Federal agencies and programs may-within the boundaries set by Federal law-establish their own guidelines for defining low-income populations. For the purposes of this document, low-income populations are defined as such by the agencies determining program eligibility: (1) HUD defines a low-income household as a household whose total income does not exceed 80 percent of the median income for the area, as determined by HUD, with adjustments for smaller and larger families, except that HUD may establish income ceilings higher or lower than 80 percent of the median for the area on the basis of HUD's findings that such variations are necessary because of prevailing levels of construction costs or fair market rents, or unusually high or low family incomes. HUD income limits are updated annually and are available from local HUD offices for the appropriate jurisdictions. (2) The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) does not define "low-income, " but it issues poverty guidelines in the Federal Register each year for use in determining eligibility for certain of its means-tested programs. These guidelines simplify poverty thresholds issued by the Census Bureau for use for administrative purposes such as determining financial eligibility for certain Federal programs. For example, the 2008 HHS poverty guidelines indicate that the poverty level for a family of four in the 48 contiguous States and the District of Columbia was $21, 200. (3) USDA Rural Development follows HUD's definition for a low-income household