Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 5, March 10, 2024
A.
Households that receive PA benefits which report a change in circumstances to
the PA technician shall be considered to have reported the change for SNAP
purposes. Information that is reported and verified to a PA program which
results in a change to the PA benefit amount and that meets the SNAP rules for
verification shall be considered VUR. The date the change is considered
reported and verified is the date the PA program processes the change and
authorizes the new PA benefit amount. When acting on information considered
verified upon receipt (VUR), advance Notice of Adverse Action is required,
except as noted in Section 4.608.1.
B. When there is a change in a PA case and
the local office has sufficient information to make the corresponding SNAP
adjustment, the local office shall follow the guidelines listed below.
1. If the change in household circumstances
requires a reduction or termination of both PA and SNAP, the following action
will be required:
a. Send Notices of Action
for both programs simultaneously with both notices bearing the same effective
date.
b. If a household requests a
fair hearing any time prior to the effective date of the Notice of Adverse
Action, and its certification period has not expired, the household's
participation in the program shall be continued on the basis authorized
immediately prior to the Notice of Adverse Action, unless the household
specifically waives continuation of benefits. Continued benefits shall not be
issued for a period beyond the end of the current certification
period.
c. If the household appeals
only a PA adverse action and is granted interim relief, SNAP benefits
authorized prior to the adverse action shall continue or be restored. However,
the household must reapply if the SNAP certification period expires before the
hearing process is completed.
d. If
the household does not appeal the adverse action to decrease the PA or SNAP
benefits within the adverse action period, the changes shall be made in
accordance with timeframes outlined in Section 4.603.
2. If the change requires a reduction or
termination of PA benefits and/or increases in SNAP benefits, the following
action will be required:
a. A PA Notice of
Adverse Action shall be issued to the household and SNAP benefits shall not be
increased until the adverse action period expires. If the household does not
appeal, the increase shall be effective in accordance with Section 4.604 . The
time limit for taking the action to increase SNAP benefits shall be calculated
from the date the PA Notice of Adverse Action expires. The Notice of Adverse
Action expires eleven (11) calendar days from the date it is issued or fifteen
(15) calendar days for households participating in the address confidentiality
program (ACP).
b. If the household
requests a PA appeal and is granted interim relief, the household is entitled
only to SNAP benefits that were authorized immediately prior to the PA adverse
action and action must be taken to correct the current basis of issuance. A
SNAP claim must be made against the household if there was an over-issuance for
the period pending the appeal decision.
3. When there is a change in a PA case which
results in a termination of PA but there is insufficient information to
determine SNAP eligibility, the local office shall follow the guidelines listed
below:
a. The PA Advance Notice of Adverse
Action and a verification request notice are issued simultaneously. The PA
notice makes the action effective on the last day of the month the notice is
sent (or the last day of the following month, as appropriate, to allow for the
required advance notice period). The routine extension on SNAP notices allows
the household time to reapply for benefits at the appropriate local office.
The verification request notice shall advise the household of
the information that needs to be verified for the household to continue to
receive SNAP benefits. The eligibility technician shall not take any further
action until the PA Notice of Adverse Action period expires or until the
household requests an appeal. If the household does not appeal the PA action
and request a continuation of benefits, the agency may resume action on the
reported change.
Depending on the response or non-response to the verification
request, the eligibility technician shall adjust the household's benefits if
the verification of the household circumstances is received, or issue a Notice
of Adverse Action to close the household's case if the household does not
respond or refuses to provide information.
b. Households requesting a SNAP appeal may be
entitled to continued benefits.
c.
If the household requests only a PA state appeal and is granted interim relief,
SNAP benefits authorized immediately prior to the adverse action will continue
or be restored.
4. If
the situation does not require a PA Notice of Adverse Action, the local office
shall act based on the normal change reporting processing time frames and
provide proper noticing as described in this section.
C. Local offices shall ensure that there is
no increase in SNAP benefits to households as the result of a penalty being
imposed for an IPV or failure to comply with program requirements for a
federal, state, or local means-tested program that distributes publicly funded
benefits.
The local office shall calculate the SNAP allotment using the
benefit amount that would be issued by the federal, state, or local
means-tested program if no penalty had been imposed to reduce the benefit
amount. A situation where benefits of the other program are being frozen at the
current level shall not constitute a penalty subject to these provisions.
Changes in household circumstances that are not related to the penalty and
result in an increase in SNAP benefits shall also not be affected by these
provisions.
