540.5 Excluded Resources

The County Assistance Office (CAO) will exclude the following resources when determining eligibility (Please use the appropriate resource exclusion code):

  7 CFR § 273.8 (e)

NOTE: A public road or right of way that separates any plot from the home does not affect the exclusion.

Pub. L. 107-171 § 4107

Example: A household member becomes the owner of the family homestead because all other family members are deceased. The home is abandoned and uninhabitable. Municipal authorities have delayed seizing the property for several months. The household cannot readily provide proof of ownership and of the situation. The CAO determines the property is an excluded resource and records the reason in the case record.

NOTE: The household will receive an exemption for the lot and, if it is partially completed, for the home.

 

540.51  Personal Effects, Burial Plots, and Household Goods

The CAO will exclude:

7 CFR § 273.8

Pub. L. 107-171 § 4107

 

540.52 Totally Excluded Vehicles

7 CFR § 273.8

 

540.53  Life Insurance and Pension Plans

Pub. L. 107-171 § 4107

NOTE:  All pension plans or funds are excluded until a household member withdraws them. Withdrawn retirement funds are treated either as unearned income if they are received as a recurring payment (see Section 550.3) or as a lump sum resource if they are received as a nonrecurring payment (see Section 540.42).

 

540.54  Income-Producing Property and Equipment

The CAO will exclude:

7 CFR § 273.8

NOTE:  Rental and vacation properties should produce income similar to other rental properties of equal FMV.

NOTE: Nonresidential property that does not generate income is included as a resource at FMV. The CAO will confirm the value by requesting verification such as:

Reminder: Using Zillow or any other online real estate listing in not an approved method for determining FMV. Additionally, the CAO will not require the household to obtain an appraisal or use any other method to verify FMV of a nonresidential property that may require out-of-pocket expense to the household.

NOTE: Property essential to the self-employment of a household member engaged in farming is excluded for one year from the date the household member ends self-employment from farming.
 

Example: A household uses a produce truck to earn a living and is prohibited from parking the truck near its home. The household owns a 100-acre field and uses a portion of it to park or service the truck. Only the value of the portion used for the vehicle is excluded, not the entire 100-acre field.

 

540.55 Government Payments

7 CFR § 273.8

Example: Payments by the Individual and Family Grant Program or the Small Business Administration to rebuild a home or replace personal possessions damaged in a disaster

 

540.56  Inaccessible Resources

An inaccessible resource does not count towards the household’s resource limit.

NOTE:  This provision does not apply to negotiable financial instruments, such as stocks and bonds. These assets are counted towards the household’s resource limit.

The CAO will exclude:

7 CFR § 273.8

Examples: Irrevocable trust funds, Pennsylvania Uniform Gifts to Minors Act (UGMA) accounts, property in probate, security deposits on rental property and utilities, and funds received from a non-household member that are intended and used only for the benefit of a nonmember, if the household provides verification

NOTE: An “in trust for” bank account is usually for a minor. The person setting up the bank account has full access to the account. It is a resource to the person who set up the bank account.

NOTE: A Supplemental Needs Trust (also referred to as a Special Needs Trust or SNT) is a type of irrevocable trust fund that is managed by a trustee and is inaccessible to the beneficiary. Because the trustee, not the beneficiary, has control over the fund, it is excluded from income and resources, even when used to cover beneficiary expenses. However, any money that is paid directly to the beneficiary from the SNT will count as unearned income.

NOTE: A UGMA account, including any interest accrued, is excluded. When withdrawn, the funds are treated as a resource if received as a nonrecurring payment, or as unearned income if they are received as a recurring payment (see Section 550.3).

7 CFR § 273.8

Example: A household owns a nonresident property with many liens against it. If the income from the sale of the home at FMV after payment of all liens would be less than half of the household resource limit, the property is an inaccessible resource.

7 CFR § 273.8

NOTE: There are no limits on the number of vehicles per household when determining the “significant return.”

Reminder: The CAO must verify that the property is for sale and the household has not refused a reasonable offer. The CAO worker must include in the case record the reason for excluding the property and the household's efforts to sell it.

NOTE: Abandoned or uninhabitable property is inaccessible if providing proof of ownership, net worth, and efforts to sell the property pose the household undue hardship.

Pub. L. 107-171 § 4107

NOTE: Dividends earned or money withdrawn from a trust is income, not a resource.

 

540.57  Installment Contracts

The CAO will exclude:

7 CFR § 273.8

 

540.58  Resources Previously Prorated as Income

The CAO will exclude:

7 CFR § 273.8

NOTE: If this money is combined with countable funds, such as a bank account, the CAO must exclude the prorated amount for the period it is prorated. After that period, the total amount of combined funds is a countable resource.

 

540.59  Nonliquid Resources with Liens

The CAO will exclude:

7 CFR § 273.8

 

540.510 Energy Assistance

The CAO will exclude:

7 CFR § 273.8

7 CFR § 273.9

NOTE: If utility assistance from a third party is ongoing, the CAO will treat the payments as unearned income. For households without an elderly or disabled member, the income will be counted when determining Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligibility (see Section 550.3).

Pub. L. 88-525 § 5(k)(4)(A)

 

540.511  Disaster and Emergency Assistance Payments

The CAO will exclude:

7 CFR § 273.8.

NOTE: Federal Emergency Management Assistance (FEMA) funds, including rental assistance funds, are excluded if they are made to individuals affected by a major disaster or an emergency.

NOTE: Disaster Unemployment Assistance is not considered a resource when determining eligibility and benefit levels.

 

540.512  Other Payments

The CAO will exclude:

7 CFR § 273.8

NOTE:  Households do not lose the exclusion because of temporary periods of non-participation, such as those caused by SAR sanctions or missing the renewal appointment.

7 CFR § 273.8

7 CFR § 248.24

NOTE: Funds withdrawn for any purpose other than educational expenses are treated as a resource in the month withdrawn if received as a nonrecurring payment, or as unearned income if received as a recurring payment (see Section 550.3).

7 CFR § 273.8

7 CFR § 273.9

7 CFR § 273.9

Pub. L. 100-383 § 105(f)(2)

Pub. L. 101-201

Pub. L. 101-426 § 6(h)(2)

Pub. L. 104-204 § 1805(d)

Pub. L. 103-82

 

540.513 Indian Funds and Lands

The CAO will exclude:

7 CFR § 273.8

NOTE: The CAO must direct questions about such resources to the Policy Clarification Unit in the Bureau of Policy.

 

540.514 Resources of TANF and SSI Household Members

The CAO will exclude:  

7 CFR § 273.8

NOTE:  If a ll household members are recipients of TANF and/or SSI, the household is categorically eligible.

 

Exception: This provision does not apply to households with ineligible noncitizens.

Example: Lump sum payments of retroactive SSI benefits to disabled children

 

NOTE: Dedicated accounts are established according to law stating how deposited funds can be used. The federal government audits these accounts periodically.

Pub. L. 104-193 § 213

 

540.515  German Reparation Payments

The CAO will exclude:

Pub. L. 103-286 § 1(a)

 

540.516  Family Savings Accounts

The CAO will exclude:  

Pub. L. 104-193 § 404

 

540.517 SEED Accounts

The CAO will exclude:

NOTE: SEED accounts are accounts established for children born on or after January 1, 2006, that:

 

 

540.518 Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Accounts

The CAO will exclude:

NOTE: ABLE accounts are tax-favored savings accounts that provide secure funding for disability-related expenses incurred by beneficiaries deemed disabled before age 26.

 

 

540.519 Treatment of Excluded Resources

If an excluded resource is kept in a separate account, the CAO will continue to exclude it for an unlimited time.  

7 CFR § 273.8(g)

Example: A household receives an energy assistance payment of $300 and deposits the payment in a new savings account. The household has another savings account, with a balance of $1,800. The household will continue to meet the resource limits as long as the excluded money is kept separate and the other account stays within the resource limits.

If an excluded resource is combined with other countable resources, the CAO will not count the resource for six months from the date the funds are combined. After six months, the CAO must count the total amount of combined resources.

Example: Ahousehold receives a reimbursement payment of $1,500 from the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Act. The household deposits this payment in their savings account, which already contained $1,100. The $1,500 is excluded for only six months. The household will become ineligible six months from the day of deposit unless it reduces its resources to within the resource limits.

Updated March 13, 2026, replacing April 13, 2016