Current through Register Vol. 63, No. 9, September 1, 2024
(1) In addition to judicial process, the
Department may recover an overpayment (see OAR
461-195-0501) through an agreed
repayment plan, reduction in benefits, voluntary payment from the client or
authorized representative (see OAR
461-115-0090), and offset of the
debt.
(2) The Department reduces
current benefits to collect an overpayment only as follows:
(a) In the GA and OSIP programs, the
Department may recover an overpayment by reducing cash benefit payments by the
lesser of the following:
(A) The total
overpayment amount;
(B) The total
benefit amount; or
(C) Ten percent
of the client's total benefit requirement at the standard of need.
(b) In the REF, SFPSS, and TANF
programs, the Department:
(A) Allows only
half of the 50 percent earned income deduction described in OAR
461-160-0160.
(B) Reduces the benefit payment by 10 percent
of the total benefit requirement of the benefit group (see OAR
461-110-0750) at the adjusted
income payment standard. The reduced benefit payment after such reduction, when
combined with all other income may not be less than 90 percent of the benefit
group's adjusted income payment standard for a family with no income. In the
TANF program, the cooperation incentive (see OAR
461-135-0210) is not included in
the calculations prescribed by this paragraph.
(c) In the SNAP program, unless the
Department and the client agree to a repayment plan and the filing group (see
OAR 461-110-0370) meets the terms of
the plan, the Department collects an overpayment from a liable member of a
filing group participating in the SNAP program by reducing the SNAP program
benefit allotment of the benefit group each month as follows:
(A) For an overpayment caused by client error
(see OAR 461-195-0501) or administrative
error (see OAR 461-195-0501), 10 percent of the
group's monthly allotment or $10 a month, whichever is greater.
(B) For an overpayment caused by an IPV (see
OAR 461-195-0601), 20 percent of the
group's monthly entitlement or $20 a month, whichever is greater.
(3) In the child care
programs:
(a) The Department may not recover
an overpayment through reduction of a client's child care program benefits.
(b) When a child care program
provider is liable for a child care overpayment (see OAR
461-195-0501) the Department may
recover the child care overpayment by reducing up to 100 percent any future
child care payment for which the provider bills the Department.
(4) The Department may recover an
overpayment by offset as follows:
(a) Using
the collection services provided by the Department of Revenue and any other
state or federal agency to collect a liquidated claim established by:
(A) A court judgment.
(B) A confession of judgment.
(C) A document signed or acknowledged by the
debtor that acknowledges the debt, such as:
(i) The Department-designated form to
acknowledge an IPV.
(ii) A plea
bargain agreement.
(iii) Any other
document acknowledging the overpayment.
(D) A written notification of overpayment
from the Department to the debtor, advising the debtor of the basis and amount
of the overpayment and the right to request a hearing, if the debtor has
exhausted his or her rights of administrative appeal.
(E) A written communication from the debtor
acknowledging the debt.
(b) The amount of any retroactive payment or
restoration of lost benefits otherwise payable to the client, when the
retroactive payment corrects a prior underpayment of benefits in the program in
which the overpayment occurred.
(c) Through use of a warrant authorized by
ORS 411.703. Upon issuance of the
warrant, the Department may issue a notice of garnishment in accordance with
ORS 18.854.
(d) In the SNAP program, by offsetting the
full amount of the overpayment against restored benefits owed to the benefit
group or to another benefit group that a liable member of the overpaid group
has joined.
(5) A
confession of judgment is used in the case of a client error (see OAR
461-195-0501) overpayment. The
Department may not file a confession of judgment while the client receives
public assistance or medical assistance, and may file one only if the client
has refused to agree to or has defaulted on a repayment plan.
(6) The Department may not take collection
action against a filing group while a member of the filing group is working
under a JOBS Plus agreement.
Stat. Auth.: ORS
411.060,
411.660,
411.816,
412.049
Stats. Implemented: ORS
18.854,
18.900,
411.630,
411.635,
411.660,
411.703,
411.816,
412.049 &
416.350
