Author: Stephen Goldberg

COVID-19 CalFresh emergency allotment for May 2020

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California has been approved to issue an emergency allotment of CalFresh for May, 2020.  The emergency allotment will be issued on June 14 to raise each household’s monthly CalFresh allotment to the maximum allowable for the household size.  Per guidance from the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), households already receiving the maximum allotment are not eligible to receive an emergency allotment.

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. (ACWDL, May 11, 2020.)

COVID-19 immediate and continuous child care for exempt and sanctioned participants

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The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has provided clarifications about immediate and continuous Stage One child care for exempt volunteers and sanctioned welfare-to-work (WTW) participants.  General information about immediate and continuous Stage One child care is in ACL 19-99, summarized here.

Clients who are exempt from WTW participation who express an intent to participate in WTW as an exempt volunteer are eligible for immediate and continuous Stage One child care.  An exempt individual’s expressed intent to volunteer to participate in WTW is sufficient to establish authorization for immediate and continuous Stage One child care.  This indication can be communicated in any manner (for example in writing, verbally, by phone or in person).

Exempt volunteers will need to sign a WTW plan to maintain child care.  Exempt volunteers will have 30 days to locate child care, and 30 days to sign a plan.  Depending on communication with the client, these 30 day time frames and run concurrently or sequentially.

Exempt volunteers authorized for immediate and continuous Stage One child care who sign a WTW plan will continue to receive child care for 12 months, regardless of their participation status after signing the plan.

Clients who were sanctioned prior to October 1, 2019 or sanctioned clients applying for child care after October 1, 2019 must be authorized to receive immediate and continuous child care upon expressing an intent to cure the sanction to the county.  The indication of intent to cure the sanction is sufficient to establish authorization for immediate and continuous Stage One child care.  This indication can be communicated in any manner (for example in writing, verbally, by phone or in person).

Sanctioned individuals shall not be required to sign a cure plan prior to receiving immediate and continuous Stage One child care.   Exempt volunteers will have 30 days to locate child care, and 30 days to sign a cure plan.  Depending on communication with the client, these 30 day time frames and run concurrently or sequentially.  For individuals who do not sign a cure plan, child care will be discontinued until the sanction client again indicates an intent to cure the sanction.  Sanctioned clients who sign a cure plan will be authorized for immediate and continuous Stage One child care without discontinuance regardless of their participation status after signing the plan. (ACIN I-15-20, May 6, 2020.)

COVID-19 Pandemic EBT

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The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has provided information about Pandemic EBT (P-EBT), which will provide families a standalone food benefit amount equal to the value of free or reduced-price (FRP) school means that are no longer available because of school closures caused by COVID-19.  All students eligible for FRP meals statewide are eligible for P-EBT will be eligible, including students in charter schools and private schools so long as the school participates in the federally funded School Breakfast Program and/or the National School Lunch Program, regardless of whether they receive CalFresh benefits.

Students who are directly certified for FRP because they receive certain benefits, including CalFresh, CalWORKs, Medi-Cal and foster care, will be automatically eligible for P-EBT.  Automatically eligible families will receive a P-EBT card in the mail without applying.  For these families, P-EBT card issuance will begin on May 8.  If a family thinks they are eligible but has not received a P-EBT card by May 25, they should apply online.

Students who approved for FRP meals based on a paper application or community eligibility will need to apply for P-EBT online.  CDSS will verify eligibility by checking against a list of all students who were approved to receive FRP during the 2019-20 school year.  If verified eligible, these families will receive a P-EBT card in the mail within 5-10 days of applying. The online application will be open from May 22 to June 30 at https://ca.p-ebt.org.  Families will not be able to apply after June 30 and will not be able to receive the benefit.

The benefit amount will be $365 for most eligible children.  A few children who were directly certified for the first time this school year after school closure will receive a pro-rated amount based on the date they were directly certified.  These families do not need to apply but their P-EBT card may not arrive until as late as the end of June.

P-EBT benefits will be provided on a separate P-EBT card.  It can be used just like regular EBT cards.

P-EBT eligible families can receive P-EBT, CalFresh and to go meals provided by schools at the same time.  P-EBT eligible families do not need to choose between these available resources.  (ACWDL, May 7, 2020.)

Extension of waiver to combine CalFresh reminder notice and notice of adverse action

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The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has issued guidance regarding an extension of a federal waiver allowing combining the reminder notice and notice of adverse action for households that fail to submit a complete semiannual report form (SAR 7) by the required filing date.

The waiver extension continues the current practice of sending the NA 960X notice to households that did not timely submit a SAR 7 and the NA 960Y notice to households that submitted an incomplete SAR 7.  Both the NA 960X and the NA 960Y act as combined reminder notice and notice of adverse action.

Counties must send the NA 960X or the NA 960Y no later than 10 days after the SAR 7 report should have been submitted.  If a household files a complete SAR 7 during the 10 days period following the date the NA 960X or the NA 960Y is mailed, the county must provide benefits no later than 10 days after the normal benefit issuance date.  (ACL 20-52, May 1, 2020.)

COVID-19 new unemployment programs as income for CalWORKs

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The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has issued guidance regarding counting Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (PUC), Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) and Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) as income for CalWORKs.

PUC is an extra $600 per week of regular unemployment insurance through July 31, 2020.  Pursuant to Executive Order N-59-20, PUC is exempt as income for CalWORKs recipients.  However, PUC counts as income for CalWORKs applicants.

PEUC is an additional 13 weeks of unemployment insurance for people who have exhausted regular unemployment insurance through December 31, 2020.  PUA is unemployment payments for persons not otherwise eligible for regular unemployment insurance including self-employed persons and independent contractors who are unemployed as a result of COVID-19.  PEUC and PUA are not exempt for purposes of CalWORKs and they count as unearned income.

This guidance also applies to Refugee Cash Assistance, Entrant Cash Assistance and Trafficking and Crime Victims Assistance program.  (ACWDL, May 5, 2020.)

COVID-19 ongoing child care for at-risk populations

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The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has issued guidance regarding child care services for the Emergency Child Care Bridge Program for Foster Children (Bridge Program) and other at-risk populations during the COVID-19 emergency.

Children at-risk should continue to receiving child care at the request of the caregiver or parent even if the caregiver or parent is not employed in a job designated as essential.

If a Bridge Program voucher is scheduled to expire during the emergency period, counties may extend the voucher for 60 days.  This flexibility is in place until June 30, 2020 or when the State of Emergency has ended, whichever is earlier.  When the family secures a long-term child care placement, the Bridge Program voucher is terminated.  (ACWDL, May 4, 2020.)