Part 502. Transitional Employment Assistance Policy Manual

20 CAR § 502-1001. Change of address. (a)(1) The participant is responsible for notifying the Division of County Operations or Department of Human Services within ten (10) days of any change of address. (2) It is important that the participant be advised of his or her responsibil…

20 CAR § 502-1002. Absence from the state. (a) If a participant is absent from the state for more than one (1) month: (1) The case will be closed; and (2) The participant will be advised that he or she may reapply once he or she returns to Arkansas. (b) When the county office rec…

20 CAR § 502-1003. Protective payment — Mismanagement. (a)(1) When there is evidence that the transitional employment assistance (TEA) grant is not being used in the best interests of the child or children, a protective payee to handle the family’s cash assistance may be appointe…

20 CAR § 502-1004. Determination of need for mismanagement protective payment. (a) The case record must clearly reflect the evidence upon which the worker’s recommendation for protective payment is based. (b) Such evidence should indicate mismanagement of funds by the participant…

20 CAR § 502-1005. Standards for selection of protective payee. (a) Persons who may be selected as protective payee. (1) A protective payee may be a: (A) Relative; (B) Friend; (C) Neighbor; or (D) Member of a community service group. (2) The person to act as a protective payee sh…

20 CAR § 502-1006. Authorization of mismanagement protective payment. (a) Protective payment will be authorized by the County Administrator upon recommendation of the Program Eligibility Coordinator or his or her designee. (b)(1) Form DCO-195, Request for Protective Payee Approva…

20 CAR § 502-1007. Designation of emergency payee. (a) In emergency situations, payments can be made temporarily to a person acting in place of a parent when no eligible payee is immediately available, provided: (1) The payee has been removed from the home by: (A) Death; (B) Dese…

20 CAR § 502-101. Purpose of the Transitional Employment Assistance (TEA) Program. (a)(1) The purpose of the Transitional Employment Assistance (TEA) Program is to help needy families become economically self-sufficient by providing opportunities to obtain and retain employment s…

20 CAR § 502-102. Administration. (a) The Transitional Employment Assistance Program is governed by: (1) Federal law (Title IV-A of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996); (2) State law (Acts 1997, No. 1058); and (3) The state’s Transitional …

20 CAR § 502-103. Definitions. As used in this part: (1) “Activity-related expenses” means expenses relative to the customer’s participation in work activities that are: (A) Paid for by the Transitional Employment Assistance Program; and (B) Necessary in order for the transitiona…

20 CAR § 502-104. Personnel. (a) The Department of Human Services and the Division of County Operations are responsible for the provision of personnel in their areas of responsibilities, which include: (1) Determining eligibility; (2) Authorizing payments; and (3) Providing case …

20 CAR § 502-105. Volunteers. (a)(1) Volunteers are subject to the rules and policies of the office where they are assigned. (2) This includes the policies that govern the disclosure of information concerning the Department of Human Services and its clients. (3) The volunteer’s s…

20 CAR § 502-106. Disclosure of information. (a) Information concerning an applicant, recipient, or other persons known to the agency will not be made available without the written consent of the client except: (1) To authorized employees of the: (A) Department of Human Services;…

20 CAR § 502-107. Coordination with other programs. The County Administrators will establish procedures to ensure coordination between the Transitional Employment Assistance Program and other programs administered by the county office.

20 CAR § 502-108. Maintenance of electronic case records. (a) The maintenance of the electronic case record is the responsibility of the Department of Human Services county office staff. (b)(1) The electronic record will be maintained in ANSWER. (2) The processing and review of t…

20 CAR § 502-109. Electronic case record organization. (a)(1) All forms and supporting documents related to an individual or household will be filed in the individual’s or household’s electronic case record in ANSWER. (2) Application forms and other forms and documents relating t…

20 CAR § 502-110. Disposition of records. (a)(1) Transitional employment assistance (TEA) records will be purged when the case has been closed continuously for five (5) years unless an audit is being conducted at that time or there is an outstanding overpayment claim. (2) In this…

20 CAR § 502-1101. Requirements generally. (a) The following procedures will be used to verify and take action on information received as a result of a covered computer match. (b) Internal Revenue Service Match BENDEX Wage. (1) The Internal Revenue Service match will be processed…

20 CAR § 502-1102. Monitoring process. (a) The Program Eligibility Analyst will conduct a random review of pending applications and cases each month for compliance and provide a report to the Area Director. (b) The Program Eligibility Analyst assigned to the Internal Revenue Serv…

20 CAR § 502-1103. Social Security number or name mismatches (Codes 1 or 5). (a) View the person’s Social Security card and obtain a photocopy if one is not already in the case record. (b)(1) If the number shown on the card is different from the number shown in ANSWER, make the n…

20 CAR § 502-1104. Date of birth mismatch. (a) View or obtain a copy of the individual’s birth certificate or other proof of age. (b)(1) If the age documentation shows a date of birth different from that shown in ANSWER, make the necessary corrections to ANSWER and change the enu…

20 CAR § 502-1201. Lost or stolen EBT card. The county will follow procedures outlined in the Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) handbook for reporting a lost or stolen EBT card and obtaining a new card.

20 CAR § 502-1202. Lost, stolen, and/or forged checks (reimbursement, diversion, relocation). (a) If a payee notifies the county office that a diversion check has not been received, the worker will determine: (1) If a check has been issued and mailed; (2) If it has been at least …

20 CAR § 502-1203. Procedure for replacing a missing check. (a)(1)(A) If a check has not been returned to the Office of Finance within ten (10) days of the check issue date, and the payee states he or she has not received the check, the county office will complete section A of Fo…

20 CAR § 502-1204. Checks returned to the Office of Finance. If a check has been returned by the post office to the Office of Finance, the following procedures will be followed: (1)(A) Upon receipt of a returned check issued through AASIS, the Office of Finance will access the Ch…

20 CAR § 502-1205. Mutilated checks. (a) A check that has been damaged or marred to the point that it cannot be cashed is considered to be mutilated. (b) If a mutilated check is brought to the county office by the payee, the following procedures will be followed: (1) The mutilate…

20 CAR § 502-1301. Termination of cash assistance generally. (a) A case will be closed: (1)(A) When the recipient has requested closure. (B) Advance notice will be given if required. (C) Refer to 20 CAR § 502-802; (2) Upon notice of another state agency that the recipient is bein…

20 CAR § 502-1302. Time limit. (a)(1) A family that includes an adult is eligible for transitional employment assistance (TEA) cash assistance benefits for a period of not more than twelve (12) months. (2) The twelve (12) months need not be consecutive months. (b)(1) During perio…

20 CAR § 502-1303. Intentional program violation (IPV). (a) The family of any individual who pleads guilty or nolo contendere to, or is found guilty of, an intentional program violation (IPV) in the Transitional Employment Assistance Program will be ineligible for further partici…

20 CAR § 502-1304. Earnings related. (a) If at any point it is determined that a family is no longer eligible for transitional employment assistance (TEA) benefits due to earnings, the TEA case will be closed. (b) An advance notice of closure will be required. (c)(1) In addition,…

20 CAR § 502-1305. Extended support services (ESS). (a) Extended support services (ESS) are available to certain families who lose eligibility for transitional employment assistance (TEA) due to earnings. (b) These services are: (1) Child care; (2) ESS employment bonus and transp…

20 CAR § 502-1401. Purpose. (a) The Fraud Investigation Unit of the Department of Human Services identifies, investigates, and refers for prosecution any individual accused of committing theft of property or theft of public benefits as defined by state law. (b) This includes agen…

20 CAR § 502-1402. Organization. The Fraud Investigation Unit is organizationally located within the Office of Security and Compliance of the Department of Human Services.

20 CAR § 502-1403. Functions. The Fraud Investigation Unit of the Department of Human Services has the following major functions: (1) Review the case record and independently verify information contained in the file to determine if a criminal investigation is warranted; (2) Inves…

20 CAR § 502-1404. Referral sources. Reports of suspected fraud may be received from any source within the Department of Human Services, the general public, public officials, other public agencies, or by the Fraud Investigation Unit of the Department of Human Services itself.…

20 CAR § 502-1405. Reporting suspected fraud. (a) Criteria for reporting suspected fraud: (1) The suspected fraudulent act or acts resulted in a cumulative overpayment of two hundred dollars ($200) or more; or (2) Cases in which the participant is receiving assistance in two (2) …

20 CAR § 502-1406. Review of case. (a) When a referral is made to the Fraud Investigation Unit of the Department of Human Services, the circumstances will be reviewed to determine if the case warrants investigation toward criminal prosecution. (b) If one (1) or more of the follow…

20 CAR § 502-1407. Case accepted for investigation. The following procedures will be completed for reports of suspected fraud that warrant criminal prosecution: (1)(A) The case record and any other pertinent information concerning the suspected participant will be requested from …

20 CAR § 502-1408. Disposition of investigations. (a) The Fraud Investigation Unit of the Department of Human Services will notify the local office manager of the initial disposition of each referral. (b) For cases referred for prosecution, the Fraud Investigation Unit will: (1) …

20 CAR § 502-1409. Decision to prosecute. (a) The director of the Fraud Investigation Unit of the Department of Human Services will present the original investigative report of any case deemed worthy of prosecution to the prosecuting attorney. (b) The prosecutor has sole discreti…

20 CAR § 502-1501. Administrative hearings generally. (a) The purpose of the hearing process is to provide a mechanism by which: (1) An applicant may appeal the: (A) Denial of transitional employment assistance (TEA); or (B) Failure of the Division of County Operations to process…

20 CAR § 502-1502. Appeal process. (a) A petitioner or his or her designated representative may request a hearing by: (1) Completing the reverse side of the Notice of Action; (2) Making the request by letter to the Office of Appeals and Hearings of the Department of Human Service…

20 CAR § 502-1503. Division of County Operations administrative hearing file. (a)(1) When the Office of Appeals and Hearings of the Department of Human Services notifies the Division of County Operations that a petitioner has filed a timely request for a hearing, the caseworker w…

20 CAR § 502-1504. Subpoenas. (a)(1) The Office of Appeals and Hearings of the Department of Human Services will provide notice to the parties of the process by which subpoenas may be issued. (2) Each party must provide to the Office of Appeals and Hearings the correct name and c…

20 CAR § 502-1505. Continuation of assistance or service during the appeal process. (a) If a petitioner files an appeal for a hearing within the ten-day advance notice period, or five (5) days in case of probable fraud, the case will remain open at the petitioner’s request until …

20 CAR § 502-1506. Scheduling the hearing. The Office of Appeals and Hearings of the Department of Human Services will schedule the hearing and send a letter to advise the petitioner of the: (1) Time, date, and place of hearing; and (2) Name of the hearing official who will condu…

20 CAR § 502-1507. Place of hearing. (a) The hearing will normally be held by telephone in the Division of County Operations county office in the county in which the participant resides. (b) The telephone hearing may be held in another location if, in advance of the hearing, the …

20 CAR § 502-1508. Assistance in preparation of an appeal. The Division of County Operations will provide reasonable assistance to the petitioner in preparing for a hearing, if requested.

20 CAR § 502-1509. Abandonment of the appeal. (a) Regardless of whether the petitioner is represented, the petitioner must: (1) Appear in person for all hearings regarding program eligibility or program services; or (2) Show good cause why he or she cannot be present. (b)(1) If a…

20 CAR § 502-1510. Withdrawal of the appeal. (a) If a petitioner advises the county office that he or she wishes to withdraw the request for a hearing, he or she will be requested to sign a statement to this effect or to sign a DHS-1201, Withdrawal of Request for Fair Hearing. (b…