ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES MANUAL CHAPTER CONTENTS 110 WARRANTS...K AUTHORIZING PAYMENTS...K WHO MAY AUTHORIZE PAYMENTS...

Transcription

1 CHAPTER CONTENTS Section Page 110 WARRANTS...K AUTHORIZING PAYMENTS...K WHO MAY AUTHORIZE PAYMENTS...K TO WHOM PAYMENTS WILL BE MADE...K-1 A. WHEN A PROTECTIVE PAYEE IS REQUIRED...K-1 B. WHEN A PROTECTIVE PAYEE IS REQUESTED...K-1 C. CARE OF MAILING ADDRESS...K-2 D. CARE OF A DPA OFFICE...K-2 E. PROHIBITION AGAINST DPA EMPLOYEES...K CONCURRENT PAYMENTS...K DELIVERY OF PAYMENTS...K UNRESTRICTED OR UNCONDITIONAL PAYMENTS...K ENDORSEMENTS...K ADVANCE PAYMENT...K RETROACTIVE PAYMENTS...K CONTINUING PAYMENTS...K ADJUSTING (CHANGING) PAYMENTS...K SUSPENDING PAYMENTS...K CLOSING CASES OR ENDING PAYMENTS...K HOLDING PAYMENTS...K STOP PAYMENT AND FORGERY PROCEDURES...K-6 A. STOP PAY PROCEDURES...K-7 B. FORGERY PROCEDURES...K RETURNED WARRANTS...K-10

2 110 WARRANTS AUTHORIZING PAYMENTS Once the amount of the grant has been determined, an entry is made on the proper Eligibility Information System (EIS) screen to authorize a payment WHO MAY AUTHORIZE PAYMENTS All payments will be authorized by a regional manager or a staff member authorized or designated to act in his or her behalf. Designated staff members shall include only persons assigned to positions classified as Eligibility Technicians and Eligibility Supervisors. These are the only persons allowed to determine eligibility, establish the amount of a grant, or authorize payments through EIS TO WHOM PAYMENTS WILL BE MADE In most cases the warrants are paid to the primary (PI) person, even though he or she may not have his or her needs included. However, there are certain exceptions: A. WHEN A PROTECTIVE PAYEE IS REQUIRED If the AFDC specified relative has failed to comply with certain Job Opportunities and Basic Skills (JOBS) or Child Support Enforcement Division (CSED) requirements, there will be a protective payee established. If the relative fails to comply with these requirements, AFDC warrants will be made payable to, and sent to, that protective payee. See the AFDC manual. B. WHEN A PROTECTIVE PAYEE IS REQUESTED The PI can ask the Eligibility Technician to allow a second person (protective payee) to be able to receive and cash his or her check. This can be done if the request is made by the recipient, in writing. The Eligibility Technician has the right to refuse such a request if good cause exists, such as the second party named is known to be unreliable; is too young to manage, receive, and cash the check; etc. Supervisory approval is required on all payee decisions. K-1

3 110-3 Continued C. CARE OF MAILING ADDRESS If the PI or his or her authorized representative desire some other person at another address to receive, but not to be able to cash monthly benefits, the Eligibility Technician may use a Care Of (C/O) mailing address. This can only be done at the written request of the client and the client's reason for making the request should be identified and documented in the case file. Once a Care Of address is established, the person named at that address will receive the monthly benefit, but that warrant will still be made payable to the primary person. C/O payments cannot be mailed to a business or to a creditor of the recipient. D. CARE OF A DPA OFFICE In very special circumstances, a client may request that benefits be mailed to him or her in care of a DPA office if: 1. This is the only way to be reasonably certain that the client will receive the warrant; that is, there has been a serious problem of mail theft or delivery at the client's mailing address, and there is no other address available to serve as Care Of; 2. The client requests DPA to serve as C/O in a written and signed request; and 3. The regional manager reviews and approves the request. Any benefits so received by a DPA office shall be placed under locked controls and security, and the client shall be required to sign a receipt when he or she picks up his or her warrant. E. PROHIBITION AGAINST DPA EMPLOYEES No Division of Public Assistance employee may be named as, or serve as, a C/O or protective payee. There are no exceptions to this rule. Fee Agents are also prohibited from serving as protective payees. K-2

4 110-4 CONCURRENT PAYMENTS Except for specific exceptions allowed by the DPA program manuals, no person is entitled to receive cash assistance concurrently for more than one DPA assistance program, or concurrently from more than one federal cash assistance program. (This does not affect food stamps.) That is, no recipient can be provided benefits in the same calendar month in the AFDC program and the SSI or APA cash programs. However, he or she can be a protective payee for more than one program, when his or her needs are being met in only one program. For example, a disabled parent has his or her needs met by SSI and APA payments, and his or her spouse and children have their needs included in and met by AFDC. The Eligibility Technician must be careful not to confuse the recipient (one whose needs are included in the grant) with the person who actually receives a monthly warrant. These may not be the same person DELIVERY OF PAYMENTS AFDC and APA payments are made by State warrant to each payee. The warrant is mailed to the payee and the address should be one at which he or she customarily receives mail. Payments may not be mailed to him or her in care of a creditor and they may not be forwarded from one address to another. The payee may request the Division to deliver the warrant to him or her in a specified way, but the Division cannot, on its own authority, determine that delivery is to be made to any other person, or place other restrictions upon its delivery except as provided for in protective payee situations UNRESTRICTED OR UNCONDITIONAL PAYMENTS Payments cannot be restricted or conditional. A payment, to be unrestricted, must consist of an unconditional transfer and delivery of money to the payee. K-3

5 110-6 Continued Unrestricted payments are those which the payee is free to spend as he or she chooses. The payment goes to the payee as a sum of money to be spent as the payee determines will best meet his or her need. If a DPA staff member has reason to believe that payments are not being used by a recipient to meet the needs of the child(ren), and the result of this suggests the possibility that child abuse or neglect is occurring or likely to occur, he or she must file a report with the Division of Family and Youth Services ENDORSEMENTS Warrants must be endorsed by the person in whose favor the warrant is drawn or by the person whom he or she (or DPA) has named as payee. When the endorsement is made by mark rather than by signature, the warrant should be prepared, and the mark made by, the person whose name appears on the face of the warrant, in the following manner: His JOHN X DOE Mark and be witnessed by two persons who sign their full names and addresses ADVANCE PAYMENT Regular payments are made for the needs of the assistance unit in the month in which payment is delivered. For example, a regular warrant is mailed on February 27 and delivered on March 1 is normally for needs of the unit during all of March. This is true even if the income circumstances used to determine the amount of a payment are from some prior month (prior month budgeting) RETROACTIVE PAYMENTS No payment can become effective preceding the date of receipt of an identifiable application. K-4

6 CONTINUING PAYMENTS Once eligibility has been established and benefits authorized, the recipient is entitled to receive a payment on a regular and continuing basis as long as eligibility exists. For food stamps and General Relief, eligibility is authorized only during a specific period of time. (See the program policy manuals for instructions) ADJUSTING (CHANGING) PAYMENTS Once initial benefits have been provided, continuing payments can be adjusted upwards or downwards, or ended, on the regular monthly issuance SUSPENDING PAYMENTS Suspension of payment is used to stop warrants and medical coupons for temporary periods of time, instead of closing cases and then reopening them when payment is to be resumed. Suspension is different from closure, since the client does not have to reapply in order for assistance to be reinstated. See the program policy manuals for more information on those situations where benefits may be suspended for a temporary period. Warrants are not written while payment is suspended CLOSING CASES OR ENDING PAYMENTS A payment shall be terminated in the month following a determination that a recipient is no longer eligible, providing that the advance notice requirements are met. In certain cases, the case may contain no one who is eligible for cash payments but may still contain persons eligible for benefits related to AFDC (such as Medicaid); the payment must be stopped but the case left open. See the AFDC and Medicaid program manuals. K-5

7 HOLDING PAYMENTS Warrants may be held by EIS in cases in which the Eligibility Technician is reasonably certain the client will not receive the check if it is mailed or the client is clearly ineligible and no advance notice is required STOP PAYMENT AND FORGERY PROCEDURES DPA will stop payment on warrants that have been issued but were: not received by the recipient; stolen from the recipient; lost by the recipient; destroyed after receipt by the recipient; or over two years old. The agency policy is to replace a warrant after 10 calendar days from date issued to ensure the warrant has cleared the postal channels and to allow time for it to clear the Department of Administration to determine if the warrant has been cashed. Reissuance may be done before the 10 calendar days have elapsed if the agency receives information from the recipient that the warrant is destroyed (e.g., washed with the laundry) or lost (e.g., thrown out with garbage). The Eligibility Technician will use prudent judgment in these situations. After the 10 calendar days have elapsed ( or the Eligibility Technician determines the warrant lost or destroyed), and prior to initiating stop payment procedures, the Eligibility Technician will check the warrant status on EIS by reviewing the issuance history screen. If the warrant status is outstanding, the Eligibility Technician will follow the Stop Payment Procedures in Section A. If the warrant status is redeemed, the Eligibility Technician will follow the Forgery Procedures in Section B. K-6

8 Continued A. STOP PAY PROCEDURES 1. The Eligibility Technician will complete and have the recipient sign a Stop Payment Affidavit (Form Gen 21). The Eligibility Technician will inform the recipient that once a Stop Payment Affidavit has been signed it cannot be cancelled. The recipient will be instructed to notify the Eligibility Technician immediately if he or she receives the warrant on which a Stop Payment order has been placed and to return the warrant to the agency for cancellation. The original affidavit will be retained in the case file and a copy will be given to the recipient. 2. If the non-receipt of warrant is due to an incorrect address, the Eligibility Technician must ensure the address screen (ADDR) on EIS is updated and corrected before the warrant is reissued by Systems Operations. 3. The Eligibility Technician will notify System Operations in Anchorage via EIS message entitled Stop Pay addressed to HPASTOP. This notification will include the following information: case name, case number, warrant number, benefit month, and the date the Stop Payment Affidavit was signed by the recipient. If the request is within the 10 calendar day period, the Eligibility Technician is to state the reason. 4. Within 24 hours of receipt of the message from the district office, Systems Operations will notify the Eligibility Technician of the status of the warrant. If System Operations has not responded within 24 hours, the Eligibility Technician will submit a second request. 5. If the Eligibility Technician has been notified by the recipient that he or she has received the warrant on which a Stop Payment order has been placed, the Eligibility Technician will notify Systems Operations immediately via EIS message addressed to HPASTOP. The district office must stamp cancelled across the face of any returned warrant and forward the warrant to Systems Operations immediately. K-7

9 Continued 6. Systems Operations will notify the Eligibility Technician of the status of the warrant. 7. If the warrant status is outstanding, Systems Operations will notify the Eligibility Technician of the date the warrant will be reissued. The final stop payment procedures will be handled by Systems Operations. 8. If the warrant status is redeemed, the Eligibility Technician will proceed with the Forgery Procedures in Section B below. B. FORGERY PROCEDURES If the warrant status is redeemed as indicated on the EIS issuance history screen or as notified by Systems Operations, the Eligibility Technician will inform the recipient of this. If the recipient remembers that he or she cashed the warrant, no further action is required. If the recipient claims he or she did not cash the warrant and requests that forgery procedures be pursued, the Eligibility Technician will take the following actions: 1. The Eligibility Technician will request a copy of the redeemed warrant from Systems Operations via EIS message entitled Warrant Copy Request addressed to HPAHELP. This notification will include the following information: case name, payee name, if different than client; case number, and benefit month. 2. Systems Operations will obtain a copy of the redeemed warrant and forward it to the Eligibility Technician. 3. Upon receipt of the redeemed warrant copy, the Eligibility Technician will contact the recipient to come in and examine the signature on the warrant copy. 4. If, after examination of the warrant copy, the recipient changes positions and states that he or she did redeem the warrant, no further action will be taken. K-8

10 Continued 5. If the recipient, after examination of the warrant copy, states that the signature is not his or hers, and claims it to be a forgery, the recipient will be given a copy of the warrant copy and instructed to file a report at the local police department. The recipient must provide a copy of the police report to the district office prior to any action to reissue the warrant. For areas where a police department is not accessible or refuses to provide a police report, this requirement may be waived at the regional manager's discretion. 6. For cases where fraud is suspected, the Eligibility Technician may want to make a fraud referral. If it is discovered that it was not a forgery, a fraud referral should be completed. 7. The Eligibility Technician has the recipient complete an Affidavit for Forgery (Gen-86) and sign it in front of a Notary Public. The Eligibility Technician is to assure the affidavit is complete and accurate (name spelled correctly, numbers/dates correct). The Eligibility Technician is not responsible for comparing the signatures or making a determination of whether it is a forgery. All responsibility for the forgery claim is on the payee who signs the affidavit. 8. The Eligibility Technician will forward the original signed, notarized Affidavit for Forgery to Systems Operations in Anchorage and notify them via EIS message entitled Affidavit of Forgery Transmittal addressed to HPAHELP that the affidavit is being forwarded. The Eligibility Technician will retain a copy of the affidavit in the recipient's case file. 9. Systems Operations will process the affidavit, assuring the affidavit is complete and accurate (name spelled correctly, numbers/dates correct), and reissue the warrant within 24 hours of receipt of the affidavit. K-9

11 Continued 10. If the case file indicates more than three replacements within a four to six month period, the Eligibility Technician should investigate the possibility that the problem is related to an EIS entry error on the address (ADDR) screen. Once this possibility is ruled out, the Eligibility Technician may consider requesting that the recipient provide the agency with a protective payee mailing address, where the warrant is mailed and the recipient can pick it up or the person can deliver it to the recipient. The Eligibility Technician must obtain a written statement for the case file from the person or agency willing to do this RETURNED WARRANTS All undeliverable EIS warrants will be returned to Systems Operations and immediately cancelled. Systems Operations will be responsible for updating the EIS Issuance History screen to reflect the returned and cancelled warrant. This history will also indicate if the warrant was simply returned for an address correction, thus enabling the Eligibility Technician to reissue the warrant, or if the warrant has been returned because the client died or moved to another state, in which case the Eligibility Technician cannot reissue the warrant. Systems Operations will separate the warrant and stub, returning the warrant portion to Treasury. Systems Operations will return the stub to the appropriate district office so that the Eligibility Technician can follow up on the reason for the post office returning the warrant. The stub will reflect the case identifying information and the comments made by the post office which resulted in the warrant's return. The Eligibility Technician will then make necessary address changes or closures on EIS. K-10