SR 22-26 Dated 09/22

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES - Bureau of family assistance (bfa)

INTER-DEPARTMENT COMMUNICATION

SUMMARY

This Supervisory Release (SR) releases revisions to BFA Form 785, FANF Hardship Extension Request, and DFA Form 785(i).

POLICY

Current policy remains unchanged. The changes made to the Hardship Extension Request form were done to provide individuals requesting a hardship extension with detailed descriptions of each of the hardship extension options and provide a more informative list of required verifications.

DESCRIPTION OF REVISIONS MADE TO FORMS

BFA form 785, FANF Hardship Extension Request is a form that is used to request a temporary hardship extension to the 60-month lifetime limit on receipt of Financial Assistance to Needy Families (FANF) cash. To make sure the department is meeting state regulations regarding appropriate verifications for a hardship extension, the following revisions were made:  

·       The Name, Case Number, and Verification Due Date (blank lines) have been revised to Name, Date of Birth, and Case Number.

·       Instructions now include the process of a hardship extension, including the due date of the requested verification and the need to complete page 4 (NHEP requirements) as a requirement of the hardship extension request.

·       Each Hardship Criteria now includes a description of the hardship option, to help individuals make the most appropriate choice for their current hardship situation.

·       Each Hardship Criteria now includes a clearer description of the documentation needed to verify the hardship.

The instructions for BFA Form 785, DFA Form 785(i) were updated accordingly. The usage of the form remains the same, but the instructions were updated to note BFA instead of DFA. The associated Family Assistance Manual pages have also been updated.

BFA Form 785 and DFA Form 785(i) on hand can be recycled. A Certificate of Destruction has been included with this SR. All forms identified in this SR will be available in the DHHS Warehouse and can be ordered using current forms reordering procedures.

POLICY MANUAL REVISIONS

Revised Family Assistance Manual Topics

Section 134.01     FANF Hardship Extension General Requirements       

Section 134.03     Specified FANF Hardship Extension Criteria

Section 134.05     Requirements for Two Parent Families

Section 134.07     Length of Extensions

Section 134.09     Requesting a FANF Hardship Extension

Section 134.11     FANF Hardship Extension Review Process

Section 134.13     Reasons for Termination of an Extension

IMPLEMENTATION

The new versions of BFA Form 785 and 785(i) will be electronically transmitted with the release of this SR, posted in the BFA Forms Folder on the N:\Drive for Department staff, and available under the Forms section of the NH EASY Gateway to Services website. Revised forms will be used immediately following this SR

Recycle all versions of BFA Form 785, and DFA Form 785(i). A Certificate of Destruction has been included below.

CLIENT NOTIFICATION

No client notification is planned or needed

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 BFA 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 https://www.dhhs.nh.gov/sr_htm/sr.htm, effective September 1, 2022.  

BFA/DES:cm/sh