Happy New Year!
1. Step 11 Refactor. Step 11 (Optional Signup) has been refactored to adhere to the new data validation library.
2. Value updates for SSDI. We have updated the monthly value for SSDI to $1,580/person/month. We have also updated the substantial gainful activity (income limit) to $1,620 for non-blind individuals and $2,700 for blind individuals for SSDI qualification.
3. Changes to the citizenship filter:
- We have updated the filters so that if all sub-filters within the citizenship filter are deselected, the top-level filter will also deselect. Ex: If a user unchecks all 3 bullets under “Green card holders”, then “Green card holders” will also be unchecked automatically.
- Copy Edits: The last filter box has been updated to say “Other lawfully present noncitizens with permission to live or work in the U.S. (includes DACA recipients, other rules may apply)”. Two of the subfilters under Green card holders copy have been edited to “18+, in the U.S. less than 5 years” and “under 18, in the U.S. less than 5 years)
- Effective January 1st, Colorado made changes to Medicaid/CHP+ for undocumented pregnant women and children. In light of these changes, MyFriendBen will now be checking if individuals selected “pregnant” during Step 5 for members of the household. If a user has indicated they are pregnant and are under the age of 19, then selects a citizenship status in the filter, MyFriendBen will still show results for Medicaid and CHP+. Users may also see a warning message added to Medicaid and CHP+ if filters are selected that says “Based on your citizenship filter criteria, the individuals in your household that could qualify for [Medicaid/CHP+], are those who are younger than 19 or pregnant.
3. TABOR Refund reactivated and updated. MyFriendBen has reactivated the TABOR Refund for tax year 2024. Colorado taxpayers who lived in the state for all of 2024 qualify for a TABOR refund. You must meet state tax filing deadlines to get this refund. If you do not owe state income taxes for 2024 or you are not claiming a refund of wages withheld in 2024, you must file a state tax return on or before April 15, 2025. If you owe state income taxes for 2024 or claim a refund of withheld wages, you must file your tax return on or before October 15, 2025.
4. Update how MyFriendBen uses PolicyEngine’s child support paid calculations for SNAP. We fixed a bug where we were not accounting for the child support deduction.
