Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, March 1, 2024
RELATES TO:
7 C.F.R.
274.2,
274.4,
274.5,
274.6
NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY:
KRS
194A.050(1) requires the
secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to promulgate
administrative regulations necessary to implement programs mandated by federal
law or to qualify for the receipt of federal funds and necessary to cooperate
with other state and federal agencies for the proper administration of the
cabinet and its programs.
7 C.F.R.
271.4 delegates the authority to Kentucky and
requires the state agency to be responsible for the administration of the
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) within the state. The cabinet
shall follow procedures established in
7 C.F.R.
274.1 in the operation of an electronic
benefit transfer or "EBT" system. This administrative regulation establishes
issuance procedures used by the cabinet in the administration of SNAP.
Section 1. Basic Issuance Requirements.
(1) The cabinet shall be responsible for the
timely and accurate issuance of benefits to eligible households.
(2) In issuing benefits, the cabinet shall
ensure that:
(a) Only certified households
receive benefits;
(b) Program
benefits shall be distributed in the correct amounts; and
(c) Benefit issuance and reconciliation
activities shall be properly conducted and accurately reported to the Food and
Nutrition Service (FNS).
(3) The cabinet shall advise the recipient at
time of application that:
(a) Unused benefits
shall be expunged in accordance with Section 6 of this administrative
regulation; and
(b) Expunged
benefits shall be:
1. Applied for benefit
overpayments in accordance with
921 KAR
3:050; or
2. Returned to the FNS of the U.S. Department
of Agriculture.
(4) The cabinet shall maintain issuance
records for a period of three (3) years from the month of origin.
Section 2. Benefit Delivery.
(1) Benefits shall be provided to an eligible
household through an EBT system.
(2) An EBT card and instructions for use
shall be mailed:
(a) Directly to each eligible
household; or
(b) To the local
office for pick up, if requested by the household.
Section 3. Benefit Availability.
(1) Benefits shall be available to a
household the day after an approval is processed, if the case is a:
(a) New application;
(b) Reapplication; or
(c) Recertification that is:
1. Initiated after the 15th day of the month;
and
2. Approved during the benefit
month.
(2) An
ongoing case shall have benefits credited to the EBT account and available to
the household within the first nineteen (19) days of the benefit
month.
Section 4. EBT
Card Replacement.
(1) The cabinet shall
provide a replacement EBT card to a household within five (5) days, if the EBT
card is reported:
(a) Lost;
(b) Stolen; or
(c) Damaged.
(2) An EBT card shall be deactivated if a
household reports the need for card replacement.
Section 5. Benefit Replacement.
(1) After the household receives an EBT card,
if the EBT card is lost or stolen and the EBT account is reduced, the cabinet
shall not provide replacement benefits.
(2) If food purchased with SNAP benefits is
destroyed in a household misfortune, the cabinet shall provide replacement
benefits if:
(a) The loss is reported:
1. Orally or in writing; and
2. Within ten (10) days of the household
misfortune; and
(b) A
household member or authorized representative signs a statement attesting to
the loss.
(3) If the
household is eligible for replacement benefits, the replacement shall equal:
(a) The amount of the loss to the household,
not to exceed the maximum of one (1) month's benefits for the household
requesting replacement; or
(b) Up
to the full value of the benefits, if the replacement includes restored
benefits.
(4) The
cabinet shall not provide a replacement due to a household misfortune if:
(a) A disaster declaration has been issued by
FNS; and
(b) The household is
eligible for disaster SNAP benefits.
(5) There shall not be a limit on the number
of benefit replacements for food:
(a)
Purchased with SNAP benefits; and
(b) Destroyed in a household
misfortune.
(6) If
available documentation indicates that a household's request for benefit
replacement appears fraudulent, the cabinet shall:
(a)
1. Deny
the replacement; or
2. Delay the
replacement; and
(b)
Inform the household:
1. Of its right to a
fair hearing to contest the denial or delay of a replacement; and
2. That a replacement shall not be made while
the denial or delay is being appealed.
Section 6. Account Inactivity.
(1) If an EBT account has not been debited in
nine (9) consecutive months, the cabinet shall:
(a) Expunge a monthly benefit on a monthly
basis as each individual benefit month reaches a date that is nine (9) months
in the past; and
(b) Notify the
household in writing at least thirty (30) days in advance of the expungement:
1. That the household's EBT account has not
been debited in the last nine (9) months; and
2. Of the amount of SNAP benefits that will
be expunged.
(2) If a recipient debits the EBT account,
the expungement process shall cease.
(3) When the cabinet receives an official
death notice or confirms a death match from an official source for all
household members, the cabinet shall expunge the remaining benefit amount in
accordance with
7 C.F.R.
274.2(i)(4).
(4) Expunged benefits shall not be
retrieved.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY:
KRS
194A.050(1),
7 C.F.R.
271.4,
274.1