DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
ECONOMIC STABILITY ADMINISTRATION
FAMILY INDEPENDENCE PROGRAM
Filed with the secretary of state on
These
rules take effect immediately upon after filing with the
secretary of state unless adopted under section 33, 44, or 45a(9) of the
administrative procedures act of 1969, 1969 PA 306, MCL 24.233, 24.244, or
24.245a. Rules adopted under these sections become effective 7 days after
filing with the secretary of state.
(By authority conferred on the department of health and human services by section 6
of the social welfare act, 1939 PA 280, MCL 400.6)
R 400.3101 and R 400.3104 of the Michigan Administrative Code are amended, as follows:
R 400.3101 Definitions.
Rule 1. (1) As used in these rules:
(a) "Administrative recoupment" means a process by which a group's benefits
are reduced to make payments on an over issuance.
(b) "Agency
errors" means over issuances caused from incorrect actions by the
department.
(cb)
"Application" means an application for the family independence
program.
(dc)
"Application filing date" means the date the department receives a
signed
application document that contains the minimum required information.
(ed)
"Authorized representative" means a person an individual
who is not less than 18 years of age and who applies for assistance on behalf
of a client or who otherwise acts on a client's
behalf, or both. The person
individual may be, but is not limited to being, a guardian, spouse, or
relative outside the group.
(f)
“Available/warrant date” means the date that a regular assistance benefit or
warrant was issued.
(ge)"Client
error" means over issuances that are caused due to the action or inaction
of a client or authorized representative. An over issuance resulting from a department
action being deleted due to a client's hearing request is client error if the client withdraws
his or her the
request, fails to appear for the hearing, or the department is upheld in
the
hearing decision.
(hf)
"Collection actions" means the department processes initiated to
maximize the
recovery of over issued benefits.
(i)
"Crediting" means returning the benefit issuance amount to the state
treasury.
(jg)
"Department” means the Michigan department of health and human
services.
(kh)
“Disqualification" means a department penalty action which is
assessed for
noncompliance with a
family independence program requirement and which results in the
ineligibility of the
noncompliant individual. person.
(i) “EBT” means electronic benefit transfer.
(lj)
"Eligible child" means a child who is part of a group that receives
assistance
under the family independence program.
(k) “FIP” means family independence program.
(ml)
"Immunizations" means all immunizations recommended by the department.
of
community health.
(nm)
"Institution" means an establishment that furnishes food, shelter,
and some
medical treatment or
services to more than 3 individuals people who are unrelated to
the proprietor of the establishment.
(on)
"Intentional program violation" means the intentional withholding or
misrepresenting of information by a client or authorized representative for the purpose of
obtaining benefits that he
or she the client or authorized representative would not otherwise
be eligible for. Over issuances become intentional program violations if the
client or client's authorized representative is found responsible for an
intentional program violation by a court, as a result of an administrative
hearing, or due to signing an agreement form.
(po)
"Mandatory vendoring" means department payment of assistance amounts,
without client request, directly to the client's landlord, mortgage holder, land contract
holder, and or
the providers of the client's home heating and electricity services.
(qp)
"Minimum wage" means the lesser of the federal or state minimum wage.
(rq)
"Monthly payment amount" means the amount of assistance paid to the
group
after deductions for vendoring and any department recoupment.
(s)
"Nonstriker" means a person to whom all of the following conditions
apply:
(i) Is locked out
of the workplace by the employer.
(ii) Is not part
of the bargaining unit on a strike.
(iii) Is in fear
of reprisal if he or she crosses a picket line.
(tr)
"Over issuance" means an issuance of more benefits than a client is
eligible to
receive.
(us)
"Over issuance period” means the time period during which an over issuance
occurs.
(v) "Over
issuance type" means the reason an over issuance occurred. Department
error, client error, and
client intentional program violation are the types of over issuance.
(wt) "Pay
period" means the half of the month from the first of the month to through
the fifteenth of the
month or from the sixteenth of the month to through the end of
the month.
(u) “Payment standard” means the maximum monthly amount for the approved ongoing monthly certified group size.
(xv)
"Potential benefits" means any of the following benefits:
(i) Retirement, survivors, and disability insurance.
(ii) Worker's compensation benefits.
(iii) Veterans administration benefits.
(iv) Railroad retirement benefits.
(v) Unemployment compensation benefits.
(vi) Child support payments.
(vii) Pension payments.
(viii) Disability or retirement benefits.
(ix) Earned but unpaid wages.
(x) Strike pay.
(xi) Vacation pay.
(xii) Supplemental unemployment benefits.
(xiii) Supplemental security income.
(xiv) Any other
Other financial benefits for which potential eligibility exists and which
may reduce the family independence program benefit, other than state-funded, needs
based programs.
(y)
"Reapplication" means an application for family independence program
benefits
after a previous case has
been closed.
(w) “RCA” means refugee cash assistance.
(zx)
"Recoupment" means a department action to identify and recover a
benefit over
issuance.
(aay)
"Redetermination" means a review of continuing eligibility for the
family
independence program.
(bbcc)
"Redirecting" means routing a warrant to a different address.
(ccz)
"Reinstatement" means restoring a closed assistance case to active
status
without a new application/redetermination
or redetermination form.
(ddaa)
"Repayment" means an action by the client to pay back benefits
received.
(eebb)
"Restricted payments" means the meeting of client shelter, heat, and
utilities
obligations through mandatory vendoring or third-party payments.
(ffcc)
"Returned warrants" means uncashed warrants received by the local
department
office or treasury.
(dd) “SDA” means state disability assistance.
(ggee)
"Stop payment" means a department directive to treasury to not honor
a
warrant.
(hhff)
"Striker" means a person an individual who is involved
in any of the following situations:
(i) An employee strike.
(ii) A concerted work stoppage, including a stoppage when a collective bargaining
agreement expires.
(iii) A work slowdown.
(iv) Interruption of work activities or employment operations.
(iigg)
"Third-party payments" means department payment of the client’s
entire
assistance benefit,
without client request, to an agency or person individual outside
the eligible
group for management of the assistance on behalf of the group.
(jjhh)
"Third-party resource" means an individual, person,
entity, or program that is, or might be, liable to pay all or part of a group
member's medical expenses.
(kkii)
"Treasury" means the Michigan department of treasury.
(lljj)
"Under issuance" means that a group has received less cash assistance
than it is
eligible to receive.
(mmkk)
"Verification" means documentation or other evidence to establish the
accuracy of the client's verbal or written statements.
(nnll)
"Voluntary vendoring" means a payment system whereby, at the
group’s
request, the department sends part of the group’s cash assistance directly to the provider
of shelter, heat, or electricity.
(mm) “Warrant” means a written order to pay that instructs a federal, state, or county government treasurer to pay the warrant holder on demand or after a specific date.
(oonn)
"Warrant date" means the date shown on the warrant. For regular
client and
vendor warrants, the warrant date is the expected date of delivery. For replacement
warrants, the warrant
date is the date that the warrant was is mailed by the
department.
(2) Terms defined in the social welfare act, 1939 PA 280, MCL 400.1 to 400.119b,
have the same meaning when used in these rules.
R 400.3104 Replacement
policies for warrants reported lost, stolen, not received, or destroyed
and EBT thefts.
Rule 4. (1) A group is eligible for replacement of unendorsed warrants reported lost, stolen, not received, or destroyed if 1 or more of the following conditions are complied with:
(a) The group
completes a stop payment or /replacement request affidavit. For
a stolen warrant, a group shall file a police report, unless replacement of the
warrant is made after recovery of the warrant amount.
(b) A group client
or provider shall contacts the post office to verify delivery of
a warrant that was issued but not received. If delivery is verified, then
the warrant is considered lost. If delivery cannot be verified, then
the warrant is considered to be a warrant that is not received. (c) For a
warrants that is considered not received, a group
client or provider shall completes a stop payment or /replacement
request affidavit. not earlier than the day after the fourth mail
delivery day after the warrant date.
(c) (d)
Under any of the following circumstances, a warrant shall must
be replaced only after recovery of the original warrant amount:
(i) Replacement is requested more than 30 calendar days after the warrant date.
(ii) The group
client has previously requested a replacement after cashing the original
warrant.
(iii) The group
did not file A a police report was not filed on a
stolen warrant.
(iv) The case is closed or closure is pending.
(v) The warrant to be replaced is a replacement warrant or a vendor warrant.
(2) If a warrant is
cashed by a recipient of the cash assistance case, then a
request for stop payment will not be taken the department shall not take
action on a request to stop payment on the cashed warrant and a replacement
warrant will must not be issued.
(3) A warrant that is
lost or stolen after endorsement shall must be replaced only if
the warrant is later returned or voided., or both.
(4) The following
provisions apply to a replacement warrant that is issued for a warrant which
was cashed: (a) If a replacement warrant is issued for a warrant
that was cashed and If a client claims that the warrant copy
signature is not his or her that individual’s signature, then
the client shall sign an affidavit that the signature is not the
client's signature to that effect.
(b5) If a
replacement warrant is issued for a warrant that was cashed and the client
fails to keep an appointment to view the warrant, refuses to sign the
affidavit, or admits endorsing both the original and replacement warrants, then
the department shall recover the over issuance from the group.
(6) A group currently receiving ongoing FIP, RCA, or SDA may receive a replacement of its FIP, RCA, or SDA that was fraudulently removed from its EBT account. Both of the following conditions apply to a fraudulent removal from an EBT account:
(a) A group is only eligible to receive this payment 1 time in a 12-month period.
(b) Replacement funds can only be approved up to 4 times the payment standard or the amount that was fraudulently removed, whichever is less.