1. Suppose you are financially advising a family in which both work minimum wage jobs ($9.50/hour - new VA law) full time (40 hours a week, 52 weeks/year). They have three children (5, 7, and 8) who are in school. A neighbor watches them after school each day for 2 hours for $8/hour. Assume that 10% of your earnings go to taxes (SS, Medicare, state/federal taxes). (Hint: Compute annual earnings, then calculate post-tax monthly earnings.)

Assume the following general monthly expenses: rent + utilities ($1,400/month), babysitting (assume 4 weeks) groceries ($800), cable ($100), internet ($80), two cell phones ($100), gas for car ($20/week), bus tickets ($1.50/ride, estimate 10 rides/week), car insurance ($130).

1. Compute their expected SNAP benefit. (Note: The max benefit table/deductions are in the classwork. Assume your rent + utilities replace the utility standard, as we did in class.)
2. Compute their budget. Include the SNAP benefits from the above calculation.
3. If you were financially advising this family, what components would you consider cutting from the expenses? What (2) major expenses have they not accounted for?
4. What would you suggest they do? Specifically consider which social programs they are eligible for in addition to what areas of their budget they can adjust, and how.
5. Would you recommend that this family cut work hours to increase TANF benefits? Why or why not?