Hawaii Administrative Rules
Title 17 - DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES
Department of Human Services
Chapter 681 - ISSUANCE OF BENEFITS
Subchapter 5 - ELECTRONIC BENEFIT TRANSFER
Section 17-681-51 - Definitions
As used in this subchapter:
"Acquirer" means a financial institution that may:
(1) own or operate automated teller machines,
(2) sign merchant agreements with merchants for the acceptance of the Hawaii EBT card, or
(3) sign agreements with ATM terminal drivers for the acceptance of the Hawaii EBT card.
"Adjustments" means a credit or debit transaction to correct a system error, correct an inaccurate record of a transaction, or to correct an out-of-balance condition that is identified in the settlement process.
"Alternate payee" means an adult designated by the primary payee to receive an EBT card.
"Automated Clearing House" or "ACH" means the network operated by the Federal Reserve and financial institutions to electronically process and settle funds transfers between financial institutions.
"Automated teller machine" or "ATM" means a machine used to withdraw financial assistance benefits.
"Bank day" means the weekday on which the bank is open for business. It does not include weekends or holidays.
"Calendar day" means the actual day of the month. It includes weekdays, weekends, and holidays.
"Dormant" means the inactive status of an EBT account after ninety days of no debit transaction.
"Cash assistance households" means households receiving cash payments from any of the employment and child care programs as defined in chapters 17-794.1 and 17-798.2 and from any of the financial assistance programs as defined in section 17-600-3, excluding medical assistance, social services, and transportation assistance.
"Electronic benefit transfer system" or "EBT" means a computer-based system in which the financial assistance and SNAP benefit authorization is received from a central computer through an automated teller machine or point-of-sale device.
"EBT card" means the card issued by the department which will allow the holder to access benefits in an EBT account through an ATM or POS device.
"EBT cash account" means an account or file that is maintained by the EBT contractor on behalf of the household which contains the household's authorized cash or financial assistance benefits.
"EBT SNAP account" means an account or file that is maintained by the EBT contractor on behalf of the household which contains the household's authorized SNAP benefits.
"EBT transaction" means a transaction authorized from either the EBT cash account or EBT SNAP account in which the entire transaction amount debited is from the corresponding EBT account.
"Expunged benefits" means benefits that are reverted back to the State because the household failed to debit their benefits from their EBT account within the required timeframes established by this subchapter.
"Gateway" means a service provided by a network for access to other regional or national networks.
"Hawaii Automated Network of Assistance system" or "HANA" means the computerized eligibility system that is designed to provide on-line client tracking, case management, payment, process automation and computerized report capabilities for line staff and administration for the maintenance of the employment and child care programs as defined in chapters 17-794.1 and 17-798.2
"Hawaii Automated Welfare Information system" or "HAWI" means the computerized eligibility system that is designed to provide on-line client tracking, case management, payment, process automation and computerized report capabilities for line staff and administration for the maintenance of the financial assistance and SNAP programs.
"Host computer" means the computer system that stores, maintains and updates the EBT records and accounts.
"Misdispensement" means the failure of an automated teller machine to dispense out the correct amount of cash.
"Network" means an organization or company that operates computer hardware and software and telecommunication links to enable the interchange of commercial debit transactions.
"Off-line" means a transaction that is processed manually by a merchant because the merchant does not have a direct electronic connection through the Gateway to the EBT system.
"Personal identification number" or "PIN" means a secret number selected by the household to be used with the EBT card to receive benefits.
"Point-of-sale device" or "POS" means a machine in a food store that is used to allow SNAP recipients to purchase food items.
"Primary payee" means the primary information person identified in the Hawaii Automated Welfare Information System.
"Processor" means any company processing transactions on behalf of a financial institution, acquirer, or merchant.
"Provisional credit" means the process by which the EBT account is immediately re-credited pending an audit review by the EBT contractor whenever the system incorrectly debits the household's EBT account due to an electronic malfunction of the system caused by a telecommunication time-out or an error by the Processor.
"Re-presentment" means the process by which the EBT contractor will seek repayment or debit an EBT account when a manual authorization of the transaction is approved by the EBT contractor to the merchant because the EBT host system is down and the transaction authorization is based upon a backup data system. In the event the household's account balance is insufficient to cover the amount of the manual transaction, the EBT contractor may re-present or debit the disallowed transaction from benefits deposited into the household's EBT account in future months.
"Reversal" means the electronic cancellation of a transaction usually due to a system error.
"Surcharge" means a fee deducted from a cardholder's account by a financial institution which owns or operates automated teller machines that accepts the Hawaii EBT card.
"System error" means an error resulting from a malfunction at any point in the redemption process: from the system host computer, to the switch, to the third party processors, store host computer or POS device.
