CalWORKs

Use of CDSS interpreter services and confidentiality agreement form

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The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has issued new guidance and instruction regarding county use of the CR 6181 Interpreter Services Statement and Confidentiality Agreement form.  The CR 6181 must be used when individuals with limited English proficiency use their own verbal interpreter, or when deaf and hard of hearing persons use their own sign language interpreter.

The CR 6181 informs people of the possibility of communication errors when they use their own interpreter.  It also informs that their interpreter may need to interpret sensitive and personal information, and the county cannot guarantee that the client provided interpreter will maintain confidentiality.  The CR 6181 does not replace the GEN 1365 Notice of Language Services form.  Counties must not compel, encourage, or require an applicant/recipient to use their own interpreter, or discourage use of a county provided interpreter.

After a county is informed that an applicant/recipient needs an interpreter, the county must offer free county-provided interpretation at each substantive client contact.  When an applicant/recipient decides to use their own interpreter after being offered a free interpreter, counties must use the CR 6181.  The CR 6181 is consent and a release of information which allows the applicant/recipient to use their own interpreter.

The county must not rely on the client-provided interpreter to help the individual understand or complete the CR 6181.  The county must use a county-provided interpreter for questions about the CR 6181 form.  A new CR 6181 form must be completed if the prior CR 6181 is more than one year old, or the applicant/recipient is using a different interpreter.  The county cannot use the applicant/recipient provided interpreter without a completed CR 6181.

For communication by telephone, counties must accept the CR 6181 by telephonic signature or another form of agreement.

Minors can only be used for interpretation temporarily and only until the county provides an interpreter.  Because use of a minor is temporary, a CR 6181 is not needed when a minor acts as an interpreter.

Counties must inform applicants/recipients of their right to free interpretation.  The county cannot conduct substantive, program related  (ACL 24-68, October 17, 2024.)

 

Housing First guidelines for CDSS housing programs

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The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has issued guidelines for implementing Housing First Principles for CalWORKs Housing Support Program, Bringing Families Home, Housing and Disability Advocacy Program, and Home Safe.  Counties must design and implement these programs in accordance with Housing First.

Housing First is an evidence-based approach that connects individuals and families experiencing or at risk of homelessness to permanent housing as quickly as possible.  Housing First also offers voluntary supportive services as needed and requested without making housing contingent on participation in supportive services.  Housing First follows the basic principle that everyone is ready for housing, regardless of the complexity or severity of their needs, and stable housing is the foundation for achieving other goals.

Other foundational principals of Housing First include:

  • Social Services and care coordination are key elements of housing stability
  • Housing First promotes flexibility, individualized support, client choice, and autonomy, and is not one size fits all.
  • Housing First operates across the spectrum of housing interventions, and is not limited to one type of program.
  • Supportive services are offered throughout the recipient’s time in the program.

Housing First must be incorporated into all aspects of program design, including written program polices and procedures.  Housing First must be followed throughout the duration of service delivery, not just at enrollment in the program.

Counties must work collaboratively with recipients to develop individualized housing and service plans.

Housing First has eleven core components:

  1. Tenant screen and selection practices must promote accepting applicants regardless of their sobriety, use of substances, completion of treatment, or participation in services.
  2. Applicants are not rejected because of poor credit or financial history, poor or lack of rental history, criminal convictions unrelated to tenancy, or behaviors that indicate a lack of housing readiness.
  3. Counties must accept referrals directly from shelters, street outreach, drop-in centers, and other parts of the crises response system used by people experiencing homelessness.
  4. Supportive Services must emphasize engagement and problem solving over therapeutic goals and service plans that do not have predetermined goals.
  5. Participation in services or program compliance is not a condition of permanent housing tenancy.
  6. Tenants should have a leave that meets all legal requirements.
  7. Using alcohol of drugs, by itself without other lease violations, is not a reason for eviction.
  8. In communities with coordinated assessment and entry systems, eligible tenants should be prioritized on criteria other than first-come-first serve.
  9. Case managers and services coordinators should be trained in actively use evidence-based practices.
  10. Services must be informed by a harm-reduction philosophy.
  11. The project and specific apartment may include special physical features that accommodate disabilities, reduce harm, and promote health, community, and independence.

(ACL 24-88, November 15, 2024.)

Implementation of CalWORKs overpayment discharge policy

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The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has implemented the CalWORKs overpayment discharge policy.  The policy is stated in ACL 19-102, summarized here, became effective upon automation.  The CalSAWS computer system automated the policy as of May 20, 2024.  Counties must now discharge eligible claims as soon as administratively possible

If county must discharge non-fraudulent CalWORKs overpayments if the case is closed and the individual liable for the CalWORKs overpayment has not received CalWORKs for 36 consecutive months or longer.  For families with tow liable adults, if one adult has not received CalWORKs for 36 consecutive months and the other adult has received CalWORKs in the 36-month period, the overpayment claim cannot be discharged.  However, the county cannot pursue the overpayment from the adult who has not received CalWORKs for 36 consecutive months.

Counties cannot pursue collection of any non-fraudulent overpayments with a balance of $249 or less if the liable individual is no longer receiving CalWORKs.  This includes sending demand letters and tax intercepts.  Overpayment claims under the threshold must be discharged after the CalWORKs case is closed and the liable adult(s) have not received CalWORKs for 36 consecutive months.  If the overpayment claim has more than one liable adult, and one of the liable adults receives CalWORKs in the 36 month period, the county must collect the overpayment by grant adjustment even if it is below the threshold.

If the claim has two liable adults and one of them is repaying the overpayment, the county must suspend collection from all liable adults if the outstanding balance falls below $250.

The county can collect overpayments from active annual reporting/child only (ARCO) cases.  After an ARCO case is closed, the county cannot collect from a child or adult who was unaided.  If the unaided adult in an ARCO case does not reapply for CalWORKs for the same eligible children for 36 consecutive months, the overpayment claim must discharged.

If a child who was previously in an ARCO case receives CalWORKs as part of a different family, any overpayments cannot be attributed to the new family.

Mass overpayments are overpayments caused by the same action or inaction that affects eight percent of the CalWORKs caseload, or 1,000 CalWORKs families, whichever is greater.  Counties must report mass overpayments to CDSS and identify whether they were caused by negligence or systemic error.  Mass overpayments can be discharged, but must be reported to and verified by CDSS.  When the mass overpayment is verified and approved by CDSS, counties must discharge them and refund any collections.

Counties can reach settlements of overpayments with current or former recipients for nonfraudulent overpayments.  The 36-month timeframe cannot be considered when negotiating a settlement.  If a negotiated settlement amount has not been fully recovered after a family’s case has been closed for 36 consecutive months, the outstanding balance must be discharged.

An overpayment claim must be discharged if it is deemed uncollectable by a Bankruptcy Court or another court decision.

The CalWORKs overpayment discharge policy does not apply to overpayments involving fraud or suspected fraud.  Overpayments that have been referred to Special Investigative Units cannot be discharged unless the investigation is inconclusive or finds no evidence to support the fraud allegation.  An intentional program violation can only be determined by an administrative disqualification hearing decision, a signed administrative disqualification hearing waiver, a court decision, or a signed disqualification consent agreement.

These policies apply to Welfare-to-Work supportive services overpayments.

Overpayment claims established prior to December 1, 1996 cannot be discharged.  (ACL 24-84, November 21, 2024.)

 

CalWORKs best practices for supportive services

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All CalWORKs Welfare-to-Work participants are eligible to receive supportive services that are necessary for their Welfare-to-Work activity.  This includes child care, transportation, and ancillary expenses.  Supportive services must be advanced to participants when needed and requested by the participant.  This is to prevent participants from needed to use personal funds to pay for these services.  If supportive services are not available, or have not been advance paid, the participant has good cause for not participating.  However, the time on aid clock continues to tick when participants are in good cause.  For that reason, counties are strongly encouraged to provide supportive services and engage participants in Welfare-to-Work activities as soon as possible.

The California Department of Social Services recommends as a best practice that counties issue transportation and ancillary services at least 10 days prior to the start of the Welfare-to-Work activity, or within 10 days if the county receives the request less than 10 days prior to the start of the activity.  Counties should also use this timeline for notice that a supportive service request is denied, or that additional documentation is needed.

Timelines for other supportive services, including child care, diapers, and the advance standard payment for students, remain unchanged.  (ACIN I-36-24, August 23, 2024.)

Increase in CalWORKs Maximum Aid Payment

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The CalWORKs Maximum Aid Payment will increase by .3% effective October 1, 2024.  The grant increase is funded by the Child Poverty and Family Supplemental Support Subaccount.  Grant increases in future years will depend on the amount of funds in the Subaccount.

The grant increase applies to all CalWORKs cases.  Counties must treat the grant increase as a mandatory mid-period action.

The California Department of Social Services will send an informing flyer to all CalWORKs recipients.

For children who have opted to receive child support instead of CalWORKs, counties must used updated charts to determine if that is still an option.  Children can get child support instead of CalWORKs, when there are multiple children with different paying parents in the same Assistance Unit, and the child support received for the child is greater than the CalWORKs grant for that child.  If the amount of child support received is no longer greater than the amount in the updated charts, the county cannot add the child to the grant until the next semi-annual report or annual recertification.  However, in that situation, the parent/caretaker relative can ask to add the child to the CalWORKs grant mid-period. (ACL 24-55, August 8, 2024.)

Cell-Ed for Afghan and Ukranian employment services participants

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The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has issued guidance regarding the Cell-Ed Welcome Start Program (WSP). It is an online learning program for eligible Afghan and Ukrainian employment services participants. Time spent on the program provides countable hours towards activity requirements for CalWORKs, CalFresh Employment and Training, and Refugee Cash Assistance participants.

WSP targets employability and digital literacy, using accessible methods like phone calls, an app, or a website. The program also includes partner outreach and support to encourage engagement with employment services programs.

For Afghan newcomers, 4 categories of eligibility are detailed as A-D: A includes citizens or nations of Afghanistan paroled into the US between, July 31, 2021, and September 30, 2023.  The group includes unaccompanied minors, who if under 18 are eligible to apply for the ORR’s Unaccompanied Refugee Minor (URM) program. The B category includes spouses and children of any individual described in group A who is paroled into the US after September 30, 2023. The C category includes parents or legal guardians of any individual described in A who is determined to be an unaccompanied child and paroled into the US after September 30, 2023. The D category includes citizens and nationals of Afghanistan for whom refugee and entrant assistance activities are authorized with their eligibility date being on or after July 31, 2021.

For Ukrainian newcomers, 4 categories of eligibility are detailed as A-E: Category A includes citizens or nationals of Ukraine who the DHS has paroled into the US between February 24, 2022, and September 30, 2024, known as Ukrainian Humanitarian Parolees (UHPs). Category B includes non-Ukrainian individuals who last habitually resided in Ukraine and the DHS paroled into the US between February 24, 2022, and September 30, 2024. Category C includes the spouses and children of an individual described above in A or B, who is paroled into the US after September 30, 2023. Category D is the parent, legal guardian, or primary caregiver of an unaccompanied refugee minor or child described above in A or B who is paroled into the US after September 30, 2023. Category E refers to citizens and nationals of Ukraine whose refugee and entrant assistance activities are authorized with an eligibility date of February 24, 2022.

Dates of eligibility for Ukrainian parolees have been updated with those entering the US between February 24, 2022 — Sept 30, 2023, now having an eligibility of May 21, 2022, or their date of parole whichever is later. For those paroled between October 1, 2023 — Sept 30, 2024, their date of eligibility is April 24, 2024, or their date of parole, whichever is later.

The WSP courses may count toward Adult Basic Education, Job Search (Supervised Job Search under CalFresh E&T) and Job Readiness, Job Skills Training, Soft Skill Development, Education Directly Related to Employment, Vocational Education and Training, Secondary Education, and  English as a Second Language (ESL).

Individuals involved in the activities may also have supervised or unsupervised homework time in their WTW and/or Family Self-Sufficiency Plan (FSSP). Up to one hour of unsupervised homework for each class and the actual hours spent on supervised homework can be used as participation. The only documentation required for unsupervised homework time is a statement from the educational program indicating the amount of homework time required. Because of this, all WSP hours are considered supervised homework time and can be documented.

The WSP offers CalFresh E&T Activities under the Education and Supervised Job Search sections. Participants may also receive supportive services like mobile phones or internet access for Cell Ed. counties must include the WSP in their CalFresh Employment and Training Annual Plans. The WSP can satisfy the county-approved employment-directed education/training requirements for benefits. If participants demonstrate satisfactory progress, the WSP recommends that participation hours include course time and additional independent practice. For CalFresh Employment and Training, every hour spent on the program three additional hours should be credited for homework time or content reinforcement.  (ACWDL, July 9, 2024.)