Kansas Family Medical Assistance
Manual (KFMAM)
Eligibility Policy - 4/18/2024
05000 >>> 05320
05300
05320 Countable Earned Income - The following sections outline the types of countable earned income.
5320.01 Wages - This is income earned from a job. It includes wages earned for hourly work or a salary. Wages also includes bonus pay received while an employee. Wages received from On-the-Job Training (OJT) are also to be considered as earned income.
Sick pay received for time off while working (i.e., short-term illness) shall be considered earned income when the person is still considered an employee by the employer and the person will be returning to work when recovered. However, when these payments are provided as a temporary disability insurance or worker's compensation the income is not counted as earned income. See also 5400.
Wages withheld by the employer to purchase benefits are counted as earnings in the pay period that the employee would have normally received them. Benefit "credits" offered in addition to wages which can be used to purchase benefits are not counted as income. If the employee does not use all of the credit to purchase benefits, and the employer pays the excess to the employee as part of their wages, the excess paid is counted as earned income.
5320.02 Bonus and Commission Income - Income from bonuses that are received monthly or more frequently shall be included in the amount of earnings from wages. When bonuses are received less frequently then on a monthly basis they shall be treated as intermittent earned income and only countable once they have been received during an eligibility period. See 5313.
5320.03 Garnished or Diverted Wages - Available income shall not be reduced by wage earner plans, garnishments, income withholding orders and similar types of income reductions. Such forms of income withholdings are generally used to meet the individual's previous or ongoing obligations and are considered available for the purpose of determining medical eligibility.
Wages earned by a household member that are garnished or diverted by an employer and are paid to a third party for a household's expenses, such as rent or child support, shall be considered income. However, if the employer pays a household's rent directly to the landlord in addition to paying the household its regular wages, the rent payment shall be excluded as a vendor payment. In addition, if the employer provides housing to an employee, the value of the housing shall not be counted as income.
5320.04 Military Pay - Military pay is countable as earned income with the exception of most special allowances. Members of the military receive monthly allowances for housing, subsistence, and other reasons. Income from allowances is non-taxable, therefore exempt, with the exception of CONUS COLA which is a monthly Cost of Living Allowance for members stationed in the United States. The two most common allowances, Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) and Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS) are exempt.
5320.05 Overtime - Overtime income is countable and shall be included with regular wages when determining an average.
5320.06 Tip Income - Income from tips shall be included in the amount of earnings from wages for each pay period. Use the amount of average tips reported by the applicant when not included on the paystubs
5320.07 Wages Withheld/Salary Advances - Wages are sometimes paid in advance to an employee, usually at the request of the employee. Wage advances are not counted as income received. Repayment of those advances are not deducted from gross income, either.
However, wages held by the employer as a general practice, even if in violation of the law, shall not be counted as income to the household. For example, it is routine in many places of employment for the first week or two weeks of wages to be withheld and not paid until the following pay period. This is legal and the wages would not be counted until received.
5320.08 Work Program/Training - Income from a Work or Training program, such as College Work Study, WIA - Earned, Job Corps, and AmeriCorps/VISTA are countable.