Section 121.130  Residents of Shelters for Battered Women and their Children

a)         Residents (i.e., battered women and their children) of public or private non-profit residential facilities serving battered women and/or battered women and their children are eligible for SNAP benefits if they meet the eligibility requirements of this Part and 7 CFR 273 (1987).  Residents of facilities which have a portion of the facility set aside on a long-term basis to serve only battered women and their children are also eligible for SNAP benefits if they meet the eligibility requirements of this Part and 7 CFR 273 (1987).

b)         Residents must meet all eligibility requirements of this Part and 7 CFR 273 (1987) with the following special considerations:

1)         The battered woman and her children are considered an individual household in determining eligibility and the amount of SNAP benefits (7 CFR 273.1(e)(4) (1987)).

2)         If the resident is receiving SNAP benefits as a member of the household containing the person who subjected the resident to the abuse, the resident is certified as a separate household and will be authorized an additional allotment (see Section 121.64) if he/she meets all other eligibility requirements of this Part; however, the allotment will not be authorized more than once in a fiscal month.

3)         Assets held jointly by the resident and members of the former household are exempt if the assets are not accessible to the resident without the consent of the joint owner. Assets are totally exempt if the household is categorically eligible (see Section 121.76).

4)         Upon certification of the resident as a separate household, the Department shall adjust the level of benefits provided to the former household to reflect the change in household composition.

(Source:  Amended at 34 Ill. Reg. 5295, effective April 12, 2010)