134.03 Specified Hardship Criteria SR 10-40, 12/10 (FAM-A)

If a Financial Assistance to Needy Families (FANF) assistance group (AG) meets more than one hardship criterion, the AG must choose which criterion is to be considered for the hardship exemption request.

All hardships must be verified in the manner noted for each criterion in this section.

CRITERIA AVAILABLE TO ALL FANF CASES:

1. Lack of Adequate Child Care

A hardship extension may be granted due to an inability to find adequate child care, provided the client has made a good faith effort to do so. See Section 808.31, Compliance Requirements, for a definition of adequate child care.

Required Verification:

• The individual must provide a written statement specifying when the individual last had an adequate child care provider, when and why that provider was lost, and how the individual has either not been able to find a child care provider or that the only child care available does not provide care that is adequate. The statement must list the providers contacted, dates contacted, and the reason the provider was inadequate; and

• If an NHEP participant, the individual’s assigned Employment Counselor Specialist (ECS) must document the individual’s past experience with child care providers and what efforts the individual has made to find adequate providers in the past.

2. Loss of Employment

A hardship extension may be granted due to loss of employment provided the unemployed adult:

• has applied for unemployment compensation (UC) benefits; and

• did not lose employment due to voluntarily quitting the job, refusing to accept a suitable job offer, or due to getting fired without good cause as described in Section 315.03, Good Cause for Voluntary Quit.

Required Verification:

Proof from the unemployed adult that the adult did not lose employment due to voluntarily quitting a job, refusing to accept a job offer, or due to having been fired without good cause, and:

• a copy of the "Determination on Claim for Unemployment Benefits" (Form NHUS1016) from New Hampshire Employment Security (NHES); or

• a signed statement from the local NHES office verifying:

- an application has been filed for unemployment benefits; or

- the unemployed adult is not eligible for UC benefits.

3. Life-threatening Circumstance or Emergency Situation

A hardship extension may be granted to cases that are experiencing life-threatening circumstances or an emergency situation, as noted below:

• natural disasters such as floods, fires, hurricanes, and earthquakes;

• eviction, homelessness, loss of owned residence, arson, theft of clothing, food, or money;

• medical emergencies or serious illness of an assistance group member or of a person for whom an assistance group member is legally liable under state law to support;

• discontinuance of utilities or heat, or unsafe or unhealthy living conditions;

• peril to the physical or mental well-being of a child; or

• any other circumstance considered life-threatening by the DFA supervisor.

Required Verification: Any reasonable documentation that substantiates that life-threatening circumstances or an emergency situation exists. Examples of reasonable documentation include, but are not limited to, the following: a police report, insurance claim, eviction or mortgage foreclosure notice, shut-off notice, doctor’s statement, emergency room bill, a signed and dated written demand for rent for an actual or pending eviction, a notice that the town is condemning the home the individual lives in, or a Health Department notice.

4. Medical Condition of the Individual Submitting the Hardship Request

A hardship extension may be granted to cases in which an adult is unable to participate or has limited participation in any NHEP work program activity due to their own physical or mental condition.

Exception: Before being granted a second hardship extension based upon long-term disability, the individual must first apply for disability benefits. See FAM 317, DEVELOPING POTENTIAL SOURCES OF INCOME.

Required Verification: DFA Form 752a, Authorization for Release of Protected Health Information, which allows the healthcare provider to share information with Department staff, including contract staff, and DFA Form 752, Physician/Clinician Statement of Capabilities, completed by a medical doctor or clinician that provides information about the individual’s condition, states how long the condition will last, and indicates why the condition prevents the individual from working or participating in any NHEP activities.

A new DFA Form 752 is required if the current verification on file is more than 4 months old, or a more recent form indicates that the individual’s medical condition will end before the beginning of the extension period.

Although the DFA Supervisor retains the authority to approve or deny a hardship extension request, all individuals requesting an extension due to a medical condition are referred to the *Medical Exemption Unit (MEU) for assessment. The determination from the MEU must be complete before a hardship extension can be approved or denied based on that determination.

5. Medical Condition of A Relative, Assistance Group Member or Spouse

A hardship extension may be granted to cases in which an adult is unable to participate or has limited participation in any NHEP work program activity due to a physical or mental condition of a relative, assistance group member, or spouse. The adult must provide care to the individual, who resides in the same household, due to that individual’s illness, incapacity, or disability. There must also be no alternative care available or feasible for the relative, assistance group member, or spouse.

Exception: When a hardship extension has been granted due to the individual caring for a disabled relative, assistance group member, or spouse, and the individual subsequently requests an extension for this same reason, the DFA Supervisor will review the request to determine if the family’s circumstances warrant a recommendation that it be permanently exempted from NHEP work requirements. If the DFA Supervisor makes this recommendation, and the individual agrees, the case will be transferred to the Family Assistance Program (FAP) by the TANF Program Specialist. Since individuals participating in FAP are permanently exempted from closure due to the 60-month time limit, the individual will no longer have to request a hardship extension to continue to receive FANF financial assistance.

Required Verification: DFA Form 752a, Authorization for Release of Protected Health Information, which allows the healthcare provider to share information with Department staff, including contract staff, and DFA Form 752HH, Physician/Clinician Statement of Necessary Patient Care for a Household Member, completed by a medical doctor or clinician that provides information about the relative’s, assistance group member’s, or spouse’s condition, states how long it will last, and indicates why that prevents the individual applying for the extension from working or participating in any NHEP activities.

A new DFA Form 752HH is required if the current verification on file is more than 4 months old, or a more recent form indicates that the relative’s, assistance group member’s, or spouse’s medical condition will end before the beginning of the extension period.

Although the DFA Supervisor retains the authority to approve or deny a hardship extension request, all individuals requesting an extension due to the medical condition of a relative, assistance group member, or spouse are referred to the *MEU for assessment. The determination from the MEU must be complete before a hardship extension can be approved or denied based on that determination.

6. Learning Disability

A hardship extension may be granted due to a learning disability of an adult family member.

Required Verification:

A signed statement from a licensed psychologist or a state certified education professional licensed to certify the existence of a learning disability, indicating that the individual currently has a learning disability that prevents the adult from:

• working;

• participating in work-related activities; or

• preparing for work.

7. Participation in a Substance Abuse or Mental Health Program

A hardship extension may be granted due to an adult family member’s participation in a substance abuse program or mental health program that prevents or limits participation in NHEP work program activities.

Required Verification: A statement from the program director or an official program representative indicating that the adult is currently an active participant in the treatment program.

8. Family/Domestic Violence

A hardship extension may be granted to an AG that includes an individual who is or has been a victim of family or domestic violence. Victims of domestic violence must participate in an assessment interview with the Assessment and Intervention Unit (AIU) and develop an individualized service plan.

Required Verification:

• Completed Form 754C, Request for Family/Domestic Violence Option, and submission of corroborative evidence that verifies the domestic violence claim. See FAM PART 323, FAMILY/DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OPTIONS (FVO), for examples of corroborative evidence; and

• participation in a mandatory assessment interview with an AIU Counselor. Failure to schedule and participate in this assessment with the AIU Counselor will result in an automatic denial of the hardship request.

CRITERIA AVAILABLE ONLY TO CERTAIN FANF ASSISTANCE GROUPS

9. In Compliance with NHEP Participation Requirements (Open FANF AGs Only)

A hardship extension may be granted to AGs whose FANF financial assistance is open at month 60 or during an extension if all AG members mandatory for participation in NHEP work activities are currently in compliance with NHEP work program requirements. All mandatory adults in the open FANF AG must, at the time the extension is to begin:

• be complying with his or her Employability Plan;

• be participating in an approved NHEP activity;

• not be sanctioned for failure to meet NHEP work program requirements;

• not be disqualified from receiving FANF financial assistance due to commission of an Intentional Program Violation at the time the 60-month time limit is reached; and

• meet all eligibility requirements for FANF financial assistance.

Required Verification: The NHEP Employment Counselor Specialists (ECS) will verify compliance as part of the FANF hardship extension review process.

10. Working 30 hours a week

FANF cases may qualify for a hardship extension if the adult who has already received at least 60 months of FANF, is working 30 or more hours a week in unsubsidized employment and the case is otherwise FANF-eligible.

Required Verification: Documentation of the hours of employment, and, if requested by the Family Services Specialist (FSS), proof that the wages are not subsidized.

SPECIAL SITUATION HARDSHIP CRITERIA

An "across-the-board" hardship extension may be granted:

• if New Hampshire Employment Security has determined that the state:

- is eligible for the federal/state cooperative extended benefit program pursuant to the Federal-State Extended Benefit Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970 or any other temporary federal supplemental unemployment benefit program in effect in the state; or

- has a statewide unemployment rate of 7%; and

• to families living in an area designated by the United States Department of Labor as a labor surplus area.

Required Verification: DFA State office will track and monitor these criteria and notify District Offices when any of these conditions are met and also when the circumstances above are no longer present.

References: He-W 602.08(c); He-W 654.03(h); RSA 167:82 II.(f)&(g); 42 USC 608(a)(7)(C)