Case Management

1002 Reporting Requirements

Overview

Households in North Dakota are certified under Simplified Reporting.

 

Simplified reporting requires households to report when their gross monthly income (GMI) exceeds 130% Federal poverty level (FPL) for their householdClosed People who buy and prepare food together. Spouses, parents, and children who live together are usually counted as the same household. size. The household will use the GMI for the household size that existed at the time of its most recent certification or recertification, regardless of any subsequent household size changes. Income is only adjusted on the case if it is expected to continue at the higher amount.

Note: If, at applicationClosed Filing a signed Application for Assistance via paper application or through the self-service portal of the eligibility system to establish eligibility and assign a review period. or recertification, an applying household meets all three criteria, they are not required to report an increase in income until the next certification.

  1. Has income that exceeds 130% of the poverty level for its household size,

  2. Is CE/BBCE, and

  3. Is eligibleClosed to receive any benefit amount.

Able-bodiedClosed adults subject to the time limit, must report any changes in work hours that bring an individual below 20 hours per week, averaged monthly.

Simplified Reporting Households must also report whenever a member of the household wins substantial lottery or gambling winnings of $4,500 or greater. See section titled “Substantial Lottery and Gambling WinningsClosed Lottery and gambling winnings are defined for this requirement as a cash prize won in a single game before taxes or other amounts are withheld. If multiple individuals shared in the purchase of a ticket, hand, or similar bet than only a portion of the winnings allocated to the SNAP household will be counted towards the eligibility determination.” later in this policy.

 

For reportable changes of income and substantial lottery or gambling winnings of $4,500 or greater, households subject to simplified reporting are required to report changes by the 10th of the following month. For example, if the reportable changeClosed Information that is different from what is currently used to determine eligibility and/or benefits. occurred on June 17th, the household must report by July 10th. The household is also required to report by the 10th of the following month when an ABAWD's work hours decrease below 20 hours per week, averaged monthly. Adjustment to ABAWD exemption based on hours worked is only made on the case if the decreased hours are expected to continue.

 

ALL households must report whenever a member of the household wins substantial lottery or gambling winnings of $4,500 or greater. Lottery or gambling winnings are defined for this requirement as a cash prize won in a single game, before taxes or other amounts are withheld. If multiple individuals shared in the purchase of a ticket, hand, or similar bet, then only the portion of the winnings allocated to the member of the SNAP household will be counted toward the eligibility determination. Households with substantial lottery or gambling winnings defined in this section immediately lose eligibility for SNAP benefits.

 

Households disqualified for substantial winnings remain ineligibleClosed Not qualified to receive benefits because of not meeting one or more of the specified nonfinancial or financial requirements of eligibility. until they again meet the allowable financial resources and income eligibility requirements. This provision applies to all households, including categorically eligibleClosed Any household in which all members receive or are authorized to receive TANF and/or SSI. These households are income and asset eligible., Social Security Income (SSI), and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)Closed North Dakota public assistance program that provides Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), TANF Diversion, TANF Pay After Performance and TANF Transition Assistance. households, and those certified under BBCE. The next time such a household reapplies and is certified for SNAP after losing eligibility under this rule, the household would not be considered categorically eligibleClosed Having met the qualifications to receive a SNAP benefit by meeting the specified nonfinancial and financial requirements of eligibility. or BBCE. The household would need to be certified under regular SNAP rules.

 

To make the correct SNAP determination under regular rules, households must PASS the GMI 130% FPL test first. After that they must pass the resource test. Once they pass both of those then we would look at the net monthly income (NMI) 100% FPL test. For those regular rule households that have an elderly or disabledClosed A member of a household who meets one of the following criteria: 1.Eligible to receive SSI benefits, including presumptive SSI payments, or is eligible as a 1619B under SSI criteria. 2.Is determined disabled by SSA and in receipt of disability payments. 3.Is a recipient of disability related medical assistance under Medicaid (Title XIX of the Social Security Act). Eligibility to receive these benefits must be based on disability or blindness criteria, which is at least as stringent as SSI regulations. 4.Is in receipt of disability retirement benefits from a government agency because of a disability considered permanent under Social Security disability criteria. 5.Is a veteran with a service connected or non-service connected disability. 6.Is a veteran considered by the VA in need of regular aid and attendance or permanently house bound under Title 38 of the United States Code. 7.Is a surviving spouse of a veteran and considered by the VA in need of regular aid and attendance or permanently house bound or a surviving child of a veteran and considered by the VA as permanently incapable of self-support under Title 38 of the United States Code. 8.Is a surviving spouse or surviving child of a veteran and considered by the VA entitled to compensation for a service-connected death or pension benefits for a non-service-connected death under Title 38 of the United States Code and has a disability considered permanent. Entitled refers to a surviving spouse and surviving children who are receiving the compensation or pension benefits stated or have been approved for such payments but are not yet receiving them. 9.Is in receipt of a Railroad Retirement disability annuity and has been determined to qualify for Medicare. 10.Is in receipt of SSI optional or mandatory supplementation. (North Dakota does not have SSI optional or mandatory supplementation. However, someone moving to North Dakota may have received this benefit from another state.) 11. Is in receipt of disability-based State general assistance benefits, provided that the eligibility to receive any of these benefits is based upon disability or blindness criteria established by the state they receive the benefit from, which are at least as stringent as those used under SSI regulations. (North Dakota does not have disability-based State general assistance benefits. However, someone moving to North Dakota may have received this benefit from another state.) individual there is no GMI test, but they must pass the resource test of $4,500.00 and the NMI income test. Households disqualified for substantial lottery or gambling winnings are not permanently disqualified.

  1. If the HH is disqualified and SNAP closed, they can reapply and be eligible if anything about their HH composition (a new member or a member leaving) is changed. A change in HH composition makes the HH a new HH, so they can be considered under CE and BBCE eligibility rules. If the HH reports a change in HH composition before the actual closure of their SNAP benefits, re-open and authorize without closure. If the member who won the lottery or gambling winnings joins a new HH, the new HH is not disqualified, because it is a new HH (the composition changed).

  2. If a HH is disqualified under this rule and reapplies and is certified under regular SNAP rules, but then becomes ineligible under regular SNAP rules (e.g., income increases to greater than 130% FPL), they can be certified and receive benefits under CE and BBCE eligibility rules.

  3. If a HH is disqualified under this rule, later reapplies, and is certified under regular SNAP rules, but at recertification they exceed the income limits under regular rules, they can be recertified under CE and BBCE eligibility rules. This is because a “re-certification” is a type of new application for a new certification periodClosed A period of time a household is approved to participate in SNAP..

     

At the initial certification, recertification, and when the household is transferred to simplified reporting, eligibility staff must provide the household with the following:

  1. A written and verbal explanation of how simplified reporting works.

     

Mandatory Changes

For simplified reporting, the following are required to be reported no later than the 10th day of the next month and must be acted on, allowing timely notice:

  1. When the GIL exceeds the 130% FPL.

  2. If the household has substantial gambling or lottery winnings equal to or greater than $4,500.

  3. When a household member is identified as an ABAWD and the household members eligibility is based on working an average of 20 hours weekly, the household must report if the ABAWD’s hours decrease below an average of 20 hours weekly.

     

Non-Mandatory Changes

Eligibility workers must act on reported changes within 10 days of report, regardless of whether the change was reported timely, to determine if the change affects the household's eligibility or allotmentClosed The total value of SNAP benefits a household is authorized to receive..

 

Changes reported over the telephone or in person by the household must be acted on in the same manner. If a household reports a change in income, and the new circumstance is expected to continue for at least one month beyond the month in which the change is reported, the eligibility worker must act on the change.

 

Reported/discovered information may come from the household, interfaces used in eligibility determinations, or credible third-party sources, e.g., other State or Federal agencies. Information from interfaces or third-party sources must follow procedures under ACTING ON UNCLEAR INFORMATION.

 

Changes in medical expenses reported by a source other than the household are acted on if the changes are considered verified upon receipt and do not require contact with the household.

 

When a household reports a change in residence, the eligibility worker must investigate and act on potential changes in shelter costs arising from this reported change by sending the request for verificationClosed Third-party information or documentation used to establish the accuracy of statements. notice. However, if a household fails to provide information regarding the associated changes in shelter costs within 10 days of the notice, a notice must be sent to the household notifying them that their allotment will be recalculated without the deduction.

 

If a household reports and verifies a change that results in an increase in benefits for an ongoing caseClosed A case is ongoing after the application or review has been processed., the change must be acted on.

 

If a household reports a change that would result in an increase in benefits and verification is not provided, a Request for Verification Notice must be sent to the household allowing the household 10 days from the mail date of the notice to verify the reported change.

 

If the household provides the requested verification within the 10-day period, the eligibility worker must act on the reported change within 10 days and send the household the appropriate Notice of Eligibility. The change is effective on the date the change was reported by the household.

 

If the household provides the requested verification after the 10-day time frame, the eligibility worker must act on the reported change within 10 days of the receipt of the verification and send the appropriate Notice of Eligibility. The change is effective on the date the verification was received.

 

If the household does NOT respond, the eligibility worker MUST NOT take adverse action as the change reported was not a mandatory reportable change. The eligibility worker must documentClosed Used as a noun, as in documentary evidence indicates a written record of the circumstances of an event or fact. Used as a verb, indicates the act of entering the case file actual proof or statement of proof that the contents of the record are accurate. the change in the case narrative and follow-up on the change at the next reviewClosed Filing a signed Application for Review via paper review form or through the self-service portal of the eligibility system for SNAP eligibility with the human service zone to determine continuing eligibility and establish a new review period..

 

If a reported/discovered change would decrease the benefit and requires verification, the eligibility worker must send a request for verification allowing the household 10 days to submit. If the requested verification is received within the 10-day request period AND timely notice can be provided to the household, the household’s benefit is decreased accordingly. If the requested verification is not received in time to provide timely notice of adverse action or the 10-day request for information period extends into the next benefit monthClosed The month SNAP benefits are issued., the household’s benefit is authorized at the same benefit amount as the previous month. If the verification, such as a decreased expense, is not received, the expense is removed, and timely notice of decrease is provided to the household.

 

Unclear information is information about a household’s circumstances from which the eligibility worker cannot readily determine the effect on the household’s continued eligibility for SNAP or in certain cases the effect on the benefit amount. Unclear information is information that is not verified, or information that is verified but the eligibility worker needs additional information to act on the change appropriately. For example, if a household reports and verifies that a new member has joined the household but does not provide any information regarding the new member’s income, the eligibility worker would need to contact the household before the eligibility worker could act to add the individual to the household and change the benefit level.

If the information is verified upon receipt but the eligibility worker needs additional information to act on the change appropriately, then the information would be considered unclear. An example of this would be if the eligibility worker received verified upon receipt information, such as a participantClosed A person who is eligible for benefits under SNAP, even if that person is not currently receiving benefits because the amount is too low, or the person is under a sanction or disqualification. statement that another person joined a household but did not know how the household’s total monthly income may have changed. The eligibility worker would need further information and verification from the household to make the appropriate changes in benefit allotment, if necessary, to the case.

Eligibility worker must follow up on unclear information if the information:

  1. Is fewer than 60 days old and relative to the current month of participation, and

  2. Is a mandatory reportable change; or

  3. Is significantly conflicting information from what was previously reported by the household.

If the unclear information received during the certification period is fewer than 60 days old relative to the current month of participation and household should have reported according to simplified reporting rules or appears to significantly conflict with the information provided by the household at the time of certification, the eligibility worker must send a Request for Verification notice. If verification is received, act on the change allowing advance notice, if applicable. If verification is not received, close the case, allowing for advance notice.

Significantly conflicting information is any situation in which the agency has just received new information which calls into question whether the information presented at application or recertification was accurate or not. See examples below:

Example 1: A household of 1 applies and is approved for benefits. During the recertification, the agency learns that the participant is living with others and had been at the time the application was submitted. It is now unclear what the relationship of these other individuals is to the head of householdClosed The Primary Individual (PI) of a SNAP case., and whether the household should have been approved as a household of 1 because this new information significantly conflicts with what was reported at the time of application.
Example 2: A household of 3 submits a recertification reporting no changes and is reapproved for benefits. During the new certification period, the agency learns that one of the household members is a college student whose semester began prior to the new certification period. It is now unclear if this household member should have been included in the SNAP household because the new information significantly conflicts with the information the agency had when processing the recertification.

If the unclear information is not fewer than 60 days old relative to the current month of participation, was not required to be reported or does not present significantly conflicting information from that used at the time of certification, the State agency shall not act on this information or require the household to provide information until the household’s next certification action.

NOTE: When a household reports a change in residence, the eligibility worker must investigate and act on potential changes in shelter costs arising from this reported change by sending the request for verification notice. However, if a household fails to provide information regarding the associated changes in shelter costs within 10 days of the notice, a notice must be sent to the household notifying them that their allotment will be recalculated without the deduction.

The integrated eligibility system conducts matching on a daily basis with the Social Security Administration to identify individuals who are deceased or in prison.

 

If a match is received, the integrated integrated auto-generates the Notice of Match Results, requesting additional information from the participant. The Notice of Match Results includes the name of the individual identified in the match, why the match was unclear, and requests required verifications allowing the household 10 days to respond.

 

If the household does not respond to the notice or fails to provide sufficient information to clarify its circumstances, the eligibility worker must remove the individual identified in the match, the individual’s income from the household and adjust benefits accordingly. Advance notice is required.

 

If the household responds to the notice, simplified reporting rules apply and the results must be included in the case narrative.

 

References: 7 CFR 273.10, 7 CFR 273.12, 7 CFR 273.13, 7 CFR 273.12(c)(3)(iii), 7 CFR 273.14 7 CFR 273.12(c)(1)(i) and (iii)

Revised: 8/13/2026

Policy last updated in Release 26.6.

History Log of Changes