ORDER GRANTING MOTION FOR LEAVE TO PROCEED IN FORMA PAUPERIS

[ECF No. 3]

JAN M. ADLER, Magistrate Judge.

I. Background

Plaintiff Tanya Geanna Macleod, with counsel, has filed a complaint requesting judicial review of Defendant's decision denying Plaintiff's claim for disability insurance benefits. ECF No. 1. Plaintiff did not prepay the civil filing fee required by 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a) at the time of the filing, but instead filed a Motion to Proceed in Forma Pauperis ("IFP") pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915. ECF No. 3. For the following reasons, the Court GRANTS Plaintiff's motion to proceed IFP.

II. Discussion

All parties instituting any civil action, suit, or proceeding in a district court of the United States, except an application for writ of habeas corpus, must pay a filing fee of $400. See 28 U.S.C. § 1914(a). An action may proceed despite a plaintiff's failure to prepay the entire fee only if she is granted leave to proceed IFP pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a). See Andrews v. Cervantes, 493 F.3d 1047, 1051 (9th Cir. 2007); Rodriguez v. Cook, 169 F.3d 1176, 1177 (9th Cir. 1999). A court may authorize the commencement of a suit without prepayment of fees if the plaintiff submits an affidavit, including a statement of all of her assets, showing that she is unable to pay the fees. See 28 U.S.C. §1915(a). Such an affidavit must include a complete statement of the plaintiff's assets. See id.

Here, Plaintiff submitted an affidavit reporting that she has not worked since 2008. Her spouse is self-employed, earning $2,200 per month. ECF No. 3 at 1, 2, 5. Plaintiff receives food stamps in the amount of $470 a month. Id. at 4. Plaintiff's spouse has $59.00 in his checking account. Id. at 2. Plaintiff and her spouse do not own any real estate, motor vehicles, or other assets. Id. at 3. Plaintiff and her spouse's monthly expenses, which include rent, utilities, food, laundry, and life insurance, amount to a total of approximately $2,105. Id. at 4-5. Because Plaintiff lacks substantial assets and because her and her spouse's expenses are essentially equivalent to her spouse's total monthly income, Plaintiff has sufficiently demonstrated that she is unable to pay the required filing fee and that she meets the requirements to proceed IFP. See Adkins v. E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co., 335 U.S. 331, 335 (1948) (litigants need not pay "the last dollar they have" to enjoy the benefit of the IFP statute).

III. Conclusion

Plaintiff's Motion for Leave to Proceed in Forma Pauperis is GRANTED.

IT IS SO ORDERED.