CDSS has issued instructions regarding CalWORKs issues for disaster victims. The instructions reiterate several important facts of the CalWORKs rules as they relate to disasters including: 1) the county must accept statements under penalty of perjury when documents are unavailable because of a disaster, 2) disaster relief payment do not count as income for purposes of CalWORKs, 3) disaster is an exception to the once in a lifetime limit on homeless assistance benefits, 4) disaster victims should be evaluated for immediate need, 5) written statement is sufficient to establish residency and 6) disaster victims should be evaluated for good cause for non-participation in welfare-to-work.
In addition, disaster related issues can be good cause for late filing of semi-annual reports and annual redetermination. For the first month after a report is late, the county must evaluate for good cause for late filing. After the first month, the client must request a good cause evaluation for late filing. ACIN I-85-15 (10/14/15).