DPSS ePolicy

Categorical Eligibility (CE)

HHs are CE when all CalFresh eligible members are authorized to receive the following cash programs:

• Supplemental Security Income and/or California State Supplementary Payment (SSI/SSP)
• CalWORKs (CW)
• General Assistance/General Relief (GA/GR)
• Tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (Tribal TANF)

Modified Categorical Eligibility (MCE)

Effective July 1, 2014, most HHs that are given information about available federal services via the PUB 275, Family Planning...Making the Commitment for a Healthy Future (04/07) brochure. HHs that receive this brochure are considered MCE conferred.

This waives the resource requirement for these HHs and uses the 200% Federal Poverty Level (FPL) income limit instead of the standard 130% FPL income limit.

Non-CE

Per state regulations, the following HHs are not eligible for MCE, therefore, they are subject to all CalFresh eligibility requirements, including the resource limit and the gross income limit based on 130% of the FPL:

1. Any HH with a disqualified member such as an Intentional Program Violator (IPV), or a Fleeing Felon or Probation/Parole Violator; or
   
2. A HH, when the head of HH does not comply with work requirements.

Note: A HH may be conferred MCE status once it is determined that the sanction period has expired and the HH meets all other conditions of MCE eligibility.

HH

An individual or a group of individuals living together who customarily purchase and prepare food together.

Countable Income

All non-exempt income received by the HH, whether earned or unearned. Examples of gross income are wages, commissions, salaries, tips of an employee, self-employment, earnings from job training, vocational or rehabilitation programs, etc. Examples of unearned income are social security disability, social security retirement income, unemployment benefits, railroad retirement, etc.

Income Deduction/Expense

Allowed income deductions can be subtracted from the gross countable income when determining net income eligibility and benefit level.

Standard Deduction

A standard deduction is allowed for each HH per month in an amount that is established by the federal government and is released to Eligibility Staff annually in Administrative Release (AR) 63-504.39, CalFresh Cost-of-Living Adjustments.

CalFresh Allotment Determination

The Food and Nutrition (FNS) Basis of Coupon/EBT Issuance Table is released by the United States Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service (USDA-FNS) annually on October 1st to account for changes in the cost of the Thrifty Food Plan (TFP). To obtain the table for the current Federal Fiscal Year (FFY), refer to the annual release of AR 63-504.39 CalFresh Cost-of-Living Adjustments.

California Food Assistance Program (CFAP)

Certain legal noncitizens of the United States (US) may be eligible for CFAP if they are not eligible for federal CalFresh benefits based solely on their immigration status.

Gross Income Test

All non-CE HHs (with the exception of HHs containing elderly and/or disabled members) must first meet the gross income test. Gross income is defined as all non-excluded income from any source (earned, unearned, or self-employment). 

The income standards are applied as follows:

• 130% of the FPL for HHs that have not been MCE conferred (such as HHs containing an IPV or HHs containing a head of HH who did not comply with work requirements); or 
  
  
• 200% of the FPL for HHs that have been MCE conferred.

Note: For further details on MCE, Eligibility Staff may refer to AR 5823, Modified Categorical Eligibility, dated March 17, 2020.

Both the 130% and the 200% FPL income limits are established by the federal government, and are released annually to Eligibility Staff in AR 63-504.39, CalFresh Cost-of-Living Adjustments.

Net Income Test

All HHs must be evaluated for and meet the net income test. (Exception: HHs with an elderly and/or disabled HH member that are not within their gross income limit but pass the net income test and are within the resource limit for the current FFY may be eligible for CalFresh benefits). Non-CE HHs must first pass the gross income test prior to being evaluated for the net income test.

All allowable expenses and deductions are taken into consideration for CalFresh eligibility determination when computing the net income test.

To determine income eligibility, CalFresh uses two income tests as the methodology for evaluating cases as follows:

1. The first test is the gross income test.
   
   Note: The gross income test is not applied to the following HHs:
   
   
   • Elderly and/or disabled HHs; and
   • CE HHs.
      
2. The second test is the adjusted net income test.
   
   • The HH will be evaluated for the second income test only if the HH passes the gross income test.

The gross, net and resource tests will be applied differently as follows:

• For CE HHs, only the net income test will be applied, however, the gross income test and the resource test will not be applied.
  
  
• For CE HHs that contain an elderly and/or disabled member, only the net income test will be applied, however, the gross income test and the resource test will not be applied.
  
  
• For MCE HHs, the gross income test and the net income test must be applied, however, the resource test will not be applied.
  
  
• For MCE HHs that contain an elderly and/or disabled member, the net income test and the resource test must be applied, however, the gross income test will not be applied.

The federal government issues the FNS Basis of Coupon/EBT Issuance Table annually. The allotments are adjusted by the USDA-FNS every October 1st to account for changes in the cost of the TFP. This table provides the guidelines for determining the amount of the CalFresh allotment to be issued to each HH after the adjusted net income for that HH has been determined by counting all existing income, and/or expenses and/or deductions. Generally, the total dollar amount of CalFresh benefits a HH is entitled to receive is determined by:

1. The number of eligible HH members; and
   
   
2. The HH’s adjusted net income

When a HH passes the gross income test, or is within the gross income limit and there is an elderly and/or disabled HH member, but fails the net income test, the benefit level is determined as follows:

CE/MCE HHs of One or Two Members

CE/MCE HHs of one or two members are eligible to the minimum CalFresh benefit allotment even if their net income exceeds the maximum allowable, regardless of the amount displayed in the FNS Basis of Coupon/EBT Issuance Table.

A CE/MCE HH of one or two members whose income exceeds the net income limit for their HH size:

1. Will never have a zero-benefit case; they will always be allowed the minimum benefit amount for the current FFY; and 
   
   
2. Will not fail for excess net income. 

CE/MCE HHs of Three or More Members 

CE/MCE HHs of three or more members will only receive the corresponding amount in the FNS Basis of Coupon/EBT Issuance Table based on their net income (even if it is less than $10.00, except for the initial month). The actual benefit amount is calculated as follows:

• When the HH's net income exceeds the HH's net income limit and the amount listed on the FNS Basis of Coupon/EBT Issuance Table equals zero, the HH will be denied or discontinued. The denial/discontinuance will be based on the fact that the HH’s net income exceeds the level at which benefits can be issued.
  
  
• When the HH's net income exceeds the HH's net income limit and the amount on the FNS Basis of Coupon/EBT Issuance Table is more than zero, the HH will be approved for initial or ongoing CalFresh benefits based on the amount listed in the FNS Basis of Coupon/EBT Issuance Table.

Note: No issuance of less than $10.00 will be made in the month of application for any HH, including HHs that are considered CE/MCE, regardless of the HH size and the amount listed in the FNS Basis of Coupon/EBT Issuance table. This includes but is not limited to HHs whose benefit is prorated and results in a CalFresh allotment of less than $10.00.

CalFresh allotment benefits are prorated based on the application date and Beginning Date of Aid (BDA). Assuming that all other requirements have been met, the issuance of the CalFresh benefit allotment is as follows:

• If the application receipt date and BDA is on the first of the month, then the HH is entitled to a full month’s allotment.
  
  
• If the application receipt date and BDA is after the first day of the month, then that month’s allotment must be prorated from the date the application is received and BDA.

To accurately calculate the proration of CalFresh benefits, Eligibility Staff must utilize the proration formula found in the Reciprocal Table for Computing Partial Month’s Payment table provided by the California Department of Social Services (CDSS).

Note: No issuance of less than $10.00 will be made in the month of application for any HH, including HHs that are considered CE/MCE, regardless of the HH size and the amount listed in the FNS Basis of Coupon/EBT Issuance Table. This includes but is not limited to HHs whose benefit is prorated and results in a CalFresh allotment of less than $10.00.