9121 Households Required to Change Report

9121 Households Required to Change Report - The following households are required to report certain changes in circumstances within 10 days of the date the change becomes known to the household. (See NOTE: at the end 9121 for a definition of "becomes known to the household.") The Change Reporting Requirements Chart listed below lists the type of changes that are required to be reported. The boxes marked with an "x" indicate the type of changes that are required to be reported for each category of assistance.

The following households are required to change report:

All TANF cash assistance cases;
Child care cases;

Change Reporting Requirements

	TANF	Child Care
Changes in the source of income (earned and unearned)	X
When the amount of earned income being counted increases or decreases by more than $100 per month	X
When the amount of unearned income being counted increases or decreases by more than $50 per month	X
Changes to the family’s gross monthly income that would cause the total amount to exceed 85% of state median income for a family of its size		X
Changes in household composition, including marriage, separation or divorce	X
Changes in residence, including moving into or from an institution or hospital	X	X
When resources reach or exceed $2,250	X	----
Choice of child care provider and/or hours of child care needed/used (other than hours needed for school age children for times that school is not in session). This includes when child care is no longer being used or has not been used for an entire calendar month for any or all children receiving assistance.	----	X

Households may report a change in their circumstances by telephone, in person, in writing, or by use of the Change Report Form. Other changes in circumstances are not required to be reported until review.

NOTE: For purposes of this provision "becomes known to the household" is defined as:

Change	When is the change known to the household?
Earned Income/Source of Earned Income	Receipt of first pay check or the last day of the month in which income for the month increased or decreased by more than $100.
Unearned Income/Source of Unearned Income	Receipt of first payment or when payment received has increased or decreased by more than $50.
Changes to the family’s gross monthly income that would cause the total amount to exceed 85% of state median income for a family of its size	When the household’s total gross earned and unearned income increases and exceeds 85% of the State Median Income (SMI) for their household size
Household Composition	The day the person enters or leaves the household, day of marriage, separation, or divorce.
Changes in Residence	Day person moves.
Resources Reach or Exceed Limit	Last day of the month in which resources exceeded the limit.
Choice of Child Care Provider and/or Hours of Child Care Needed	Changes in child care provider are known on the date the change occurs. When child care is no longer being used, the change is known to the household no later than the first day of the calendar month after child care was not used for an entire calendar month.
Transfer of Resources or Income Including Establishment of a Trust Fund (Food Assistance Only)	Effective date of change.

9121.1 Processing Changes Reported by Change Reporting Households - When the agency receives information that a change has occurred, the worker shall act on the changes within 10 days after the date the change is reported by taking the following actions:

Document in the case file the reported change, the date the change occurred, and the date the change was reported;
Determine if verification or additional information is required (refer to 1322.1 and 9121.2);
Contact the household to request needed information or verification as soon as possible;
For cash (including the Work Incentive payment), and food assistance changes reported outside of the interim report form, determine eligibility and benefits for the issuance month according to the provisions of 7000.
1. Households reporting changes which would result in an increase in benefits must provide any required verification within 10 days of the date of agency request. No increase in benefits shall be granted if the household does not provide the required verification. If no verification is required or if the verification required is received within 10 days from the date of verification request, the increased benefits are to be granted effective the month following the month the change is reported. If the verification is received after 10 days from the date the verification was requested, the increased benefits would be effective the first month following the month the verification is received.
  
  NOTE: For cash (including the Work Incentive payment), see 4100 and 7401 for other provisions regarding adding a person to the plan.
2. Changes resulting in ineligibility or a decrease in benefits shall affect eligibility the first month possible considering timely notice requirements.
For child care, reported changes will only be acted on if they result in an increase in benefits/decrease in family share for the family, if an income increase results in countable income exceeding 85% of the State Median Income, or if one of the other circumstances listed in 7640 that results in case closure should occur. Hours of care may not be decreased and family share deductions may not be increased due to a reported change during a 12 month eligibility period. However, benefits may decrease if due to a change in providers and the rate for the new provider is less than the rate for the previous provider, a rate change made by a provider, a child’s age change, or if a family indicates that child care will not be used, either for an individual child or for all children. Verification requirements of item 4 (a) above also apply to situations which would result in an increase in child care benefits. For households reporting a change in hours of child care needed for school age children due to days out of school (scheduled or unscheduled) for holidays, breaks, teacher in service, etc., no adjustment will be made to the plan hours, as this is accounted for by the system and averaged over the school year.

9121.2 Verification at the Time a Change is Reported - The following chart explains when verification is required for purposes of the Food Assistance Program when a change is reported outside of the interim report form.

`	Verification Required?
Change Reported	Benefits will Increase	Benefits will Decrease
Gross Earned Income	Yes*	*Yes, unless change reported will result in ineligibility
Unearned Income Which has changed by $50 or less	No	No
Unearned Income which has changed by more than $50	Yes	No
Actual Utility Expense(s) (only if using actuals per 7226.3 (3))	Yes	No
Household Composition	Yes	No
Non-citizen Status	Yes	No
Medical Expenses	Yes	No
Legal Obligation to Pay Child Support	Yes	No
Amount of Legally Obligated Child Support	Yes	No
Dependent Care	No,unless questionable	No
Shelter Expenses	No**,unless questionable	No

If "no" is listed in the chart, verification, if required (per 1322), shall be obtained at the time of the next review. In addition, if verification is not required, it can be requested if the change reported is questionable and documented as such. (See 1322).

* Verification of earned income (including reductions and loss of earned income) must be obtained at the time a change is reported, unless it is clear that the reported change will result in ineligibility for food assistance. Households must be given 10 days to provide needed verification of earned income. If verification is received within 10 days, benefits shall be increased effective the month following the month the change is reported. If verification is received after 10 days from the date the verification was requested, increased benefits are effective the first month following the month the verification was provided. Changes resulting in a decrease in benefits shall affect eligibility the first month possible considering timely notice requirements. (NOTE: The agency has 10 days from the date the change is reported to timely act on the change. See 9121.1.)

If verification of earned income is not provided, the case shall be closed allowing for timely and adequate notice requirements.

** If verification of a questionable expense is not provided, benefits shall be determined by allowing the previously verified amount. In other words, the shelter amount is not changed if verification is not provided. For example, verified rent is $200/month. The client reports an increase to $250 (and benefits will increase as a result). It is determined that this change is questionable, and verification is requested but not provided. Benefits must be determined allowing the "old" $200 rent amount. See Shelter Changes Chart in the Appendix, Item T-10

9121.3 Reserved

9121.4 Notices to Households Subject to Change Reporting - The agency must provide the household with a notice of action that meets the definition of timely and adequate notice, as defined in 1432, if the household's benefits are being reduced or terminated. If benefits are being increased, only adequate notice, as defined in 1432, is required.

Change Reported

Benefits will Increase

Benefits will Decrease