Ariz. Admin. Code § R6-10-123 - Failure to Participate; Good Cause Reasons; Verification

A. Failure to participate includes:

1. Failure to appear for a scheduled appointment with a Jobs Program case manager;

2. Failure to attend a scheduled work activity, assessment, or appointment that is documented in the employment and career development plan;

3. Refusing to submit a completed application for employment, when required;

4. Refusing to accept suitable employment, voluntarily reducing employment hours, or voluntarily quitting employment without good cause, as described at R6-10-123(F);

5. Providing false or inaccurate information to a Jobs Program case manager;

6. Behaving in a manner that constitutes a threat or hazard to agency staff or others; or

7. Intentionally disrupting an activity or the orderly administration of the overall program, such as:

a. Attending, but refusing to participate in a class, workshop, or other assigned activity; or

b. Disruptive behavior that makes it difficult to conduct an activity.

B. If a participant does not actively engage with the Jobs Program, the Jobs Program case manager shall determine if a barrier to participation exists, and if so, whether services have been offered or provided to address the barrier.

1. If services have not been offered or provided to address an identified barrier, the Jobs Program case manager shall refer the participant to Jobs Program support services or community resources to address a barrier.

2. If services have been offered or provided to address all identified barriers, the Jobs Program case manager shall send the participant a Good Cause/Last Chance to Stop the Sanction Appointment notice. The participant shall provide verification of good cause or attend a Last Chance to Stop the Sanction Appointment within ten days of the date the notice is mailed. The deadline shall be stated in the notice.

3. If there are no services available to address an identified barrier, the Jobs Program Case Manager shall grant a participant good cause for not participating, as described in R6-10-123(F) and shall reevaluate the situation every 30 days from the date the employment and career development plan is revised to determine whether the barrier has been resolved or services have become available.

C. If the participant timely submits verification of good cause, the Jobs Program shall determine if good cause exists, as described at R6-10-123(F).

1. If verification meets the requirements of acceptable verification under R6-10-123(G) and establishes good cause, the Jobs Program shall notify the participant and state that good cause has been established and the Department shall not impose a sanction.

2. If verification does not meet the requirement of acceptable verification at R6-10-123(G) and does not establish good cause, the Jobs Program shall notify the participant and state that good cause was not established and shall allow the participant an additional ten days from the date the notice is mailed to attend a Last Chance to Stop the Sanction Appointment.

D. If the participant fails to provide any verification but attended the Last Chance to Stop the Sanction Appointment and demonstrates compliance, the Jobs Program shall notify the participant and state that the Department shall not impose a sanction.

E. If the participant does not timely establish good cause under R6-10-123(F), attend the Last Chance to Stop the Sanction Appointment, or demonstrate compliance, the Jobs Program shall notify the participant and state that the participant did not establish good cause and did not attend the Last Chance to Stop the Sanction Appointment. The Jobs Program shall initiate the sanction process under R6-10-125.

F. Good cause is subject to verification under R6-10-123(G). Circumstances that prevent a participant from engaging in work activities under R6-10-102 constitute good cause, including when:

1. The participant has a barrier to participation for which services are not available;

2. The participant is participating in referred services to address a barrier to participation;

3. The participant has an illness;

4. The participant is required to care for a family member with an illness or a disability;

5. Either the participant or a dependent child has an appointment that cannot be rescheduled, such as a court-ordered appearance, medical appointment, or another comparable appointment;

6. The participant has a family emergency;

7. The participant lacks transportation with no reasonable alternate means of transportation;

8. The participant is prevented from participating due to inclement weather;

9. The participant is unable to obtain child care for a child who is less than 13 years old because the child care is unavailable, unaf-fordable, or unsuitable;

10. Child care is unavailable for a child age 13 or over who requires adult supervision because the child:

a. Has a disability, including mental health or other health-related issues;

b. Would be harmful to himself, herself, or others if left alone; or

c. Is on court-ordered probation that requires the child to remain in the home or is under house arrest.

11. The participant needs translation services that are not available or not provided.

12. The participant is incapable of performing the work activity due to:

a. Unsafe worksite conditions;

b. Physical demands of the job;

c. Lack of skills, aptitude, or knowledge for the position;

d. Strike, lockout, or other bona fide labor dispute; or

e. Conditions of the participant's membership in a union representing employees in the occupation.

13. The participant is a victim or perceives himself or herself to be a victim of domestic violence whose current situation:

a. Threatens the safety of the participant or any child living with the participant; or

b. Causes physical, mental, or emotional harm to the participant or any child living with the participant.

14. The Department fails to provide the participant with services agreed upon in the employment and career development plan; or

15. Other comparable circumstances beyond the participant's control, including an error by the Department.

G. Verification. Acceptable verification that establishes a participant's good cause, as described in R6-10-123(F), includes:

1. A statement from an acceptable medical source;

2. An appointment notice from a court, FAA, or other comparable entity;

3. Death certificate;

4. Newspaper article, or other similar evidence of public knowledge;

5. Document or statement from the DES Child Care Administration, FAA, a court, or other comparable entity;

6. Police report;

7. Statement from crisis shelter staff or a witness to the domestic violence;

8. Statement from a third party; or

9. Signed participant statement explaining the circumstances that establish good cause if no other verification is possible.

Notes

Ariz. Admin. Code § R6-10-123

Adopted effective January 10, 1977 (Supp. 77-1). Amended effective July 27, 1983 (Supp. 83-4). Repealed effective June 6, 1995 (Supp. 95-2). New Section adopted effective July 31, 1997, under an exemption from the provisions of A.R.S. Title 41, Chapter 6 (Supp. 97-3). Former R6-10-123 renumbered to R6-10-124; new Section R6-10-123 renumbered from R6-10-121and amended by final rulemaking at 11 A.A.R. 5371, effective January 14, 2006 (05-4). Amended and renumbered from R6-10-121 by final rulemaking at 25 A.A.R. 3236, effective 12/7/2019.

The following Section was adopted under an exemption from the provisions of A.R.S. Title 41, Chapter 6, pursuant to Laws 1997, Ch. 300, § 74 (A). Exemption from A.R.S. Title 41, Chapter 6 means the Department did not submit notice of proposed rulemaking to the Secretary of State for publication in the Arizona Administrative Register; the Department did not submit these rules to the Governor's Regulatory Review Council for review and approval; and the Department was not required to hold public hearings on this Section. Subsequently, this Section was renumbered by final rulemaking. Please refer to historical note.