Illinois Statutes Chapter 305. Public Aid § 5/4-1.6. Need

§ 4-1.6. Need. Income available to the family as defined by the Illinois Department by rule, or to the child in the case of a child removed from his or her home, when added to contributions in money, substance or services from other sources, including income available from parents absent from the home or from a stepparent, contributions made for the benefit of the parent or other persons necessary to provide care and supervision to the child, and contributions from legally responsible relatives, must be equal to or less than the grant amount established by Department regulation for such a person. For purposes of eligibility for aid under this Article, the Department shall (a) disregard all earned income between the grant amount and 50% of the Federal Poverty Level and (b) disregard the value of all assets held by the family.

In considering income to be taken into account, consideration shall be given to any expenses reasonably attributable to the earning of such income. Three-fourths of the earned income of a household eligible for aid under this Article shall be disregarded when determining the level of assistance for which a household is eligible. All child support, whether it be current support, past support owed, or future support, that is collected on or after January 1, 2023 on behalf of a family shall be passed through to the family and disregarded in determining the amount of the assistance grant provided to the family under this Article. Any amount of child support that would be disregarded in determining the amount of the assistance grant shall be disregarded in determining eligibility for cash assistance provided under this Article. The Illinois Department may also permit all or any portion of earned or other income to be set aside for the future identifiable needs of a child. The Illinois Department may provide by rule and regulation for the exemptions thus permitted or required. The eligibility of any applicant for or recipient of public aid under this Article is not affected by the payment of any grant under the “Senior Citizens and Persons with Disabilities Property Tax Relief Act”  1 or any distributions or items of income described under subparagraph (X) of paragraph (2) of subsection (a) of Section 203 of the Illinois Income Tax Act.  2

The Illinois Department may, by rule, set forth criteria under which an assistance unit is ineligible for cash assistance under this Article for a specified number of months due to the receipt of a lump sum payment.