10 CCR 2506-1
4.042 HOUSEHOLD INCOME ELIGIBILITY
A. Determining Income
1. Income eligibility shall be determined prospectively based on the eligibility worker's anticipation of income at the time of application and when changes are made known to the local office. See Section 4.603.1 for rules concerning anticipating income. Income shall be determined as it is anticipated to be received unless the income is averaged over the certification period in accordance with Section 4.402.2.
2. When determining if a household is eligible under gross and/or net income limits, households shall have income converted to a monthly amount by using a conversion as specified below. When a full month's income is anticipated any cents in the gross weekly or biweekly earnings shall be used in converting income to a monthly amount.
Monthly income amounts shall be rounded to the nearest dollar amounts. Each monthly income figure that ends in 1 through 49 cents is rounded down, and each monthly income figure that ends in 50 through 99 cents is rounded to the next dollar.
Pay Frequency / ConversionWeekly / Multiply Weekly Average by 4.3.
Bi-Weekly (Every Two Weeks) / Multiply Bi-Weekly Average by 2.15.
Semi-Monthly (Twice a Month) / Multiply Semi-Monthly Average by 2.
Every Other Month / Multiply Average by 0.5.
Quarterly / Multiply Average by 0.333333.
Twice a Year / Multiply Average by 0.166666.
Annual / Multiply Average by .083.
*********************************************************************************************************************
4.070 Complaint Requirements
The local office shall, as part of its overall outreach responsibility, publicize the state's complaint system.
In addition, the local office shall advise any household wishing to file a complaint of the complaint procedure and offer assistance in filing a complaint, if appropriate.
The State Department shall ensure that information is made available to potential participants, applicants, participants, or other interested persons concerning the complaint system, and the procedure for filing a complaint at the state or county level. Such information shall be made available to potential participants, applicants, and other interested parties through written materials and posters which shall be prominently displayed in all certification and issuance offices.
For complaints of discrimination, refer to 4.070.2 through 4.070.22.
The local office shall make every effort to resolve all complaints, excluding complaints of discrimination, brought to their attention at the local level. However, all complainants shall be informed they have the right to contact the State Department if they are not satisfied with the action taken at the local level.
*********************************************************************************************************************
4.070.2 Non-Discrimination Complaint Requirements
Food Assistance benefits shall be extended to all eligible households without regard to age, race, color, sex, disability, religious creed, national origin or political beliefs. Local offices shall ensure that the nondiscrimination poster provided by FNS is prominently displayed. Posters may be obtained through the State Department.
The local office shall explain the complaint procedures, as outlined in 4.070.21 “Discrimination Complaint Procedure,” to each person expressing an interest in filing a discrimination complaint and shall advise the individual of the right to file a complaint under this procedure. Such information shall be made available within ten (10) calendar days from the date of request.
*********************************************************************************************************************
4.070.22 Disposition of Discrimination Complaints
When the local office receives a complaint of alleged discrimination and obtains the information specified in 4.070.21 “Discrimination Complaint Procedure,” it shall transmit a copy of the complaint to the FNS national office and/or the State Department within five (5) working days. The State Department shall file the complaint with the FNS national office on behalf of the complainant if the local office does not file the complaint with the FNS national office.
*********************************************************************************************************************
4.903.31 Frequency of Reviews
The State Office shall conduct an ME review of all Food Assistance Program operations:
A. At least once annually on each large project area containing more than twenty-five thousand and one (25,001) participating households;
B. At least once every two (2) years on each medium project area containing five thousand (5,000) to twenty-five thousand (25,000) participating households; and,
C. At least once every three (3) years on each small project area containing four thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine (4,999) or fewer participating households.
The State Office may conduct Management Evaluation reviews on an alternative schedule with the written approval of the USDA, FNS. The State Office may also perform reviews of specific county offices or program elements. The USDA, FNS or the State Office, may identify the need of a special review, or the county department may request a special review.
Reviews will generally include all aspects of program administration in the large counties. The reviews may be more limited in scope in the medium and small counties. The USDA, FNS, generally identifies target program areas that it requires for review each fiscal year.
The State Office will complete the Management Evaluation report for all counties that are reviewed. The Colorado Department of Human Services, Food Assistance Program, will be responsible for monitoring the county responses to any finding.
The county shall be responsible for submitting any factual corrections to the management evaluation review within twenty (20) state working days, and shall submit a final plan to correct all other cited deficiencies within twenty (20) state working days of receiving the review. The response shall include specific actions, persons responsible for implementation, and date for completion. When the review identifies ongoing problems in critical areas, the county response shall also include a method for monitoring implementation of the plan and reporting progress to the State Office on at least a quarterly basis.
*********************************************************************************************************************
4.802.1 Time Period for Requesting an Appeal
A. A household shall be allowed to request a local-level dispute resolution conference or state-level fair hearing on the following:
1. Any action by the local office that occurred in the previous ninety (90) calendar days.
2. A loss of benefits that occurred in the previous ninety (90) calendar days. Such Food Assistance action shall include a denial of a request for restoration of benefits lost more than ninety (90) calendar days but less than a year prior to the request.
3. At any time during a certification period a household may request a fair hearing to dispute its current level of benefits.
*********************************************************************************************************************
F. Non-recurring Lump Sum Payments
Money received in the form of non-recurring lump sum payments, includes, but is not limited to, income tax refunds, rebates, or credits; retroactive lump-sum Social Security, SSI, public assistance, railroad retirement benefits or other payments; or retroactive lump-sum insurance settlements; or any money an inmate receives upon release from prison, including earnings from work performed while incarcerated and accumulated over the length of the incarceration.
State and county diversion payments under Colorado Works shall be excluded as a non-recurring lump sum payment if the payment does not cover more than ninety (90) days of expenses and is not expected to occur again in a twelve (12) month period.
Non-recurring lump sum payments shall be counted as resources in the month received, unless specifically excluded from consideration as a resource by other federal laws. Any funds remaining in subsequent months shall be considered a resource.
Beginning December 17, 2010, Federal income tax refunds must be disregarded as a resource for twelve (12) months from the date of receipt by the client. These refunds are also excluded as income in the month received.
*********************************************************************************************************************
4.304.4 Persons Disqualified or Ineligible to Participate in the Food Assistance Program
A. Disqualified individuals shall not be allowed to participate in the Program as separate households. “Disqualified individuals” are individuals disqualified for:
1. Intentional Program violation/fraud;
2. Failure to either provide or obtain a Social Security Number;
3. Being an ineligible non-citizen as defined in Section 4.305.12;
4. Failure to comply with work requirements; or,
5. Being an able-bodied adult without dependents (ABAWD) who has been disqualified after receiving three (3) months of Food Assistance benefits within a period of thirty-six (36) months.
B. Individuals who are fleeing to avoid prosecution or custody for a crime, or an attempt to commit a crime, that would be classified as a felony shall not be considered eligible household members. If an individual is suspected of being a fleeing felon, either by their own admission or based on a report from law enforcement, the fleeing status must be verified in order to determine if the client is eligible for Food Assistance benefits.
The following four part test must be used to determine if the individual would be considered a fleeing felon for Food Assistance purposes:
1. There is an outstanding felony warrant for the individual by a Federal, State, or local law enforcement agency and the underlying cause for the warrant is for committing, or attempting to commit, a crime that is a felony under the law of the place from which the individual is fleeing or is a high misdemeanor under the law of New Jersey; and
2. The individual is aware of, or should reasonably have been able to expect that, the felony warrant has already or would have been issued; and
3. The individual has taken some action to avoid being arrested or jailed; and
4. The Federal, State, or local law enforcement agency is actively seeking the individual as provided in 4.304.4(C)(1).
C. Individuals who are determined to be a parole or probation violator shall not be considered to be an eligible household member. To be considered a probation or parole violator, an impartial party, as designated by the agency, must determine that the individual violated a condition of his or her probation or parole imposed under Federal or State law, and that Federal, State, or local law enforcement authorities are actively seeking the individual to enforce the conditions of the probation or parole as outlined below.
1. For the purposes of this provision, actively seeking is defined as follows:
a. A Federal, State, or local law enforcement agency informs the local Food Assistance office that it intends to enforce an outstanding felony warrant or to arrest an individual for a probation or parole violation within twenty (20) days of submitting a request for information about the individual to the local office;
b. A Federal, State, or local law enforcement agency presents a felony arrest warrant as provided in 4.304.4(B)(1); or
c. A Federal, State, or local law enforcement agency states that it intends to enforce an outstanding felony warrant or to arrest an individual for a probation or parole violation within thirty (30) days of the date of a request from a local Food Assistance office about a specific outstanding felony warrant or probation or parole violation.
*********************************************************************************************************************
4.050 CONFIDENTIALITY
A. If there is a written request by a responsible member of the household, or it’s ITS currently authorized representative, or a person acting on behalf of the household to review materials contained in the case record, the material and information contained in the case record shall be made available for inspection during normal business hours.
B. The local office shall withhold confidential information, such as the names of persons who have disclosed information about the household without the household’s knowledge, or the nature or status of pending criminal investigations or prosecutions.
C. Use or disclosure of information obtained from a Food Assistance applicant or household or from any State or Federal agency included in the Income and Eligibility Verification System (IEVS), including the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Social Security Administration (SSA) and Colorado
Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) exclusively for the Food Assistance Program, shall be restricted to the following persons:
1. Persons directly connected with the administration or enforcement of the provisions of the Food Stamp Act or regulations, other Federal assistance programs, federally- assisted State programs providing assistance on a means-tested basis to low income individuals, or general assistance programs which are subject to the joint processing requirements in 4.202.1.
2. Employees of the Comptroller General's office of the United States for audit examination
authorized by any other provision of law;
3. Local, State or Federal law enforcement officials, upon their written request, for the purpose of investigating an alleged violation of the Food Stamp Act or regulations. The written request shall include the identity of the individual requesting the information and his/her authority to do so, the violation being investigated, and the identity of the person about whom the information is requested;
Local, State, or Federal law enforcement officers acting in their official capacity, upon written request by such law enforcement officers that includes the name of the household member being sought, for the purpose of obtaining the address, social security number, and, if available, photograph of the household member, if the member is fleeing to avoid prosecution or custody for a crime, or an attempt to commit a crime, that would be classified as a felony (or a high misdemeanor in New Jersey), or is violating a condition of probation or parole imposed under a Federal or State law. The agency shall provide information regarding a household member, upon written request of a law enforcement officer acting in his or her official capacity that includes the name of the person being sought, if the other household member has information necessary for the apprehension or investigation of the other household member who is fleeing to avoid prosecution or custody for a felony, or has violated a condition of probation or parole imposed under Federal or State law.
The agency must accept any document that reasonably establishes the identity of the household member being sought by law enforcement authorities. If a law enforcement officer provides documentation indicating that a household member is fleeing to avoid prosecution or custody for a felony, or has violated a condition of probation or parole, the agency shall follow the procedures in 4.304.4 to determine whether the member's eligibility in the Food Assistance program should be terminated. A determination and request for information that does not comply with the terms and procedures in 4.304.4 is not sufficient to terminate the member's participation. The agency shall disclose only such information as is necessary to comply with a specific written request of a law enforcement agency authorized by this paragraph.