CalWORKs

CalWORKs Educational Opportunity and Attainment Program

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The California Department of Social Services has issued instructions regarding implementation of the CalWORKs Educational Opportunity and Attainment Program at Welfare and Institutions Code Sections 11340-11346.  CalWORKs recipients can apply for a one-time $500 award for completing a high school diploma or its equivalent, and a one-time $1,000 stipend for enrollment in a term of an education or training program leading to a career technical education certificate, an associate’s degree or a bachelor’s degree.

The $500 award for completing a high school degree or its equivalent is available to any individual receiving CalWORKs on his or her behalf regardless of whether the recipient has a Welfare-to-Work plan for completion of a high school diploma or equivalent after January 1, 2018.  Cal-Learn participants are ineligible for this award.  If verification of completion is submitted before the 11th of the month, payment must be made by the end of the month.  If verification is submitted after the 11th of the month, payment must be made during the next month.

The $1,000 stipend requires enrollment in an education or training program that is included in the recipients Welfare-to-Work plan for a term that begins on or after January 1, 2018.  The county must certify eligibility for the stipend within 10 business days of receiving verification and must issue the payment at the outset of the term.  Completion of the term is not required to receive the stipend.

Recipients are ineligible for either the education incentive award or the education stipend in any month during which the recipient is sanctioned.  Recipients are permanently ineligible if they have exhausted their 48-month time on aid limit or have committed public assistance fraud.

For CalWORKs, the awards are considered a non-recurring lump sum and property in the month received and any subsequent months.  The awards are not income for CalWORKs.  For CalFresh, the awards are excluded as income and resources.

Counties cannot require recipients to use the awards for CalWORKs supportive services.

The program has $4 million in one-time funding.  Counties are required to provide the awards only to the extent funding is allocated.   (ACL 17-115, November 20, 2017.)

CalWORKs asset limit increase for families with an elderly or disabled member

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The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has increased the CalWORKs asset limit for families that include an elderly (age 60 or over) or disabled household member to $3,500 effective October 1, 2017.  The CalWORKs asset limit remains the same for all other households.

If counties find that an assistance unit was denied CalWORKs or had their CalWORKs discontinued as a result of exceeding the prior $3,250 asset limit, counties must re-evaluate eligibility and restore any lost benefits effective October 1, 2017 and moving forward.

If the county has collected or is currently collecting an overpayment based on excess resources for a family with an elderly or disabled member after September 30, 2017, the county must review the case to determine if the family is under the new $3,500 asset limit, and if so must cancel the overpayment and return any funds collected.  (ACL 17-108, October 25, 2017.)

Hearing representative responsibilities and privileges process

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The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has issued clarification about county hearing representative responsibilities before a hearing.  The county hearing representative initially impartially reviews the hearing request.  After the review, the hearings representative either orders the county to take corrective action or defends the action at hearing.  The county hearings representative also provides claimants with information about the hearing process, including preparing a position statement.

The county hearings representative ensues that aid paid pending is paid when appropriate, identifies the issues raised in the hearing request, reviewed the disputed action(s) based on available evidence and regulations, and determines whether the case can be resolved or should proceed to hearing.

The county hearings representative also must provide reasonable accommodations for claimant’s disabilities, and services for limited English proficient claimants, including using forms that have been translated and using an interpreter for communication with the claimant at no cost to the claimant.

If the hearings representative cannot identify the issues from the hearing request, the hearings representative should attempt to contact the claimant to discuss the case.  If the hearings representative cannot reach the claimant, the hearings representative should review the case file for 90 days prior to the hearing request to determine issues.  If the hearings representative still cannot determine the issues, the hearings representative should write a limited position statement for the hearing. If the issues are identified on the day of the hearing and the hearings representative and claimant cannot reach a resolution, the hearings representative can request postponement of the hearing.

If the hearings representative determines the county action is correct, the county hearings representative should contact the claimant to explain the basis for the county action.  The hearings representative cannot imply that the claimant cannot or should not proceed with the hearing.  The hearings representative can explain the claimant’s right to withdraw if the claimant states they do not want to proceed with the hearing, but the county hearings representative cannot request a withdrawal.

If the hearings representative determines the county action is incorrect, the county representative must contact the case worker to take corrective action.  The county hearings representative must also contact the claimant to resolve the case without a hearing.  If that resolution is a conditional withdrawal, the language of the conditional withdrawal must be specific regarding the duties of the county and claimant for the action to be corrected.  A conditional withdrawal that states the county will re-review its action is insufficient. Conditional withdrawals should be in writing.  The county must ensure that corrective action is completed within 30 days.  If the claimant still chooses to attend the hearing, the hearings representative must be prepared for the hearing.

The hearings representative should inform the claimant of their right to review the case file and provide that access in two business days.  If the hearings representative withholds documents from the claimant pursuant to a claim of privilege, the hearings representative must prepare and give to the claimant a form identifying the withheld documents and the basis of the claim of privilege or confidentiality.  Welfare fraud investigation information from an active investigation is confidential unless that information has been used or relied on by the county in making its decision to take administrative action.  When the claimant challenges a county claim of privilege or confidentiality, the administrative law judge will convene an in camera proceeding to adjudicate that claim.

Finally, CDSS has issued guidelines for the content and format of county position statements for hearings.  (ACL 17-102, September 29, 2017.)

Use of Immunization Registry and new immunization forms

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CDSS has issues recommendations and instructions regarding the process for verifying immunizations for children under age 6 who receive CalWORKs.  CDSS states that clients have a responsibility to provide verification of immunization of children under age 6 and counties must first ask client to provide verification of immunization.  If a client does not have the verification, CDSS strongly recommends that counties use the California Immunization Registry 2 to search for verification before asking the client to get the needed documents.  If the client is unable to provide the requested verification after a good faith effort, the county is required to assist in getting the needed verification.

Applicants under age six or children under age six being added to the household must provide verification of immunization within 30 days of being found eligible for Medi-Cal or within 45 days if already receiving Medi-Cal.  Counties must provide clients with the CW 2209 form to claim good cause.

The immunization penalty must be removed when all children in the Assistance Unit have reached age six.  Removal of the penalty must be done manually because it is not automated in the consortia computer systems.  The penalty continues if there is a child under age six in the Assistance Unit who has not been immunized and does not meet one of the exemption or good cause criteria.

CDSS issued a new CW 101 informing notice about the immunization requirement.  The form notice is now required.  Counties or computer consortia cannot change the form without CDSS’ approval.  (ACL 17-87, September 7, 2017.)

More SB 1041 Questions and Answers

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The California Department of Social Services has issued its seventh set of questions and answers about SB 1041.  Most of the questions and answers involve data gathering.  However, a few of the questions and answers contain important policy guidance.

Question and Answer 3 addresses averaging of welfare-to-work participation hours.  Hourly welfare-to-work participation hours are determined using an average weekly requirement.  However, in some months, this average calculates to more than the minimum required 20, 30 or 35 hours. When that happens, an alternative calculation method must be used.  The alternative methods are the most days averaging method, which is based on the number of weeks in the month that contain four or more days, or the Friday Falls Averaging Method, which is based on the number of weeks in the month that contain a Friday.  The intent of these alternative methods is to prevent sanctions for recipients who are participating their minimum 20, 30 or 35 hours per week.

Several questions and answers address cross-over between California and federal work participation requirements.  California allows certain activities that are federal work participation requirements limit.  In particular, California allows vocational education while federal work participation limits vocational education to 12 months in the participants lifetime, and California requires job search at the beginning of the welfare-to-work process while federal work participation requirements limit the amount of countable job search.  CDSS states that participants are not required to have their federal time and the time on their 24 month clock run concurrently.  The participant can choose whether to first count these activities toward their 24 month clock or towards their federal limit.

CDSS also states that counties are not required to initiate a new review of 24 month extensions when there is an intercounty transfer.  Counties can review the case if the extension is not based on a formal request from the participant, but the new county cannot request verification until it has reviewed documentation from the prior county and determined it is insufficient.  The receiving county cannot deny a 24 month extension based on the county already having met its 20% extension target.

In addition, CDSS states that counties must reevaluate all 24 month extensions every six months even if the participant does not request to continue the extension.  (ACL 17-78, September 1, 2017.)

CalWORKs and financial aid

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The California Department of Social Services has issued a reminder to counties about counting financial aid as income for CalWORKs. Most education grants, scholarships and loans are exempt in their entirety from consideration as income for CalWORKs regardless of how they are used.  Loans and grants that are entirely exempt include loans and grants under Title IV of the Higher Education Act or the Bureau of Indian Affairs student assistance program, grants administered by the federal Department of Education, educational grants based on need, and loans or grants from community college extended opportunity services, the California Student Aid Commission or a college accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

Applicants or recipients can choose to pay education expenses from their exempt financial aid.  However, they cannot be required to do so, and supportive services cannot be reduced if a participant chooses not to use financial aid for education expenses otherwise covered by supportive services.  The WTW 8 form is used to documents this choice.

In general, non-federal financial assistance that is based on merit instead of need, including grants from charitable organizations, private scholarships, and non-federally subsidized loans are exempt to the extent the proceeds are used to meet education expenses.  Any portion of non-exempt financial aid that is not used for education expenses counts for CalWORKs.  If the non-exempt financial aid is a recurring payment, it counts as income.  If it is a one-time payment, it is a non-recurring lump sum that counts as a resource in the month after it is received.  Recipients must provide the county with verification of the education expenses for which they used non-exempt financial aid.  (ACIN I-58-17, August 29, 2017.)