CalFresh recipients who lose food because of a power outage have 10 days to ask for replacement of the food they purchased.  The Food and Nutrition Service has approved a waiver of the 10-day time frame to request food replacement for three counties because of various disasters.  The deadline to request food replacement for households in Siskiyou County because of power outages due to wildfires is extended to September 14.  The deadline to request food replacement for households in Del Norte County because of power outages due to wildfires is extended to September 18.  The deadline to request food replacement for households in Riverside county because of power outages due to Hurricane Hillary is extended to September 19.  (August 24, 2023 letter from FNS (Siskiyou), Letter from FNS (Del Norte), August 30 2023 letter from FNS (Riverside).)

Counties are responsible for screening and referral of CalFresh applicants and recipients to the CalFresh Employment and Training program as part of the certification process.  California Department of Social Services criteria for referral includes all CalFresh applicants and recipients who are interested in services.  Counties have flexibility to develop their own criteria for referral to CalFresh employment and training.

Counties can only administer employment and training programs to people who want to participate.  Counties cannot disqualify voluntary participants for failure to follow program rules, Applicants and recipients cannot be sanctioned or negatively affected because of non-participation.

If an individual was not screened or referred to CalFresh employment and training during certification, the individual or the employment and training program can ask the county to complete a screening and referral.  (ACL 23-34, March 28, 2023.)

The Transitional Nutrition Benefit (TNB) program provides food benefits for households that became ineligible for CalFresh because of the addition of a household member who was previously excluded from the CalFresh household because they received Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits.

Beginning in November, 2021, recertifications for TNB were paused for two years. TNB recertifications will begin in November, 2023.  Counties must send the Notice of Recertification for the Transitional Nutrition Benefit Program (TNB 4) to TNB households in the month prior to the household’s original TNB renewal month, starting in October 2023 for the November renewals.  Recertifications will be for 12 months.  TNB households are not required to report mid-period or complete a periodic report to maintain eligibility.

If a TNB household is discontinued for failure to complete the renewal, benefits must be restored back to the date of termination if the recertification and all required documents are submitted within 90 days of the discontinuance.

CWDs must publicize the resumption of TNB renewals starting in November 2023 using mass change information practices.  (ACIN I-35-23, July 3, 2023.)

The California Department of Social Services has issued guidance regarding a federal regulation change to CalFresh eligibility that imposes new disqualifications for certain convicted felons. These new disqualifications do not change the rules regarding fleeing felons and probation or parole violations.

Any adult who has been convicted of aggravated sexual abuse, murder, sexual exploitation and other abuse of children, a Federal or State offense involving sexual assault, or an offense under State law determined by the Attorney General to be substantially similar to one of the first three offenses listed, after February 7, 2014, and who is not in compliance with the terms of their sentence, will not be eligible for CalFresh benefits.

The new federal regulations require an attestation by all individuals applying or recertifying for CalFresh benefits whether they have been convicted of one of these crimes as an adult, and whether the convicted household member is complying with the terms of their sentence. Individuals may provide attestations in writing, verbally, or both.  CalFresh applications will have a new question where individuals can state whether the individual or any adult member of their household has been convicted of any of the disqualifying crimes, and if so whether they are in compliance with the terms of their sentence. The online applications will also have the new attestation requirement added.

Counties must explain the attestation requirement to the applicant household during the interview. Individuals cannot be required to come to the county office only to make the attestation. The individual’s attestation must be documented by the CWDs in their case file.

Verification requests must be limited to attestations that are considered questionable, which is  when the application has contradicting information or discrepancies that would cast doubt on the timeliness, completeness, or accuracy. For questionable applications, the county must verify any conviction for crimes and that the individual is out of compliance with the terms of their sentence. When verifying an attestation, counties can use their Special Investigation Unit, Investigators, and R-IEVS Fleeing Felon Match.

Application processing must not be delayed beyond required processing times only because verification has not yet been received.  If the county must act on the case to meet the time standards, the application must be processed without consideration of the individual’s conviction status.

The implementation of the new eligibility disqualifications will be effective upon funding and completion of automation in CalSAWS.  (ACL 23-59, June 28, 2023, and ACL 23-59E, September 28, 2023.)

The California Department of Social Services has issued guidance and information regarding implementation of Disaster CalFresh for San Luis Obispo County.

Disaster CalFresh provides one month of temporary food assistance to households affected by natural disasters who were not already receiving CalFresh.

To be eligible for Disaster CalFresh, a household must have:

1) lived or worked in the disaster impacted county at the time of the disaster;

2) Purchased or planned to purchase food during the benefits period, which is February 21, 2023 through March 22, 2023;

3) Experienced an adverse effects because of the disaster, such as food loss, loss of income, inaccessible resources, or disaster-related expenses;

4) Meet the Disaster Gross Income Limit.  To be eligible, the household’s income received plus accessible liquid resources, minus disaster related expenses, must be less than the Disaster Gross Income Limit.

Households that received CalFresh in February 2023 are not eligible because they already received a minimum of $95 via Emergency Allotments for the February 2023 benefit month.

A Disaster CalFresh household includes people who lived and purchased and prepared food together on the start date of the disaster. A Disaster CalFresh household does not include people who the applicant is temporarily staying with at the time of application due to the disaster. A Disaster CalFresh household may include people who had been excluded from an ongoing CalFresh household at the time of the disaster.

Disaster CalFresh requires verification of 1) Identity; 2. Residency and loss/inaccessibility of income or liquid resources, if possible; and 3. Household composition and food loss, when questionable.

While identity verification is required, a specific type of documentary proof is not Acceptable identity verification may include, but is not limited to, a driver’s license, a work or school identification card, an identification card for health benefits, a voter registration card, a foreign passport, and “matricula consulares.”

A social security number is not required to apply for D-CalFresh.

To the extent possible, verification of residency should be satisfied via information from other sources, such as a rent or mortgage billing statement, utility billing statement, and identity documents. No specific type of documentary proof is required.

Counties should assist households in obtaining necessary verification. This includes, with the client’s permission, verifying information through alternative sources such as online banking or utility accounts, and using collateral contacts.

Certified households must be able to access benefits within 72 hours of application, which begins to run on the day of the interview.

Authorized representatives may assist with Disaster CalFresh applications following the same policy as for regular CalFresh.

The Disaster CalFresh application for San Luis Obisppo County is July 10, 2023 through July 14, 2023.  Applicants can pre-register beginning on July 8, 2023.  Pre-registration will allow households to apply for D-CalFresh beginning on July 8, 2023, and to submit required D-CalFresh verifications via online portals. Counties may take up to 24 hours to initiate a telephone call to households who preregister to complete a phone interview during the application period based on the order in which their pre-registration was received.

The filing date is the day that the interview is completed and not the day that county receives the application.  Applicants must complete the CF 385 form and submit it during the application period.  Applications can be submitted by phone, online or in person. When accepting Disaster CalFresh applications by phone, verbal attestation is acceptable. Applicants who submit the application and verification online will be called for an interview within 24 hours.  If an online application does not have a phone number, the county must send the applicant a reminder notice to complete the interview no later than July 20, 2023.

Disaster CalFresh interviews should be done in-person when possible, but they can be done by phone.

Reports of electronic theft of Disaster CalFresh are handled in the same was as electronic theft of any other CalFresh benefits as described in ACLs 21-133 and 23-13.  (ACWDL, June 30, 2023.)