SR 10-18 Dated 10/10

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTER-DEPARTMENT COMMUNICATION

SUMMARY

This SR releases the following changes in the policy related to the 60-month lifetime limit on receipt of Financial Assistance to Needy Families (FANF) cash benefits:

·   The FANF Hardship Review Committee has been eliminated. FANF hardship extension requests are no longer sent to the State Hardship Coordinator, and the State Hardship Coordinator will no longer enter the Committee’s approval or denial of the hardship extension request into New HEIGHTS following the Committee’s monthly meeting. FANF hardship extension requests will continue to be processed by the Family Services Specialist (FSS) or the New Hampshire Employment Program (NHEP) Employment Counselor Specialist (ECS). However, hardship extension requests must now be provided to the District Office line or administrative supervisor for a final decision on approving or denying the request. The supervisor’s decision will be based upon whether the assistance group (AG) requesting the hardship has met all hardship extension criteria. Additionally, now that the FANF Hardship Review Committee has been eliminated, District Office supervisors will also be responsible for recommending transfers to the Family Assistance Program (FAP) for AGs that have received a previous hardship extension due to caring for a disabled relative, assistance group member or spouse, and the AG is now requesting an additional hardship extension for the same reason.

·   If on two occasions the AG fails to meet NHEP work program requirements and the AG’s FANF hardship extension is terminated for this reason, the AG will not be eligible for additional FANF hardship extensions for any reason.

·   Verification requirements have been changed for AGs requesting a FANF hardship extension for the following reasons:

-   the AG includes an adult with a learning disability;

-   the AG includes an adult participating in a substance abuse or mental health program; or

-   loss of employment of an adult in the AG.

·   The "clock notice" process, originally released in SR 00-43 dated September 2000, has been greatly streamlined, with most notices eliminated except for the CM0012, FANF Clock Notice for Year 5, which will now only be generated one time, at the FANF recipient’s 54th month of receiving FANF cash benefits.

Due to the policy changes described above:

·   DFA Form 242, The 60-Month Lifetime Limit on Financial Assistance to Needy Families (FANF): What You Need to Know, and DFA Form 785, FANF Hardship Extension Request, were revised. DFA Form 785 was additionally entirely reformatted and streamlined, so that the former 20-page request is now only one sheet in length;

·   New HEIGHTS-generated CM0010, FANF Clock Notice for Years 1-3, and CM0011, FANF Clock Notice for Year 4, all versions, were obsoleted. Every notice that is generated out of New HEIGHTS which contains a FANF cash budget also displays the federal and state clocks indicating the number of months that the FANF recipient has received FANF cash assistance and the number of months left of receipt. The New HEIGHTS-generated CM0010 and CM0011 were therefore costly redundancies and are no longer needed; and

·   the following New HEIGHTS-generated letters were revised:

-   AE0098, FANF Extension Approval Letter, both versions, to add a warning about the limitation on eligibility for additional FANF hardship extensions if an AG is receiving a hardship extension and closes twice for failure to comply with NHEP;

-   AE0101, FANF Extension Begin Letter, to add a warning about the limitation on eligibility for additional FANF hardship extensions if an AG is receiving a hardship extension and closes twice for failure to comply with NHEP;

-   CM0012, FANF Clock Notice for Year 5, all four versions, to more clearly describe the steps that an AG needs to take if a hardship extension is desired: The AG must initiate the process for requesting a hardship extension by contacting a District Office worker to schedule a meeting to discuss the hardship extension request. The AG must then attend the meeting, meet a specific hardship reason, and provide proof of that hardship, all within timelines. The "Mandatory Sanctioned" version of the CM0012 was additionally altered to better articulate what will happen to the family’s benefits if the family does not comply with NHEP;

-   WP0005, Good Cause Decision Letter, the "in a hardship extension and denied" version, to add a warning about the limitation on eligibility for additional FANF hardship extensions if an AG is receiving a hardship extension and closes twice for failure to comply with NHEP;

-   WP0012, Notice of Not Meeting an NHEP Requirement, the "mandatory 60 months or more" version, to add a warning about the limitation on eligibility for additional FANF hardship extensions if an AG is receiving a hardship extension and closes twice for failure to comply with NHEP; and

-   WP1101, Work Program FANF Extension Begin Letter, to add a warning about the limitation on eligibility for additional FANF hardship extensions if an AG is receiving a hardship extension and closes twice for failure to comply with NHEP.

This SR additionally release a form revision unrelated to the FANF hardship extension review process. DFA Form 217, How to Report Changes In Your Case, was transformed from 12 versions (one associated with each District Office that accepts walk-in clients) to one generic version that can be used by all offices.

POLICY

The Hardship Review Committee which made monthly determinations on requests for extensions to the 60-month lifetime limit on receipt of FANF cash benefits, has been eliminated. FANF hardship extension requests will continue to be processed by the NHEP ECS or FSS per current policy. However, both the FSS and ECS will now give the hardship extension request application and associated verifications to the District Office line or administrative supervisor for approval or denial of the extension request. Supervisors will now also be recommending transfers to FAP for AGs that are requesting a hardship extension due to the medical condition of a relative or household member for the second time. If the household agrees to this transfer to FAP, the TANF Program Specialist will enter the transfer.

If on two (2) occasions an AG fails or refuses to comply with NHEP work program requirements and the AG’s FANF hardship extension is terminated for this reason, the AG will not be eligible for additional FANF hardship extensions for any reason.

All AGs receiving a hardship extension will have received several written notices of the consequences of failing to comply with NHEP program requirements while in a hardship extension. However, prior to terminating the AG’s hardship extension due to an act of noncompliance, the NHEP ECS must contact their NHEP FSM to review the case. The NHEP FSM will then refer the AG to the appropriate State Office unit, and that unit will attempt to contact the AG to assess and identify, with the AG’s help, any NHEP compliance barriers the AG is experiencing and will direct the AG to services that may help the AG to come into compliance:

·   If the State Office unit connects with the AG, the unit will contact the NHEP ECS and NHEP FSM with the outcome of the contact. This information and any additional information or actions that have occurred will then be used in determining whether the noncompliance will cause the AG’s cash to be terminated.

·   If the State Office unit is unable to make contact with the AG within 7 business days, the unit will contact the NHEP ECS to terminate the AG’s case.

An AG requesting a FANF hardship extension because the AG includes an adult with a learning disability, only has to provide 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 adult has a learning disability that prevents the adult from:

·   working;

·   participating in work-related activities; or

·   preparing for work.

An AG requesting a FANF hardship extension because the AG includes an adult who is participating in a substance abuse or mental health program which prevents or limits participation in NHEP, only has to provide documentation signed by the drug, alcohol, or mental health program director or his/her designee that the adult is currently an active participant in the treatment program.

An AG requesting a hardship extension due to an adult’s loss of employment must provide proof that:

·   the individual has applied for UC benefits or is not eligible for those benefits; and

·   the loss of employment is not due to voluntarily quitting a job, refusing to accept a job offer, or due to having been fired without good cause.

The CM0010, FANF Clock Notice for Years 1-3, and the CM0011, FANF Clock Notice for Year 4, will no longer be generated and are obsolete with the release of this SR. The CM0012, FANF Clock Notice for Year 5, will now only be generated one time, at month 54. All notices generated out of New HEIGHTS which contain a FANF cash budget will continue to display the federal and state clocks indicating the number of months the FANF recipient has received FANF cash benefits. FSS must continue to review the FANF 60-month lifetime limit on receipt of cash benefits, and FANF "clock," during initial eligibility interviews and face-to-face redeterminations.

The revised versions of the CM0012 and all other New HEIGHTS-generated letters impacted by these changes, will be released by New HEIGHTS under separate cover.

DESCRIPTION OF REVISIONS MADE TO FANF HARDSHIP EXTENSION ASSOCIATED FORMS

DFA Form 242, The 60-Month Lifetime Limit on Financial Assistance to Needy Families (FANF): What You Need to Know

DFA Form 242 was slightly revised to describe the consequences of failing to comply with NHEP work program requirements, if required, and the impact of this noncompliance on future additional FANF hardship requests. The last section of the form was impacted and a graphic deleted to allow the new text to be inserted into the current layout of the pamphlet. Because there are no changes in how this pamphlet is used, no revisions to the instructions for this form were required.

The current version of this pamphlet may be used until the supply is exhausted. At that time, the new version of the pamphlet will be printed. The new version of the form is available on the Family Services Database in Lotus Notes for all Department employees and is also posted on the DHHS website.

DFA Form 785, FANF Hardship Extension Request

DFA Form 785 was completely revised. The former version of the form provided a script that the FSS was required to read to the AG requesting an extension to the FANF 60-month lifetime limit, and a separate page was provided for each hardship reason. This, plus the signature page and a page describing verification requirements, ballooned the form to 20 pages. The new version of the form contains all hardship reasons and the required verification on one side of the now one-page request, and the backside of the one-page request contains the request, statements of understanding, and the signature fields.

Hardship reasons are clearly and simply described, and verification requirements are now located with the specific hardship reason. A new statement describing the consequences of failing to comply with NHEP work program requirements, if required, and the impact on future additional FANF hardship requests, has also been added to the new version of DFA Form 785.

If the scanning process is available in the District Office, DFA Form 785, once signed by all parties, can be scanned into New HEIGHTS and then the original can be provided to the requesting AG. If scanning is not yet available in the District Office, a copy of both sides of DFA Form 785 must be provided to the requesting AG once the form is signed by all parties, and the original signed DFA Form 785 must be placed in the case file. Instructions for this form were updated accordingly.

A small supply of DFA Form 785 was supplied to each District Office. The old versions of Form 785 should be immediately recycled and the new version of the form used immediately. However, all former versions of Form 785 remain valid and must be acted upon if submitted by a current or former FANF recipient. Additional supplies of the new version of the form can be reordered through the regular forms reordering process when the office supply runs low. This new version of the form is also available on the Family Services Database in Lotus Notes for all Department employees.

UNRELATED FORM REVISION

DFA Form 217, How to Report Changes In Your Case, was reduced from 12 versions, in which each version supplied specific information associated with each District Office, to one generic version that can be used by all offices. Additionally, the old version of the form requested that the individual provide their Social Security Number when reporting a change as a way for the District Office worker to identify the case. This text was replaced with instructions for the individual to provide a birth date and Case number, Recipient Identification (RID) number, or Medicaid Identification (MID) number. The instructions for the form were updated accordingly. The old version of this form must be exhausted prior to the new version being used. The DHHS warehouse has a supply of this form, so at the next reorder point, the District Office can use the regular forms order process to order additional supplies.

DISTRICT OFFICE AND NEW HEIGHTS SYSTEMS PROCEDURES AND IMPLEMENTATION

Effective August 30, 2010, New HEIGHTS had:

·   programmed the system to allow District Office line or administrative supervisors to approve or deny FANF hardship extension requests;

·   eliminated the generation of the CM0010 and CM0011, all versions, and begun generating the revised CM0012, when triggered; and

·   created a new monthly report listing all FANF hardship extensions that were closed or denied, and the reasons for closure/denial. This report is primarily for the TANF Program Specialist’s review.

District Office supervisors must enter the approval of hardship extensions on the FANF hardship extension screen in New HEIGHTS. The begin date of the extension is:

·   the first day of the 121st pay period for an AG with less than 60 months;

·   the first day of the pay period following the end of the current extension for an AG currently receiving a hardship extension; or

·   the beginning of the first pay period the AG qualifies for FANF, for AGs applying for a hardship extension after having already closed.

Prior to terminating an AG’s case for noncompliance with work requirements, the NHEP ECS must contact their NHEP FSM to review the case. The NHEP FSM will then refer the AG to the appropriate State Office unit, and that unit will attempt to contact the AG to assess and identify, with the AG’s help, any NHEP compliance barriers the AG is experiencing and will direct the AG to services that may help the AG to come into compliance:

·   If the State Office unit connects with the AG, the unit will contact the NHEP ECS and NHEP FSM with the outcome of the contact. This information and any additional information or actions that have occurred will then be used in the determination to terminate the AG’s case or not.

·   If the State Office unit is unable to make contact with the AG within 7 business days, the unit will contact the NHEP ECS to apply the noncompliance to the AG’s case.

District Office workers will have to manually track the number of times an AG’s hardship extension is terminated due to failure to comply with NHEP, so that the worker can then deny any additional hardship extension requests after the AG has been terminated two times for this reason, after October 1, 2010. If an AG must be denied further FANF hardship extensions due to two prior FANF hardship extensions having been terminated because of noncompliance with NHEP, manually insert the following free form text into the Notice of Decision:

You have gotten a FANF hardship extension before. During a hardship extension, all adults must comply with NHEP work requirements. Two times before, you or another adult in your household did not comply with NHEP and your hardship extension ended. Because of this, you are not able to get a FANF hardship extension ever again for any reason.

The steps for scheduling the FANF hardship extension interview for currently open AGs have changed. FSS and ECS are no longer expected to contact the AG to schedule an interview once a FANF financial assistance AG has received 54 months of FANF (or 3 months of FANF financial assistance in an extension). Instead, the AG will receive their 54-month Clock notice and then must initiate this contact if they would like to request an extension. Once the client initiates this contact and a FANF hardship extension interview appointment is scheduled, FSS and NHEP ECS may still use the New HEIGHTS-generated letters AE0103, Extension Notification Letter, and the WP1103, Work Program – Extension Notification Letter, to confirm the appointment if the worker desires. Additionally, use of New HEIGHTS-generated letters AE0103 and the WP1103 have changed, although the text in the letters has remained the same. In the past, the AE0103 and WP1103 were triggered directly from the Extension Request screen by a District Office worker when the worker was initiating contact with a client who had reached 54 months of FANF receipt and was scheduling a FANF hardship extension interview with the AG. Because District Office workers will no longer be initiating this contact and a FANF hardship extension interview only needs to be scheduled if an AG initiates the process, these letters need only be accessed if the AG initiates the hardship extension process.

Finally, the following New HEIGHTS-generated letters were revised and now include the warning that if the AG is in a hardship extension and closes two times due to NHEP noncompliance, the AG will not be eligible for future hardship extensions, The letters were in production as of September 1, 2010:

·   AE0098, FANF Extension Approval Letter, both versions;

·   AE0101, FANF Extension Begin Letter;

·   CM0012, FANF Clock Notice for Year 5, all four versions;

·   WP0005, Good Cause Decision Letter;

·   WP0012, Notice of Not Meeting an NHEP Requirement, the "mandatory 60 months or more" version; and

·   WP1101, Work Program FANF Extension Begin Letter.

All revised New HEIGHTS-generated letters will be released by New HEIGHTS under separate cover.

POLICY MANUAL REVISIONS

Revised Family Assistance Manual Topics

PART 134  HARDSHIP EXTENSIONS TO THE FANF 60-MONTH LIFETIME LIMIT

Section 134.01  FANF Hardship Extension General Requirements

Section 134.03  Specified FANF Hardship Extension Criteria

Section 134.09  Requesting a FANF Hardship Extension

Section 134.11  FANF Hardship Extension Review Process

PART 803  NOTIFICATIONS AT APPLICATION

PART 805  NOTIFICATIONS AT REDETERMINATION

Section 808.05  Exemptions from Participation in NHEP

Section 808.35 Sanctions for Voluntary Quit Or Failure/Refusal to Cooperate with NHEP Work Program Participation Requirements

Section 808.45  Referrals to the TANF Program Analyst

IMPLEMENTATION

The Hardship Review Committee’s last meeting was held on August 5, 2010. District Offices were notified that all FANF hardship extensions requested from August 5, 2010 to October 1, 2010, the effective date of this SR, were to be submitted to the TANF Program Specialist for follow-up. As of October 1, 2010, determination of all hardship requests are to be processed according to the policies released in this SR.

An initial supply of the new version of DFA Form 785 was sent to each District Office prior to the release of this SR and is now also available in the DHHS warehouse. Staff must immediately recycle the old version of this form and begin using the new version immediately. All older versions of DFA Form 785 currently still in circulation with families, however, are considered valid and must be acted upon according to policy. Reorder this form using current reordering methods.

Revised DFA Form 217 is available in the DHHS warehouse and can be ordered through the regular forms ordering process for use with all clients who do not have access to the internet.

The new version of DFA Form 242 will be printed when the current supply is exhausted.

CLIENT NOTIFICATION

Notification of the change in the FANF hardship request policy was published in the NH Rulemaking Register, Office of Legislative Services, on June 11, 2010. A public hearing on the amended Administrative Rules was held on July 6, 2010. New HEIGHTS-generated letters, as described above, will be in production as of September 1, 2010. No other client notification is planned.

TRAINING

An email describing the interim FANF hardship extension process to be followed from August 5, 2010 until the release of this SR, was sent to all District Office Supervisors and Field Support Managers on July 29, 2010. No other special training is planned.

FORMS MANUAL POSTING INSTRUCTIONS

DISPOSITION

This SR may be destroyed or deleted after its contents have been noted and the revised manual topics released by this SR have been posted to the On-line manuals.

DISTRIBUTION

This SR will be distributed according to the electronic distribution list for Division of Family Assistance policy releases. This SR, and revised On-Line Manuals, will be available for agency staff in the On-Line Manual Library, and for public access on the Internet at www.dhhs.nh.gov/DFA/publications.htm, effective November 1, 2010. Additionally, this SR, and printed pages with posting instructions, will be distributed under separate cover to all internal hard copy holders of the Family Assistance and Forms Manuals.

DFA/JBV:s

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CERTIFICATE OF DESTRUCTION

I certify that all copies of Form 785 dated anything other than 2010 and with an SR number other than SR 10-18, have been destroyed.

District Office Manager of Operations:_______________________________________________

District Office ________________________________________________________________

Return this certificate to the DFA Policy Unit, 129 Pleasant St, Concord, NH 03301, after the instructions in the SR have been carried out.