Section 29-7503. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

 

7503.1In order to be eligible for assistance under this program, each applicant shall meet the following criteria:

 

(a)Be presented with an emergency as defined in section 7599;

 

(b)Be part of an applicant unit with an emergency with at least one member who is:

 

(1)A minor child age eighteen (18) years or younger;

 

(2)Age sixty (60) years or older; or

 

(3)A person with a disability.

 

(c)Demonstrate that he or she has no other available resources for resolving the emergency, including resources actually available from a community resource, but excluding those exempted in section 7503.13; and

 

(d)Demonstrate that the provision of emergency rental assistance services will substantially, if not entirely, alleviate the emergency during the thirty (30) day period immediately following the authorization of payment. If the permissible assistance payment does not entirely eliminate the emergency, the applicant shall provide reliable, convincing information that the remaining necessary amount is actually available from another source or that the landlord will accept a partial payment or longer-term repayment plan, which is within the applicant's financial means to execute. Failure to demonstrate that the emergency can be resolved shall result in a denial of eligibility for emergency rental assistance.

 

7503.2An applicant shall agree to and participate in case management services, if the provider determines that the circumstances leading to the emergency remain unresolved. Failure to agree to or cooperate in such case management may result in ineligibility.

 

7503.3An applicant shall be living in the District of Columbia at the time of application.

 

7503.4The applicant shall be considered to be living in the District if he or she:

 

(a)Is maintaining a home in the District as his or her principal residence; or

 

(b)Is homeless, physically present in the District, and not a resident of another state.

 

7503.5An adult applicant shall be denied emergency rental assistance if the emergency is the result of his or her refusal without "good cause" to accept employment or training for employment.

 

7503.6An applicant shall be considered to have refused employment or training if the applicant:

 

(a)Voluntarily quit employment or a bona fide training program within three (3) months prior to application; or

 

(b)Rejected an employment or a bona fide training program opportunity within the three (3) months prior to the application.

 

7503.7"Good Cause" reasons for voluntarily quitting a job or not participating in an employment training program include circumstances beyond the individual's control, such as, but not limited to, the following, when the applicant can show, with reliable or credible information, that:

 

(a)Wages are below the minimum wage;

 

(b)The applicant is physically or mentally unable to perform the work or gain access to the worksite;

 

(c)Working conditions violate health, safety, or worker's compensation regulations and present a substantial risk to health or safety;

 

(d)The employer discriminated against the applicant based on race, color, religion, national original, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, familial status, family responsibilities, matriculation, political affiliation, genetic information, disability, source of income or place of residence or business in violation of D.C. Official Code § 2-1401.01 et seq. (D.C. Law 2-38, effective December 13, 1977);

 

(e)The requirements of the job would be contrary to his or her religious beliefs;

 

(f)There existed a household emergency (including domestic violence);

 

(g)The resignation is recognized by the employer as retirement;

 

(h)Child care, which is necessary for the adult applicant to accept work or training, is not available; or

 

(i)The applicant could not maintain work or participate in a training program because it was necessary for the applicant to take care of a family member who is either ill or has a disability.

 

7503.8The applicant unit's combined net income, as specified in section 7503.10, in the thirty (30) day period immediately preceding the date of application, and non- excluded assets, as specified in section 7503.15, on the date of application, must not exceed one hundred and twenty-five percent (125%) of the monthly Federal Poverty Level as defined by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for the specified household size.

 

7503.9The following shall not be counted in calculating income available to the applicant unit in the budget month:

 

(a)Discontinued income, unless actually available in the budget month;

 

(b)Any income in-kind including, but not limited to, Food Stamps, Women, Infants, and Children Program (WIC), school lunches, homemaker services, and benefits received under the Older Americans Act;

 

(c)Deductions from earnings which are limited to actual amounts deducted by the employer for federal income tax, D.C. Income Tax, Social Security, Civil Service Retirement, life insurance, health insurance and any other deduction which is mandatory. Garnishments from wages are not considered mandatory deductions and will be counted in the determination of available income;

 

(d)Payments for children in foster care;

 

(e)Vendor payments made by the federal or District governments on behalf of the applicant directly to a vendor, except that any Department administered Rental Vendor Payments made on behalf of a Temporary Aid for Needy Families (TANF) client will be counted as income;

 

(f)Value of Low Income Energy Assistance;

 

(g)Earnings of persons fourteen (14) years of age and under;

 

(h)Earnings from the first eighty (80) hours of employment per month of students ages fifteen (15) years or older and enrolled in secondary school;

 

(i)Summer earnings of a student who was enrolled in school when school was dismissed for the summer vacation, but has not yet graduated from high school, regardless of the number of hours employed;

 

(j)Work incentive payments, training stipends, or allowances to facilitate employment;

 

(k)Income from any source which is used to pay court ordered child support in the budget month to another household; and

 

(l)Expenses related to self-employment which may be reasonably associated with the cost of producing income, such that only net income from the self-employment is considered as available to the applicant.

 

7503.10All income of an applicant unit that is not specifically exempted in section 7503.9 shall be considered in calculating the income of the applicant unit in the budget month.

 

7503.11The following shall be considered in calculating the income of the applicant in the budget month:

 

(a)The net amount of ongoing income received during the budget month including, but not limited to:

 

(1)Income from a boarder;

 

(2)Earned income;

 

(3)TANF grant;

 

(4)Interim Disability Assistance grant;

 

(5)General Assistance for Children grant;

 

(6)Child support payments received;

 

(7)Social Security retirement, survivors or disability insurance benefits;

 

(8)Alimony;

 

(9)Veterans Administration benefits;

 

(10)Worker's compensation benefits, unemployment benefits and other governmental unemployment benefits;

 

(11)Payments from private sick and accident insurance plans;

 

(12)Pensions;

 

(13)Retirement benefits;

 

(14)Strike benefits; and

 

(15)Military allotments.

 

(b)The value of a rental vendor payment made to a vendor under the TANF program on behalf of the applicant;

 

(c)The net amount of discontinued, sporadic, or lump sum income, if it is received in the budget month or has been received in an earlier month and is still available to the applicant;

 

(d)The net amount of any proceeds from lottery winnings, cash gifts, or loans, except that need-based educational loans are exempt; and

 

(e)The income of a recipient of Supplemental Security Income.

 

7503.12The equity value of all assets, unless specifically exempt under section 7503.13, shall be added to the applicant's income to determine the total amount of resources available to the applicant in the budget month.

 

7503.13The following resources or assets shall not be considered in calculating income available in the budget month:

 

(a)The home and surrounding land in which the applicant lives. Surrounding land does not include adjoining lots separately taxed and zoned;

 

(b)All household furnishings and all personal belongings;

 

(c)The value of motor vehicles used for transportation;

 

(d)Tools, machinery and other property used for employment or self- employment, whether or not in the home;

 

(e)Taxi, truck or similar vehicle necessary for employment or self- employment;

 

(f)Cash or money in bank accounts that was obtained from a need-based loan made to an applicant for school related expenses;

 

(g)Pre-paid burial plans or cemetery plots; and

 

(h)Money on hand which is specifically earmarked for contribution towards the resolution of the crisis.

 

7503.14The value of an asset jointly owned by the applicant and any person who is not a member of the applicant unit shall be prorated according to the number of owners, unless the applicant can demonstrate a different division based on legal ownership.

 

7503.15The following assets and resources shall be considered income available to the applicant in the budget month:

 

(a)The equity in all real property except the home and surrounding land in which the applicant lives;

 

(b)The equity in any interest in recreational vehicles, including, but not limited to, boats, campers, trailers, motorcycles not exempted under section 7503.14(c), snowmobiles, or aircraft;

 

(c)The equity of any interest in machinery, livestock, or other property or items that are not used for employment or self-employment;

 

(d)The loan value available to the applicant in insurance plans or the cash or loan value available to the applicant pursuant to an agreement in an escrow or trust fund;

 

(e)The cash value of an Individual Retirement Account or another deferred compensation plan, or pension funds that have been distributed from a plan and are actually available to an applicant;

 

(f)The actual value of cash including, but not limited to, a checking account, a savings account, a certificate of deposit, stocks, and bonds;

 

(g)The actual cash value of a non-exempt asset that was converted to cash in the thirty (30) days prior to the date of application; and

 

(h)The equity value of non-exempt assets which are sold, transferred, or traded for less than fair market value within the twelve (12) months prior to the date of application, when there is reason to believe that the action was taken for the purpose of becoming eligible for Emergency Rental Assistance.

 

source

Final Rulemaking published at 54 DCR 12622 (December 28, 2007).