The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 contains several tax credits and rebates, including Earned Income Tax Credit, additional child tax credits, and child and dependent tax credits. These individual rebates are excluded from consideration as income, and as an asset for 12 months after receipt for CalWORKs, CalFresh, Refugee Cash Assistance, Entrant Cash Assistance, Trafficking and Crime Victims Assistance Program, Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Payments, Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants, programs that fund foster care payments, Approved Relative Caregiver program, and Emergency Assistance funding. (ACL 21-37, March 26, 2021.)
Summaries of select CalWORKs, CalFresh, Health and Housing Regulations
CalFresh / SNAP
Treatment of Pandemic Unemployment Compensation and other Unemployment Insurance for CalWORKs
The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has issued guidance regarding how Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (PUC) and other Unemployment Insurance programs are treated for purposes of CalWORKs. PUC is the additional $300 per week in Unemployment Insurance benefits in the December, 2020 stimulus package. For CalWORKs, PUC payments are now exempt for both applicants and recipients. For CalFresh, PUC payments are exempt from consideration as income or resources for nine months following receipt.
Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), which is for self-employed workers and independent contractors, is considered income for CalWORKs applicants and recipients. Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), which is extension benefits after regular Unemployment Insurance or PUA expires, also is considered income for CalWORKs applicants and recipients.
FED-ED is an additional extension of Unemployment Insurance benefits during periods of high unemployment for people who have sufficient earnings. FED-ED is considered unearned income. FED-ED benefits are considered income for CalWORKs applicants and recipients.
Mixed Earners Unemployment Compensation (MEUC) is an additional $100 per week in Unemployment Insurance for individuals eligible for Unemployment Insurance and who have at least $5,000 in self-employment income. MEUC will be considered unearned income when it is issued. MEUC will be considered unearned income. MEUC benefits will be considered income for CalWORKs applicants and recipients.
Refugee Cash Assistance, Entrant Cash Assistance and Trafficking and Crime Victims Assistance Program follow the same CalWORKs rules for PUC, PUA, PEUC, FED-ED and MEUC. (ACL 21-22, February 26, 2021.)
End of 2019 Public Charge rule
The Department of Homeland Security has decided not to defend the 2019 public charge rule in court and has dismissed all pending appeals regarding the 2019 public charge rule. As a result, the 1999 interim field guidance on the public charge inadmissibility provision is now in effect. (Department of Homeland Security Press Release, March 9, 2021.)
COVID-19 CalFresh emergency allotment for March 2021
California has been approved to issue an emergency allotment of CalFresh for March, 2021, so long as the COVID-19 public health emergency remains in place at some point in the month of March. The emergency allotment will be issued on April 18, 2021 to raise each household’s monthly CalFresh allotment to the maximum allowable for the household size.
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, February 25, 2021.)
Extension of CalFresh telephonic signature waiver
The Food and Nutrition Service has extended its waiver of the requirement for recording of telephonic signatures until March 31, 2021 because of COVID-19 for both initial application and recertification interviews. (ACWDL, February 11, 2021.)
CalFresh benefit replacement
The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has issued a reminder regarding CalFresh benefit replacement policies. Requests for replacement of food bought with CalFresh benefits that are lost because of household misfortune are made using the Replacement Affidavit/Authorization (CF 303). There is no limit on the number of replacements in the same month if food is lost in a household misfortune.
For multiple replacements from the same household misfortune, replacement issuance cannot exceed the household’s regular monthly CalFresh allotment. For multiple misfortunes in the same month, each replacement request must be assessed independently and can exceed the household’s regular CalFresh allotment.
A signed statement attesting to the household loss is sufficient and verification of food loss is required only if the signed statement is questionable.
Mass replacements allow for automatic replacement of a certain percentage of household benefits. CDSS must get a federal waiver for mass replacement. Mass replacements are typically issued by zip code. Mass replacement is possible if at least half of the households in the zip code were without power for four hours or more. A zip code can only be approved for one mass issuance per month, regardless of how many disasters occur in a month.
Households that receive a mass replacement can receive an individual replacement if they request it and can verify that the mass replacement did not cover the entire food loss or if there is a second misfortune in the same month. A household that received an individual replacement cannot receive a mass replacement for the same month. (ACL 21-15, February 5, 2021.)