Iowa Admin. Code r. 441-65.28

Current through Regsiter Vol. 46, No. 26, June 12, 2024

Rule 441-65.28 - Work requirements

(1)Persons required to register. Each household member who is not exempt by subrule 65.28(2) shall be registered for employment at the time of application, and once every 12 months after initial registration, as a condition of eligibility. Registration is accomplished when the applicant signs an application form that contains a statement that all members in the household who are required to register for work are willing to register for work. This signature registers all members of that SNAP household who are required to register.

(2)Exemptions from work registration. The following persons are exempt from the work registration requirement:

a. A person younger than 16 years of age or a person 60 years of age or older. A person aged 16 or 17 who is not a head of a household or who is attending school, or is enrolled in an employment training program on at least a half-time basis is exempt.

b. A person physically or mentally unfit for employment.

c. A household member subject to and complying with any work requirement under Title IV of the Social Security Act including mandatory PROMISE JOBS referral.

d. A parent or other household member who is responsible for the care of a dependent child under age six or an incapacitated person.

e. A person receiving unemployment compensation.

f. A regular participant in a drug addiction or alcohol treatment and rehabilitation program which is certified by the Iowa department of public health, division of substance abuse.

g. A person who is employed or self-employed and working a minimum of 30 hours weekly or receiving weekly earnings at least equal to the federal minimum wage multiplied by 30 hours.

h. A student enrolled at least half-time in any recognized school, recognized training program, or an institution of higher education (provided that students have met the requirements of federal regulation, Title 7, Part 273.5, as amended to December 31, 1986).

(3)Losing exempt status. Persons who lose exempt status due to any change in circumstances that is subject to the reporting requirements shall register for employment when the change is reported. Persons who lose exempt status due to a change in circumstances that is not subject to the reporting requirements for that household shall register for employment no later than at the household's next recertification.

(4)Registration process. Upon reaching a determination that an applicant or a member of the applicant's household is required to register, the pertinent work requirements, the rights and responsibilities of work-registered household members, and the consequences of failure to comply shall be explained to the applicant. A written statement of the above shall be provided to each registrant in the household. The written statement shall also be provided at recertification and when a previously exempt member or a new household member becomes subject to work registration.

Registration for all nonexempt household members required to work register is accomplished when the applicant or recipient signs an application, recertification, or reporting form containing an affirmative response to the question, "Do all members who are required to work register and participate in job search agree to do so?" or similarly worded statement.

(5)Deregistration. Work registrants who obtain employment or otherwise become exempt from the work requirement subsequent to registration or who are no longer certified for participation are no longer considered registered.

(6)Work registrant requirements. Work registrants shall respond to a request from the department or its designee for supplemental information regarding employment status or availability for work.

(7)Employment and training (E&T) program. The department shall design and operate an employment and training program with the purpose of providing SNAP participants opportunities to gain skills, training, work, or experience that will increase their ability to obtain regular employment and meet state or local workforce needs in accordance with the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, 7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.

a. The employment and training program serves individuals who are:

(1) SNAP recipients or SNAP applicants.

(2) Not receiving FIP assistance or other cash assistance under Title IV such as Tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or Refugee Cash Assistance.

(3) Physically and mentally able to work or will be able to work within the next one year.

b. The department or its designee shall serve as the provider of employment and training services for SNAP recipients who wish to volunteer, except for those who are also recipients of FIP benefits. Federal law prohibits FIP recipients from participating in any SNAP employment and training program.

c. The program offers a range of services from basic skills to advanced occupational training in order to accommodate persons with various levels of need and abilities. The department or its designee may require a potential E&T participant to engage in aptitude or vocational testing activities when deemed necessary to determine if a component is appropriate for improving employability.

d. The E&T program shall be designed in consultation with the state workforce development board, or with private employers or employer organizations if the department determines the latter approach is more effective and efficient.

(1) The E&T program shall be designed to include case management services and at least one or more, or a combination of, employment and training components.

(2) An E&T plan shall be submitted to the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture annually in accordance with 7 CFR 273.7(c)(6) as amended to May 2, 2022, and shall be amended as necessary within the required time frame prior to implementation.

(8)Employment and training components. All E&T participants shall be provided case management services and at least one employment and training component in accordance with 7 CFR 237.7(e) as amended to May 2, 2022. Employment and training components shall be provided as approved in the most recent FNS-approved E&T state plan.

(9)Supportive services. The department shall provide participant reimbursements for expenses that are reasonable and necessary and directly related to participation in the E&T program. Supportive services shall be provided to the extent allowable under federal regulations at 7 CFR 237.7(d)(4) as amended to May 2, 2022, and as approved in the most recent FNS-approved E&T state plan and to the extent there is sufficient funding to cover the costs.

(10)Failure to comply. This subrule applies only to persons who are mandatory work registrants as required by subrule 65.28(1).

a. When a person has refused or failed without good cause to comply with the work registration requirements in this rule, that person shall be ineligible to participate in SNAP as follows:

(1) First violation: The later of (1) the date the individual complies with the requirement; or (2) two months.

(2) Second violation: The later of (1) the date the individual complies with the requirement; or (2) three months.

(3) Third and subsequent violations: The later of (1) the date the individual complies with the requirement; or (2) six months.

b. The disqualification period shall begin with the first month following the expiration of the adverse notice period, unless a fair hearing is requested.

(11)Noncompliance with comparable requirements. The department shall treat a mandatory work registrant's failure to comply with an unemployment compensation requirement that is comparable to a SNAP work registration requirement as a failure to comply with the corresponding SNAP requirement. Disqualification procedures in subrule 65.28(10) shall be followed.

(12)Ending disqualification. Following the end of the disqualification periods for noncompliance and as provided in rules 441-65.27(234) and 441-65.28 (234), participation may resume.

a. An applicant disqualified under subrule 65.27(1) may be approved for benefits after serving the minimum disqualification period and complying with the work requirement, as follows:

(1) If the applicant voluntarily quit a job, the applicant must obtain a job comparable to the one that the applicant quit.

(2) If the applicant voluntarily reduced hours of employment to less than 30 hours per week, the applicant must start working 30 or more hours per week.

b. A disqualified individual who is a member of a currently participating eligible household shall be added to the household after the minimum disqualification period has been served and the person has complied with the failed requirement as follows:

(1) If the member failed or refused to register for work with the department, the member complies by registering.

(2) If the member voluntarily quit a job, the member must obtain a job comparable to the one quit.

(3) If the member voluntarily reduced hours of employment to less than 30 hours per week, the member must start working 30 or more hours per week.

c. An individual may reestablish eligibility during a disqualification period by becoming exempt from the work requirement as provided in subrule 65.28(2).

(13)Suitable employment. Employment shall be considered unsuitable if:

a. The wage offered is less than the highest of the applicable federal minimum wage, the applicable state minimum wage, or 80 percent of the federal minimum wage if neither the federal nor state minimum wage is applicable.

b. The employment offered is on a piece-rate basis and the average hourly yield the employee can reasonably be expected to earn is less than the applicable hourly wages specified in paragraph "a" above.

c. The household member, as a condition of employment or continuing employment, is required to join, resign from, or refrain from joining a legitimate labor organization.

d. The work offered is at a site subject to a strike or lockout at the time of the offer unless the strike has been enjoined under Section 208 of the Labor-Management Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 78A) (commonly known as the Taft-Hartley Act), or unless an injunction has been issued under Section 10 of the Railway Labor Act (45 U.S.C. 160) .

e. The household member involved can demonstrate or the department otherwise becomes aware that:

(1) The degree of risk to health and safety is unreasonable.

(2) The member is physically or mentally unfit to perform the employment, as documented by medical evidence or by reliable information from other sources.

(3) The employment offered within the first 30 days of registration is not in the member's major field of experience.

(4) The distance from the member's home to the place of employment is unreasonable considering the expected wage and the time and cost of commuting. Employment shall not be considered suitable if daily commuting time exceeds two hours per day, not including the transporting of a child to and from a child care facility. Employment shall also not be considered suitable if the distance to the place of employment prohibits walking and neither public nor private transportation is available to transport the member to the job site.

(5) The working hours or nature of the employment interferes with the member's religious observances, convictions, or beliefs.

(14)Applicants for supplemental security income (SSI) and SNAP. Household members who are jointly applying for SSI and for SNAP shall have the requirements for work registration waived until:

a. They are determined eligible for SSI and thereby become exempt from work registration, or

b. They are determined ineligible for SSI whereupon a determination of work registration status will be made.

(15)Determining good cause. The department or its designee shall determine whether good cause exists for failure to comply with the work registration, employment and training, and voluntary quit requirements in 441-Chapter 65. In determining whether good cause exists, the facts and circumstances shall be considered, including information submitted by the household member involved and the employer.

Good cause shall include circumstances beyond the member's control, such as, but not limited to, illness of the registrant or of another household member requiring the presence of the registrant, a household emergency, the unavailability of transportation, or the lack of adequate child care for children who have reached age 6 but are under age 12.

(16)Measuring the three-year period for able-bodied nonexempt adults without dependents. The three-year period as provided for in federal regulations at 7 CFR 273.24 as amended to May 2, 2022, starts on December 1, 2002, and ends November 30, 2005. Subsequent three-year periods start with the month of December following the end of the previous period.

(17)Mini-simplified SNAP.

a.Scope. The department operates a mini-simplified SNAP for households that:

(1) Also receive benefits under FIP; and

(2) Include a parent who is exempt from SNAP requirements for work registration due to caring for a child under the age of six.

b.Effect. The mini-simplified SNAP allows replacement of certain SNAP work rules with work rules of the TANF program. The value of the household's monthly SNAP benefits shall be combined with the household's monthly FIP benefit amount to determine the maximum number of hours the department can require a household member under FIP to participate in an unpaid work activity that is subject to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. Maximum required hours of participation for a month are determined by dividing the total amount of benefits by the state or federal minimum wage, whichever wage is higher.

Iowa Admin. Code r. 441-65.28

ARC 8500B, IAB 2/10/10, effective 3/1/10; ARC 8712B, IAB 5/5/10, effective 4/15/10

Amended by IAB October 5, 2022/Volume XLV, Number 7, effective 12/1/2022