10 Colo. Code Regs. § 2506-1-4.309

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 1, January 10, 2025

Section 10 CCR 2506-1-4.309 - HOUSEHOLDS WITH SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES

The following sections explain the application of SNAP criteria and certification procedures to the eligibility determinations for households with special circumstances pertaining to:

A. Dining Facilities and Homeless Meal Providers;

B. Shelters for Battered Women and Children;

C. Drug and Alcohol Treatment and Rehabilitation Centers;

D. Residents of Group Living Arrangements.

4.309.1Dining Facilities and Homeless Meal Providers

Households with special circumstances, such as a person with disabilities, persons aged sixty (60) and older, or group living arrangements, may be authorized to use SNAP benefits to buy food from authorized communal dining facilities, meals on wheels, drug and alcohol treatment and rehabilitation centers, and shelters for battered women and children.

Households experiencing homelessness may also use SNAP benefits to purchase prepared meals from approved restaurants. SNAP households experiencing homelessness may use food benefits for meals prepared for and served by an authorized provider (for example, a soup kitchen or temporary shelter) that feeds persons experiencing homelessness.

4.309.2Shelters for Battered Women and Children

There are no restrictions on how long a center shall be in operation or on the number of residents served by the shelter. The local office shall determine a shelter's status as a shelter for battered women and children and shall document the basis for their determination. The rules within this subsection apply specifically to centers which provide meals to their residents. Centers which do not provide meals are not to be considered institutions and their residents' eligibility will be determined using the standard rules for eligibility.

4.309.21Residents of Shelters for Battered Women and Children

Women or women with their children who are temporarily residing in a shelter for battered women and children (which serves over fifty percent (50%) of their meals) shall be considered exempt from the prohibition against residents of institutions.

A. They shall be allowed to apply and be considered for eligibility as individual (parent/child) units, rather than considered as part of a household consisting of all shelter residents.

B. In many instances battered women and their children who were previously certified in the household of an abuser may not have access to their allotment. Therefore, these individuals shall be allowed to participate in one (1) additional project area and/or household so long as one of the two households with which they are participating contains the individual who abused them. These persons may receive an additional allotment only once in a month.

C. The local office should act promptly to reflect the changes in household composition and shall act on the change to reduce or terminate benefits to the applicant's former household as appropriate.

D. Shelter residents who apply as separate households shall be certified solely on the basis of their income and resources and the expenses for which they are responsible. They shall be certified without regard to the income, resources, and/or expenses of their former household. Jointly held resources shall be considered inaccessible to the household if access to such resources is dependent upon the agreement of a joint owner who still resides in the former household.

4.309.3Drug and Alcohol Treatment and Rehabilitation Centers (Center)

A. Residents of publicly operated community mental health centers or private non-profit organizations or institutions, operating a residential drug or alcohol treatment or rehabilitation program, are eligible to participate in SNAP. Applications shall be made through an authorized representative who is employed by the drug or alcohol treatment or rehabilitation facility and designated by the facility for that purpose. Individuals residing in a for-profit facility are considered residents of an institution per Section 4.304.4(E), above.

B. The center shall be approved by the Colorado Department of Human Services (CDHS), Office of Behavioral Health (OBH) before its residents are eligible for SNAP participation. The OBH will ensure that the center is providing treatment that can lead to the rehabilitation of drug or alcohol addiction.

Before the certification of residents can be accomplished, the local office shall verify that the center has been approved by FNS as a retailer and is certified by the OBH. Proof of OBH certification may be provided in the form of a license or an approval letter issued to the center by that agency, or proof that the center is funded under Part B of Title XIX of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300x-1 through 300x-13).

C. Residents and their children residing in a certified center must voluntarily elect to participate in SNAP. Residents shall have their eligibility determined as one-person households unless children are residing with them at the center. Children of the residents in a center who live with their parents in the treatment center will qualify for SNAP. Meals served to the children are eligible for purchase with SNAP benefits. The local office shall certify residents of centers by using the same provisions that apply to other applicant households.

D. Residents of centers may be receiving public assistance or SSI benefits or may be destitute of income and resources and eligible for expedited service. Residents who qualify for expedited service shall have benefits available for spending no later than seven (7) calendar days following the date the application was filed.

E. Any applicant household containing a member who regularly participates in a drug and alcohol treatment program on a non-resident basis shall include this member when having its eligibility determined. The household must complete the application process through the head of household or through an authorized representative and shall meet all financial and non-financial criteria unless specifically exempt. Such households may use any part of their SNAP benefits to purchase food prepared for or served to the individual during the program, provided the program has been authorized by FNS for such purposes.

4.309.31Responsibilities of the Center

Drug or alcohol treatment and rehabilitation centers will be responsible for the following:

A. The drug or alcohol treatment center employee designated to serve as an authorized representative shall be responsible for obtaining their own Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card and Personal Identification Number (PIN) with which to access benefits from the resident's account while the resident remains a resident of the facility.

The resident's EBT card shall be stored in a secure area while the resident receives treatment at the facility. The drug or alcohol treatment center shall not have access to, or knowledge of, the PIN for the resident's own EBT card.

B. Each treatment and rehabilitation center shall provide the certification office with a certified list of currently participating residents and their children residing with them in the center. The certification office shall require the list on a monthly or semimonthly basis. In addition, the certification office shall conduct periodic, random, onsite visits to the center to ensure the accuracy of the listings and that the local office's records are consistent and up-to-date. The frequency of periodic visits is left to the discretion of the local office but once each year is recommended.

C. The center shall also report when the resident leaves the center. The center shall return to the issuing office any benefits received after the household has left the center.

The center shall provide the residents with their EBT card when the household leaves the treatment and rehabilitation program. Once the household leaves the center, the center is no longer allowed to act as that household's authorized representative. The departing resident shall receive his/her full allotment if already issued and if no benefits have been spent on his/her behalf.

If benefits have been issued and any portion has been spent on his/her behalf and the resident leaves prior to the sixteenth (16th) of the month, the center shall provide the resident with one half of his/her monthly allotment; on or after the sixteenth (16th), if benefits have already been used, the resident shall not receive any benefits.

Under no circumstances shall the center pull benefits from an EBT card after the resident has left the facility. The center shall return the authorized representative EBT card, and the resident's card if it was left behind, to the issuing office within five (5) calendar days of the resident's departure.

The center shall provide the household with a change report form as soon as it has knowledge the household plans to leave the facility and advise the household to return the form to the local office within ten (10) days of any change the household is required to report.

D. The center shall be responsible for any misrepresentation or fraud, which it knowingly commits in the certification of center residents. The organization or institution shall be knowledgeable about household circumstances when serving as an authorized representative. The organization or institution should carefully review those circumstances with residents prior to applying on their behalf.

E. The center may be penalized or disqualified if it is determined administratively or judicially that benefits were misappropriated or used for purchases that did not contribute to a certified household's meals. The local office shall promptly notify the state department when it has reason to believe that a center is misusing SNAP benefits in its possession. However, no action shall be taken against the center prior to an FNS investigation. The local office shall establish a claim for over-issuance of SNAP benefits held on behalf of center residents if any over-issuances are discovered because of an FNS investigation or hearing. If FNS disqualifies a center as an authorized drug and alcohol rehabilitation and treatment center, the local office shall suspend its authorized representative status for the same period.

4.309.4Residents of Group Living Arrangements

A. Group living arrangements are residential settings that are considered alternatives to institutional living. Institutional settings are not included in this provision. To be eligible as residents of a group living arrangement, the person must be a person with disabilities. In addition, the local office shall verify that the group living arrangement is a public or private nonprofit facility with no more than sixteen (16) residents and is certified as a group living arrangement by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and the state department under Section 1616(e) of the Social Security Act (codified at 42 U.S.C. 1382e(e)). FNS may also certify under standards determined by the USDA that are comparable to standards implemented by the state under 1616(e) of the Social Security Act. Individuals residing in a for-profit facility are considered residents of an institution per Section 4.304.4(E).

B. Residents of group living arrangements must voluntarily elect to participate in SNAP.

Residents shall either apply and be certified through an authorized representative, who is employed and designated by the group living arrangement or apply and be certified on their own behalf or through an authorized representative of their own choice. The group living arrangement shall determine if any resident may apply for SNAP on his/her own behalf; the determination shall be based on the resident's physical and mental capability to handle his/her own affairs.

1. If residents apply using the group living facility's authorized representative, eligibility shall be determined as a one-person household. The group living arrangement may either:

a) Receive and spend the allotment on food prepared by and/or served to the eligible resident, or

b) Allow the eligible resident to use all or any portion of the allotment on his/her own behalf.

2. The group living facility employee designated to serve as an authorized representative shall be responsible for obtaining their own Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card and Personal Identification Number (PIN) with which to access benefits from the resident's account while the resident remains a resident of the facility.

3. The resident's EBT card shall be stored in a secure area while the resident resides in the group living facility. The group living facility shall not have access to, or knowledge of, the PIN for the resident's personal EBT card.

4. If the residents apply on their own behalf, the applications shall be accepted for any individual applying as a one-person household or for any grouping of residents applying as a household. If residents are certified on their own behalf, the allotment may be returned to the facility to be used to purchase food for meals served either communally or individually to eligible residents, used by eligible residents to purchase and prepare food for their own consumption, and/or to purchase meals prepared and served by the group living arrangement.

C. Applications for residents of group living arrangements shall be processed using the same standards that apply to all other SNAP households including that residents entitled to expedited service shall have benefits available for spending no later than seven (7) calendar days following the date the application was filed. Required verification shall be obtained prior to further benefits being issued.

D. The local office shall process changes in household circumstances and recertifications by using the same standards that apply to all other SNAP households, and resident households shall be afforded the same rights all other SNAP households enjoy, including the right to notices of adverse action, fair hearings, and entitlement to lost benefits.

4.309.41Responsibilities of Group Living Arrangements

A. Each group living arrangement shall provide the local office with a list of currently participating residents. The local office shall require the list on either a monthly or semimonthly basis and the list shall be signed by a responsible center official attesting to the validity of the list. In addition, the local office shall conduct periodic random onsite visits to ensure the accuracy of the list and that the local office's records are consistent and up to date.

B. If the resident has applied on his/her own behalf, the household is responsible for reporting changes to the local office in accordance with Section 4.603. If the group living arrangement is acting in the capacity of an authorized representative, the group living arrangement shall notify the local office of changes in the household's income or other household circumstances and when the individual leaves the group living arrangement.

C. When the household leaves the group living facility, the group living arrangement, either acting as an authorized representative or retaining use of the benefits on behalf of the residents (regardless of the method of application), shall provide residents with their EBT card. The household, not the group living arrangement, shall be allowed to receive his/her authorized issuance. Also, the departing household shall receive its full allotment if no benefits have been spent on behalf of that individual household. These procedures are applicable any time during the month.

However, if the benefits have already been issued and any portion spent on behalf of the individual and the household leaves the group living arrangement prior to the sixteenth (16th) of the month, the facility shall provide the resident with one half of his/her monthly allotment. If the household leaves on or after the sixteenth (16th) of the month and the benefits have already been issued and used, the household does not receive any benefits.

Once the resident leaves, the group living arrangement no longer acts as his/her authorized representative. Under no circumstances shall the group living arrangement pull benefits from an EBT card after the resident or group of residents have left the group living facility. The facility shall return the authorized representative EBT card, and the resident's card if it was left behind, to the issuing office within five (5) calendar days of the resident's departure.

The group living arrangement shall provide the household with a change report form as soon as it has knowledge of the household plan to leave the facility and advise the household to return the form to the local office within ten (10) days of any change the household is required to report.

D. When acting as the authorized representative, a group living arrangement shall be responsible for any misrepresentation or fraud, which it knowingly commits in the certification of group living facility residents. The facility shall be knowledgeable about household circumstances as an authorized representative and should carefully review those circumstances with residents prior to applying on their behalf. The facility shall be strictly liable for all losses or misuse of benefits held on behalf of resident households and for all over-issuances that occur while the households are residents of the group living facility. However, the resident applying on his/her own behalf shall be responsible for over-issuance as would any other household.

E. The group living arrangement may purchase and prepare food to be consumed by eligible residents on a group basis if residents normally obtain their meals at a central location as part of the group living arrangement services, or if meals are prepared at a central location for delivery to the individual residents. If residents purchase and/or prepare food for individual consumption, as opposed to communal dining, the group living arrangement shall ensure that each resident's SNAP benefits are used for meals intended for that resident. If the resident retains use of their own allotment, they may either use the benefits to purchase meals prepared for them by the facility or to purchase food to prepare meals for their own consumption.

4.309.42Disqualification of the Group Living Arrangements

A group living arrangement facility authorized by FNS may be penalized or disqualified if it is determined administratively or judicially that benefits were misappropriated or used for purchases that did not contribute to a certified household's meals. The local office shall promptly notify the state department when it has reason to believe that a facility is misusing benefits. However, the local office shall take no action prior to FNS action against the facility. The local office shall establish a claim for over-issuances of SNAP benefits held on behalf of resident clients if any over-issuances are discovered during an investigation or hearing procedure for redemption violations.

If the group living facility loses its authorization from FNS to accept SNAP benefits or is no longer certified by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment as a group living arrangement, residents using the facility as an authorized representative shall no longer be able to participate. The residents are not entitled to a Notice of Adverse Action but shall receive a written notice explaining the termination and when it shall become effective.

Residents applying on their own behalf shall still be able to participate, if otherwise eligible.

10 CCR 2506-1-4.309

37 CR 15, August 10, 2014, effective 9/1/2014

37 CR 21, November 10,2014, effective 12/1/2014

38 CR 23, December 10, 2015, effective 1/1/2016

39 CR 01, January 10, 2016, effective 2/1/2016

39 CR 05, March 10, 2016, effective 4/1/2016

39 CR 07, April 10, 2016, effective 5/1/2016

39 CR 15, August 10, 2016, effective 9/1/2016

39 CR 17, September 10, 2016, effective 10/1/2016

39 CR 19, October 10, 2016, effective 11/1/2016

39 CR 23, December 10, 2016, effective 1/1/2017

40 CR 11, June 10, 2017, effective 7/1/2017

40 CR 17, September 10, 2017, effective 10/1/2017

41 CR 15, August 10, 2018, effective 9/1/2018

40 CR 23, December 10, 2017, effective 12/30/2018

42 CR 01, January 10, 2019, effective 2/1/2019

42 CR 03, February 10, 2019, effective 3/15/2019

42 CR 17, September 10, 2019, effective 10/1/2019

42 CR 18, October 10, 2019, effective 10/1/2019

42 CR 23, December 10, 2019, effective 12/30/2019

43 CR 01, January 10, 2020, effective 1/30/2020

43 CR 05, March 10, 2020, effective 2/7/2020

43 CR 07, April 10, 2020, effective 4/30/2020

43 CR 21, November 10, 2020, effective 11/30/2020

44 CR 21, November 10, 2021, effective 11/30/2021

45 CR 05, March 10, 2022, effective 3/30/2022

45 CR 19, October 10, 2022, effective 10/1/2022

45 CR 19, October 10, 2022, effective 11/1/2022

45 CR 21, November 10, 2022, effective 11/30/2022

46 CR 17, September 10, 2023, effective 9/30/2023