CalWORKs reported my income as $1170 when I only made $600 - how are they calculating this?

They might be doing an income projection based on your hourly rate times expected hours. If you just started working and only worked a partial month, they sometimes calculate what you would make in a full month. They take your hourly rate, multiply by hours per week, then multiply by 4.33 (average weeks in a month).Example: If you make $15/hr and work 18 hrs/week, they would calculate: $15 x 18 x 4.33 = $1,169.10, which is very close to what they're saying.Check your NOA - it should have a breakdown showing how they calculated it. Look for a section that mentions

OMG this makes so much sense now!! I work 20 hours a week at $13.50/hour so that would be exactly around that amount for a full month. I didn't realize they project it forward instead of just using what I actually made. The NOA does say something about anticipated income but I thought that was just formal language. Thank you so much!

yep thats how they do it!! when i got a job last year they did the same thing to me. they dont care what u actually made they care what theyre EXPECTING u to make going forward. its super confusing and they never explain it right.

So frustrating that nobody explains this clearly! I was about to panic thinking they mixed up my case with someone else. Did your benefits get reduced right away or was there a grace period?

Just to add, this is called

This happnd to me too and I ended up getting overpayment notice 3 months later bcause they said I didnt report right!!! Be careful with this, make sure u keep ALL ur paystubs and report ANY changes. The county is always looking to catch people and make them pay back $$

They did this to me too last year! It's completely RIDICULOUS how they ASSUME what you're going to make when you're just starting a job. What if your hours get cut? What if you lose the job? They don't care - they just want to cut benefits as fast as possible!!!I spent TWO MONTHS fighting with my worker to get the correct calculation. They kept disconnecting me when I called. The system is DESIGNED to make us give up!!!

While income averaging is frustrating, it's actually designed to create stable benefit amounts rather than having them fluctuate every month. If your actual work hours end up being consistently different from what they projected, you can submit verification of your actual schedule and request a recalculation.It's important to remember that temporary changes (like a single week with reduced hours) don't need to be reported unless it puts you under the IRT. If it's a permanent change, that's when you need to report it.

Try using Claimyr to get through to CalWORKs faster. I was in the same situation with income calculation issues and was getting disconnected after waiting on hold forever. Found this service at claimyr.com that calls the county for you and when a real person answers, it connects you immediately. Saved me from spending hours on hold. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/jzISHxCPLwE that shows how it works. Totally worth it for cases like this where you need to talk to someone quickly before your benefits change.

Thank you! I'm definitely going to try this. I tried calling again today and got disconnected after 45 minutes on hold. I need to get this fixed before my next benefit payment.

u can also go 2 the office in person sometimes thats faster then calling no matter what. bring ur paystubs with u and ask them 2 explain how they got that number

go early!! get there before they open!! i went at 2pm once and had to wait 3 hours just to be told i needed more documents smh

Your income for CalWORKs is calculated based on anticipated monthly income, not just what you've earned so far. Here's how they typically calculate it:1. Hourly wage × hours per week × 4.33 (average weeks per month)2. They then apply any applicable earned income disregards (the first $450 plus 50% of the remainder doesn't count against your grant)If your hours are going to be consistent, their calculation is probably correct for future months even if it doesn't match what you've earned so far. However, if your hours will be less than what they're projecting, you should definitely contact your worker with documentation.I recommend keeping a detailed record of all communications with your worker - dates, times, who you spoke with, and what was discussed. This will be helpful if there are any disputes later.

Thank you for explaining the calculation so clearly. I didn't know about the earned income disregards - that's really helpful! I'm going to check my NOA again to see if they applied this correctly. My hours should be consistent going forward, so I'm less worried now that I understand how they're calculating it.

Update: I finally got through to my worker using that Claimyr service someone suggested. You were all right - they were projecting my income based on my hourly rate and weekly hours. My worker explained they use my hourly rate ($13.50) × hours per week (20) × 4.33 weeks = $1,169.10, which they rounded to $1,170.83 with some adjustment I didn't fully understand.She also explained about the income disregards, so my actual benefit reduction isn't as bad as I initially thought. Thanks everyone for your help! I'm going to be much more careful with tracking my income reporting going forward.

That's great! Just remember that if your hours ever change significantly (especially if they decrease), report it right away with proof from your employer. CalWORKs can adjust your benefits up if your income goes down, but they need documentation.