Section 703.120 - TAFDC Time-limited Benefits(A) A nonexempt grantee, including each grantee in a two-parent family, who is receiving TAFDC or who would be receiving TAFDC but for a TAFDC sanction, may only receive TAFDC for a maximum of a cumulative 24 months in a continuous 60-month period. The ineligibility shall apply to all members of the assistance unit. (1) The initial continuous 60-month period begins on the date an assistance unit first becomes eligible for TAFDC. The maximum cumulative 24-month period in a continuous 60-month period begins on the date that an exempt grantee becomes nonexempt, or the date a nonexempt grantee first becomes eligible for TAFDC, whichever is later.(2) An assistance unit shall be considered to be receiving TAFDC if it:(a) receives a TAFDC grant;(b) has a grantee participating in the Full Employment Program or supported work; or (c) receives TAFDC benefits through vendor payments.(3) The calculation of a nonexempt grantee's cumulative 24-month period shall stop when: (a) the entire assistance unit is ineligible, including ineligibility as the result of a sanction;(b) the grantee becomes exempt as specified in 106 CMR 703.100; or(c) the assistance unit voluntarily withdraws from TAFDC. The calculation of the cumulative 24-month period resumes when the grantee becomes nonexempt in the same continuous 60-month period.
(4) A nonexempt grantee's cumulative 24-month period is not stopped when there is a sanction period imposed on a member of the assistance unit, except as specified in 106 CMR 703.120(A)(3)(a).(5) The calculation of the 60-month period cannot be stopped.(6) If aid to the assistance unit has been terminated because of the end of the cumulative 24-month period, the assistance unit may establish eligibility for TAFDC before the end of the continuous 60-month period if the grantee meets an exemption found at 106 CMR 703.100. (7) At the end of a continuous 60-month period, a nonexempt grantee may reapply for TAFDC and begin a new cumulative 24-month eligibility period and a new continuous 60-month period.(8) In a two-parent household, both parents shall have the same 60-month period. If, because of a prior period of assistance, both parents do not share the same start date of their 60-month period, the earliest date shall apply to the household.(B)Exception. (1) A teen parent (see106 CMR 703.180) who received assistance as a member of another TAFDC assistance unit may reapply for TAFDC, if he or she meets the teen parent requirements found at 106 CMR 703.180, and: (a) he or she is not eligible to be included in another assistance unit; or(b) the other TAFDC case is closed.(2) At the time of the reapplication, the worker shall determine if the teen parent meets an exemption specified in 106 CMR 703.100, and: (a) if the teen parent meets an exemption, the assistance unit will be exempt from the time-limited benefits defined in 106 CMR 703.120(A); or(b) if the teen parent does not meet an exemption, the teen parent is nonexempt and the time-limited benefits defined in 106 CMR 703.120(A) will apply.(D)Verification for a Waiver of the 24-month Period. (1) The preferred verification of death is the death certificate. If the death certificate cannot be obtained, death is verified by a signed statement from the funeral director or a newspaper death notice. If these are not available, death is verified by the following: (a) Veterans Administration (VA) records;(c) Records of other medical or long-term care institutions;(d) Military service records;(f) Social Security Survivor's Benefits (RSDI).(2) a written report from a physician that verifies the incapacity and the inability of the child's custodial parents to care for the child;(3) documentation that the legal custody or guardianship of the child has been transferred to the other parent or a relative;(4) written documentation from the penal institution verifying the incarceration of the custodial parents and the dates of incarceration and expected release, if any; or(5) written documentation from the institution where the custodial parent is institutionalized, as well as the date of admission and expected date of discharge, if any.Adopted by Mass Register Issue 1360, eff. 3/9/2018.Amended by Mass Register Issue 1396, eff. 5/15/2019.