Work-Related Expense Deduction
What is the Work-Related Expense Deduction?
As an incentive for parents and caregivers to seek and maintain employment, DTA does not count all of their earnings. This is called disregarding income. The disregards are used to determine how much of the earnings will count towards the TAFDC benefits. Eligible TAFDC parents and caregivers will be given these deductions from their earned income.
The Work-Related Expense (WRE) Deduction is a $200 reduction from the gross earned income when determining eligibility and the amount of the TAFDC grant.
For information on other disregards see Eligibility for the 50% Earned Income Disregard and Understanding the 100% Earned Income Disregard.
Who is Eligible for the $200 Work-Related Expense Deduction?
TAFDC parents and caregivers who are employed are entitled to the Work-Related Expense Deduction.
Other persons whose income must be deemed to the case are also entitled to this deduction. These include:
- Stepparents,
- parents of minor parents,
- persons who have a legal support obligation,
- the spouse of an otherwise eligible pregnant woman (in the tests of eligibility only), and
- ineligible noncitizens who have a legal obligation to support.
Who Cannot Receive the $200 Work-Related Expense Deduction?
The following individuals are not eligible for the Work-Related Expense Deduction:
- a parent or caregiver who is not included in the case but who must legally support their dependent child, such as a sanctioned individual,
- a parent or caregiver who does not report a change in income within 10 days,
- a parent or caregiver who decreased their income or quits their job without good cause within 30 days of the month the grant amount is calculated, or who refused a job offer without good cause during the same period.
BEACON automatically calculates the Work-Related Expense Deduction for every eligible client.