insane. And don't even get me STARTED on the six ways to Sunday that FT students making appropriate progress towards their degrees are denied reasonable benefits to keep them from living on freaking ramen noddles. What a great way to keep higher education/class mobility out of the reach of young people who don't have well-off and supportive parents! :

[angelcollector1]

Originally Posted by mrs*kewpie*pie

i don't understand how your rent is not fatcored in? i'm pretty sure it is here. i know its always on the form anyways "how much do you pay..." and you have to list out your rent and utilities + other bills too

i think i would file an appeal if i was you

After just filing, I can answer this question. They request this information but their guidelines don't allow anything for deductions towards rent and only $270 a month IF you pay your own heating or cooling expenses, from your gross income to determine if you qualify. I know there is a link I found that gave me this information- don't have time to find it right now- and it was for the entire country.

I'm sorry OP, I know it sucks!

[Emmeline II]

When I was on WIC, I was eventually kicked off because dh got a wee raise. In reality it was about $6 a month but looked more in gross.

The worker said that because there are so many variations for deductions (retirement, health care, etc.) that the only fair way to calculate it is from the gross pay.

I can see her point, but I wish the system was configured from one's entry point into the system to a "graduation point"; and that you would not be dropped until you graduated. A bit like most employers will extend health benefits until you are 23 as long as you are a full time student.