55 Pa. Code § 257.21 - Policy
(a)
General. AFDC/GA reimbursement policy in general is as
follows:
(1) There are two closely related
reasons for reimbursement. The first rests on the basic principle that public
assistance supplements resources and that whenever assistance is granted in
lieu of the utilization of certain resources, the assistance should be repaid
whenever these resources become available. The second reason relates to the
financing of the program. Reimbursement results in a recovery of money that is
then available for redistribution as assistance, thereby reducing to this
extent the need for additional tax revenues.
(2) Requiring reimbursement from persons who
receive assistance in lieu of the utilization of certain resources will insure
that they are treated equitably with other persons who have the same kind of
resources but who use their resources instead of seeking public assistance.
Inherent in this concept is a further saving of tax moneys, since persons will
thereby be encouraged to find ways of remaining independent of public
assistance.
(3) The obligation of
reimbursement has always been inherent in the receiving of public assistance in
the Commonwealth. The Supreme Court emphasized this and recognized the right of
the Commonwealth to repayment under the common law when it decided in
Waits' Estate, 336 Pa. 151, that "there is an implied duty on
the part of a recipient of public assistance, or his estate, to make
reimbursement." The Support Law (see
62
P. S. §§
1971-1977) sets forth
certain conditions pertaining to reimbursement. The rules and regulations of
the Department which have been developed with the advice of the Attorney
General implement the common law and the Support Law (62 P. S.
§§
1971-1977) by establishing the
limits of liability specifically.
(4) Protection and collection of the
Commonwealth's claim for reimbursement are mandatory, and the interests of the
Commonwealth are best protected by providing that property owners pledge
property which is liable for reimbursement as security for future reimbursement
of assistance received by them or by persons for whom they are held
responsible.
(b)
Applicability. Reimbursement will be required for Aid to
Dependent Children, General Assistance and all burial payments. Blind Pension
itself, including payments made for nursing home care, will not be
reimbursable. Medical Assistance payments will not be reimbursable. Assistance
payments paid to an individual for the period that the individual actually
works in community work experience programs are not reimbursable from the
individual's real property.
(c)
Liability. Regulations regarding liability for reimbursement
are as follows:
(1) The rules which have been
established by the Department are a result of progressive interpretation and
application of the Support Law (62 P. S. §§
1971-1977), as well as the common law, to
questions of liability during the past 10 years. They are embodied in the
repayment agreements which property owners have been required to sign in order
to insure repayment. Although new repayment agreements were devised in order to
cover revisions in regulations from time to time, it was not required that
persons who had already signed agreements execute the new ones. Nevertheless,
claims for repayment will be computed as though new reimbursement agreements
had been taken each time the basis for computation changed.
(2) Liability for reimbursement will depend
on three things: ownership of property during receipt of assistance, type of
property owned, and the relationship of the property owner to the recipient of
assistance.
(3) Liability will
begin with the first assistance payment following the acquisition of property
or a right to property or the date a resource was due, whichever is appropriate
to the kind of property involved.
(4) The owner of real or personal property
will be liable for the assistance received by himself and certain of his
relatives. This liability for reimbursement will differ from his liability to
contribute out of income to the support of his relatives, which is covered by
Chapter 187 (relating to support from relatives not living with
client).
(d)
Collection. Collection of reimbursement claims will be as
follows:
(1) The area office will be
responsible for collecting reimbursement claims except as provided in §
257.24 (relating to procedures).
Records will be maintained of all collections and an Official Receipt, Form PA
175, will be issued for payments received.
(2) The general rule on collection of
reimbursement claims is that the Department will proceed in the same way as
other creditors. However, there is one very important exception to this rule:
the Department will never execute on real property as long as it is the home of
the person who is liable for reimbursement, his spouse or children.
(3) The maximum amount the Department will
attempt to collect will not exceed the amount of assistance received plus legal
costs. Frequently settlement will be made for less, depending upon the
circumstances involved in receipt of assistance and ownership of property.
Settlements for less, commonly called compromise settlements, will be agreed to
only with the approval of the Department of Justice after approval by claim
settlement which will take into consideration such factors as degree of
ownership, present and future value of property, prior encumbrances, costs of
legal action and known court practices. In short, compromise settlements, when
made, will be based on good business practice. In addition, escrow agreements
as provided in §
257.24 may postpone payment of a
claim.
(4) The market value of the
property at the time the claim is paid will be one of the bases for settling
the claim. The market value at the time of acknowledgment of liability will not
be considered.
Notes
The provisions of this § 257.21 issued under sections 201(2) and 403(b) of the Public Welfare Code (62 P. S. §§ 201(2) and 403(b)).
This section cited in 55 Pa. Code § 257.24 (relating to procedures).
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