8 Va. Admin. Code § 20-790-40 - Case management
A. Applicants for
child care subsidy and services must be at least 18 years of age unless they
are an emancipated minor.
B.
Applicants are required to sign an application, to provide verification of
identity, and to cooperate with an assessment by the local department of social
services.
C. At initial eligibility
determination, a family with a child experiencing homelessness that cannot
provide the required documentation may be conditionally approved for services
for a period not to exceed 90 days. The final eligibility determination shall
be completed once the 90 days has expired or full documentation is provided.
Any payments made prior to the final eligibility determination shall not be
considered an error or improper payment. Families with a child experiencing
homelessness shall receive priority placement on the waiting list, if
applicable.
D. Consumer education,
including education on the selection and monitoring of quality child care and
how to access information regarding their selected vendor as to the (i) health
and safety requirements met by the vendor; (ii) licensing or regulatory
requirements met by the vendor; (iii) date the vendor was last inspected and
any history of violations; and (iv) any voluntary quality standards met by the
vendor, must be provided to parents to assist them in gaining needed
information about the availability of child care services and providers.
Parents must also be provided information on how to obtain a developmental
screening for their child.
E. The
department shall establish scales for determining financial eligibility for the
income eligible child care subsidy program categories in subdivision 2 of
8VAC20-790-30.
1. Recipients in the TANF child care program
category shall be considered income eligible based on their receipt of TANF;
the local department shall not be required to verify their income.
2. At initial eligibility determination,
income eligibility shall be determined by measuring the family's countable
income and size against the percentage of the federal poverty guidelines for
their locality. The family's income cannot exceed 85% of the state median
income.
3. At redetermination, if a
recipient family's countable income exceeds the initial eligibility limit, they
shall be considered income eligible until their countable income meets or
exceeds the exit eligibility limit established by the department. The family's
income cannot exceed 85% of the state median income.
F. Families receiving child care subsidy and
services shall be required to pay a copayment unless their gross monthly income
is at or below the federal poverty guidelines. The copayment amount will be
based on a scale set out in the current Child Care and Development Fund Plan
for Virginia. Copayments may be increased at redetermination and during
graduated phase out if the family's countable income exceeds the initial
eligibility limit but is below the exit eligibility limit. Local departments
shall be required to act on changes reported by the family that would reduce
the family's copayment during the 12-month eligibility period.
G. Income to be counted in determining income
eligibility includes all earned and unearned income received by the family
except the following:
1. Supplemental Security
Income;
2. TANF benefits;
3. Transitional payments of $50 per month to
former VIEW participants;
4.
Diversionary assistance payments;
5. General relief;
6. SNAP benefits;
7. Value of U.S. Department of Agriculture
donated food;
8. Benefits received
under Title VII, Nutrition Program for the Elderly of the Older Americans Act
of 1965;
9. Value of supplemental
food assistance under the Child Nutrition Act of 1996 and lunches provided
under National School Lunch Act;
10. Earnings of a child younger than the age
of 18 years;
11. Earned income tax
credit;
12. Lump sum child support
arrears payments;
13. Scholarships,
loans, or grants for education except any portion specified for child
care;
14. Basic allowance for
housing for military personnel living on base;
15. Clothing maintenance allowance for
military personnel;
16. Payments
received by AmeriCorps volunteers;
17. Tax refunds;
18. Lump sum insurance payments;
19. Monetary gifts for one-time occasions or
normal annual occasions;
20.
Payments made by non-financially responsible third parties for household
obligations, unless payment is made in lieu of wages;
21. Loans or money borrowed;
22. Money received from sale of
property;
23. Earnings less than
$25 a month;
24. Capital
gains;
25. Withdrawals of bank
deposits;
26. GI Bill
benefits;
27. Reimbursements, such
as for mileage;
28. Foreign
government restitution payments to Holocaust survivors;
29. Payments from the Agent Orange Settlement
Fund or any other fund established for settlement of Agent Orange product
liability litigation; and
30.
Monetary benefits provided to the children of Vietnam Veterans as described in
38 USC §
1823(c).
The amount of wages subject to garnishment and the amount of child support paid to another household shall be deducted from the family's income.
H. The
eligibility period for TANF (nonVIEW), transitional child care, Fee Program,
and Head Start begins with the effective date of the approval of the child care
subsidy and services application. The eligibility period for VIEW and SNAPET
participants begins with the date of referral from the VIEW or SNAPET
program.
I. Recipients will be
eligible for child care subsidy and services for a minimum of 12-months before
eligibility is redetermined unless:
1. Their
countable income exceeds 85% of state median income. Temporary increases in
income will not affect eligibility or family copayments, including monthly
income fluctuations, which when taken in isolation, may incorrectly indicate
that a recipient's income exceeds 85% of state median income.
2. There is a finding that the recipient
committed an intentional program violation.
3. The recipient is no longer a resident of
Virginia.
4. The recipient requests
that their child care subsidy and services case be closed.
5. The recipient is a family of a child
experiencing homelessness that was approved as conditionally eligible and
failed to provide necessary documentation to the local department within 90
days, or the recipient is determined ineligible after full documentation is
provided.
J. Recipients
will retain eligibility despite any change in residency within the
state.
K. Recipients will retain
eligibility despite any eligible child turning 13 years of age during the
12-month eligibility period.
L. The
beginning date of service payment for TANF (nonVIEW), transitional child care,
Fee Program, and Head Start participants may begin with the date the applicant
is determined eligible and a vendor approved by the department is selected. The
beginning date of service payment for VIEW or SNAPET participants may begin
with the date of referral from the VIEW or SNAPET program if the applicant is
determined eligible and a vendor approved by the department is selected.
1. Eligibility must be determined within 30
days of receipt of a signed application or referral from VIEW or SNAPET by the
local department.
2. Payment cannot
be made to any provider prior to the effective date of their approval by the
department as a vendor.
M. Eligibility will be redetermined in the
final month of the 12-month eligibility period described in subsection I of
this section, at which time the recipient will be contacted in order to have
all eligibility criteria be reevaluated. The local department's contact with
the recipient should not unduly disrupt a parent's work schedule. Recipients
shall not be required to appear in person for eligibility
redetermination.
N. Child care case
managers shall prepare a written service plan for each child care case with the
applicant or recipient. The service plan shall state the activities and
responsibilities of the local department and the parent in the provision of
child care services. The VIEW Activity and Service Plan will serve as the
service plan for parents active in VIEW. If the parents are SNAPET
participants, the SNAPET Plan of Participation will serve as the service
plan.
O. Recipients shall be
required to:
1. Report to the local department
the following changes within 10 calendar days of the change:
a. Countable income that exceeds 85% of the
state median income.
b. Recipient
is no longer a resident of Virginia or the county in which they are receiving
services.
2. Pay all
fees owed to the vendor not paid for under the Child Care Subsidy Program or
reimbursements owed to the local department; failure to do so may result in
case closure at redetermination.
3.
Reimburse the local department for any overpayment made as a result of fraud,
intentional program violation, or an inadvertent household error.
The local department shall inform recipients of child care subsidy and services of these responsibilities.
P. Adequate documentation supporting the
reasons for termination must be filed in the case record.
Q. When sufficient funds are not available,
local departments of social services must screen applicants for potential
eligibility and place them on the department's waiting list unless the family
declines placement.
R. Applicants
and recipients will be afforded due process through timely written notices of
any action determining or affecting their eligibility for services or copayment
amount. Such written notice shall include the reason for the action and the
notice of appeal rights and procedures, including the right to a fair hearing
if the applicant or recipient is aggrieved by the local department's action or
failure to act on an application. If a recipient requests an appeal prior to
the effective date of any proposed action and if the continuation of services
is requested by the parent, child care services will continue until a decision
is rendered by a hearing officer. If the decision of the local department is
upheld by the hearing officer, the recipient must repay the amount of services
paid during the appeal process.
Notes
Statutory Authority: §§ 22.1-16 and 22.1-289.046 of the Code of Virginia.
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