1. (a) The gross earned income amount that will be used to determine eligibility is an estimate of the amount that the individual can reasonably be expected to have available in the next month or months.

2. (b)

   1. (1) The estimate of monthly earnings is usually based on the assumption that the earnings received in the most recent months are reflective of the earnings that will be received in the current and following months.
   2. (2) In most situations, the estimate will be an average of the latest two (2) months’ gross earnings.
   3. (3) However, in some situations, such as when the client has just started employment or has had a change in pay rate or hours, this assumption will not hold true.
   4. (4) Therefore, the estimate of monthly earnings must be based on the latest information that is available at the time the earnings are being computed.

3. (c)

   1. (1) Gross monthly earnings will be computed as follows.

   2. (2)

      1. (A) Determine the average gross pay per pay period.
      2. (B) Any advance EIC payments paid to the employee with his or her regular earnings are excluded.
   3. (3) If earnings are paid weekly, multiply the weekly gross by 4.334 for the monthly amount.
   4. (4) If paid biweekly, multiply the biweekly amount by 2.167.
   5. (5) If paid semi-monthly, multiply the semi-monthly amount by 2.

   6. (6)

      1. (A) In some situations, the average pay per pay period cannot be determined based on the latest two (2) months’ earnings because the client has not yet worked a full two (2) months, or a change has occurred within the past two (2) months which has affected current earnings.
      2. (B) In these situations, another method that will give a more accurate reflection of the client’s earnings should be used to obtain an average pay per pay period.
      3. (C) The following examples describe methods that could be used in some typical situations.
      4. (D) The actual method used, however, is at the discretion of the worker.
4. (d) Employment started within past two (2) months. Example 1: Ms. Smith reports on May 22 that she started working on May 14. She received one (1) paycheck on May 18 for three (3) days of work. The check stub shows she worked fifteen (15) hours at five dollars and fifteen cents ($5.15) per hour. An employer’s statement is obtained, which shows she is expected to work twenty-five (25) hours per week at five dollars and fifteen cents ($5.15) per hour and will be paid weekly. Her monthly gross earnings are computed based on the employer’s statement, as follows: $5.15 (hourly wage) X 25 (number of hours expected to work per week) = $128.75/week X 4.334 = $558. Example 2: Ms. Jones has received five (5) paychecks since she started working part time on May 31. She provides all five (5) check stubs. The check stub for her first check, which was for the pay period ending June 1, shows earnings for eight (8) hours at five dollars and fifteen cents ($5.15) per hour. Since this first check was for only two (2) days of work (four (4) hours per day), it will be excluded when determining the weekly average. The other four (4) check stubs are averaged to arrive at a weekly pay period average of $104 X 4.334 = $450.74 monthly gross.

5. (e) Change occurred within past two (2) months.

   1. (1) For purposes of this section, a change in the earnings amount does not include changes due to normal fluctuations in the number of hours worked or amount paid, or short-term temporary changes such as working an extra shift one (1) week because another employee was sick.
   2. (2) It does include changes in hourly wage, moving from part-time to full-time status or vice versa, obtaining or losing a second job, etc. Example 3: Ms. Doe received a raise from five dollars and fifteen cents ($5.15) per hour to five dollars and twenty-five cents ($5.25) per hour on her March 16 paycheck. She continues to work the same number of hours. She is paid biweekly, so the last four (4) consecutive check stubs are used to determine an average number of hours worked per pay period. Her monthly gross earnings are then computed as follows: $5.25 (new hourly wage) X 30 (average number of hours) = $157.50 (biweekly earnings) X 2.167 = $341.30. Example 4: Ms. Wilson had been working on an as-needed basis and had been averaging ten (10) hours per week. On April 24, she was put on regular employee status, and her employer expects her to work about thirty (30) hours per week. Her hourly wage remains the same at five dollars and fifty cents ($5.50) per hour. Her gross monthly earnings are computed as follows: $5.50 (hourly wage) X 30 (new number of hours expected to work) = $165 (weekly earnings) X 4.334 = $715.11. Example 5: Ms. Jones has been working part-time for one (1) employer for several years. In July, she begins another part time job in addition to the first job. An average of her last eight (8) consecutive paychecks from the first job is determined and multiplied by 4.334 for monthly gross earnings of three hundred twenty-five dollars and five cents ($325.05). A statement from the second employer is obtained that shows Ms. Jones is expected to work fifteen (15) hours per week at five dollars and fifteen cents ($5.15) per hour. Based on this information, her monthly gross earnings from the second job are computed to three hundred thirty-four dollars and eighty cents ($334.80). The monthly earnings from the two (2) jobs are then added together for a total monthly gross earnings of six hundred fifty-nine dollars and eighty- five cents ($659.85).

   3. (3) As stated earlier in this section, the worker should:

      1. (A) Use a method that gives the most accurate reflection of earnings; and
      2. (B) Document the case record as to why the method was selected.
   4. (4) The earnings computation will be documented in the case record.

Codification Notes: This section as promulgated prior to codification into the Code of Arkansas Rules provided as follows: “07/01/1997” "EIC" means earned income tax credit.