Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 17, September 10, 2024
4.902.1
Local SNAP Office
Local offices shall ensure that adequate locations and hours
of operation exist to meet the needs of SNAP clients in their areas. Each
location shall have ample availability for parking and shall be accessible to
persons with disabilities. Hours of operation shall be sufficient to ensure the
timely processing of applications and issuance of EBT cards according to
existing guidelines. Counties must establish procedures for the operation of
the local office that best serves households within that county. Local offices
shall establish procedures to assist households with special needs including,
but not limited to: households containing persons who are aged sixty (60) and
older or persons with disabilities; households in rural areas with low-income
members; households experiencing homelessness; households containing adult
members who are not proficient in English; and households containing working
persons.
A household must apply for SNAP in its county of residence. A
local office that receives an application that belongs to another county may
secure the application date, process the application to completion, issue the
household an EBT card, and then transfer the case to the correct county once
the final eligibility decision is made. If a household is determined eligible
for participation, it may request and be designated to receive SNAP from a
local office that is more accessible. It is possible for an issuance unit in
one local office to determine eligibility, authorize SNAP benefits, and issue
EBT cards to an eligible household that resides in another county in
Colorado.
Local offices may also transfer certification and/or EBT card
issuance duties for those households only receiving SNAP that live closer to
the local office in a neighboring county than the county of residence.
4.902.2
Phone Directory
Listings
A. Each local office
telephone number available to the public shall be listed under each of the
following two alphabetical listings:
1. SNAP
certification and issuance office, street address, phone number. If there are
separate certification and issuance offices in the county, they may be listed
in this manner: local office (certification only) or (issuance only), street
address, phone number.
2. (Name of
the county) Department of Human/Social Services, local office (certification
only) or (issuance only), street address, phone number.
B. Each local office shall provide a
toll-free number or a number where collect calls will be accepted for
households outside the local calling area.
C. The listings above are not to restrict any
other listings that may be provided within the telephone directory, but only to
standardize the availability of SNAP to the public.
4.902.3
Certification Personnel and
Facilities Requirements
A. County
employees assigned to certify households for participation in SNAP shall be
employed in accordance with the current standards for a merit system personnel
administration that is guided by a set of six broad merit principles outlined
in the Intergovernmental Personnel Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 4728), as
amended. The principles cover recruiting, compensation, training, retention,
equal employment opportunity, and guidance on political activity. Only such
qualified employees shall interview SNAP households and determine household
eligibility or ineligibility and the level of benefits.
B. Every local office must utilize an
appropriate amount of the staff allocated to it and utilize effective and
efficient practices in administering SNAP. Facilities must, within available
state legislative appropriations and federal and required county matching
funds, be of adequate size and layout to assure the privacy necessary to allow
workers to conduct confidential interviews and perform other office duties
efficiently and effectively. Any persons or organizations who are parties to a
strike or lockout shall not be permitted to interview or certify households or
to secure verification required of such households. However, such individuals
may be used as a source of verification for information provided by applicant
households if, under normal circumstances, they could be expected to be the
best verification source. An eligibility technician who is the spouse of a
striker is not considered party to a strike but shall not certify his or her
household.
4.902.31
Bilingual Staff, Interpreter, and Translator Requirements
A. Local offices determined by the State
Department to have a significant population of Limited English Proficiency
(LEP) households shall provide sufficient bilingual staff and/or translators
for the timely processing of applications. Local office staff shall be trained
and familiar with these procedures.
B. During those periods when there is a
significant influx of seasonal or migrant farmworkers, local offices shall
provide sufficient bilingual staff and/or translators for the timely processing
of such applicants.
C. If
translators or interpreters are utilized, the local office shall ensure that
the translators or interpreters are readily available to assist in
pre-screening clients for expedited processing standards and completing the
interview and other activities necessary to determine the eligibility of the
applicant household. The local office shall not require the client to provide a
translator or interpreter, or to in any way imply that an interpreter is
required, as a condition for being pre-screened or interviewed by the local
office, nor shall the local office postpone or in any way delay the
pre-screening process or appointments because of the unavailability of
bilingual staff or translators/interpreters.
4.902.32
Restrictions on Staff
A. Volunteers or other personnel who do not
meet the criteria outlined in Section 4.902.3 may not be allowed to interview
or certify households but may be used for pre-screening, assistance in the
completion of applications, obtaining verifications to support statements made
on the application, and the transportation of clients. In certain situations,
volunteers may act as authorized representatives for households unable to come
to the local office.
B. Volunteers
may also be used as translators or interpreters when necessary to pre-screen
clients and to complete the interview. If volunteers are utilized, the local
office shall ensure that volunteers are available, as necessary, for the timely
processing of applications. Such volunteers utilized to pre-screen clients or
to translate/interpret during the interview shall be educated on
confidentiality requirements.
C.
Any persons or organizations who are parties to a strike or lockout shall not
be permitted to interview or certify households or to secure verification
required of such households. However, such individuals may be used as a source
of verification for information provided by households if, under normal
circumstances, they could be expected to be the best verification source. An
eligibility technician who is the spouse of a striker is not considered party
to a strike but shall not certify his or her household.
The facilities of persons or organizations who are parties to
a strike or lockout may not be used in the certification process or as a site
for certification interviews.
4.902.4
Local Office Case Review
Responsibilities
Local offices shall establish a documented method to review a
random sample of current SNAP determinations (certifications, denials, and
terminations) to determine the correctness of eligibility determinations
accomplished. A record of the cases reviewed must be kept for management
evaluation/audit purposes. Local offices must be able to demonstrate to the
satisfaction of the State Department that the frequency and scope of the
reviews are adequate to ensure the integrity of both the program and clients.
Additionally, local offices must demonstrate a consistent process for tracking
error trends, correcting case records timely, and providing eligibility
technicians an opportunity to improve their program knowledge.
4.902.5
Retention of Case
Records
Each local office shall retain all program records in an
orderly fashion for audit and review purposes for no less than three (3) years
from the month of origin of each record. In addition:
A. The local office shall retain fiscal
records and accountable documents for three (3) years from the date of fiscal
or administrative closure. Fiscal closure means that obligations for or against
the federal government have been liquidated. Administrative closure means that
the state agency has determined and documented that no further action to
liquidate the obligation is appropriate. Fiscal records and accountable
documents include, but are not limited to, claims and documentation of lost
benefits.
B. Case records relating
to intentional program violation (IPV) disqualifications and related notices to
the household shall be retained indefinitely until the local office obtains
reliable information that the individual who was disqualified has died or until
the information is received from the national disqualified recipient database
system that all records associated with a particular individual, including the
disqualified client database record, may be permanently removed from the
database because of the individual's eightieth (80th) birthday.
4.902.6
Non-Discrimination
Complaint Requirements
Both state and local offices shall ensure that all local
office staff responsible for the administration, issuance, review, and
eligibility determination of SNAP are knowledgeable about civil rights
procedures and are able to assist clients with the filing of civil rights
complaints. Local office staff must undergo state-prescribed training on civil
rights procedures annually.
