Author: Stephen Goldberg

COVID-19 updated information regarding submitting SOC 873

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The California Department of Social Services has provided information about completion of the In Home Supportive Services (IHSS) SOC 873 form.

Counties can allow a good cause extension for failure to submit the IHSS SOC 873 form within 45 days of application when they were unable to do so because their health care provider was unavailable because of work related to COVID-19.  The option for that good cause extension is extended through the end of the COVID-19 state of emergency in California.  Counties can determine on a case-by-case basis when good cause exists. This evaluation should consider various factors including the applicant being in the hospital, the health care professional scheduling appointments more than 45 days out, the SOC 873 being lost in the mail, and the applicant’s primary health care provider being unavailable because of the Omicron variant.  (ACL 22-11, February 9, 2022.)

Public and subsidized housing extension to 30 days notice to pay rent or quit

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The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has issued guidance regarding of extension of time to pay rent in public and federally subsidized housing.  The interim final rule ““Extension of Time and Required Disclosures for Notification of Nonpayment of Rent” amended HUD regulations to require that, during a national emergency, the HUD Secretary can determine that additional time is necessary for families to secure funding available because of the national emergency and therefore public housing authorities (PHAs) administering public housing programs and owners of project based rental assistance properties must give at 30 days notice of lease termination for nonpayment of rent.  This requirement would not apply to the Housing Choice Voucher program.

The HUD Secretary has determined that an extension of time is necessary to give tenants notice of available funding and to increase the likelihood that tenants will be able to secure such funding before lease termination. This determination will remain in effect until a subsequent HUD notice rescinds this determination.

PHAs are not required to amend their leases to reflect this requirement.  Instead, PHAs must notify tenants of the requirement for 30 days notice of termination of tenancy for nonpayment of rent.  PHAs can provide this notice in writing or by electronic communication.  (PIH Notice 2021-29, October 7, 2021.)

Effect of SSI COLA on CalFresh benefits

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Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients received a Cost of Living Increase effective January 1, 2022.  The new SSI amount must be acted on for CalFresh purposes no later than March, 2022.  This will happen automatically for most CalFresh cases. Counties must manually process some cases, including cases that receive SSI amount that are more than the maximum monthly SSI payment (because of a retroactive SSI payment for example).  Supplemental Nutrition Benefits and Transitional Nutrition Benefit cases are not affected by the SSI COLA increase.

Note that retroactive SSI payments are excluded as income for CalFresh purposes.  January 2022 should include a higher than usual number of retroactive payments because of improper benefits reductions and denials caused by Social Security incorrectly counting pandemic benefits as income.  Any cases with amounts over the SSI maximum payment will be excluded from automatic processing to prevent improperly counting SSI retroactive payments.

As a reminder, amounts recouped from SSI benefits, including recoupment of SSI overpayments, do not count as income for CalFresh. (ACIN I-11-22, January 28, 2022.)

Stage One Child Care eligibility age

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Stage One child care is available to every CalWORKs participant with a dependent child in the household who is age 12 or younger.  Children who reach age 13 are generally ineligible for subsidized child care.  Children with exceptional needs or severe disabilities may receive child care through age 21.  Children who are under court supervision can receive Stage One Child Care to age 18.

Children who certified for child care prior to their thirteenth birthday may receive child care for 12 months.  Contractors cannot disenroll a child when they turn age thirteen during the 12-month eligibility period and must allow the child to continue in subsidized child care until the family’s next recertification.  Counties must give families a Notice of Action stating the duration of eligibility that includes an end date of eligibility which must be through the 12-month eligibility period.  (Child Care Bulletin 22-04, January 13, 2022.)

COVID-19 CalFresh emergency allotment for January, 2022

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California has been approved to issue an emergency allotment of CalFresh for January, 2022.  All households will receive at least the maximum CalFresh allotment.  Households eligible to receive the maximum allowable allotment based on household size are now eligible to receive an emergency allotment of $95 per month. Households who are not eligible to receive the maximum allowable allotment based on household size, but whose emergency allotment would be less than $95 per month to receive the maximum allotment, will receive additional CalFresh benefits to raise their emergency allotment to the $95 minimum.

The emergency allotment will be issued on February 27, 2022.

Moving forward, emergency allotments may be approved by FNS on a month-to-month basis until the Secretary of Health and Human Services rescinds the public health emergency.  There will be a one-month phase out of emergency allotments after the public health emergency is rescinded.  (ACWDL, January 21, 2022.)