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State of Wisconsin |
HISTORY |
The policy on this page is from a previous version of the handbook.
Earned Income (non-MAGI only)
Jury Duty Payments (non-MAGI only)
Stipends from the University of Wisconsin Upward Bound Program
The following types of income are not included in the countable income when determining eligibility for BadgerCare Plus.
If the amount of military pay from the deployed absent family member is equal to or less than the amount the household was receiving prior to deployment, count all of the income to the household. Any portion of the military pay that exceeds the amount the household was receiving prior to deployment to a designated combat zone should not be counted when determining the household’s income.
| Example 1: John's wife Bonnie and their daughter have an open BadgerCare Plus case. John is in the military stationed overseas; his monthly income is $1,000. John sends his wife $1,000 every month. When John is deployed to a combat zone his pay is increased to $1,300 a month, which is deposited into a joint account. Because the $300 is combat zone pay, it is not counted in the determination. The pre-combat pay of $1,000 is budgeted as unearned income for BadgerCare Plus. |
Living allowances
Basic Allowance for Housing
Basic Allowance for Subsistence
Housing and cost-of-living allowances abroad paid by the U.S. government or by a foreign government
Overseas Housing Allowance
Death allowances
Family allowances
Moving allowances
Travel allowances
Professional education allowances
ROTC educational and subsistence closure benefit allowances
Uniform allowances
Note: Military pay can be verified using the Leave and Earnings Statement received by active duty personnel.
For cases under non-MAGI rules, disregard the income until the month following the month in which the person turns 18 years old.
For cases under MAGI rules, see Section 2.8.2 MAGI Income Counting Rules for information about counting income.
For cases under non-MAGI rules, count any portion of a jury payment that is over and above expenses as earned income for the month in which it is received.
For cases under MAGI rules, count all jury duty payments as earned income for the month in which it is received if the payments are not turned over to the individual’s employer. Amounts received separately as reimbursements or allowances for travel to and from the courthouse, meals, and lodging during jury duty are not countable.
Payments to Native Americans from:
Distributions from Alaska Native Corporations and Settlement Trusts, including:
Payments under the settlement of the Cobell v. Salazar class-action trust case.
Distributions and payments from rents, leases, rights of way, royalties, usage rights, or natural resource extraction and harvest from:
Resulting from the exercise of federally-protected rights relating to such real property ownership interests
Payments to tribal members from gaming revenue:
Under non-MAGI rules, disregard the first $500 of the monthly income from Tribal Per Capita payments from gaming revenue. If the payments are received less than monthly, prorate the gross payment amount over the months it is intended to cover and disregard $500 from the monthly amount.
Under MAGI rules, all of the income form Tribal Per Capita payments from gaming revenue are counted income.
Payments to Nazi Victims made under PL 103-286 to victims of Nazi persecution.
Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (PL 101-426) payments to persons to compensate injury or death due to exposure to radiation from nuclear testing ($50,000) and uranium mining ($100,000). The federal Department of Justice reviews the claims and makes the payments. If the affected person is dead, payments are made to his or her surviving spouse, children, parents, or grandparents. This is retroactive to October 15, 1990. Do not count these payments for as long as they are identified separately.
Refugee Cash Assistance program payments. The Refugee Cash Assistance program is administered by W-2 agencies and is made available for refugees who do not qualify for W-2.
Refugee "Reception and Placement" payments made to refugees during the first 30 days after their arrival in the U.S. Reception and Placement payments are made by voluntary resettlement agencies and may be a direct payment to the refugee individual/family or to a vendor.
Reimbursements for out-of-pocket expenses that an assistance group member has incurred and/or paid. However, reimbursements for normal household living expenses (rent, clothing, or food eaten at home) are counted.
Examples of reimbursements that are not counted:
The reimbursement payment should not be more than the person’s actual out-of-pocket expenses. If it is more, count the excess amount as unearned income.
Do not count Experimental Housing Allowance Program payments. Its purpose is to study housing supply. Test areas, which include Brown County, were selected throughout the United States, and contracts were entered into prior to January 1, 1975. A sample of families was selected to receive monthly housing allowance payments.
Do not count the following repayments:
Money withheld from an economic assistance check due to a prior overpayment.
If money from a particular income source is mixed with money from other types of income, disregard only an amount up to the amount of the current payment from the particular source.
| Example 2: Richard receives $50 a month from the VA and $250 from Social Security. The income from the two sources is added together to equal $300. If the VA overpays Richard by $200, he can only pay back the $50 a month he receives from the VA. If he repays more, for instance, $75 a month, only $50 should be disregarded. |
| Example 3: Clark is a journalism student. The University School of Journalism has arranged an internship for him to work 10 hours a week at The Daily Planet. The newspaper pays him $30 a week. This income is counted as earned income when determining Clark's eligibility. |
Under MAGI rules, work study income and any income from an internship or assistantship should be counted as earned income. Grants, scholarships, fellowships, and any additional financial assistance provided by public or private organizations that exceed the cost of tuition, books, and mandatory fees are counted as unearned income and should be prorated over the period of time they are intended to cover. Student loans are not counted as income regardless of what the loan is used to pay for.
| Example 4: Mary was awarded a scholarship for $3,500 in July that is intended to cover her fall semester (September through December). Her tuition and course related expenses are $3,250 for the semester. The $250 that exceeds the amount of tuition and course-related expenses will be prorated over the four-month period from September through December at $62.50 in unearned income each month ($250/4 months = $62.50/month). |
The following types of grants, scholarships, and fellowships are counted as income:
Pell Grants
Robert Byrd Honors scholarships
Any grants, scholarships, or fellowships received from the college or university as part of a financial aid package
Any grants, scholarships, or fellowships provided by public or private organizations
The following educational aid types are not counted as income:
Loans, including Stafford Loans and Perkins Loans
AmeriCorps or HealthCorps grant
Bureau of Indian Affairs grant
GI Bill/Veterans benefits
ROTC benefits
Note: These income types will not be considered when determining if grants, scholarships, and fellowships exceed the cost of tuition, books and mandatory feeds.
The following expense types will be used to offset income from grants, scholarships, fellowships, and other financial aid:
Tuition
Required books, supplies, or equipment
Mandatory fees
The following expense types will not be allowed to offset income from grants, scholarships, or other financial aid:
Room
Board (meals or meal plans)
Personal expenses
Transportation and parking
Loan fees
Health insurance costs
Disability compensation and pension payments for disabilities paid either to veterans or their families.
Grants for homes designed for wheelchair living.
Grants for motor vehicles for veterans who lost their sight or the use of their limbs.
Veterans' insurance proceeds and dividends paid either to veterans or their beneficiaries, including the proceeds of a veteran's endowment policy paid before death.
Interest on insurance dividends left on deposit with the VA.
Benefits under a dependent care assistance program.
The death gratuity paid to a survivor of a member of the Armed Forces who died after September 10, 2001.
Payments made under the compensated work therapy program.
Any bonus payment by a state or political subdivision because of service in a combat zone.
Do not count VA allowances for unusual medical expenses that are received by a veteran, their surviving spouse, or dependent. Do not count aid and attendance and housebound allowances received by veterans, spouses of disabled veterans, and surviving spouses. For institutionalized and community waiver cases, do not count these allowances in eligibility and post-eligibility determinations, except for residents of the State Veterans Home at King.
SSI is not counted income for BadgerCare Plus. The following is a brief list of the potential codes for SSI.
SI - SSI/Supplemental Security Income
SISE - SSI-E/Supplemental Security Income - Expenditure
SISS - State Supplemental Security Income
Under non-MAGI rules, interest and dividend income is not counted income for BadgerCare Plus.
Under MAGI rules, interest and dividend income is counted as unearned income.
Under non-MAGI rules, lump sum payments (rather than recurring payments) from such sources as insurance policies, inheritance, sale of property, Railroad Retirement, Unemployment Compensation benefits, and retroactive corrective financial aid payments are counted as an asset when received. There is no asset test for BadgerCare Plus (see Section 20.1 Assets). The payment can be either unearned or earned income. However, do not include payments that are included in farm or self-employment income.
Under MAGI rules, count lump sum payments (if the payment is otherwise a countable income type) in the month received.
Money received as a property settlement is always an asset, regardless of whether it is paid in one payment or installments. It is never income.
Subsidized guardianship payments are not counted for BadgerCare Plus.
Disregard the one time payments of $250 sent to SSI, veterans, Railroad Retirement, and Social Security recipients as a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Effective February 1, 2009, disregard the $25 per week temporary supplement benefits from Unemployment Compensation.
Under non-MAGI rules, count child support income as unearned income.
Under MAGI rules, do not count child support income. If a household is receiving family support, divide the payment by the number of members in the household. The amount of the payment allocated to the child(ren) is considered child support and is disregarded. Count the amount of the payment allocated to the adult(s) as alimony/spousal support unless the divorce/separation order by the court designates the spousal support payments as being non-taxable. If the spousal support payments are non-taxable, they are exempt under MAGI rules (see Process Help 62.2.6 Entering Child Support Income on an Unearned Income Page).
| Example 5: Morgan receives $500/month in family support for herself and her three children, Kyra (age 15), Kevin (age 9), and Katie (age 7). $500/4 people = $125/person. Disregard the amount allocated to the children ($125 x 3 children = $375). Count $125/month as income for Morgan. |
A gift is something a person receives, is not repayment for goods or services the person provided, and is not given because of a legal obligation on the giver’s part. To be a gift, something must be given irrevocably (that is, the donor relinquishes all control).
Under non-MAGI rules, count monetary gifts over $30 a calendar quarter. A calendar quarter is three consecutive months beginning with January, April, July, or October.
Under MAGI rules, do not count the value of a gift as income.
| Example 6: Marco’s grandmother gave him $1,600 to help pay for his classes at a local technical college. Marco’s eligibility is determined using MAGI rules. Do not count this $1,600 as income. |
Money from another person is money a person receives that is not repayment for goods or services the person provided and is not given because of a legal obligation on the giver’s part. Money from another person is not a loan.
Under non-MAGI rules, count money from another person if the amount is over $30 a calendar quarter. A calendar quarter is three consecutive months beginning with January, April, July, or October.
Under MAGI rules, do not count money from another person as income (see 43. for policies regarding money received from another person through an inheritance, bequest, or devise).
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Example 7: Mimi receives $500 each month from her parents. She is not expected to pay back this money. Mimi’s BadgerCare Plus eligibility is determined using MAGI rules. The $500 is not counted as income for BadgerCare Plus eligibility. |
Note: If money received from another person is in exchange for goods or services (such as an informal arrangement in which someone rents a room in his or her house) and if the payment is regular and predictable, it should be counted under both MAGI and non-MAGI rules. See Section 16.4.3.1 Income Sources for information on counting rental income.
| Example 8: Jeremy pays Micah $300 each month to live in a room in Micah’s house. Micah and Jeremy do not have a formal lease agreement, but the payment is regular and predictable. Count the $300/month as income for BadgerCare Plus eligibility. |
An inheritance is property received from someone who is deceased without a valid will. A bequest is personal property received from someone who is deceased, as directed by that decedent’s will. A devise is real property received from someone who is deceased, as directed by that decedent’s will.
Inheritances, bequests, and devises are generally not taxable, and, as a result, the value of the inheritance, bequest, or devise is generally not counted as income under MAGI rules.
However, there are a few forms of inheritances or bequests that may be taxable. For example, distributions from an inherited pension are usually taxable to the beneficiary if the distributions would have been taxable if the deceased were still living.
In addition, income generated from an inheritance, bequest, or devise is usually taxable.
For inheritances, bequests, and devises that are taxable, the income should be counted only in the month it was received if it was received as a lump sum. If the payments are regular and predictable, they should be prorated (unless they are received monthly) and counted accordingly.
| Example 9: Roger’s aunt passed away, and Roger inherited her rental house. It is worth $100,000. The house is occupied by tenants who pay $800/month in rent. At the time of the deed transfer, the tenants owed $3,200 in back rent. The value of the $100,000 property is not taxable, but if the tenants pay Roger the $3,200 in back rent, that income is taxable and would be counted under MAGI rules in the month it was received. If they pay Roger $800/month on an ongoing basis, this income would also be taxable and would be counted based on MAGI rules regarding rental income. |
Note: Income from the sale of inherited property is taxable if the property is sold for more than the fair market value on either the date of the decedent’s death or on the alternate valuation date. In Example 9, if Roger were to sell the rental house for $150,000, the $50,000 gain would be taxable. If Roger receives income from the sale in a lump sum, this income would only be counted in the month it was received.
| Example 10: Darcy inherited her husband’s $150,000 life insurance policy. In most cases, life insurance policies are not taxable when they are inherited, so the $150,000 should not be counted as income. However, Darcy receives an ongoing interest payment of $1,200/month from the policy. This amount is taxable and would be counted as unearned income. |
Income generated by an inheritance, bequest, or devise includes situations in which someone is the beneficiary of a trust or estate, and the trust or estate holds assets that are generating income. If the trust or estate distributes income to the beneficiary, the beneficiary is responsible for paying taxes on that income.
| Example 11: Keisha is the beneficiary of a trust. Land was given to the trust, and it generates interest that is distributed to Keisha as the beneficiary. Count this interest as unearned income. |
Under non-MAGI rules, count workers' compensation benefits as unearned income.
Under MAGI rules, do not count workers' compensation benefits. This includes workers' compensation benefits received as a settlement.
This page last updated in Release Number: 16-01
Release Date: 02/15/2016
Effective Date: 02/15/2016
The information concerning the BadgerCare Plus program provided in this handbook release is published in accordance with: Titles XI, XIX and XXI of the Social Security Act; Parts 430 through 481 of Title 42 of the Code of Federal Regulations; Chapter 49 of the Wisconsin Statutes; and Chapters HA 3, DHS 2 and 101 through 109 of the Wisconsin Administrative Code.
Publication Number: P-10171