SSA - POMS: SI 01320.640 - Multiple Deeming Situations - Operating Procedures

A. Introduction

In multiple deeming situations, certain events may occur which could affect the deeming computation. The following subsections explain when it is necessary to recompute eligibility and payment amounts.

B. Policy for multiple deeming cases

1. Disability denial

A disability denial of a Supplemental Security Income (SSI) applicant in a multiple deeming case will require a new computation, because initial computations are made based on the assumption that applicants meet all of the SSI eligibility requirements.

If an applicant who is the parent or sibling of another claimant or recipient is denied for SSI payments because a disability could not be established, recompute the remaining family members to determine eligibility and payment correctly (this is necessary because initial computations are made based on the assumption that all applicants meet all of the SSI eligibility requirements).

a. Example 1

Mrs. Blue and her son, Steven, age 16, file SSI disability applications. Mr. and Mrs. Blue have two other children. The initial computation is based on an assumption that Mrs. Blue and Steven are eligible (see SI 01320.620). If Mrs. Blue is determined ineligible for SSI because she is not disabled, Steven's SSI payment must be recalculated based on the instructions in SI 01320.500, effective with the first month of eligibility.

b. Example 2

If, in the same situation as in SI 01320.640B.1.a., Mrs. Blue were found eligible and Steven ineligible (not disabled), the payment to Mrs. Blue should be recomputed using the rules in SI 01320.400 effective with the first month of eligibility. (This recomputation would be necessary because Steven would now be an ineligible child and would increase the total allocation for ineligible children.)

2. Appeals

Do not recompute until the appeals period has elapsed unless requested to do so by the claimant or representative payee of the child. If the denied claimant files a timely appeal, continue to compute all records as if he or she was eligible until all appeals have been exhausted and the final appeal period has ended. Once there is an appeal decision, we can only recompute records following the Title XVI administrative finality reopening policies in SI 04070.010.

a. Example of no appeal filed

Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have four children. Aaron, Barry, and Chloe are disabled and Mrs. Johnson files SSI claims for all three children. None of the children, including the ineligible child, Danny, has any income. The claims representative (CR) correctly divides the deemed income equally between all three of the eligible children. Later Chloe is found not disabled for SSI purposes. Mrs. Johnson decides not to pursue an appeal. At that point, the CR recomputes the deeming back to the first month the children are eligible for SSI payment. In the new computation, Chloe is an ineligible child and the resulting deemed income is divided equally between Aaron and Barry.

b. Example of reversed appeal

Using the same situation in SI 01320.640B.2.a in this section, if Mrs. Johnson decides to pursue an appeal for Chloe, the CR leaves the initial deeming computation in place until a decision on the appeal is rendered. If the appeal reverses the initial determination, the other two children will be properly paid and the deeming will not have to be recomputed. If, however, an appeal upholds the original determination, the CR must recompute the deeming as in the example in SI 01320.640B.2.a. in this section.

C. Income denial

A denial based solely on excess income will not always require a new deeming computation. For example, in the situation described in SI 01320.640B.1.a. in this section, if Mrs. Blue were denied on the basis of deemed income, only the income in excess of what is needed to reduce her benefit to zero is deemed to Steven, per SI 01320.620B.6. In this case, a disability determination for Mrs. Blue is not obtained and the original computation to determine Steven's benefit would stand as long as the deemed income remained sufficient to deny Mrs. Blue or until some other change occurs that requires a recomputation (e.g., Mr. Blue’s income decreases or Mrs. Blue’s record terminates).

NOTE: Applications should not be solicited for the purpose of obtaining a denial based on income. The parent should, however, be provided an explanation of the deeming policies, including the effect of his or her decision regarding whether to file an application, whenever the parent alleges being aged, blind, or disabled.

D. Other denials

If denials other than disability (SI 01320.640B. in this section) are possible (e.g., excess resources, etc.) in multiple deeming cases, those reasons for denial should take priority over denials for income. For example, using the same family situation as Example l in SI 01320.640B. in this section, if Mrs. Blue could be denied on the basis of both excess income and resources, the denial would be based on the excess resources and the parent-to-child deeming procedures in SI 01320.500 would be used to determine Steven's eligibility and payment amount.

E. Procedure for cessation of multiple deeming

Stop using the multiple deeming procedures for eligible individuals or children the month after the month at the earliest of:

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The expiration of any appeal period; or
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The request of the denied applicant or appellant; or
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A denied record has terminated on the system (T31 or T51) or a terminating event occurs.

NOTE: T31 and T51 are termination codes posted to the SSR by the SSI system. T31 indicates that a case is terminated and payment was made on the record. T51 indicates that the case is terminated and no payment was made on the record. In either case, these termination codes indicate that there is no current appeal action pending on the record.

F. References

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GN 00206.001 - Withdrawal of a Title II Benefit Application
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SI 00601.050 - Withdrawal of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Application
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SI 02301.230 - Voluntary Termination (N19)

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SI 04070.010 — Title XVI Administrative Finality — General Reopening Policies

Social Security

Program Operations Manual System (POMS)

SI 01320.640 Multiple Deeming Situations - Operating Procedures