703.05 Emergency Assistance (EA) Eligibility Requirements (FAM)

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Applicants for Emergency Assistance (EA) Permanent Housing Payments must be experiencing or threatened by at least one of the following:

• homelessness;

• termination of a utility;

• lack of heat, hot water, or cooking fuel; or

• unsafe or unhealthy living conditions.

Acceptable verification of unsafe or unhealthy living conditions includes documentation from a school nurse, school counselor, social worker, case manager, therapist, housing and support services, town welfare, primary medical provider, or pastoral support. If third party documentation is not available, the individual may provide a written self-attestation of their unsafe or unhealthy living conditions.

The emergency situation must have not been caused by an adult assistance group’s member’s:

• voluntarily quitting a job of at least 20 hours per week within 60 days of applying for EA unless the reason for voluntarily quitting meets the good cause criteria in FAM 315.01, Definition of Voluntary Quit; or

• being under sanction for failure to comply with NHEP work program requirements. See FAM 808.35, Sanctions for Voluntary Quit or Failure/Refusal to Cooperate with NHEP Work Program Participation Requirements.

Individuals in sanction that have a plan to cure and are actively engaging in curing their sanction with NHEP are eligible to apply for EA.

EA applicants must meet one of the conditions below:

• be eligible for and receiving FANF financial assistance;

• be categorically and financially eligible for FANF financial assistance, except that the caretaker relative does not meet the definition of a specified relative. However, the children must have lived with a specified relative within 6 months preceding the month of application; or

• not be receiving FANF financial assistance, but be categorically and financially eligible for it.0

When a parent caretaker/relative not included requests emergency assistance payments for permanent housing services, combine the income and resources of all eligible children, the parent/caretaker relative and his or her spouse, and compare the combined income and resources to the FANF payment standard and resource limit for the appropriate group size. Authorize EA payments only if income and resources are within FANF limits and all EA eligibility requirements are met.

References: He-W 699.05(b)-(d), He-W 606.104(b), RSA 167:7,V, RSA 167:79,VI(b), RSA 167:82,III(c)-(g), RSA 167:83,I(c), 45 CFR 233.120