Arkansas Administrative Code
Agency 016 - DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES
Division 20 - Division of County Operations
Rule 016.20.97-016 - Transitional Employment Assistance Program Policy, Procedures and Form: This rule is required to comply

The purpose of the Transitional Employment Assistance (TEA) program is to help economically needy families become more responsible for their own support and less dependent on public assistance. Central to this purpose is helping adults and minor parents increase their employment potential, helping to reduce out-of-wedlock births, and promoting family unity.

Through employability assessments, employment planning, and the provision of employment related services, the TEA program helps recipients recognize their employment possibilities and helps direct them into jobs as soon as possible. Minor parents are encouraged and supported In completing a high school education or equivalency so that they are better prepared to enter the job market as adults. Since TEA benefits are time-limited, emphasis is placed on short-term goals so that the recipient enters employment before the end of his or her time limit.

In addition to case management and employment related services, the TEA program provides monthly cash assistance to eligible families to help meet the family's basic needs while the parent or other adult relative works toward increasing his/her earning potential.

TEA cash assistance is also available to help meet the needs of children who are being cared for by non-parent adult relatives. Assistance to such relatives may be provided without regard to a specified time limit.

TEA Diversion Assistance provides a one-time lump sum payment in lieu of other TEA services or assistance to help a family accept or retain employment.

The Transitional Employment Assistance program is governed by federal law (Title IV-A of the Social Security Act), State law (Arkansas Act 1058 of 1997), and the state's Transitional Employment Assistance Program State Plan.

The program is jointly funded by the State and Federal governments. The federal funding source is the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)

block grant under Title IV-A of the Social Security Act. State general revenues also fund the program.

The TEA program is administered by the Department of Human Services with primary responsibility for the day-to-day operation of the program vested with the Division of County Operations.

An individualized approach to the delivery of TEA services is paramount to the program purpose of moving families to self-sufficiency in a short timeframe. To promote this approach, the program is administered with a high degree of flexibility provided to the county office, or front-line, staff.

The Division of County Operations is responsible for the provision of personnel to determine eligibility, authorize payments, and provide case management services to eligible families.

DHS County Administrators will develop procedures within their individual offices, through training and supervision, whereby decision-making occurs at the lowest possible level.

Volunteers are subject to the rules, regulations, and policies of the office where they are assigned. This includes the policies which govern the disclosure of information concerning DHS and its clients. The volunteer's supervisor in the DHS County Office is responsible for informing the volunteer of the disclosure policy for each program in which the volunteer works.

Volunteers may perform any duty in the DHS County Office as determined appropriate by the County Administrator. However, a paid DCO employee, as designated by the County Administrator, must review and approve any certification or benefit determination decisions recommended by a non-paid volunteer.___________________

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 to authorized employees of the Department of Human Services, the Office of Child Support Enforcement, the Social Security Administration, the federal Department of Health and Human Services, or for purposes directly connected with the following:

The County Administrator will establish procedures to insure coordination between the TEA program and other programs administered by the County Office.

The maintenance of DCO case records is the responsibility of the County Administrator. In order to facilitate the processing and review of case actions and participant activity, a uniform case organization system will be adhered to for all TEA cases.

The TEA Face Sheet (Form DCO-186) will be filed on top of the case record with the Social Security card copies or SS-5's attached to or filed immediately behind the face sheet. A divider sheet will be used on the bottom of the case record with the brad inserted from the bottom.

The case record will be divided into three sections - Case Summary; Overpayment/Fraud; and Documents. All information within each section will be filed with the most recent on top.

Case Summary Section - This section will immediately follow the Face Sheet. It will contain all case actions including applications, assessments, Employment Plans and updates, certification and denial information, etc. The most current case action with any supporting documentation will be filed on top.

Overpayment/Fraud Section - This section will be filed following the Case Summary Section with a divider sheet identifying it. It will contain all claim and fraud documents, including Administrative Disqualifications decisions. Information received or submitted about a specific claim will be filed together.

Documents - This section will follow the Overpayment/Fraud Section with a divider sheet identifying it. It will contain all documents related to the case such as birth certificates, marriage licenses, divorce decrees, deeds, etc.

TEA records may be destroyed when the case has been closed continuously for three years unless an audit is being conducted at that time or there is an outstanding overpayment claim. In this context, "case closure" refers to the closure of the case for purposes of TEA program services, including Extended Support Services (and therefore does not refer to "closure" of the cash assistance aspect of the case). When a TEA case record, or any of its contents, is to be destroyed, it will done by burning or shredding to ensure the confidentiality of the material.

The three year timeframe will apply to cases in which the adult's lifetime maximum period to receive TEA benefits has been reached. This is to ensure case record information is available should an audit be conducted on the case during those three years following closure.

A printout identifying cases which have been closed continuously for three years is sent to county offices monthly. This printout may be used to identify cases for destruction.

The TEA eligibility requirements are the following:

No person shall be prevented from participation, be denied benefits or be subject to discrimination on the basis of age, religion, disability, political affiliation, veteran status, sex, race, color or national origin. The Department will comply with provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The Department has the responsibility of informing applicants and recipients that assistance is provided on a nondiscriminatory basis and of their right to file a complaint with the agency or federal government if they think that discrimination has occurred on the basis of age, religion, disability, political affiliation, veteran status, sex, race, color or national origin.

Requests for assistance will be made by completing an application form DCO-180, Application for Transitional Employment Assistance (TEA). Application must be made by the parent or other adult caretaker relative of the child.

The TEA application must be signed by the applicant(s) under penalty of perjury. If both parents are in the home with the child, or if a stepparent is living in the home, then both parents, or both the parent and stepparent, must sign the form. The county office will provide assistance with completing the form if requested.

The Personal Responsibility Agreement (PRA) will be reviewed with the applicant and/or second adult during the interview to ensure that he or she understands it and does agree to comply with it.

If the family includes a non-head of household minor parent, the PRA will also be reviewed with such minor parent who must also sign it. See TEA 2120 for specific requirements related to minor parent households.

As part of the application process, the child's parent(s) will complete a Self-Administered Skills Assessment form (DCO-181, Part A).

The application date will be the date the signed application form is received in the DHS County Office. The application will be registered on the ACES system no later than by close of business the first workday after that date.

A face-to-face interview with the applicant is required. If the household consists of two adults, both will be interviewed. If only one parent is present for the initial interview and it is determined that the family is potentially eligible, an interview will be scheduled for the second adult to ensure that both parents understand their responsibilities. The applicant will be seen at the office or a place of convenience if incapacitated or otherwise incapable of coming to the office.

If the applicant family is a non-head of household minor parent and his or her child(ren), then the adult with whom such minor parent and child are living will also be interviewed with the minor parent. See the Note below.

NOTE: The adult caretaker of the minor parent is required to attend to ensure that he or she is aware of the program requirements and responsibilities that will be expected of the minor parent. In addition, the adult with whom the minor parent is living will, in most situations, be made the payee for the cash assistance grant and, therefore, will be responsible for ensuring that the grant is used on behalf of the minor parent and child. This will be explained to the adult and minor parent during the interview.

The application form and the Self-Administered Skills Assessment will be reviewed with the applicant. At the discretion of the county office, an Employability Assessment may also be conducted during the application interview. (Form DCO-1402, Employability Assessment, may be used.) If it is determined that an in-depth assessment is not necessary for a particular client, then a partial assessment may be conducted. The Self-Administered Skills Assessment may be accepted as the Employability Assessment for those clients who are already job ready. The Employment Plan may also be developed during the application interview, (See TEA 2160, 3100, 3150.)

EXAMPLE: Ms. Bradford has shown on her application form and Skills Assessment that she last worked two weeks ago when she was laid-off from her factory job. She had worked at that job for several years and had done similar work prior to it. She has her own car and has stated that she can arrange before and after-school care for her school age children. She wants to find another job as soon as possible. Based on this information, the worker determines no further assessment is needed and therefore, accepts the Skills Assessment as the Employability Assessment. Ms. Bradford and the worker then develop her Employment Plan.

Based on the information obtained during the application interview, the county office may determine that the family does not necessarily need on-going cash assistance. Any possible alternatives to cash assistance should be discussed with the applicant. For example, on-going child care assistance or Medicaid coverage may be all that is needed to support the parent(s) in work. Another alternative may be Diversion Assistance if one-time assistance is all that is needed for the adult to obtain or retain employment.

If it is agreed that an alternative to cash assistance is appropriate, then the TEA application will be denied with an applicable denial code. If regular on-going TEA benefits are appropriate, then the worker will proceed with the application process (See TEA 2100).

The interview will be documented on Form DCO-96. If an Employability Assessment was conducted in any way during the interview, this should also be clearly documented in the case record.

The applicant is the primary source of information and is responsible for providing necessary verifications, as requested, to establish initial and on-going eligibility. However, if the applicant is unable to provide essential information, or is having difficulty in obtaining it, the County Office will assist the applicant in obtaining required information.

The applicant is expected to provide information as requested. Although the County Office may assist the applicant, when necessary, the applicant should be encouraged to obtain as much Information on his/her own before requesting assistance. Such assistance may range from simply advising the applicant how or where to get the information to actually obtaining the necessary document (e.g. sending a DHS-47 for an Administrative Copy of a birth certificate).

Form DCO-81, Consent for Release of Information, is used to secure essential information from a collateral source. This form must be signed by the applicant/recipient so information may be released to the agency.

Diversion Assistance is intended to help a family through a financial problem which jeopardizes employment and which, if not solved, could result in the family coming on to regular on-going cash assistance. Diversion Assistance is not a supplement to regular assistance but is in place of it.

Diversion Assistance is a one-time payment to or on behalf of the family which will resolve a financial problem so that the adult can maintain and/or obtain employment. Diversion is available to an adult only once during his or her lifetime.

The eligibility requirements for Diversion Assistance are as follows:

To authorize payment, the following steps will be taken:

The income and resource sections of the application will be reviewed with the applicant to determine whether the family may be eligible for assistance. If the income or resources are above the maximums of $223/month for income (TEA 2351) or $3000 for resources (TEA 2272), it is not necessary to continue the application interview. The TEA application will be denied. If it appears that the family may be eligible for assistance, the interview process will continue.

Each member of the family must meet the Social Security Enumeration requirement.

To meet the Social Security enumeration requirement, each person included in the TEA unit must either:

If the family includes a minor parent (i.e. under 18 years of age), certain requirements must be met. If the minor parent is not determined to be a "head of household", these requirements include signing the Personal Responsibility Agreement along with the adult in the home and living in an adult supervised setting. All minor parents must attend school or engage in other educational activities. These requirements are described in more detail in the following sections (TEA 2121 - 2122).

For purposes of this section, "minor parent" means a non-head of household minor parent.

A minor parent will be required to sign the Personal Responsibility Agreement on the application form along with the adult applicant. The minor parent's signature is required whenever the TEA application includes the minor parent's child. It does not matter if the minor parent is one of several siblings for whom application is being made or if the minor parent and child are the only members of the TEA applicant family. As long as the minor parent's child is included, the minor parent will be required to sign the Personal Responsibility Agreement along with the adult.

If the minor parent refuses to sign the PRA, then the minor parent and child are ineligible for TEA benefits.

The responsibilities outlined on the PRA will be discussed with the minor parent. These include requirements in relation to the TEA program such as child support requirements, and participation in education and training activities. The availability of services such as child care assistance, Child Health Services, and Family Planning Services to help meet the minor parent's personal and family responsibilities will be explained..

If possible, the PRA will be signed at the application interview. However, if the minor parent is not at the application interview, a time will be scheduled for the minor parent to come in and sign the PRA.

A non-head of household minor parent and his or her child must live in the home of the minor parent's parent, legal guardian, or other adult relative except in certain situations listed in TEA 2122.1.

If an application is made by an unmarried minor parent who is living on his or her own with a child or in a home that does not meet the above criteria, then it will be determined if he or she meets one of the exception situations listed in the following section. If the first exception is met, then no further development is required. If he or she meets one of the exceptions listed in TEA 2122.1, #2-6, then the county office will help in locating a second chance home, maternity home, or other appropriate adutt-supervised living arrangement.

If the minor parent does not meet any exception, then the minor parent will be advised of the living arrangements requirement and that such arrangements must be resolved before TEA benefits can be authorized. A timeframe within which the minor parent and child must move into an appropriate living arrangement may be designated. Such timeframe should be reasonable based on the minor parent's individual circumstances but should not result in the application being unreasonably delayed.

If an appropriate living arrangement is available to the minor parent and she refuses such arrangement, then the application will be denied.

Note: Referrals to DCFS - A minor parent under the age of 16 should be referred to the Division of Children and Family Services if sexual abuse is suspected. Also, if deemed appropriate, a referral to DCFS on a homeless minor parent and child may be made..

A minor parent who does not have a high school diploma or equivalency and whose child is over three (3) months old must attend school or participate in other educational activities directed toward the attainment of a high school diploma or its equivalent. Regular attendance and satisfactory progress will be the minor parent's continuing work participation activity. The minor parent will be advised of this requirement during the application or PRA interview.

If the minor parent is enrolled in school or is participating in other educational activities when application is made, the County Office should verify enrollment and attendance before approving the application and document the case record accordingly. If the minor parent is not enrolled in school or other educational activities, he or she will be advised of this requirement and that enrollment and regular attendance in school or participation in other approved educational activities will be required. The application may be approved if ail other eligibility requirements are met, but the minor parent will be required to verify enrollment as her first scheduled work participation activity. (See TEA 3300-3350 for a more detailed discussion regarding the minor parent education requirement.)

If school is not in session when the application is made, it will be discussed with the minor parent as to what her plans are when school resumes. As long as she plans to attend school when it resumes, the application may be approved, if otherwise eligible. However, verification of enrollment will be obtained as soon as school resumes.

Beginning July 1, 1998, a family who meets all the eligibility requirements may receive TEA cash assistance benefits for a period of up to 24 total months. The months counted are based on receipt by the adult recipient or "head of household" minor parent. (See TEA 4141 for situations in which the time limit may be extended.)

The time limit does not apply to cases in which the only parent in the home, or both parents if both are living in the home, receives SSI benefits, and therefore, no adult is included in the case.

The time limit applies to non-parent caretaker relatives only when such relative chooses to be included in the TEA payment with the child. If a non-parent relative is a payee only, then the time limit does not apply to the case. This will be explained to the non-parent adult relative during the application interview. (See the Example below.)

The time a child receives assistance will not count toward his/her time limit when he or she becomes an adult.

Payments made by another state under a Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program count toward the twenty-four month limit in Arkansas if the adult has received more than thirty-six such payments in another state. Only the payments from another state in excess of thirty-six will count toward Arkansas' twenty-four month limit.

EXAMPLE: A grandmother is applying (after July 1998) for her grandchild. Grandmother chooses to be included in the unit. After six months of receiving TEA benefits, the case closes because the child has returned to his parent. Grandmother later reapplies for herself and a child of her own. Because she previously received six months of assistance, she has eighteen months remaining in the twenty-four months limit. Had she not been included with her grandchild previously, her 24 month period would begin at one.

Diversion assistance payments count towards the 24 month time limit unless the payment has been repaid. The number of months a diversion payment counts is based on the diversion amount divided by the maximum grant for which the family would have been eligible had the diversion not been made. The number of months are rounded up to the next higher number. (See TEA 2010.)

Inquiry to the TEA Payment Count (TEPC) screen on ACES may be made to determine the number of months an adult has received TEA benefits. Regular TEA payments and diversion payments are listed on this screen as well as payments paid by another state which must be counted toward the time limit.

When one or both parents are not living in the home with the child, or when legal paternity has not been established, the person receiving assistance for the child must comply with the child support enforcement requirements unless it would be against the best interests of the child.

These requirements are:

* The assignment of child support rights. Arkansas State Law, Act 1296 of 1997, provides for an automatic assignment of child support rights when an individual accepts Transitional Employment Assistance. (Refer to TEA 2141)

* Cooperation in obtaining child support and establishing legal paternity (Refer to TEA 2142).

The TEA application will be denied, or the case closed, if the casehead or minor parent fails to cooperate, without good cause, with child support enforcement requirements.

The purpose of the Child Support Enforcement Program is to promote greater financial responsibility of parents to their children and to provide a child support collection service to reduce dependency upon public assistance.

This purpose may be stated in the following objectives:

Under Arkansas state law, when an individual accepts TEA for or on behalf of a child or children, such individual will be deemed to have assigned to the Department of Human Services any rights to child support from any other person as such individual may have:

* In his own behalf or in behalf of any other family member for whom he is receiving assistance; and

* Which have accrued at the time such assistance, or any portion thereof, is accepted.

The effective date of the assignment is the date the case is certified for cash assistance, or the chiid(ren) is added. The duration of the assignment will extend until:

An individual may be freed from the requirement to cooperate in terms of Items 1-5 below, only if good cause for refusal to cooperate is determined to exist per TEA 2143. Good cause is not allowed for refusal to cooperate in terms of Items 6 and 7 below.

"Cooperate" includes the following:

An individual may be determined to have good cause for refusing to cooperate with the State in child support enforcement activities and thus, be freed from the cooperation requirement. Good cause may be determined to exist in certain specified circumstances under which cooperation would be against the best interests of the child.

Each TEA casehead and/or minor parent subject to the cooperation requirement must be informed in writing via Form DCO-90 of his/her right to claim good cause prior to the requiring of cooperation.

TEA will not be denied, delayed, or discontinued pending claim determination if all other eligibility requirements have been established. The OCSE will not undertake activities to establish paternity or to secure support when notified that an individual has claimed good cause.

Unless good cause for refusal to cooperate has been claimed or has been determined to exist, the TEA casehead must provide information necessary for the completion of Form DCO-115. OCSE Referral Information. TheDCO-115 information must be completed on each parent who is absent from the home and on the putative father when both parents are living in the home with the child and legal paternity has not been established.

If the casehead refuses to provide the necessary information to complete form DCO-115, the application will be denied for non-cooperation with the child support enforcement requirements.

The sanction for non-cooperation with child support requirements will be lifted upon actual cooperation by the person who failed to cooperate. (Refer to TEA 4151 for a description of the sanction.) It may be lifted at any time following a first sanction but must remain in effect for a minimum of three (3) consecutive calendar months following a second sanction.

When a client whose case was closed due to child support non-compliance reapplies, he or she must cooperate with the OCSE before TEA cash assistance is authorized. The cooperation requirement will be discussed with the client to determine if he or she intends to cooperate now. If the client states a willingness to cooperate, then he or she will be referred to the OCSE. Processing of the application may continue pending notification from the OCSE as to whether the client has cooperated.

If the reason for the prior non-compliance was the parent's (or other adult relative's) failure to appear in court, then full cooperation cannot occur until the OCSE schedules a court date and the client actually appears. If the OCSE advises that the client has agreed to cooperate but that a court date must be scheduled, then the application may be approved for the children but the parent or other adult will be excluded from the payment determination until he or she actually appears in court.

Other explanations to be given during the application interview are listed below.

Applicants who have been determined to be job ready as defined below will be required to engage In Job Search activities while the application is being processed.

The purpose of applicant job search is to require applicants who have no obvious circumstances preventing them from becoming employed to look for a job while the application is being processed rather than waiting until after approval. The Intent of applicant job search is not just to require the applicant to be engaged In a "work activity" but that the applicant will actually find a job and start employment rather than receive assistance. In essence, applicant job search, if successful, should result in diversion from assistance.

Notwithstanding the fact that the job market itself ultimately determines whether an individual Is truly job ready, it is Important to recognize that almost everyone is capable of finding work sooner or later. Therefore, for purposes of Applicant Job Search, an individual is presumed to be "job ready" and therefore available for Immediate job search unless the worker determines that an exception to the presumption Is warranted based upon an initial assessment of circumstances. At a minimum, an individual with a recent work history (as defined at the county office level) or a tenth (10th) grade or higher educational attainment level should be given strong consideration for applicant job search. The county office may determine other individuals to be job ready based on an assessment of the individual's abilities and circumstances. j

At the initial interview, the skills assessment form will be reviewed with the applicant and second adult, if appropriate, to determine if immediate job search should be required. The purpose of applicant job search should be emphasized with the applicant so that it is clear that the intent is not simply to have the applicant "engaged in an activity" but that there is the expectation that he or she will find a job and not need on-going cash assistance.

Applicants who meet the job search requirements will be Informed that job search Is a condition of eligibility and that failure to seek employment will result in the denial of the TEA application.

The applicant must make a number of job contacts, as determined by the County Office, within ten days from the date of the application interview. If all other eligibility requirements are met, the application will be held pending until the job search requirement is met, or the applicant finds a job, whichever occurs first. Failure to meet this requirement will result in denial of the TEA application.

The County Office will determine the number and type of job contacts the applicant will be required to make. The County Office will develop guidelines to follow when making this determination (e.g., employment opportunities within that county or surrounding counties). NOTE: It is important to set up a process whereby it is clear to the applicant that the job search activity is taken seriously and to avoid merely setting up a paperwork requirement that does not result in finding work.

A job search applicant may also be referred for job placement if such placements are available in the county.

Child care assistance may be available for the individual while engaged in applicant job search. However, other supportive services or reimbursements which would be paid with TEA funds will not be provided to an applicant. Therefore, applicants required to engage in job search should have available transportation.

The applicant will complete form DCO-1429, TEA Applicant Job Search, listing the job contacts made, date of contact, type of contact, and outcome of the contact. The applicant will provide this information to the county office by the date specified.

If the applicant finds a job and chooses to continue with the application process, the earned income will be considered as for any other applicant. The worker should discuss possible alternatives to on-going cash assistance at this point, though. For example, now that the applicant has a job, he or she may only need Medicaid coverage or child care assistance. Diversion assistance could also be considered.

NOTE: If there are two or more otherwise separate families living in the same house, such families will not be combined into one single TEA family even if some of the children may be half-siblings to each other. (See EXAMPLE #2 below.)

The persons described in Items 1-3 are required to be included as TEA family members except when a specific Individual eligibility requirement is not met by such person. Individual eligibility requirements are the following:

The non-SSI child(ren) must be under 18 years of age and must live in the home of a parent or other adult caretaker who is in a specified degree of relationship to the child.

A home is defined as the family setting maintained or in the process of being established, as evidenced by the assumption and continuation of responsibility for the day to day care of the child by the relative.

A child is considered to be living with a parent or other relative even though:

The child must be living with a relative who is in one of the following degrees of relationship to the child:

The child's age and relationship to the parent or other adult caretaker must be verified. The inability of the casehead to verify the age or relationship of one child does not affect the eligibility of other children in the family.

Acceptable documents to verify age and relationship include the following:

The worker will verify that the chtld(ren) are living with the parent or other relative. Acceptable methods of verification include:

* Collateral Statement, Form DCO-76, completed by a friend or neighbor showing the child as a household member. (Primary type)

* Phone contact with a friend or neighbor.

* Information from current school records

* Other types of collateral contact.

The verification used will be documented or filed in the case record.

Each individual for whom application Is made must be one of the following:

An declaration of citizenship will be accepted unless the County Office determines that the declaration is questionable in which case verification such as birth certificates or naturalization papers will be required.

The following documents may be used to verify alien status:

As a condition of eligibility, a declaration of citizenship, or lawful alien status, must be made in writing, under penalty of perjury, for each TEA family member.

The Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986 ( P.L. 99-603) requires an applicant for public benefits to declare in writing, under penalty of perjury, whether he is a citizen or national of the United States, or if not, that he is an alien in satisfactory immigration status. An individual must be given certain status options from which to choose to make his citizenship declaration.

Form DCO-9 (Declaration of U.S. Citizenship or Satisfactory Immigration Status) is used to obtain the written declaration for the family. The TEA casehead completes and signs the form on behalf of all adults and children included in the assistance unit.

Aliens included in the unit must be listed on Form DCO-9, along with their INS numbers. It must be verified, as described in TEA 2221, that the INS status meets the TEA eligibility criteria for an alien.

Once a DCO-9 declaring citizenship for the adult(s) and children listed on the DCO-180 is obtained, it is not necessary to obtain another declaration for as long as the case remains open unless a new member is added to the case. If the case is closed and the client reapplies, a new DCO-9 for all members listed on the DCO-180 and included in the unit will be needed.

An individual who has been found guilty of or has pleaded guilty or nolo contendere to any state or federal offense classified as a felony by the law of the jurisdiction Involved, and which has as an element of the offense, the distribution or manufacture of a controlled substance {as defined in section 102(6) of the Controlled Substances Act) is ineligible for TEA benefits. This provision applies only to offenses occurring after July 1, 1997._______________________________________________________________

The eligibility of other family members is not affected by the ineligibility of a person described above. Such ineligible person will not be included in the family size for purposes of determining the payment amount. However, if the person is the parent or stepparent of any child included in the unit, then his or her income will be counted.

If the question regarding the above type of felony conviction was answered Yes on the application form, the worker will find out which family member has such conviction. If the question was answered No, then no further action is needed..

An individual who is fleeing to avoid prosecution, or custody or confinement after conviction, of a felony offense is ineligible for TEA benefits.

An individual who is violating a condition of probation or parole imposed under Federal or State law is ineligible for TEA benefits.

The eligibility of other family members is not affected by the ineligibility of a person described above. Such ineligible person will not be included in the family size for purposes of determining the payment amount. However, if the person is the parent or stepparent of any child included in the unit, then his or her income will be counted.

The family must presently reside in Arkansas and intend to make it their home.

No specific duration of residence is required. If the applicant has the present intention to make the state his home, current eligibility will not be affected even if the applicant intends to leave the state at some future time. Residence is not affected by a temporary absence from the state, provided the absence is less than one (1) month.

Homeless families who do not have a fixed or permanent address but reside in the state as residents of Arkansas are eligible for TEA provided they meet all other eligibility requirements. The county office will determine an address of choice (e.g., a PO Box, homeless shelter, etc.) for such families. If otherwise eligible, the case may be certified with this chosen address.

Requirement

The Personal Responsibility Agreement requires the adult caretaker, or minor parent, to insure that school-age children attend school regularly and that the children receive immunizations as needed. "School-age" is defined as five (5) years through seventeen (17) years of age.

If the adult, or minor parent, reports at application that all school-age children are enrolled in and satisfactorily attending school, the worker may accept the statement of the applicant. Enrollment and satisfactory attendance will be verified with the school, and documented in the case record, in those cases where it is reported that one or more children in the family has failed to enroll or attend school regularly. Such reports may come from any of several sources including, but not limited to, the school system locally, courts, system-generated reports supplied by the state Department of Education, etc. Satisfactory attendance is defined in accordance with the school's definition of attendance. If the children are not enrolled, the application may be approved if all other eligibility requirements are met. However, the adult, or minor parent, will be advised that the children must be enrolled and that certification of enrollment must be provided by the parent no later than thirty (30) days from the date the application is approved. If school is not in session when the application is made (e.g. summer vacation), then the parental certification must be provided within thirty (30) days of the date school resumes. (See TEA 4152.)

If the children are being home-schooled, the applicant's statement will be accepted unless questionable. If questionable, then verification that there is an approved home-schooling application on file with the school superintendent should be required.

Proof of current immunizations of all pre-school-age children will be requested prior to approval of the application. (See Appendix A for the immunization schedule.) If such proof is provided, the case record will be documented accordingly or a copy of the immunization record filed in the record. If any pre-school-age children are in need of immunizations, the application may be approved if all other eligibility requirements are met but the adult, or minor parent, will be advised that the children must receive the needed immunizations and proof that they have must be provided no later than thirty (30) days from the date the application is approved (See TEA 4153.).

The countable resource limit for all family sizes is $3000.

The resources of all persons included in the assistance unit must be determined. This includes all adults, children, and minor parents. In addition, the resources of a non-SSI parent or step-parent living in the home are always considered in determining the children/step-children's eligibility even if such parent or step-parent is not included in the unit as an eligible member.

Certain types of resources, specified in TEA 2272, are not counted in determining the family's resource eligibility.

Resource eligibility is determined as of the first day of a calendar month. If the countable resources are equal to or less than $3000.00 on the first day of the month, then the family is resource eligible for the entire month even if the resource value increases and exceeds the limit later in the month.

A resource is any real or personal property available to an individual to meet his needs (i.e., can be turned into cash). Only those resources currently available, or which the individual has the legal ability to make available, will be considered. Accumulations in trust funds, retirement, and profit-sharing plans, or other arrangements which preclude the use of the property for meeting current needs will not be considered until such time as the property is actually available

All or any portion of a payment that is considered as income in the month of receipt cannot be considered as a resource in the same month.

EXAMPLE: Ms. Smith has a checking account with a balance of $750. On March 5, she deposits her regular monthly $100 Social Security check into It. Since the $100 she deposited is income for March, it cannot be included as part of the resource (the checking account) for March. Any of the March $100 remaining in the account as of April 1, however, would then be considered as a resource.

The following resources are not considered in determining the family's TEA eligibility:

Except for property specifically disregarded in TEA 2272 and excess motor vehicles, the equity value of any other real or personal property available to the family will be considered in full. If the family has more than one motor vehicle, then the market value of any additional vehicles will be considered in full.

When a TEA client has joint ownership of a resource, the client's ownership interest and the availability of the resource to the family must be determined. If the resource is available to the unit, the net equity must then be determined. NOTE: If the jointly held resource is a motor vehicle which is not disregarded, then the market value will be determined rather than the net equity.

Sections 2276 - 2279 provide more detailed discussions of real and personal property. 2273.1 Requesting a Legal Opinion on Resource Ownership or Availability

There are situations in which the client's ownership interest or ability to access the resource are not clearly evident. In such situations, it may be necessary to request a legal opinion from the Office of Chief Counsel (OCC).

To request an OCC opinion regarding a resource owned or jointly owned by a member of a TEA family, the following procedure will be followed:

The sale of a resource, including disregarded resources, is considered a conversion of one type of resource (property) to another type (cash) except when the terms and conditions of the sale preclude the seller's ability to obtain full payment on demand.

When an individual sells either real or personal property, the amount the individual received for the property and any terms or conditions of the sale will be determined. The net proceeds from the sale (sale price less any outstanding encumbrances and costs related to the sale) will be considered as follows:

The equity value of any real property not used as a homestead (excess property) will be considered a resource in determining TEA eligibility.

The market value of real property is determined by obtaining an estimate of current market value from a knowledgeable source. Knowledgeable sources include:

* Real estate brokers.

* Local office of the Farmer's Home Administration (for rural land).

* Local office of the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (for rural land).

* Banks, mortgage companies, and similar lending institutions.

* County Agricultural Extension Service (for rural land).

* Tax assessor of the county In which the property Is located. If this source Is used, then the assessed value must be multiplied by the county multiplier 5 to arrive at the market value.

The estimate should be written, signed and dated, and have enough information so the source can be identified.

The client is primarily responsible for obtaining the estimate. However, if requested, assistance to obtain a free estimate will be provided.

Only the net equity in the property is considered. Net equity is determined by subtracting the value of any liens, mortgages, or other encumbrances from the market value. If the market value of the property exceeds the $3000 resource limit (alone or with other countable resources), then the amount of any encumbrances will be verified.

Personal property is property other than real property and consisting primarily of liquid assets. Ownership of personal property can be in the same form as real property. The following sections describe more commonly held types.

Unearned income is generally money paid to or on behalf of an individual which does not represent any type of payment for work or services rendered by an individual.

Except for that specifically disregarded in TEA 2331, unearned income received by a TEA family member is considered in determining the family's eligibility and payment amount.

The following are possible sources of countable unearned income:

The following types of unearned income are not counted in determining a family's TEA eligibility or payment amount:

Verification will normally be by documentary evidence obtained from the source of the income or through computer matches, or inquiry to system screens, with the agency providing the income, e.g., WESD screen for Unemployment Insurance (Ul) benefits. For unearned income which is disregarded, the worker may, at his/her discretion, verify the income to ensure that it is properly disregarded.

If unearned income is received more frequently than once per month, then the monthly amount will be computed as follows:

* If received weekly, the weekly amount will be multiplied by 4.334 for the monthly amount.

* If received bi-weekly, the bi-weekly amount will be multiplied by 2.167.

* If received semi-monthly, the semi-monthly amount will be multiplied by 2.

If the amount of unearned income fluctuates from month to month, then an average of the past two months will be computed.

Earned income includes wages, salaries, tips, commissions, and any other payment resulting from labor or personal service. Generally, if the person is working as an employee, PICA taxes are withheld from earned income. Earned income also includes income from self-employment.

Most earned income is considered in determining a family's TEA eligibility. However, in certain situations that are specified in the following section, earnings are not counted.

Earned income received in the following situations is not counted in determining the family's TEA eligibility:

Verification of earnings from employment may be by any one, or a combination, of the following:

* check stubs

* pay slips

* collateral contact with the employer.

Sufficient verification should be obtained so that the actual income of the employee can be determined. The worker should not automatically assume that one check stub accurately reflects earnings for an entire month. The latest two months' verification should be required so that an average monthly earnings amount can be determined. For cases in which the individual has recently started employment and two months' verification is not available, the income should be computed from the best information available.

Verification of earnings from self-employment may be by any one, or a combination of, the following:

* Federal Income Tax Return

* purchase, sales, and account books

* any other source which establishes the source and amount of income.

As soon as an individual is known to be engaged in a farming, business, or other self-employment enterprise, he should be advised of the necessity of keeping accurate records so that his income can be determined.

The gross earned income amount which will be used to determine eligibility is an estimate of the amount which the individual can reasonably be expected to have available in the next month(s).

The estimate of monthly earnings is usually based on the assumption that the earnings received in the most recent months are reflective of the earnings which will be received in the current and following months. In most situations, the estimate will be an average of the latest two months' gross earnings. However, in some situations, such as when the client has just started employment or has had a change in pay rate or hours, this assumption will not hold true. Therefore, the estimate of monthly earnings must be based on the latest information which is available at the time the earnings are being computed.

Gross monthly earnings will be computed as follows:

Determine the average gross pay per pay period. Any advance EIC payments paid to the employee with his regular earnings are excluded.

* If earnings are paid weekly, multiply the weekly gross by 4.334 for the monthly amount.

* If paid bi-weekly, multiply the bi-weekly amount by 2.167.

* If paid semi-monthly, multiply the semi-monthty amount by 2.

In some situations, the average pay per pay period cannot be determined based on the latest two months' earnings because the client has not yet worked a full two months, or a change has occurred within the past two months which has affected current earnings. In these situations, another method which will give a more accurate reflection of the client's earnings should be used to obtain an average pay per pay period. The following examples describe methods which could be used in some typical situations. The actual method used, however, is at the discretion of the worker.

Employment Started Within Past Two Months

EXAMPLE #1: Ms. Smith reports on May 22 that she started working on May 14. She received one paycheck on May 18 for three days of work. The checkstub shows she worked 15 hours at $5.15/hour. An employer's statement is obtained which shows she is expected to work 25 hours per week at $5.15/hour and will be paid weekly. Her monthly gross earnings are computed based on the employer's statement, as follows: $5.15 (hourly wage) X 25 (number of hours expected to work per week) = $128.75/week X 4.334 = $558.00.

EXAMPLE #2: Ms. Jones has received five paychecks since she started working part-time on May 31. She provides all five checkstubs. The stub for her first check, which was for the pay period ending June 1, shows earnings for eight hours at $5.15/hour. Since this first check was for only two days of work (4 hours/day), it will be excluded when determining the weekly average. The other four checkstubs are averaged to arrive at a weekly pay period average of $104 X 4.334 = $450.74 monthly gross.

Change Occurred Within Past Two Months

For purposes of this section, a "change" in the earnings amount does not Include changes due to normal fluctuations in the number of hours worked or amount paid, or short-term temporary changes such as working an extra shift one week because another employee was sick. It does include changes in hourly wage, moving from part-time to full-time status or vice versa, obtaining or losing a second job, etc.

EXAMPLE #3: Ms. Doe received a raise from $5.15/hourto $5.25/hour on her March 16 paycheck. She continues to work the same number of hours. She is paid bi-weekly so the iast four consecutive check stubs are used to determine an average number of hours worked per pay period. Her monthly gross earnings are then computed as follows: $5.25 (new hourly wage) X 30 (average number of hours) = $157.50 (bi-weekly earnings) X 2.167 = $341.30.

EXAMPLE #4: Ms. Wilson had been working on an "as needed" basis and had been averaging 10 hours/week. On April 24, she was put on regular employee status and her employer expects her to work about 30 hours/week. Herhourly wage remains the same at $5.50/hour. Her gross monthly earnings are computed as follows: $5.50 (hourly wage) X 30 (new number of hours expected to work) = $165 (weekly earnings) X 4.334 = $715.11.

EXAMPLE #5: Ms. Jones has been working part-time for one employer for several years, In July, she begins another part-time job in addition to the first job. An average of her last eight consecutive paychecks from the first job is determined and multiplied by 4.334 for monthly gross earnings of $325.05, A statement form the second employer is obtained which shows Ms. Jones is expected to work 15 hours per week at $5.15/hour. Based on this information, her monthly gross earnings from the second job are computed to $334.80. The monthly earnings from the two jobs are then added together for a total monthly gross earnings of $659.85.

As stated earlier in this section, the worker should use a method which gives the most accurate reflection of earnings and should document the case record as to why the method was selected.

The earnings computation will be documented in the case record.

Like employee earnings, the monthly amount of self-employment earnings which must be considered is the agency's best estimate of earned income which will be available to the Individual in a month or months. Costs directly related to producing the income are subtracted from the self-employment gross. Only those costs without which the income could not be produced will be subtracted. Such costs do not include depreciation, personal business and entertainment expenses, personal transportation, purchase of capital equipment and payments on the principal of loans for capital assets or durable goods.

For room and board income, a standard $120 per roomer/boarder will be subtracted as the cost related to producing the income.

Self-employment earnings are usually not as predictable as employee earnings and are often received less frequently than monthly. Therefore, in most situations, a time period longer than two months should be used to determine average monthly self-employment earnings.

Income Received Less Frequently Than Monthly (Quarterly. Annually. Etc.)

Income of this type may include farming (including soil bank and related diversion payments), cattle ranching, business, or any other type of self-employment enterprise in which the income resulting from work performed over a period of time is received at one time rather than during the period in which the work is being performed.

The first step in computing monthly gross earnings in these situations is to calculate the gross annual income for the previous calendar year. If available, the individual's Federal Income Tax Return may be used to determine the annual income and the amount of costs related to producing the Income. The annual allowable costs are subtracted from the gross annual income. The remainder is then divided by 12 to arrive at an average monthly amount. This figure is treated gross earned income.

EXAMPLE: After expenses, Ms. Smith earns $1200 annually from farming. This amount prorated over 12 months equals $100/month. Therefore, $100 gross earnings would be considered for TEA purposes.

If the previous year's income is not a fair reflection of the current year's income, the worker may determine, by averaging recent months or other means, an amount which will fairly,reflect the current year's income. The case record should be documented to clearly reflect the manner in which the income was detennined and the basis for considering it a fair reflection of the current year's income.

Income Received Monthly or More Frequently (Weekly. Daily. Etc.)

Income of this type may include room and board payments, baby-sitting, sales from Avon, Tupperware, etc., or any other type of self-employment in which the income is received at least monthly as the work is performed.

The first step in computing monthly gross income in these situations is to determine an average monthly gross based on the latest two month's income. Verification of the latest two months' gross income and costs related to producing the income should be obtained. After allowable self-employment costs are subtracted from the monthly gross, an average of the latest two months will be determined to arrive at the monthly gross earnings which will be used to determine income eligibility.

NOTE: A standard $120 per roomer/boarder will be subtracted as the allowable costs for producing room and board income.

EXAMPLE: Ms. Woods sells Tupperware products and provides copies of her last two months' order invoices. These show her total sales and the items she had to purchase such as hostess gifts, receipt books, etc. For each month, her total gross income from sales less the costs related to producing the income is determined. These amounts are then averaged to arrive at a monthly gross earnings amount of $250.

If the latest two months' income is not a fair reflection of the individual's current income, then another method to determine the average monthly income may be used (e.g., an average of more than two months' income). The case record should be documented to clearly reflect the manner in which the income was determined and the basis for considering it a fair reflection of current income.

The self-employment income computation will be documented in the case record..

Once the family's countable monthly gross income is computed, then their income eligibility can be determined.

The Income Eligibility Standard is 25% of the amount a full-time worker would earn at the September 1997 minimum wage of $5.15 per hour. It is the same amount for all family sizes and is used to determine both initial and on-going income eligibility. Countable unearned income plus net earned income (gross minus certain deductions specified in TEA 2352) is compared to the Income Eligibility Standard. If the total countable income exceeds the Standard, the family is ineligible for TEA benefits.

The Income Eligibility Standard is $223 per month.

Before the monthly income is compared to the Income Eligibility Standard, certain deductions are allowed from the monthly gross earnings. These deductions are:

To determine the family's income eligibility, an Income Eligibility budget is computed. The worker may complete a DCO-7, Budget Sheet, to show the budget or use only the DCO-56.

The following sections outline the Income Eligibility Budget for applicants families and for recipient families.

Once all eligibility requirements have been established, including income eligibility, then the family's monthly payment amount is determined.

The payment amounts are based on nine payment levels according to family size. The maximum payment a family may receive is the payment level for the particular family size.

All eligible TEA family members (as defined in TEA 2201) will be included in the family size for payment except a child who is not eligible for payment due to the family cap provision. (See the Discussion regarding the family cap below.)

The payment levels by family size are as follows:

FAMILY CAP: The family cap provision prohibits payment to a child who is born while the mother is receiving TEA benefits, either for other children or as a minor child herself..

NOTE A: The family cap provision does not affect the child's potential Medicaid or Food Stamp eligibility.

NOTE B: A child who was previously excluded for payment due to the family cap provision but the family's case has been closed continuously for at least six (6) months may be included for payment upon reapplication.

NOTE C: A child who was excluded for payment under the AFDC family cap waiver as of July 1, 1997 will continue to be excluded for payment under TEA unless the case is closed continuously for six (6) months. In addition, a child who was excluded under the AFDC waiver but whose mother's AFDC case had been closed for less than six months prior to July 1997 will be ineligible for payment if a TEA application is submitted and approved within the six (6) month period following the AFDC closure.

The payment amount for the family size will be reduced by 50% when the family's countable monthly gross income, excluding assigned child support payments, is equal to or more than $446. If the reduction does not result in a whole dollar amount, then it will be rounded down if the remaining cents are $ .49 or less, and up if $ .50 or more.

EXAMPLE #1: Mr. and Mrs. Smith have two children. Mr. Smith is disabled and receives both Social Security and SSI disability benefits. Mrs. Smith and the two children receive a total of $15G/month SSA benefits. Since Mr. Smith is an SSI recipient, he is excluded from the family size for payment and his income is not considered. Only Mrs. Smith and the two children are included. They are income eligible, based on the $223 standard, so their payment is determined as follows. The monthly gross income of $150 is less than $446 so their payment is the maximum grant for a family size of three (3) or $204..

EXAMPLE #2: Ms. Brown has received TEA benefits for one month for herself and one child. She has now found a job and is expected to earn $500 gross per month. After allowing the recipient earned income deductions (20% of the gross and then 50%), she is income eligible based on the $223 income standard. The payment is then determined as follows: Gross countable income ($500) exceeds $446 so the Browns' payment is 50% of the maximum for a two person family, or $81.

The payment determination showing the number of persons included in the grant, the family's gross income, and the grant amount will be documented in the case record. Either Form DCO-7, Budget Sheet, Form DCO-56, ACES Data Sheet, may be used to document the payment amount.

When a family's payment amount reduces to the 50% amount, the worker should discuss possible alternatives to continuing to receive cash assistance with the casehead. It should be explained that even though the payment has been reduced, the time limit count is continuing. Therefore, it may benefit the family In the long-term to terminate cash assistance while the family's gross income is at the $446 or above level rather than continue to receive the reduced TEA payment. It must be emphasized that the decision to close the cash assistance at this time is strictly the client's and he or she should not be made to believe that the cash assistance case must be closed..

If any adult in the family was required to engage in job search activities while the application was being processed, Form DCO-1429 documenting the required number of job contacts will be required. If the form has not been provided by the date the applicant was advised to provide it, then the application may be denied.

If the applicant reports he or she has found a job, then the job contact form is not required. The worker should discuss possible alternatives to on-going cash assistance with the applicant at this point. For example, now that the applicant has a job, the family may need only Medicaid or child care assistance. However, if the applicant chooses to continue with the cash assistance application, then the earned income will be considered as for any other applicant and included to determine the family's income eligibility.

Once all eligibility factors have been established, the first work activity will be determined and the participant will be notified of the required activity when the application is certified.

If an Employability Assessment was not done during the application process, then the first activity should be an assessment and development of the

Employment Plan (See TEA 3100). In two-parent families, the parents should be scheduled for a joint assessment, if at all possible.

For those applicants who have been engaged in up-front job search, pending application approval, job search activities may be continued if appropriate. In that case, the participant will be notified of his/her continued job search requirements.

The participant will be notified in writing of the required activity when the application is certified. It is important that participation in work activities begins as soon as possible following certification since the customer's time limit has now started.

If an individual states he or she is unable to engage in work activities, then discuss this with the participant to ascertain the reasons why the individual believes he or she is unable to participate. During this discussion, it should be stressed to the client that TEA benefits are time limited and that even if a temporary exemption or deferral is allowed, the time limit will not necessarily be extended because of the exemption or deferral.

Work Participation Exemptions

The only persons who may be considered exempt, and therefore are not required to participate tn work activities while exempt, are parents who are caring for a child:

A TEA application will be approved, or certified, only after all eligibility requirements have been established.

In addition to documentation of all eligibility requirements, including income, resource, and budget computations, the worker will ensure that the case record includes a signed Application for TEA/Medicaid/Food Stamps form.

Unless a claim of "good cause" has been determined or is pending determination, the OCSE will be notified when TEA assistance is approved for a child who has an absent parent or for whom paternity is not legally established. This notice provides information regarding the child's non-custodial parent and/or putative father so that the OCSE can start paternity or child support enforcement activities for the family.

The referral to the OCSE is system generated from information keyed by the County Office to the WAPU screen on ACES from Form DCO-115. A referral will be made on the following persons:

Payment will begin on the first day of the month in which the application Is being certified. The initial payment will not be prorated based on the date of certification. The first payment will be for a full month even if the application is certified on the last day of the month.

For purposes of this section, the "month of certification" means the month in which eligibility is determined to exist. See example below.

EXAMPLE: The worker determines eligibility and completes the application process on August 28. After a second party review, the supervisor concurs with the eligibility determination and it is entered to the ACES system on September 1. The first month of payment will be for August and it will be a full month's payment.

The following specific steps will be taken to complete a TEA application approval:

An application will be denied when:

If an applicant has a pending application and moves out of the county, transfer the application to the county in which the applicant now lives.

The initial plan will also include tentative dates for each work activity in which the client is likely to become engaged.

The participant, as part of developing skills necessary to be self-sufficient, will be encouraged to accomplish, without assistance, as many tasks as is possible for him or her, such as making arrangements for child care. Provision of services should be limited to those necessary for the customer to accept employment.

Through a Memorandum of Understanding with Arkansas Educational Television Network (AETN), TEA customers engaged in Education may be given an alternative to the traditional classroom setting by accessing educational activities via television broadcasts. Services offered by AETN include four types of programs; GED-ON-TV, for persons functioning at the ninth grade level or above; Learn-To-Read, for those functioning at the third grade level or below; Another Page, for persons functioning between fourth and eighth grade levels; and Math Basic, for those functioning at an eighth grade math level or below.

NOTE: AETN wiil submit a report at the end of the month to each county listing status and progress of participants.

Customers who are receiving services from AETN should be engaged in a second work activity whenever possible to insure maximum participation.

The plan will also include tentative completion dates for each activity listed in the Employment/Education Plan.

During the Employment/Education Planning interview, the worker and the minor parent will discuss any problems and identify specific actions required to eliminate the problems.

The Employment/Education Plan will be reassessed and updated as necessary.

The age limits listed above apply to all eligible children where child care Is paid by DHS.

Items 3 and 4 must be verified by the customer by providing necessary proof to the worker.

The worker will provide information to customer/prospective providers relative to obtaining an EIN/federal tax ID #.

A Social Security Number (SSN) is required of providers (e.g., relative, friends, neighbor, etc.) who do not operate an established business. The provider wilt be required to have/obtain an SSN and furnish proof of the number. Acceptable proof of an SSN includes, but is not limited to:

The worker will complete a Vendor File Action form and forward the signed W-9 to Division of Finance, slot 3000.

Services cannot be authorized until all necessary information has been submitted.

Form DCO-1427 authorizes transportation services, provides proof of arrangements via a written and signed agreement between the customer, provider, and worker representing TEA.

Form DCO-1427, TEA Provider Service Authorization, is the only form that will be used to authorize non-child care services by providers paid through the WISE Payment System. TEA will not be liable to pay for any services rendered by a provider without written authorization via form DCO-1427.

For detailed instructions on completing and routing the DCO-1427, please Refer to the DCO-1427 Instructions contained in the TEA forms manual.

The period of authorization for transportation/other services is listed on the

DCO-1427 as "for the period______through_______". The service is considered authorized by the county upon signature on the DCO-1427 by the worker. Prior to signing the form, the worker must verify the provider has met all requirements in order to be paid by DHS.

The effective date of service for TEA participants begins the first date transportation or other non-child care services are required by the client provided all provider requirements have been met as of that date. Otherwise, the effective date will be the first date all provider requirements are met.

The worker will use the amendment to the TEA Provider Agreement when it is deemed appropriate. This includes but is not limited to an increase or decrease in the transportation rate.

The worker will use discretion when using the Provider Agreement Amendment as this form is not intended as a means of giving providers rate raises.

Parti cipants and Providers will be required to complete form DCO-1430 relative to payment/reimbursement for records of expenses. Form DCO-1430 will be used by participants and providers to document and bill for payment or reimbursement of expenses. Document the case narrative of any information relative to the method of payment or reimbursement.

Form DCO-1430 will be fully completed and signed by the participant and/or provider prior to any payment or reimbursement being made.

Once approval of the payment is received from the County Administrator, or designee, form DCO-58, Relocation/Diversion Assistance, Medicaid Transportation, will be completed and keyed to the WAGR screen to authorize the payment. For appropriate codes, refer to the DCO User's Manual.

The worker will notify the customer that the Relocation Assistance payment has been approved.

In the above situations, an adequate notice is still required. If the client requests a hearing within 10 days of the date the action was taken, then assistance will be re-instated to its previous level unless the client specifically requests assistance not be continued pending the hearing; and except when the reason for closure is reaching the time limit.

During Employment Updates and other periodic contacts with the client, the worker will ensure that recipients continue to meet eligibility requirements which are subject to change (e.g., child in the home, income, etc.). If it is determined that a family's circumstances have changed, continued eligibility will be determined. The recipient will be also be reminded of his or her responsibility to report changes within 10 days

Cases which are not subject to the time limit will be reviewed by mail on a yearly basis. Upon approval of TEA, the worker will advise the recipient of this timeframe and his/her responsibility to report changes within 10 days.

When a family reports a significant change in income, the budget will be recomputed to determine the family's continued eligibility.

The Office of Child Support Enforcement sends the TEA family any current monthly child support collected which is in excess of the TEA payment. A printout is sent to the County Office stating that the child support exceeds the TEA payment. If the total child support collected, alone or with other countable income, exceeds the Income Eligibility Standard of $223, action to close the case will be taken. If the family remains eligible, however, then contact will be made with the client to discuss options, or alternatives to cash assistance which could benefit the family. The contact can be by phone, in writing, or during in person contacts with the client.

When the child support income exceeds the assistance payment but the family remains income eligible, the client will be given the following options:

* Close the TEA case and receive the full child support. Explain to the client that the child support payment is more than the TEA payment and even though a partial child support payment Is being received, the limited months of TEA are continuing to count. Also, explain that Medicaid may continue and if the absent parent stops paying, reapplication for TEA can be made.

* Continue to receive TEA and the partial child support payments. Explain to the client that if this option is chosen, the payments will continue to count toward the time limitation.

It will be the client's decision as to which option is chosen, if there is no response from the client, no further action will be taken on the case.

Ex. The family's TEA payment is $204/mo. The absent parent is paying $220 per month in child support. OCSE is sending the client $16. It would be to the family's benefit to close the TEA case and receive the child support in full. The time limit clock would stop at this point. If the client reapplies in the future, the time limit will pick up from where it previously ended.

Whichever option is chosen, the worker should redetermine the family's Medicaid eligibility. The family may be eligible for three (3) months of extended Medicaid due to child support income, or may be eligible in another Medicaid category. Please refer to Medical Services (MS) policy.

The effective date of payment for the individual will be the first day of the month in which the worker determines the individual's eligibility.

Applications to add people will be processed within 30 days. Benefits will not be prorated. The grant amount will be adjusted based upon one additional assistance unit member and the countable income of that family member.

Example - Ms. Jones' son had been living with his grandmother. He moved back to his mother's home on July 22nd. Ms. Jones applied on July 23rd to add her son to her TEA case. The worker completed the action on July 25th. Ms. Jones currently receives a payment in the amount of $204 and her new payment amount will be $247. For the month of July, Ms. Jones will receive an additional $43 (difference between $247 and $204). If eligibility is not determined until August, benefits for her son will start in August, No retroactive benefits will be paid.

In addition, the following individuals may be exempted from or receive an extension of the time limit:

The worker may recommend an extension of, or an exemption from, the time limit based on the above criteria when a family is nearing the end of the time limit.

The decision as to whether an exemption or extension to the time limit should be made is made at the county office level.

Records of active or closed cases and denied applications will be transferred upon the request of the individual, his authorized representative, or another County Office.

A recipient may visit in another county within the state without transferring his case record, if absence from his home county will not exceed one month. The warrant will be sent to the recipient during this one month period by authorizing a change of address on the DCO-56.

If the absence will exceed one month, the case will be transferred to the county in which the family is located. This is to insure that work participation activities continue. The individual will be advised by letter of the action taken and that the County Office to which his case record has been sent will be contacting him.

For active cases being transferred, the receiving county will complete an employment update within 30 days of receipt of the case record. The worker will i send a notice to the client advising them of the appointment date and purpose of the appointment. During this assessment, continued eligibility and work participation activities, if appropriate, will be determined.

Persons Who May Be Selected As Protective Payee

A protective payee may be a relative, friend, neighbor, or member of a community service group. The person to act as a protective payee should be selected by the client, or with the client's involvement and consent to the extent possible. The individual selected to act as payee must:

* Show an interest and concern for the family.

* Have the ability to help the family make proper use of the assistance payment.

* Live near the family or have sufficient means of transportation to enable him to maintain close contact with them.

* Have the ability to establish and maintain a positive relationship with the family.

Be a responsible and dependable individual, capable of fulfilling his responsibilities to the client and the agency.

Except for those specified below, a DHS employee may serve as the protective payee when it is determined that it would be in the best interests of the family for a staff member to act as the payee. This would be more appropriate in mismanagement situations than in sanction cases. Therefore, if such a protective payment is determined to be appropriate, then the staff member selected should be a DCFS employee providing protective services to the family.

Persons Who May Not Act As Protective Payee

The following individuals may not be selected as the protective payee:

The county office will be notified of SSN mismatches via a system generated report entitled "SSN's Not Verified by SSA for Recipients in County______". The procedures described below will be followed to resolve mismatches.

Warrants for incorrect amounts may, at the request of the recipient, be canceled and reissued in the correct amount.

The new warrant will be issued on the next available supplement.

When a client has received a warrant for an insufficient amount, the County Office may advise the client to cash the insufficient warrant, and process the deficiency in payment as a retroactive payment rather than authorizing a cancel and reissue.

A missing TEA warrant is defined as one that the client has not received within three working days from the first of the month, or one which was received but was lost or stolen prior to the client cashing or depositing it in a bank account.

The following procedures shall be used in replacing such warrants.

A warrant will be held when:

When a recipient, whose warrant is held, provides all information necessary to reestablish his eligibility, his warrant will be released by updating the Check Action Screen (WACA).

Cash assistance will be terminated at any point it is determined that a family is no longer eligible to receive assistance.

A 10-day notice will be sent to the client stating that the case will be closed due to an Intentional Program Violation. Also, that the case will remain closed until the resulting overpayment (e.g. the total amount of assistance received to which the family was not entitled) has been repaid to the State with interest. This requirement may be waived by the Director of the Division of County Operations or his designee.

Refer to TEA 8100 for detailed policy and procedures concerning IPV Disqualifications.

* 4.334 if paid weekly

* 2.167 if paid bi-weekly

* 2 if paid semi-monthly

* 1 if paid monthly

Refer to Appendix C for the sliding fee scale. i

The County Office will also maintain a job bank which can be used for referrals. To develop a job, the county office can interview participants and/or collect data from their case records or employment plans. The job bank can consist of a card file or a computer data base. It should be organized and divided by job titles. The names of interested or experienced customers and pertinent information about them should be contained under each job title. This will assist staff in matching the needs of employers and customers.

County Office staff will be responsible for discussing these assurances with the worksite employer prior to finalizing the Worksite agreement. It will be the responsibility of the worksite employer to make employees aware of these assurances.

The employer must agree to provide the same benefits (breaks, lunches, days off, etc.) and the same working conditions provided other employees performing comparable tasks.

The DCO-1406 TEA Worksite Participant Agreement should be signed by the customer before participation in Work Experience.

The County Office may monitor participation via the DCO-1407, TEA Participant Time Card/Progress Report, and through monitoring (on-site visit) the worksites. The Worksite Supervisor will submit the DCO-1407 bi-weekly to the TEA program to report progress.

The County Office representative and employer will complete and sign the On-The-Job Training/Employment Agreement.

Once the DCO-1437 OJT/Employment agreement has been negotiated, it will be submitted to the County Administrator for approval. The County Administrator will review and make a decision within three (3) working days.

Upon approval of the OJT/Employment agreement, county staff will coordinate activities to select customers and make referrals to the employer..

The county office will monitor participation through contact with the Training Supervisor. This contact will be conducted at least once each month either by telephone or in person.

The county office will monitor participation through contact with the employer. This contact may be by phone or on-site visits to the worksites. At a minimum, the customer participation should be checked at least once every four (4) weeks while engaged in this activity.

Employers will submit monthly billing to the county office, by the fifth working day of the month following the month of service.

The rate of reimbursement by TEA to employers will be limited to no more than fifty percent of the wages paid by the employer to the customer during the period of the OJT.

Billing for reimbursement will be submitted on letterhead stationery. The customer's name, number of hours/day worked, rate of pay, and total owed will be included on the bill. The letterhead billing will be completed with an original and two copies. Employers will submit the bill to the local county office. The County Administrator will review and approve {by signature and date) billing(s) submitted by the employer. Review and approval will be completed within three (3) working days of receipt by the County Administrator and billing sent to Office of Program Planning and Development, Attention: Contract Unit Resource Development Section, Slot 1230.

$034 30-Day Employment Follow-up

The county office will report TEA recipients entering employment on the DCO-1418 or other county office tracking system. Only employment which is reported to the TEA program within 60 days after a client has entered employment will be reported. The county office will do a 30-day follow-up on all persons reported, whether the case is open or closed. The verification of employment follow-up by the worker, may be made by contacting the employer, participant, or relative, by letter, phone call, or face to face contact.

6035 Work Opportunity Tax Credit

On August 19, 1996, the President signed into law the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) program. WOTC replaces a similar program called Targeted Jobs Tax Credit (TJTC) which expired on December 31, 1994.

The tax credit is 35% of the first year wages (up to $6,000) paid to eligible workers. The employer can receive a tax credit per employee during the first year the person works. The WOTC program will run from October 1, 1996 to September 30, 1997.

Other Requirements:

- To qualify, an individual must either have been certified by the designated local agency as being WOTC eligible prior to the hire date, or on or before the day of the job offer, a pre-screening notice is completed by the employer for such individual.

- In the case of the latter, employers have 21 days after the individual begins work to submit, to the designated local agency, the pre-screening form. Such request must indicate why the employer believes the individual is eligible for the program and must be signed, under penalty of perjury, by the employer and the employee.

- The employer then has six months to gather supporting documents from either the employee or government agency and submit the same to the state job service office.

- The minimum work requirement is 180 days (20 days for qualified summer youth) or 400 hours (120 hours for summer youth) of work.

An agreement with Arkansas Employment Security Division gives DCO the authority to provide WOTC certification to TEA participants.

When discussing WOTC with employers, emphasis should be placed on the time frames for submitting the vouchers to insure the employer gets the tax credit and that the voucher is returned to the following address: WOTC Unit, Employment Security Department, Post Office Box 2981, Little Rock, AR listed on the form, not to the TEA program.

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An IPV determination can be rriade onlv through the Administrative Disqualification Hearing process or by a court of law. County Office staff will not make IPV determinations.

In addition, the family will continue to be ineligible for TEA assistance until the resulting overpayment has been repaid to the State with interest.

Only IPVs committed against the Arkansas TEA program will be considered in determining the applicable disqualification period in Arkansas.

For cases in which the family is currently receiving assistance, the disqualification sanction period will begin no later than the second month following the month in which the County Office received the decision. For cases in which the family is not currently receiving assistance, the sanction period will begin with the first month following the month the County Office received the decision.

Administrative Disqualification Hearings are conducted when documentary evidence is available to substantiate one or more allegations that an individual has committed an intentional program violation(s) and, as a result of the alleged IPV, has erroneously obtained TEA payments.

A case will not be referred for a TEA Administrative Disqualification Hearing If the total TEA overpayment resulting from the alleged IPV is less than $400 unless the case is also being referred for a Food Stamp Administrative Disqualification Hearing. If the case is referred for a Food Stamp Disqualification Hearing and there is also a TEA overpayment, then it will be referred for a TEA Disqualification as well, regardless of the amount of the TEA overpayment.

TEA Administrative DisquaHfication Hearings may be combined with other hearings, including Food Stamp Disqualification Hearings, If the factual issues arise out of the same or related circumstances, and the individual receives prior notice that the hearings will be combined. If hearings are combined, the time frames for conducting Administrative Disqualification Hearings will be followed unless the household waives the 30-day notice requirement for a disqualification hearing.

The County Office may not disqualify an individual until the Appeals and Hearings Section finds that the individual committed an intentional program violation. However, this does not preclude the County Office from taking adverse action for other reasons.

EXAMPLE: If a change in circumstances has occurred which will adversely affect a TEA grant and such change was not reported timely, benefits will be reduced based on the change even though a determination has not been made as to whether the failure to report resulted from an intentional program violation.

County Office

Upon receipt of the notification from the Overpayment Unit that a case has been referred for an Administrative Disqualification Hearing, the County Office will prepare the Administrative Hearing File. A copy of the File must be submitted to the Appeals & Hearings Office within seven calendar days of receipt of the referral notification. The original will be retained in the County Office.

i

Fraud Investigations

Fraud Investigations will prepare the Administrative Hearing File for cases it has developed with a possible IPV. The hearing file will be forwarded to the Overpayment Unit who will send copies of the file, including documentation gathered by Fraud Investigations, to the County Office and to the Appeals and Hearings Section.

The case record and original applications will be returned to the County Office by Fraud Investigations. Neither the case record nor the applications should be destroyed as long as an Administrative Disqualification Hearing is pending.

It is the responsibility of the County Office to review this information prior to the hearing and to present the evidence at the hearing. If any questions arise after receipt of this documentation, the County Office should contact Fraud Investigations prior to the date of the hearing to resolve the issue. The DHS-1208 will contain the name of the Fraud Investigator who prepared the case. If this individual is needed for inquiry or testimony at the hearing, the County Office should contact the Director, Fraud Investigations directly to request whatever assistance is needed.

The Appeals and Hearings Section uses a form titled "Waiver of Right to an Administrative Disqualification Hearing" for this purpose. A copy of the signed waiver is sent to the County Office upon receipt by the Appeals and Hearings Section so that the appropriate disqualification sanction may be imposed. (Refer to TEA 8402 & 8430.)

Waivers Obtained bv Fraud Investigations

The Fraud Investigations Section may also obtain a waiver to an Administrative Disqualification Hearing from the accused individual during the course of an investigation and prior to referral to the Appeals & Hearings Office. Form DHS-267. Waiver of Hearing and Disqualification is used for this purpose. Upon receipt of a signed DHS-267, Fraud Investigations will forward the form to the County Office so that the appropriate disqualification sanction may be imposed. (Refer to TEA 8402 & 8430.)

A statement attached to the notice contains a space for the accused individual to name any persons he or she wishes to subpoena to present testimony on his/her behalf at the hearing. A waiver of the right to subpoena witnesses is also included.

The time and place of the hearing will be arranged so that it is accessible to the member of the household suspected of the intentional program violation.

The advance notice is sent by certified mail, return mail, return receipt requested. When the Appeals and Hearings Section has proof that the household member accused of committing the IPV has received the advance notice of the hearing or has refused such notice, then the notice requirements have been fulfilled and the hearing can proceed. When neither proof of receipt nor proof of refusal exists and the household member fails to appear, the Appeals and Hearings Section has not met its regulatory obligation and cannot proceed with the hearing.

Postponement of Hearing

An accused individual may request a postponement of the scheduled hearing if the request is made at least 10 days in advance of the scheduled hearing and he/she shows good cause for the request. If the accused individual fails to appear but advises the Appeals and Hearings Section not more than 10 days after the hearing date, he/she may be permitted to show good cause for the failure to appear. The Appeals and Hearings Section determines whether or not good cause exists. If good cause is determined to exist, the hearing may be rescheduled within 30 days.

If the hearing is postponed, the time limits for processing will be extended for the number of days between initial scheduling and rescheduling not to exceed 120 days.

The hearing shall be attended by a representative of the County Office In the county of residence of the accused individual, or the county of residence of the individual's representative. The hearing may also be attended by friends and relatives upon request of the accused individual. If space limitations exist, the Hearing Officer has the authority to limit the number of persons in attendance at the hearing.

During the hearing, the accused individual has the right to:

The accused individual may designate in a signed statement the name of a representative to act in his behalf in viewing the Hearing File and/or representing him/her at the hearing. This statement must be contained in the Hearing File.

The designated representative will receive a copy of all correspondence regarding the hearing proceedings.

The hearing officer will:

If the decision is that an intentional program violation has not occurred, the accused individual will be so advised by the Appeals and Hearings Section in writing. A copy of the decision will be sent to the County Office, the Overpayment Unit, and Fraud Investigations {only if this unit prepared the case for an Administrative Disqualification Hearing).

If is It determined that an intentional program violation occurred, the accused individual will be advised of this finding by Appeals & Hearings. Two copies of the decision will be sent to the County Office, one copy to the Overpayment Unit and one copy to Fraud Investigations (only if this unit prepared the case for the Administrative Disqualification Hearing).

NOTE: The decision is being sent to the accused individual for information purposes only. The decision should also be attached to the notice of imposition of disqualification sanction sent by the County Office.

« Field Trips Video Tapes 15. Staff Role-playing

Section 11: Concept of Job Club

The purpose of this section is to provide background information related to Job Club and Job Search techniques. This information is provided as a resource since a wide variety of issues are addressed in the material.

Most information contained in Section II was extracted from the accompaniment to final report to U.S. Department of Labor, entitled "Job Glub Procedures and Their Applicability to the WIN Program". The report was prepared by N. H. Azrin, et al, in ' 1978, as a result of a one-year grant with the National Office of WIN to test the Job Club concept with Welfare-eligible persons. Dr. Azrin developed the Job Club concept in the early '70's to assist persons of all type to gain employment. The following material, therefore, represents years of study.

The material also relays suggestions, by the original developers of the Job Club concept, to many of the current problems faced by TEA. The problems addressed range from lack of transportation to a lack of motivation, and may be of special interest to Case Managers. Since job development/program marketing is essentially job search in behalf of the program's clientele, marketing specialists may find some of the techniques valuable in developing an on-going marketing strategy. Portions of the report are written as though the Job Club leader is addressing the participants.

*addition to the information contained in this appendix, many researchers and professional have published oks and articles in recent years. The Department of Labor also publishes periodicals related to employment opportunities. Staff are invited to contact the local public library for additional information.

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Parti cipants have probably helped their friends, relatives and acquaintances in many ways during the period of their relationships. Perhaps they helped them get a job or gave them job leads, took care of children while the friend was away, or watched over the house while the whole family was away, etc. Ask the participant if he would feel imposed upon by one of his friends if he were asked to keep his eyes and ears open for any job for his friend,

Value of friendly conversation at end of conversation

Asking favors of people can best be done in a situation suitable for personal and casual comments. The friendship and bonds between your client and the person he is calling should be renewed during the phone call. The importance of friendly conversation, should not be overlooked. If the client hasn't been in touch with some of the people he will be calling for a considerable length of time, review personal experiences, re-establish all of the feelings the person being called has for your client. An excellent way to renew these bonds is by having your client mention something he did with the person in which they had - good time.

The counselor should be sure to model friendly conversation when role*playing since clients may become tense or unsure of what to.say as a result of J speaking to a friend in front of a group. The counselor should stress the importance of this friendly conversation.

Previous Employers As Source Of Job Lead

It is important to determine how previous employers can be valuable to the job-seeker. The counselor should mention that if the client has previously worked in an area where he would not mind working again, he should not hesitate to contact former employers. It should be stressed that a previous employer can be helpful to the job-seeker regardless if he left on good terms or bad terms. If the client left a job because he was returning to school or because he left the area temporarily and this employer liked his work previously, there is a very good chance that he would rehire him. Even if the employer does not have a positipn available, the client should still talk to him, because if he knows that the client is a hard-worker, he may create a new position of him. Even if the client was fired from a job because he did not get along with employer, or because he did not work well at his previous employer. It may be that he can straighten out his differences with the employer or it may be that the employer may have a different position in which he feels the client can work better. A good way to get this point across would be for the counselor to describe an example. For instance, suppose a person was fired from a behind-the-counter job at a department store because he did not get along well with the customers. If the job-seeker returned to the personnel manager and convinced him that he was a good worker, but that selling and dealing with customers was difficult for him, he may be able to convince the manager to re-hire him in a position in which exposure to * customers would be minimal such as setting up store displays, taking inventory, and working with stock. It is extremely important that the job seeker, in this situation, strongly emphasizes his willingness to try harder to please the manager to work his best,

If the job-seeker worked well with his previous employer, he should have no trouble in calling or visiting him and inquiring about any available positions. However, many clients are reluctant to visit an employer who fired him. If the client left a job of his own accord and wants to return to work, he can either call or visit the employer. However, if he was fired from a job, he should be instructed to visit the employer rather than call him on the phone. The reason for this is that it is easier to say "no" over the phone, Seeing the job-seeker in person may show the employer that he is motivated and wants to try again, and this may make it more difficult for the employer to say "no" without first discussing the job situation and his feelings about rehiring the client.

OTHER CLIENTS AS SOURCE OF JOB LEADS

The counselor should have the client go through the list of leads from past clients and write down any interesting leads he wants to pursue. The client should also be encouraged to add any job nosslbilities which he knows about but is not interested "in to the list. The counselor should point out that it will be to everyone's advantage to list as many leads as possible, so everyone w111 get a job quicker,

Since the jobs on this list comes from many different sources, the particiDant should avoid telling an employer that he heard about a job oossibility from a particular person unless he has obtained that person's permission. He should properly tell the employer that he heard about it from some general source, or that he doesn't know who told him. Also, many questions may be raised regarding this list if the client mentions the list, so it is well for the client to avoid this general topic and instead to discuss his skill and -interests.

The counselor should stress every day that it is important for the client to remember that after he finishes talking to the employer about a job for himself, that he should ask if he has any openings for people with . other backgrounds, because he has some friends looking for work. This should be done whenever it will not jeopardize his own chances of finding work at this place. Clients Jnay be more motivated to come to daily sessions 1f they anticipate that other clients may have found leads for them. The expectation of leads from other clients can help keep clients coming in every day.

All of the places where clients have had an interview are viable leads for other clients. This is why the counselor should make sure that all leads forms are kept in order and collected as each client gets a job.

LIST OF WHERE PREVIOUS CLIENTS ARE WORKING

How it can be useful to later clients

A list of where previous clients are working and their job titles with permission, and their names and phone numbers where they can be reached can be

\ery valuable to clients. The list can be made available and clients can check to see if:

The client should tell the previous client that he is interested in doing similar work and explain his qualifications and background to the previous client. He should ask the client:

The counselor should tell the client that he should request these letters immediately, to speed up his obtaining employment.

Although letters may be more impressive if they come from someone who has a title, anyone can write a character reference; Well-written letters form friends or neighbors can be helpful.

At times, clients contact a reference who is very willing to supply a letter but does not have the time or does not feel he knows how to write a good one. In such cases the client should ask his friend if he would rewrite and sign a letter which the client wrote. If the friend agrees, the counselor can help the participant prepare a letter.

CHAPTER 5 THE RESUME

Use of Resume

"The counselor should explain what a resume is and how it is used. It should then be explained that a resume is a short written history of the job-seeker's life. Most resumes simply give history of the job-seeker's job history and educational background. Samples of resumes can be found in the PUB-104..

There are several ways a resume can be useful. The job-seeker can give one to an employer before the interview. A resume usually is attached to the job application.

In those businesses where it is difficult to meet with the owner or personnel director, the client should provide the employer with additional information which may help him get the job. This can be in the.form of a cover letter, stating skills or experience which are relevant to that particular job. Cover letters are also used when a resume is sent by mail.

The counselor should make sure each client has a few sheets of blank white paper, several paper clips, and examples of letters to employers in his fo.lder for this use. When a situation arises such that the client cannot see the employer and wants to provide the employer with additional information he should be instructed to write the letter in the waiting room and leave resume, letters of reconmendation and application with either the secretary or whomever he contacted.

Resumes can accompany letters inquiring about positions with various businesses. Frequently help-wanted ads request applicants to mail a resume. If the client is interested in relocation, writing to the businesses in distant cities with an-attached resume may also result in the employer calling or writing him for an interview.

Experience and Training

If the client Is a graduate of either high school or college, he should list the last school attended and his graduation date. If he is a college graduate, it would not be necessary for him to list information about high school because the employer would assume he received a high school diploma. If client is not a graduate, she should state the name of the last school she attended. The client may also list any training she has received and skills she has obtained,

References

The participant should list 3 persons who would make positive statements regarding clients personality, work experience and character. The client

should ask permission to use person's name. The client should obtain letter of recoimiendation from each person listed. The following information should be listed for references:

Name of reference Title or Organization Telephone number

The participant may chose to state "References will be furnished upon request". Editing the resume

The client will complete all these sections on the resume form so they can be typed on the formal resume. The counselor should review each section with each client to make sure it is completed. Some clients may only write short unstructured phrases in the personal background and special interests section. These should be changed to complete, interesting sentences. It is then the responsibility of the counselor to edit the resumes,

It may be necessary to do considerable editing of the previous work history as some clients may not have described their responsibilities in enough detail. The counselor and the participant can expand this list of responsibilities.

CHAPTER 6 THE INTERVIEW

Why Practice the Interview

It is very unusual that a job-seeker will be hired without first having an interview. As a result, the manner in which the job-seeker handles himself in the interview may be the determining factor in obtaining the job. Because of the importance of the interview, the counselor should have clients role-play interview situations to prevent inappropriate behaviors and practice appropriate behaviors. Since interviews often produce anxiety, the client may forget something important or say something inappropriate. Role-playing the interview situation will help relieve anxiety, and the clients will be relaxed and self-assured in interviews.

The Personal Approach

Rationale - In addition to presenting the facts about himself, the job applicant should try to present himself in a personal manner. Potential employers wi 11 be impressed by individuals who appear confident, .courteous, and pleasant. As a result, the client should learn to try to come across in a positive way, remember to smilp, offer a firm handshake, and as he introduces himself, speak in a firm, clear voice, and maintain good posture.

It should be emphasized also, that the client should be personal, courteous and pleasant to anyone he contacts at the interview site, especially the receptionist or secretary. He should make a point to be friendly with the receptionist.

Job refusals - A job-seeker should never turn down a job unless he has a better one already offered to him. However, if it does become necessary for him to refuse a job, he must remember to remain personable and courteous to the employers who offered him the job. This must be done in a manner that will not damage the relationship between the job-seeker and the employer, since employment with that individual may be desired in the future, or should the client ever want to refer one of his friends. For example, he could mention that he thoroughly appreciates the generous offer, but due to certain circumstances, such as a higher salary elsewhere, he is sorry that he will be unable to accept his offer. Because of the job-seeker's honesty and sincerity, the employer might decide to offer him a higher salary. Or, he might suggest other job leads or personally assist the client by making recommendations to other employers.

What Are Common Problems

Poor self'image - A problem which often arises in the interview situation is that job-seekers tend to underrate themselves. This seems particularly true among those job-seekers who have been unemployed for long periods of time, or those who are collecting some sort of financial benefits as a result of being unemployed.

Examples of clients who underrate themselves - Housewives who have been unemployed for a long period of time or perhaps have never been employed feel they have no work experience. For instance, housewife may go into the interview and reply that she has never worked. In such.cases, clients should be informed that they should mention, all. the things they have experiences with, as a housewife, as well as hobbies and volunteer work efforts. Transferable skills such as these can be listed on a resume. Another example would be the client who has an unobservable, physical handicap. Probably the most common example of this is the person who says he has a "bad back". When in the interview situation, the client tends.to talk about.all of the things he cannot do, as a result of this bad back, rather than the things he can do-When the client begins to mention all of' the things he cannot do in the role-play, the counselor should stop the mock interview and ask the mock interviewer if he would hire a person who mentioned all of the things he cannot do. It should be stressed that the client should never mention things he cannot do but only the things he can do.

Employer in Bad Mood

Occasionally, the participant may have an interview with an employer who is in a bad mood. When faced with this situation, they may become depressed or they may reflect the same type of behavior back to the employer. Either of these-responses could result in the client not getting the job. Therefore, the counselor should stress the importance of . maintaining composure and confidence, and staying as cheerful as possible regardless of the situation. The counselor should stress that the client should never take the employer's mood personally. The client tries very hard to maintain his positive outlook and friendly appearance, the employer may realize that he was giving him a \ hard time and be impressed that the client was able to cope. This factor may influence the employer's decision to hire the participant.

Obvious Handicaps

If the client has a physical problem which is easily observable, the employer may feel that he may not be able to do the job. However, the employer may be reluctant to discuss the client's handicap with him. Since this is a factor which can definitely influence the enployer's decision to hire the client and since the employer will probably not discuss the issue, the client must bring up this issue himself. This can be accomplished by having the client discuss the issue in the resume or by mentioning it himself in the interview,

After the client has stated what his handicap is and possibly how'long he has had it, he should then explain, that this is not a. factor which would hinder his performance on the job. He should then continue to explain that he has developed additional skills which would make him an excellent employee.

An example of overcompensation which may be used with most handicaps is the fact that the individual has put up with many frustrations and disappointments in his life and as a result is better able to handle trying situations than most individuals. An example which might be specific to a particular handicap, might be that of an individual who has had. a,lijub removed and, as a result, has developed stronger muscle in the remaining limb. There are many types of over compensations which make the client a better than average employee for particular jobs.

If the client has some sort of a prosthesis, such as an artificial arm, it would probably make a good impression if he demonstrated how well it works.

Treated for Mental Disorder

It is not uncommon for a former mental patient to feel that no one will hire him simply because he was in a mental institution. In such cases, the counselor must improve the client's self-image,

The counselor should tell the client that it is important to remember not -to say anything which the employer may consider to be negative.

If the employer questions the client about having undergone psychological treatment, one response might be, "Yes, I did undergo psychological treatment which, of course, makes me a better person to hire than most others because everyone has some sort of problems, and most people never do anything about them, but I got rid of my probleiji".

If the client was in a mental institution and the employer doesn't know it, but he wants to know why the client did not work during some period of time, the client could simply indicate that he had some personal matters which prevented him from working but are not longer a problem to him.

The important thing to remember when dealing with clients who have a background which the employer may consider to be negative is to first help the client feel that he is just as good, or better, than anyone else and, second, to teach him what to say or not to say so that others will feel the same way.

Some clients wi 11 not mind discussing their former mental problems in the group. However, others will not want other group member to find out. For those who are not shy about it, the counselor should have them role-play the appropriate interview responses with other group members. If they don't wish to discuss this with other members, the counselor should role-play the interview. The counselor can make this decision after talking to the client, in private, for a couple of minutes about problems he may have indicated.

Previous Arrests

If the interviewer asks the client why he has left this question blank, the client should of course state that he was arrested but might report that .it was simply a misunderstanding and the whole issue was dropped as seen by the lack of formal charges of conviction, as the case may be.

Been In Prison

If the job-seeker was convicted of a crime, he should be honest and tell the interviewer that he was convicted, but he considers himself to be completely rehabilitated and there is no way that this past misfortune would be duplicated. If the client has received any type of training while in prison, he should mention that he has learned some new skills which could be an asset to the employer. He might mention that he has more respectable friends now, and/or that "he himself has matured since his offense,- and-he-now wants to settle down and make a new life for himself. If the client has a parole officer, he might give the name of this officer to the employer as a reference regarding his responsibility and trustworthiness.

Drug or Alcohol Addition

If the client has ever been addicted to drugs or alcohol and is questioned about this, he may choose to say that he did have a problem but add that he has realized his mistake and overcome his problem. Further, he might add that he as matured to the point where he would' never fall into the trap of this addiction again. He might emphasize that he now wants steady, long-term "employment so that he can make something out of his life. He may mention any alcohol or drug rehabilitation support groups, such as AA, with which he is currently involved.

Unemployment Compensation

Since employers may often feel that a person with a history of collecting unemployment would be an unstable worker, it is important to have the client honestly stress the fact that he is interested in a long-term position.

Military Record

These questions should be answered exactly as stated unless the individual has a less than honorable discharge. In such cases the client should be prepared to explain in a positive way the manner in which he has overcome the problems which caused the less than honorable discharge.

Short-Term Employment

If participant has switched from job to job or has had long periods of 1 unemployment between jobs, these may be considered, negative factors by the employer. It is important that the client not say anything negative about his previous employer or position in the company. Whatever the reason may have been for his leaving these previous positions, he should describe why he now feels his next job will endure. For instance, if he left to go to school, he might stress that he is now through with school and is looking for a permanent position. If it is because of any other problem, he might similarly state that he had some personal problems at that time which have now been taken care of and he is now looking for a full-time, long-term job because these problems will not occur again in the future.

Arrangement of the Interview Rehearsal Group

Organization of group - The interview rehearsal can be arranged in two ways. One 1 s to have Interviews at a time take place in front of the whole group. This allow every client to benefit from everyone else's mistakes, as well as seeing the proper interview responses demonstrated by many other people.

Another way is to divide the entire group of job-seekers into a number of smaller groups. This enable everyone to engage in an interview at the same time. This second approach is used because it makes the best use of time. The clients are divided into groups of three. One person plays the role of the interviewer, another plays the role of job-seeker being interviewed, and the third observes and comments on the mock interview.

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In addition a tape recorder may be used when a client is having a qreat deal of trouble and needs extra practice. By listening to the tape the job-seeker can hear what response he made particularly well or which ones he needs to improve upon. Video cameras are also helpful to record mock interviews for clients to view afterward.

When the counselor first chooses three people to participate in an Interview group, he should assign one of the three roles mentioned above to each of these people. As he does this, he should also give each of these people -a copy of the appropriate papers needed for their particular role. This means he should give a list of mock interview questions to the interviewer, as well as the appropriate answers to these questions. He should give this same information to the group observer. The applicant should be Instructed to hand his application form to the employer, who in turn should make comments on the application as well as asking the questions on his mock interview questions and answer list.

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When the first participant has completed twc :nock interviews, the roles should be rotated until everyone in the group has had an opportunity at each of the roles. It is important that the counselor stress, at the beginning of the role-playing situation, that the interviewer ask difficult questions since it is better for the client to be exposed to such questions before he is asked in a real interview.

The counselor should allow the participants to play all the roles rather than being the interviewer for each interviewee. This is so that the participant can get a feeling of the interview situation from all sides. This may give him a better perspective of how the interviewer views the interviewee and better prepare him for the interview.

Sample Letter Responses to Help-Wanted Advertisement

Dear Sir:

I would be very interested in meeting with you to discuss your organization as well as possible present or future employment opportunities with you, I have worked with the mentally handicapped as well as "normal" populations and feel that my past experience and education 1n the areas of money management, consumer shopping, basic household skills, and counseling could be a valuable addition to your organization.

Enclosed is my resume, letters of recormiendation, and publication to give you more information about me. I can be reached by calling 000-000-0000 or 111-111-1111. You can also reach me by vfriting the address below,

Sincerely,

Mary Smith

Box 000 - R.R. #0

Creetown, I llinois

Encs.

Another example could be:

Dear Sirs:

This letter is in response to your ad in the newspaper. I am a hard-working aggressive and ambitious young man, and I am very anxious to meet with you. I have enclosed my resume and letters of recommendation to give you more information on my qualifications and background,

I would be very interested in meeting with you for. an interview. I can be reached at the phone number or address below.

Thank you and 1 hope to hear from you soon. Sincerely,

Bob Smith m South Avenue

Evendale, Illinois

222-222-2222

Encs.

When To Begin the RoTe-Playinq and Telephone Procedures

It may be advantageous if the counselor did not have everyone begin using the telephone or begin practicing interviews at the same time. In most offices it would be difficult to have everybody begin on the telephones at the same time simply because there are not enough telephones in the office. It may be best if every interview group did not begin at the same time, because if they did, it would be more difficult for the counselor to be with each group during the different phases of the interview.

The best way to handle both of these situations would be to have each counselor simultaneously follow a procedure which . every client will not complete at the same time. Such a procedure would be the one In which participants prepare a list of employers to contact by telephone. The counselor should organize the situation so that every time two clients have completed a list of a required number of employers, they should be paired off on a telephone. This should continue until all available telephones are occupied. After that, every time three individuals have finished this required list, they should) be taken to another area to begin the mock. interview procedure. Then, as various individuals finish their phone calls, they should enter an interview group. Likewise, those who have completed their mock interviews should take the place of those who were formerly using the telephone.

Throughout this entire period of time, the counselor should be moving around among the various sub-groups praising them for what they are doing'properly and helping them improve the things which they are not doing properly.

Utilization of Interview Rehearsal Questions and Responses

The list of interview questions following the section entitled "Appearance and Grooming" has examples of proper types of responses following each question This makes it simple for the client playing the role of the interviewer to recognize when the interviewee is making proper or improper responses. Also, since the group member playing the role of the group commentator will have a copy of this list, he will be able to make constructive remarks both during and after the interview.

The questions "How old are you? and "Are you married?" should not be asked by an employer, but answers are suggested on the sample in case the participant is asked and chooses to respond. It is illegal to discriminate in hiring based upon age or marital status.

The first time each client is playing the role of the interviewee it should be structured so that a discussion follows after each interview question. This will give the interviewee immediate feedback of his response and the interviewer can provide the interviewee with additional information which might make the response better. If the client's response was totally improper or missing a lot Of information, that interview question should be role-played again before going on to the next one. The second or third time the De'"son is role-playing the interviewee, depending on the initial interviewing skills of the client, the interview should proceed without interruptions. The interview should take appro*imately 15 minutes each time. If the clien: ishaving a great deal of trouble with the interview, the counselor should role-play it wi th him.

The counselor should explain that the participants of the role-playing situation should try to make the situation seem as realistic as possible. As the counselor listens in on segments of the various role-playing situation, he will be able to determine if the questions- and answers are being handled properly. This should enable him to easily guide the group into properly using these questions.

APPEARANCE & GROOMING

The often sensitive subject of personal hygiene, grooming, and apparel is one that every job search workshop or class must address. Although much or all of the topic may seem very obvious to a group leader, one needs to remember that a surprisingly large percentage of job seekers know little about how to package themselves appropriately for the business of job seeking. Any job placement veteran can tell stories about the janitor applying for work in a three piece suit or the cashier in slacks and a halter. People who dress or groom themselves inappropriately are usually doing so out of ignorance. Their chances of being hired are much reduced and they never are told why this is so by the employer.

The Job Club leader is to prepare a lecturette stressing the importance of one's personal appearance as it relates to seeking work. Comments and descriptions should be carefully limited to observations of the realities of the labor market, and how employers in different occuoational fields tend to react to various styles of dress and grooming. The decisions of how to groom and dress oneself are then left to the class participants to make, hopefully from a more enlightened point of view than before the workshop.

To underscore the importance of personal appearance in the job interview, the following survey findings can be incorporated into the lecturette and(

displayed on the flip chart for discussion:

45%, of the success or failure of an interview is directly dependent upon a person's appearance (dressing & grooming).

35% depends upon the applicant's responsiveness (facial, expressions, smiling, verbal responses).

____ that's BOX of what determines success for the interview, and it's

100% controllable by the job applicant!

10% depends upon experience. That's all! You see. by the time the employer has agreed to commit him or herself to the time to interview an applicant, the employer is assuming you are either fully qualified or close enough. The hiring action is therefore NOT a conscious rational decision based upon consideration of one's qualifications hearly as much as it is an emotional gut reaction determined by whether the employer "likes" you or not.

10% reflects various miscellaneous factors.

The above data is from a survey of 200 California employers. Many other surveys in various parts of the country have found similar information.

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The foil oviing C3n be offered as personal illustration of the first impression principle: Imagine yourself on a city bus. sitting by one or two personS'-tliere are no empty seats left at all. The bus stops, and a man gets on, pays his fare, and looks arounc the bus for an empty seat. He concludes he will have to share, and when his gaze gets to you, you probably do one of two things. The first possibility is that you thinK, "Oh. God" and look, out the window while spreading out in your seat to make the seat look more full ." The other possibi1ity is that you unconsciously get yourself orderly, and possibly you even nod or smile toward the man because you would not mind "at - all if he sat next to you. You probably are not even aware you have done it! But based only upon the man's entrance and his appearance, you have, in your mind, either accepted or rejected him as a seat sharer. Think of this very human reaction the next time you are in a similar situation. It is hardly any wonder that employers do this too with every applicant who darkens their door.

Host members of the group will come to recognize any errors they have been rraking in their "packaging" and will correct them on their own. Rarely will they indicate to the leader or the group that they learned something, because not knowing is an embarassment. If a particular group member appears not to be getting the message, it is necessary for the group leader to determine whether or not it is by conscious decision or not. If the leader decides individual counseling is appropriate, it must never be done in the presence of others and should be done as tactfully as possible.

INTERVIEW rehearsal'QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

REVIEW YOUR RESUME BEFORE AN INTERVIEW.

Everything about you should be viewed as an asset and you should be prepared to explain to an employer why it is an asset and why you. would be a good person to hire.

At the beginning of an interview you should try to establ ish some common interest with the interviewer so that you can relate to each other on a more personal basis than two strangers.

Question: Tell me about yourself.

TALK ABOUT YOURSELF AND YOUR INTERESTS. ESPECIALLY JOB-RELATED ONES. BEFORE YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR PAST HORK HISTORY.

Question: How old are you?

If the employer asks this question, he is probably concerned that you are too old or young for that job. Whichever age bracket you are in there are many advantages -to your age.

A young person may disinterest an employer because he may fear he will train you and then you will move if you get a better job or get married. They also fear that young employees will have erratic attendance. You must refute all these negative assumptions by stressing the many advantages of being young,and energetic with excellent health and therefore will not miss work because you are sick; you learn very quickly and are willing to do lost of different kinds. of jobs which isn't always true for older applicants; you do not have very much money because you have just started working and are planning to stay at a job a long time to make money and hopefully learn different types of jobs; take criticism well because you are eager to do the job the best that you can; are punctual because you want to be careful to follow all the rules and be a good worker.

An older person should stress that they are mature and realize the importance of a job; that they are settled and wi 11 not be moving around the country anymore; they will not be changing their job because they do not want to move from the area and are looking for a stable, long-term job; have a great deal of work and life experience; are very dependable workers and do not need someone watching over them while they are working; are punctual because they are used to the routine of going to work; since.is no longer a "young kid". knows what he wants and is more settled; include your ability to do the job.

Question: Are you married?

The employer probably would not ask this question If It was not important to him. He may want his employees to be married, which Indicates a responsible person or he may want someone single that will not be tied down to the restrictions of a family. Whatever your marital status, you should explain to the employer why it is an asset. a

Question: Are you planning to return to school?

This type of question usually tells you that the employer is afraid you will quit your job to return to school. The answer - should include a statement of your desire to work and that working is very important to you right now. If you are planning on returning to school, make sure the employer understands that you will be going to night school.

For a young worker who has not completed high school, it may De advantageous to state your desire for full-time job, but you now realize the importance of an education and you are hoping to finish up your nigh school ceg:"ee at night.'

Another possible response would be that you have had all the schooling you need and that nowyou want to stay in the working world and begin building ? future for yourself.

Question: What are your future plans?

It is best not to say you are planning for advancement with the company, because the employer may think you will not be satisfied with the open position and not hire you for that reason. A good work record usually speaks for itself in getting advancements.

You should then mention personal things you want to do in this area which would result from the job. 'Such as, "I would like to save up enough money from this job to buy a boat so I can enjoy some of the lakes in the area", or, you may say that eventually you would like to save enough money to build or remodel. yoy house. These statements should all indicate that you want to keep you job for a long time and your plans to stay in the area. Also, by mentioning your personal Interests such as boats, or remodeling, you may say something the employer is also interested in.

Question: Have you ever done this kind of work before?

YOUR SHOULD NEVER ANSWER "NO".

For instance, if the employer asks if you have any experience as a manager, and you have not but you have been in the service, you may say, "well, when I was in the service I was in charge of 4 men and- had to make sure they did their work properly. This involved giving as well as receiving orders". If you were formerly a housewife and want a job managing a short-order restaurant, you may say that you have had years of experience cooking this type of food as well as balancing budgets and supervising the daily household chores which your children were responsible. If you are just out to school and have never worked, you should mentioned things you did In school and at home which are related to this job; you should also mention that you pick up new things easily and would have no problem adjusting to the job.

Question: Why do you want to work here?

The important thing to mention is that you like this type of work and you feel that you can do a good job.

Question: What kind of machines, tools, or equipment can you use?

The answer should Include all Information on any machine related to the job and also any hobbies that require the kinds of skills you will need for this job. You should know the manufacturer's name of any piece of equipment you have operated, but If you do not have this information, do not omit telling the employer you know how to run that piece of equipment.

It is important to mention all the machines you can operate because it will make you sound like a more versatile person.

Question: Can you work under pressure and deadlines?

If the employer asks this question it probably means this may be part of your job. Your answer should assure the employer that you can work under pressure and deadlines. You should cite examples on previous jobs or related experience when It was necessary to work under such conditions. For instance, if you have ever worked In a restaurant, you can mention that during lunch hours there were rushes where there was a lot of pressure to service many customers in a short period of time and you were always able to do it without becoming agitated. If you have been a student, you may mention that you often had to work under the pressure of completing reports by a .certain time or while studying for and taking exams. Or, if you have worked at any type of production job, you can mention that you often had to fill an order in a short period of time or on short notice and that you were always able to put in the extra effort it needed to meet the deadline.

Question: Why did you leave you last job?

If It was a legitimate reason for leaving, such as: the company had a lay-off and you did not have seniority; you had to miss a lot of work because of illness or operation-assure the employer your health is fine now; it was a seasonal job and the season had ended-however, you are looking for something more stable now which you can stick with; you moved; new training or education has made you eligible for a different type of job, such as this; family problems-assure the employer they are resolved. A single explanation should do.

If It was an unsatisfactory reason, like you were fired, explain in a positive manner how the situation has been or will be corrected. If you were fired because of medical reasons, explain that they have been professionally resolved. If a married woman left her last job because her husband left his job or completed school, the employer might assume she would do the same thing to him if the same situation arose. To avoid this, if your husband was in school but is not now, you can say that you left your last job because he ha: comoleted school and the two of you wanted to settle down. If you quit your job because your husband got a new job in this area, you should never say that; instead you quit because you both decided to work and settie down in this area.

If you missed work, a lot, or did not get along with the boss, or did not work well, all of these could be classified as personal problems. If you got fired you might say that the job did not work, out because of personal problems, but you have taken care of the problems and they will not come up again.

Do not say negative things about your previous employer. Also, do not say you left your job because you did not get along with your boss. The interviewer may do business with the other company and/or may have personal friends there. It is also too easy for an employer to assume that because you did not get along with your previous boss, you will not get along with your new one.

MENTION ALL GOOD THINGS ABOUT YOUR LAST JOB EVEN IF YOU DID NOT LIKE HORKING THERE. If you say negative things about your last job the interviewer might think you will tell people bad things about his company too and not hire you for that reason.

Question: What was your employer's opinion about your work?

Unless you were fired, he obviously must have been satisfied with your work. Do not give any negative im'pressions but instead offer positive impressions and your previous employer's name, which should be on your resume, for him to contact for more information. The best thing to do is to give him a copy of an open letter of recommendation. If you do not have this, simply say that you always got along well wit the employer and if he is contacted you are sure he would give you a good recommendation.

However, If you did not get along with your previous employer, do not put his name on the resume because you do not want him contacted. Instead, try to talk about a different employer who did like you. But, if you cannot do this, talk about things which the employer did not complain about, such as coming every day on time or a particular aspect of the job. You can say he complained to a number of people - but he never complained to me about it.

Question: What position do you expect to have in five years?

Indicate your desire to learn new things, gain more experience and become more valuable to the company. If you know that this is the .type of place which advances from within, state your desire to learn your job well and that you want to eventually achieve a position of higher responsibi1ity within the company. If you do not know about the advancement policies, do not state a specific position you are hoping to advance to because the employer may think you will be dissatisfied with the position which is open. Instead, simply say that you hope to become the best person the company has in that particular area.

Question: How long do you plan to stay with the company?

Simply say that you are not planning on moving, getting married, having a baby, or going back to school, etc., and since you cannot see any reason why you would not stay with it for may years, you expect you would be very happy at this job. Also, insure him of how much you like the area and plan on staying in the area, if you are planning on getting married or are pregnant, etc., simply mention that as a result of this added responsibility you want a secure job and plan to stay with it for many years.

Question; What are [GREATER THAN]our salary requirements?

It is usually best not to mak.e any demands until after the job is offered. If you mention a figure below the standard wage, you may wind up with less than you could have gotten. If you ask for a more than standard wage, you may not get the job. So. let him offer you the job before you bicker about the price.

Question: What is your biggest strength?

Mention something that is related to the job and shows you to be a trustworthy and honest personal and explain how it would be useful to the company. You want to present yourself as a good worker (being on time, efficient, organized, working until getting the job done, take pride in your job. etc.)

Question: What i s your biggest weakness that would hinder, your job performance? ..

You should state that you do not have any weaknesses that would hinder your job performance.

Question: Tell me 5 words that describe you.

Indicate positive attributes that the employer would want you to have. Examples: friendly, honest, punctual, efficient, organized, responsible, cooperative, hard-working, creative, dedicated, intelligent. energetic, cheerful.

NEVER INDICATE ANYTHING NEGATIVE.

Question: How is you health?

Either say, "My health is excellent; I've never had to take off any work because of it" or say. "I do not have any problems which will interfere with my work". If you do not have a visual medical problem, for example, a bad back or migraine headaches, do not mention the problem to the employer.

If you have a headache, backache, toothache, etc.' during the interview, do not tell the interviewer your problem.

If you have something which is obviously noticeable, state your ability and willingness to overcompensate. For example, "At the age of 20 I became blind due to a car accident, but I like to be independent. As a result. I use a cane rather than a dog. I can quickly get used to places and get around with little difficulty. In addition, I can take notes and dictation in braille and have a better-than-average memory, which makes me able to handle a demanding job." "I have an artificial arm and in some cases it is nore helpful than a regular arm." (Give an example of when this is true.) Pick up a piece of paper off the desk or a pencil, etc. to show the employer your ability. "1 only have one arm but because of this, this arm is much stronge'' and I've learned to use it much quicker and therefore make a very fast, dependable worker."

If you have an obvious handicap, try to get a letter of recommendation from a past employer telling of how well you work. This is because often people do not understand handicaps and are not aware that a handicap need not interfere with your work ability and often makes you a superior worker.

) It is usually a long and difficult process to learn to compensate for a disability; along the way you probably had to cope with many frustrations and disappointments. As a result, you would probably be better able to handle yourself in trying situations in the future. This point should be emphasized to the interviewer as something which makes you stand out from other individua'ls.

Question: How many days of work did you miss last?

Attendance records are important to employers. If you missed the days due to a certain illness tell the employer that you have been cured and. therefore, it will not interfere with you present working.

Question: When are you avai'lable for work?

Express interest to begin as soon as possible. Do not prolong your starting date for more than two weeks or the employer may think you are not interested. It may ise a good idea to say that,you can start whenever he needs you, but only if this is true.

Question: Why should we hire you instead of someone else?

You may say you like this type of work, are good at it, and you thinK you would work harder at it than other people would.

Question: Do you have any questions?

Try to ask a question or two. It is a good opportunity to clear up any details you are not sure of and also gives you a chance to show your interest in the position and in the company.

If you know anything about the business, ask questions along these lines. For example; What type of typewriter do you use here?" Whatever he replies, say, "It is a good kind".

A question such as, "When can I start working?" should indicate that you are an ambitious person. If the employer indicates that there are no positions avai lable. ask if he would consider you on a part-time basis. If there is still a negative response, ask if he could suggest other employers for you to check. \

You may ask about positions for other clients. An appropriate way to ask, is' as follows: "Some of my friends are also looking for work. They have a variety of backgrounds. Do you know cf any other openings? One of my friends may qualify for it."

Use the call-back closing. If the employer does not hire you at the interview, ask if you can check back with him in a couple of days. If he says he will call you if you are chosen, ask if it would be okay if you called him back anyway.

As you leave the interview:

"Do you know what kinds of skills are necessary to manage a short order restaurant. The same skil Is you have just told me you have years of experience.

If she does go through the list herself, the -counselor should review her list and help her expand it. For instance, she may have three children. but not write down all the things she had to do with the children. For example, some of these may make her eligible for a nurse's,aide position.

The counselor should then question the client to determine if her concerns about not having any marketable skills have been resolved.

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Welfare Contingency

For some Project SUCCESS clients, participation in program activities is a mandatory requirement to receive assistance. The Job Club component is an intensive job-seeking program. Non-participation in Job Club should be handled in the same manner as in non-participation in any other activity.

Child Care

Problems with child care are perhaps one of the frequently occurring obstacles in job searches. It is crucial that these arrangements be taken care of prior to the first Job Club session. This is important since-the client will be spending most of his day in job search activities and could start a job at any moment. In areas where there is a shortage of child care available. It is sometimes possible for clients to help one another out with this problem. For instance. If one client enjoys taking care of children, and has adequate facilities to do so within the home, it may be possible for that individual to take care of the children of other clients. If this occurs, two benefits have resulted. One client has job doing child care, and a number of other clients no longer have a child care problem. Registrants wishing to provide in-home child care should be encouraged to seek licensing, if appropriate.

Loss of Money By Gaining Employment

Occasionally, clients feel that they may be financi.ally hurting themselves by obtaining employment. They feel they may make more money staying on assistance than collecting a paycheck. The stepping stone approach should provide motivation to all clients: that they should not look at the job they obtain as an ending point, but rather as the beginning of a number of moves upward. Clients should be taught that employers will look upon them more favorably if they are already working somewhere else than if they are unemployed. This means they will have a better chance of getting a better job or moving up within the same organization, if they are already employed.

Often, clients in a job situation they dislike will quit the job and perhaps look for a better job. However, they should be taught that they should begin looking for a better job while they are still employed.

To further encourage this approach, the counselor should remind clients that he will be available to assist them even after they start working. They can call the counselor for job-seeking advice and obtain additional copies of resumes and letters of recommendation to distribute to employers.

Discrimination Through Agency Association

Clients often receive job development assistance from the agency-. This means that job developers contact employers who agree to consider hiring clients. The clients are then referred to the employer. This approach often necessitates that the client indentify himself as a client, and, therefore, an AFDC or Food Stamp recipient. In situations like this, it is an obvious benefit for the client to be associated with the Project SUCCESS office. However, when clients pursue leads which they obtained on the'-r own, this benefit of agency association does not exist. In fact, employei'S often develop negative connotations about job applicants who are on assi stance. Most interviews result from leads the clients obtained by themselves. As a result, clients should be instructed to avoid saying that tney are "welfare clients."

Professional training and Experience and/or Extensive Hork Histories

In the case where a client has a specialized education and is looking for a job in a profession, such as teachers, biologists, psychologists, architects, engineers, there may be difficulty in finding " positions within the geographical area. The same procedures should be utilized with these people. However, it may take them somewhat longer than the average client to find employment as a result of his specialization.

- The client who is highly educated and/or has worked in his field for many years, usually presents a special situation. The reason for this is that this type of client probably has not had to look intensively for employment in the past. Since his skills have been in great demand, he had only to send a resume and letter and job offers usually have come to him; now he may find the situation has changed and he must sell himself to an employer. This reversal is often difficult for many professional people to cope with and may produce motivational problems.

To resolve these motivational problems, the counselor should spend some time with this client explaining how the job market has changed and requires a change in his approach. It ;s not uncommon for this type of individual to feel that the procedures in this program are good, but not necessary for someone with this training. The counselor should try to emphasize the value of the procedure for a11 clients including professionals. This can be . accomplished by quoting examples or stating the effectiveness of the program with all clients. Very frequently the professional client only desires help with his resume. Such help is, or course, furnished normally ' in this approach. In addition, the client should be urged to follow the basic format of the program. The actual content of the program should be altered in the following details for professional persons as compared with non-professional.

Directories of the members of the client's profession should be available from a library. These directories can be obtained from the national, state, or regional associations of the profession. The professional client should use these directories in the same manner as the other cl ients use the "yellow

pages".

The employment bulletin of the client's professional groups should similarly be obtained for use in the office, or lacking that, in a library. These employment bulletins should be used by the professional client in the same general manner that has been described for the newspaper help wanted ads by other clients. Professors or other persons in the same profession can assist in identifying and obtaining these bulletins.

The relocation procedures are more 1ikely to be relevant for professional clients, especially if they reside in an area where little or no need exists for their specialized skills.

Personal contacts from present and former classmates and co-workers are often of greater importance to professional persons because of the relatively limited advertisement of positions available in the professions.

Attending the employment section of several professional convention meetings is a distinctive source for jobs for professionals.

If many clients form the same profession are being counseled, copies of the employment bulletins, and professional association membership directories j should be obtained for the job counseling office and regularly updated.

Most of the other procedures in the program are as -.-elevant for professionals as for others, including: the emphasis on friends, relations and acquaintances; the resume format; use of the telephone; use of the mail; shAring of job leads from past and present clients; contacting former employers and co-workers; searching out unadvertised positions, etc. The most important part of the resume, for many professionals, is the employment skills section. This is also important for non-tjrofessionals; however, it is likely that professionals will spend more time on this section than non-professionals. The reason for this is that professionals often have many more skills to Itemize. The more skills an individual itemizes, the more impressive he will appear. However, long lists of skills can present a problem if not properly organized on the resume. An employer may become bored with a long list of items and not thoroughly read through them. If this occurs, it is possible that skills related to that employer's business may be overlooked. To overcome this problem, clients with large numbers of skills. such as professionals, should put their skills into categories. These categories, such as sales, counseling, or management, should stand out from the skills under them by placing them slightly in the left hand column of the page. They should also be typed in bold print and under 1 Ined. When this approach is used, the length'of exposure to the skills should be itemized only for the category and not for the individual ski 11 s . Thi s means that a job-seeker with 5 years experience conducting group therapy plus 6 months experience doing individual counseling. would Indicate 5 1/2 years experience in the field of counseling. The same, format is fol lowed for non-professionals, of course, but less need exists for them to combine skill areas since they usually do not have as many component skills.

Further Education

The most obvious advantage to job seeking over going to school, Is that it will result In the client quickly obtaining an income. This means he will be self-sufficient and will not have to rely-on others for his support. Also, he may be able to afford to buy things which he could not afford in the past. Cash benefits are not the only advantages to working: a person's pride and feeling of self-worth can often increase after he begins employment.

If an individual is interested in learning new skills he may be able to go to night school, or he may be able to go to school during the day and get a night job. Either way, he will be able to learn new skills on the job. Often employers perfer to train the person on the job.

CHAPTER 10

How Can It Help

Certain specialized types of jobs may not be available at all in a particular area, whereas they may be available in other areas. This is particularly true If the client lives in a rural rather than metropolitan area.

Problems Encountered With this Approach

Host clients will wish to stay in their present location and will not consider relocation. If the client is looking for a job which is plentiful in the area where he lives, then this does not present a problem. However, in cases where the client is looking for a position which is scarce or non-existence in his particular area, refusing to relocate can become a major stumbling block in his job-seeking process.

How To Handle These Problems

The counselor should first explaip to this individual that this particular job is scarce or non-existent in this particular area. The client should then be reminded of his desire and necessity to find a job as quickly as possible. This is a good time for the counselor to explain that despite the client's necessity and eagerness to find this type of job quickly, he cannot find something which is non-existent, or is unlikely to find something quickly if it is scarce. However, if he relocates to an area where this type of position is plentiful, he is likely to acquire a job.

Where To Look

The counselor should help the client determine in what geographical areas he should concentrate his job search. A group discussion about what types of areas this particular job would be plentiful in can be helpful. After it Is determined in what areas this job is plentiful, the client himself must determine which particular cities or parts of the country he would prefer to live. In cases where the client knows nothing about particular geographical areas, the group may be able to supply him with this helpful information based on their own personal experiences or those of their friends. After the client has a few places in mind, it should then be determined if he could easily and successfully conduct his job search. Factors which can help to determine this would be which areas he has friends or relatives in, or areas that other group members have friends or relatives. To begin this process, the client should go through his "people I know" list and pick out people who live in the particular areas he has identified. In many cases the client may not have included people from these areas when he filled out the this form, so he would now expand this list to include people in the geographical areas under consideration. Other group members should also encourage the relocation clients by thinking of all the people they know in these relocation areas and giving this list of names, numbers and addresses to the relocation client for his use.

How Friends and Relatives Can Be Useful To The Client

If the client knows people in a relocation area, these people can be beneficial to him. They may be able to supply him with information on job leads in that area. Also, they may be able to supply him with lodging or the names of places where he can stay. In the case where the client is contacting the friend of another client, he may be reluctant to ask for lodging. However, if he mentions that the fellow client suggested that this person may be able to supply job leads and information on where to stay during his job search in that area, this individual may supply the client with job leads and possibly suggest a place to stay.

These people may be contacted either by letter or by telephone. The advantage of the telephone approach is that the client would get immediate response to his efforts, and the response is more likely to be positive than with a letter. It is easier for a person to misplace a letter or not respond to a letter than it is to refuse assistance over the telephone.

The disadvantages to using the telephone are: first, that it is expensive to make long distance calls; second, the client may have trouble getting this individual during the day and the client may be less likely to contact the - individual once he has left the OHS office, particularly if the person he is contacting is not someone he knows.

Hritinq Letters

The advantages of using a letter are: first, it is more economical; second. the client can easily write the letter while in the office; third, clients seem to be more likely to contact someone they don't know by mail than by making a personal telephone call.

The disadvantages to using the letter as noted above are that the client will not get immediate response 'to this inquiry or may not get any response at all. Another reason is that using a letter does not allow a client as much personal contact with people as the telephone procedure.

I

(

Appendix C

Sliding Fee Scale

DAY CARE CLIENT FEE CHART

EFFECTIVE: 10/01/90

Appendix D

DCFS User Help

The system wilT take you to the Main Menu.

THE FOLLOWING SCREENS WILL BE UPDATED TO PROCESS AN APPLICATION:

IN02 Client Information PF4 Household Information PF4 Eligibility Determination AZ30 Pending Authorization AZ05 Actual Authorization

APPLICATION/ELIGIBILITY SUBSYSTEM

CLIENT APPLICATION SCREEN

Wrap around Y/N always key N

Required keyable fields are" the following: SSN, Applic Date, Ellg Cat Code, Resident, School Grade, Est Dist, National Goal/Need.

Elig Cat Code: The valid codes are as follows

13 AFOC UP With Earnings

14 AFDC UP Without Earnings

21 Targeted AFDC Basic With Earnings

22 Targeted AFDC Basic Without Earnings

23 Targeted AFDC New Hope With Earnings

24 Targeted AFDC New Hope Without Earnings

31 TCC Was Project Success When Closed

32 TCC Was Not Project Success When Closed " 41 Hon Jobs With Earnings

43 Hon Jobs Without Earning.s 50 EJ.T "

National Goal/Need: The Valid Codes are as follows: A EMPLOYED RELATED I (Jobs or E2iT) E SUPPORTIVE SERVICE 11 (TCC or Non Jobs)

Enter

THE NEXT SCREEN YOU MEED TO UPDATE IS HOUSEHOLD INFORMATION TO PROCEED USE THE PF KEY F4.

HOUSEHOLD INFORMATION SCREEN

Required keyable fields are: SSN, Name, DOB Year, Race Sex, Child Care, Special Needs, Relationship, Household Income/Amount. *

Race Codes: Valid Codes are as foUov/s:

01 White

02 Black

03 American Indian

04 Unknov/n

05 Spanish American

06 Oriental

07 Indo-Chinese Refugee

08 Other

Sex Codes: Valid Codes are as follows:

01 Male

02 Female

Child Care Does this'child need child care: Y Yes N No

Special Needs Does this child have special needs? Space bar across this field

Relationship Codes: Valid Codes are as follows:

01 Mother

02 Father

03 Son

04 Daughter

05 Brother

06 Sister

07 Spouse

08 Grand Parents

09 Aunt

10 Uncle

11 Other

Income Codes: Valid Codes are as follows:

01 Earned Income

02 Unearned Income

03 AFDC

04 SSI

05 Alimony/Child Support 05 No Income

07 Other

OS Dollar amounts and cents - Enter

THE NEXT SCREEN YOU NEED TO UPDATE IS ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION TO TROCEEO USE THE PF KEY F4.

ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION SCREEN

If cursor is blinking in Fund Override Key "Y" and proceed.

There are no required keyable fields on this screen. Funding has been pre-allocated based upon information keyed on previous screens. Priority codes will automatically display in the Fund Source Field located beside the child designated to receive child care. The worker can change the priority code the system assigned by rearranging the numbers. If no changes"-are necessary the vjorker will [LESS THAN]ENTER[GREATER THAN]

Rs-order, if needed -

The 1st F listed will be the fund source it pulls from.- Enter

This means that child is eligible for funding from two sources (1)F053 and (3)F00S CCBG.

THE NEXT SCREEN YOU NEED TO UPDATE IS THE PENDING AUTHORIZATION SCREEN TO PROCEED USE THE PF KEY F4.

ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION SCREEN

If cursor is blinking in Fund Override Key "V" and proceed.

There are no required keyable fields on this screen. Funding has been pre-allocated based upon information keyed on previous screens. Priority codes will automatically display in the Fund Source Field located beside the child designated to receive child care. The v/orker can change the priority code the system assigned by rearranging the numbers. If no changes are necessary the v/orker v/ill [LESS THAN]ENTER[GREATER THAN]

Re-order, if needed -

The 1st F listed will be the fund source it pulls from,.- Enter

This means that child is el igible for funding from two sources (1)F063 and (3)F008 CCBG.

THE NEXT SCREEN YOU NEED TO UPDATE IS THE PENDING AUTHORIZATION SCREEN TO PROCEED USE THE PF KEY- F4.

PENDING AUTHORIZATION SCREEN

The following are the required keyable fields:

Begin Date, End Date, Fund Source, Fund Use, Service Needed, Days.of V/eek, Start

Time, End Time, Lie Tp, Age CD.

Service Needed

1st Field 05 = Day Care (This is the only valid code) 2nd Field = 10 Hourly

20 Before & After School

21 Before School

22 After School 30 Full Day ' 40 Night Care 50 Weekend

Days of Week

Key a "X" over the diy{s) of the week care is authorized.

Start Time/End Time

Kay the time of day child is authorized to receive care.

(24 hr Clock) ex. - 0700 - 1500 must round to nearest hour (will not take 07:15 etc.)

License Tyoe (Lie Ty)

01 Day Care Center

03 Day Care Family Home

04 Infant/Toddler

05 Sick Care

05 Relative Family Meniber

07 School Age

08 Volntary'Registry

09 In Home

10 Certified/Federal Out of State

Age CD

I = 000-018 Infant

T = 018-035 Toddler

P = 030-071 Preschool

S = 072-155 School Aae

O = 155-215 Over Age 13

Waiting List Screen Not Wei'kinq Yet.

Any Problems or questions please contact:

Bobbie Ferquson. 682-8763 DCFS Program Ccoroi;uAtor M.irva BraJ[LESS THAN]h:tw. eS[GREATER THAN]S;52 Pro.jr.rn Analyst

Appendix O

AFDC Overpayments

Appendix O AFDC Overpayments

This appendix provides the policy and procedures which will be followed to determine and report any overpayments which have occurred in the AFDC program prior to July 1, 1997, and are discovered and/or reported in or after July 1997.

The FA Manual references in this Appendix are to the Financial Assistance Manual which was in effect on June 30, 1997.

This appendix will not be used to determine any overpayment occurring in the TEA program in or after July 1997. Specific TEA overpayment policy and procedures will be issued separately.

Any payment received by or for a recipient which is in excess of the amount that should have been paid is an overpayment. It exists for each month the recipient received such payment to which he was not entitled. It may be for all or any part of the grant. An overpayment may result from the recipient having given fraudulent Information, having withheld information, having failed to report Information, or having failed to report a change in circumstances; from the agency having made an error or having failed to take action; or from a combination of these factors.

Special Notes:

Fraud consists of some deceitful practice or felonious device resorted to with the intent to receive an assistance grant to which an individual Is not entitled under the rules and regulations of the Division.

Arkansas Statute 41-2203 provides that a person commits theft of property if he knowingly obtains the property of another person, by deception or by threat, with the purpose of depriving the owner thereof. (Other Arkansas Criminal Statutes concerning welfare fraud were repealed during the 1979 session of the General Assembly.)

Only the Courts can determine guilt under the statute and impose the legal penalty. The responsibility of the Service Representative Is to determine where there may be "intent to defraud" on the part of the client or other persons and report their findings to the Overpayments Unit.

The policy, procedures, and need standards which were in effect at the time the client was overpaid will be used to determine the overpayment amount. The overpayment will be determined on a month by month basis. For cases In which a change In circumstances caused the overpayment, except for changes in Income or resources, the overpayment will begin with the first month following the month the change occurred. For example, the absent parent returned to the home In June. The overpayment will begin in July. Overpayments due to Income or resources will be determined as outlined in FA 9005-9009.

The overpayment amount will be the difference between the grant amount which was paid and the grant amount for which the client was actually eligible. NOTE: For overpayments occurring In or after November, 1981, If the client was actually eligible for an amount less than $10, then the overpayment amount will be the full grant amount which was paid.

Overpayments resulting from a change in Income prior to June. 1982, will begin with the 2nd month following the month in which the change in income was first received. For example, the client began working December 28 but did not receive her first paycheck until January 7. The first month of overpayment will be March.

The overpayment amount for each month will be determined based on the actual gross income received and other circumstances which existed in the month. For example, March's overpayment amount will be determined based on the gross income received and other circumstances which existed In March.

If the overpayment extends into June, 1982 or later, then the amount beginning with June, 1982 will be determined as outlined in FA 9006.1.

The procedures for determining an overpayment due to non-lump sum income beginning in June, 1982 and later are explained in detail in the following section.

When an overpayment is due to an untimely report of earned income, without good cause, the sanction for failure to report earnings timely will be applied when determining the overpayment amount. The sanction, i.e. no earned Income deductions or exclusions allowed, will be applied to the earnings received In each month in which such earnings were not reported timely (Refer to FA 2367). The sanction will nol be applied to determine eligibility under FA 9006.1, Step #1. If eligibility exists, then the sanction will be applied to determine the eligible grant amount for the month, if appropriate.

If the client has not already received 4 consecutive months of exclusions prior to the overpayment occurring, any overpayment month in which the sanction is applied is counted as one of the 4 months. Therefore, If the sanction is applied to 4 consecutive overpayment months, then the client Is no longer entitled to receive the exclusions until he has been a non-recipient for 12 consecutive months (Refer to FA 2365.3).

When an overpayment occurs due to the receipt of a lump-sum payment in or after June 1982 and through August 1990, the first month of overpayment will be the payment month corresponding to the budget month in which the lump-sum was received (i.e. second month following the month lump sum was received). A period of ineligibility due to the lump-sum payment will be established as outlined in FA 2379.2. The full grant amount paid In any month during the period of ineligibility will be an overpayment.

When a case is found to have been underpaid, such underpayment will be used to offset the amount of any outstanding overpayment claim. An overpayment may be offset with an underpayment when it is initially reported to the Overpayments Unit, Central Office, or at any later time. Form EMS-54. AFOC Underpayment/ Overpayment Offset Report, will be used to notify the Overpayments Unit of an offset.

The full amount of the underpayment will be applied to the overpayment. Any amount in excess of the outstanding claim will be authorized as retroactive payment (Refer to FA 2670).

The Overpayments Unit, Central Office, will make the decision concerning the feasibility of repayment for all overpayments and Ineliglbles whether they resulted from:

Administrative error.

Misunderstanding of state policies or laws by the client.

Willful withholding or incorrect statement of factual Information by

the client,

A Reviewing Official in the Overpayments Unit will:

The Central Office Overpayments Unit will make the determination relative to the disposition of the claim when collection and/or fraud referrals are Indicated.

Uhen an agreement Is reached with the client, either by the Fraud Unit or Legal Unit, the Central Office Overpayments Unit will be apprised of whether:

Finance and Accounting in Central Office will be responsible for receiving and processing all monies collected.

RECOVERY -Regaining moneys lost by Arkansas Social Services as a result of a recipient receiving payments to which they were not entitled.

RECOUPMENT -Withholding of a cash amount from the assistance grant when a client has a pending claim due the state for some amount of ineligible cash payment.

RESTITUTION -Securing a direct payment from an individual in the form of cashier's check or money order made payable to Arkansas Social Services for overpayments received.

HARDSHIP SITUATION -A situation in which the client is in a state of being deprived of what is needed for basic subsistence, e.g., food, shelter, utilities.

Overpayments and ineligible payments made to recipients of AFDC are subject to recovery action in accordance with federal regulations.

The policy of this State is that recovery of overpayments will be pursued. An effort will be made to recover all overpayments. There will be no distinction between willful and non-willful withholding of information by the recipient, i.e., reasonable and practical steps to correct and collect any overpayment that is known to the State will be made regardless of whether the reason for the error payment was caused by the agency or the client.

It is not the policy of this State to inflict hardship on individuals or their families by means of its recovery policies, therefore, the following rules will be followed:

All cases of ineligible payments and overpayments must be reported to the Overpayments Unit in Central Office.

The Overpayments Unit shall decide whether payments to ineligibles and/or overpayments" will be pursued for recovery and the method of recovery.

Overlapping or duplication of AFDC by Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is not subject to recoupment or restitution. This will be handled by the Social Security Administration,

Restitution of some or all or an overpayment can be accepted before or at the time of initiation of recoupment, while recoupment is in process or after closure.

If monthly recoupment amount or maximum recoupment amount exceeds maximum grant amount, the monthly recoupment amount will be grant amount less one dollar.

If the decision is made by the Central Office Overpayments Unit to recoup the overpayment by a deduction from the current assistance payments to the recipient, the Overpayments Unit will:

Local offices will be advised by the Central Office Overpayments Unit of:

The county office shall promptly report, by memorandum to the Central Office Overpayments Unit, any pertinent information {coming to its attention) which would have an affect on an established overpayments claim that has not been satisfied, such as, but not limited to:

Act 372 of 1983 as amended (Ark. Stats. Ann. § § 84-4901 thru 84-4918) and Act 987 of 1985 authorizes the collection of AFDC overpayments through the interception of State Income Tax Refunds.

Office of Financial Management will submit a list of recipients who have received AFDC benefits in excess of the amount they are eligible to receive and the amount of this excess to the Data Processing Section. Arkansas Social Services. This list will be certified by Overpayments Unit of Financial Management. Data Processing will combine the list by social security number with a list prepared by the Child Support Enforcement Central Office, of delinquent obllgores of past due child support.

Act 987 requires prenotlflcatlon to debtors of Intent to set off debts listed. prior to the annual debt loading with the Revenue Division of the Department of Finance and Administration. A comouter generated notice (SS-XA) of our intention to Intercept refunds will be mailed prior to the annual loading date (Dec. 1) . The SS-XA is sent on cases that have Overpayment Unit debts listed.

The tax payer has 30 days from the date the notice was mal led to file a written request for a hearing (FA. 9253). If no hearing is requested within 30 days. Revenue Loading will be effected. Tax Refunds will be mailed to the office of Financial Management to be allocated within the Department of Human Services Division in order of priority.