Pennsylvania Statutes Title 62 P.S. Poor Persons and Public Welfare § 432.5. Resources

(a) Real and personal property which an applicant or recipient owns or in which he or she has an interest are resources which must be considered in determining initial and continuous eligibility for assistance, subject to the limitations and exceptions hereinafter proscribed.

(b) An applicant or recipient may retain real property owned by that person, or in conjunction with any other person without reference to its value if such real property serves as the home of such applicant or recipient.

(c) Other property in excess of two hundred fifty dollars ($250) for a single person applying for or receiving assistance and other property in excess of one thousand dollars ($1,000) for assistance groups with more than one person shall be considered an available resource. The following items shall not be considered an available resource, unless such consideration is required under Federal law or regulations:

(d) In the case of any nonresident real property, the applicant or recipient must take adequate steps to offer such property for sale on the open market or convert it to cash, with such sums being considered an available resource. The applicant or recipient shall acknowledge the liability of the property for reimbursement.

(e) Personal property which is not excluded from consideration in determining eligibility shall be considered immediately convertible to cash and available to meet current living expenses. Where such personal property cannot be readily converted into cash, or where it is in the form of a frozen asset, eligibility criteria shall be met provided that the owner take adequate steps to convert the property into cash, offering such personal property for sale on the open market, and acknowledging the liability of the property for reimbursement.

(f) Where assistance has been received in good faith, but the recipient in fact owns excess property or has not met the requirements of the department, such recipient shall be considered to have been ineligible for assistance during the period for which any excess property would have supported that recipient at the rate of the assistance granted. In such case, subject to the provisions of section 432.16,  1 recipient shall repay the amount of assistance received during such period of ineligibility.

(g) For the purpose of determining a recipient's eligibility for assistance, individual lottery winnings of six hundred dollars ($600) or more shall be considered an available resource. Lottery winnings shall be calculated on a prorated basis over a twelve-month period following receipt of such winnings.