N.J. Admin. Code § 10:90-6.3

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 21, November 4, 2024

Section 10:90-6.3 - Kinds of emergency assistance authorized

(a) The county or municipal agency is authorized to provide the following kinds of assistance to meet emergency situations when there is no other source of support available: payment for emergency shelter and emergency temporary housing and allowances for permanent living arrangements including, but not limited to, allowances for retroactive rental, mortgage or utility payments, security deposits for rent and utilities and advance rent, eviction related costs that are authorized by DFD, reasonable costs of transportation required to search for housing, reasonable costs of temporary storage of personal possessions (see (a)4iv below), moving expenses, food, clothing, essential house furnishings including a one-time purchase of an air conditioning unit when medically necessary and, when applicable, the one-time payment of a Citizenship Application Fee and associated fingerprinting fee.

1. The county/municipal agency shall determine the most appropriate form of emergency housing which is required to address the need and authorize payment of the costs of adequate emergency shelter/housing, taking into consideration individual/family circumstances and services provided. Such emergency housing shall include placement in shelters; hotel/motel placement; transitional housing; or shelters for victims of domestic violence.

i. Adult EA recipients transitioning from GA to TANF, who are residing in transitional housing, shelter or hotel/motel placement, and who appear to meet the TANF Initiative for Parents (TIP) eligibility requirements, shall receive a mandatory TIP assessment by the TIP Vendor for continued EA eligibility. The outreach and assessment results shall be documented on the EA service plan.

ii. A pending eviction or foreclosure must be documented, either through a tenancy complaint filed by the landlord or an order from a court for eviction or foreclosure. Where such documentation does not exist, a letter from a landlord or other person serving in such capacity (relative/friend with whom the individual/family is residing), subject to agency verification, stating that eviction is imminent or has occurred shall be accepted by the agency.

2. When food is not available from any other source, an amount of $ 4.50 per day per person shall be authorized and allowed until such time as other funds become available (for example, the next regular assistance payment, support payment, receipt of earnings or receipt of NJ SNAP benefits).

i. When it is necessary to provide temporary living arrangements for a recipient by utilizing emergency shelter/housing in a hotel, motel, or other facility in which cooking facilities are not available or are determined by the county or municipal agency to be inadequate, payments for restaurant meals, not to exceed $ 7.50 per person per day, shall be authorized and allowed until such time as other funds become available.

3. When the agency determines that they are necessary, payments to enable a recipient to purchase minimum essential clothing for physical health and safety shall be granted, not to exceed the amounts stated below, unless authorized by DFD on a case-by-case basis.

i. Adult--$ 86.00;

ii. Child, age 13 and over--$ 86.00;

iii. Child, age five through 12--$ 48.00;

iv. Child, birth through four--$ 29.00.

4. Allowances for those items deemed urgent and essential to the physical health and safety of the recipient shall not exceed those amounts stated at (a)4i below. The recipient is obligated to use any other reasonable source for provision of these items, including, but not limited to, relatives and charitable organizations.

i. Items deemed urgent and essential to the physical health and well being of the individual or family, as appropriate, include, but are not limited to, the following: a refrigerator, a dinette set, kitchen equipment, lamps, beds, cribs, chests of drawers and bed and bath linens. A maximum allowance is provided for the purchase of such items. Payment for these items shall not be made on more than three occasions during the 60 cumulative month lifetime limit under WFNJ assistance.

No. of eligible persons:	1	2	3	4	5	6
Maximum allowance:	$ 585	$ 745	$ 895	$	$	$ 1,365
				1,045	1,195
Add $ 150 for each additional person

ii. Replacement of house furnishings is not solely limited to replacement of items lost or destroyed in the incident that gave rise to the emergency. For example, a recipient may be moving from a hotel/motel shelter or furnished apartment into an unfurnished living arrangement where there is no essential furniture. Likewise, when an item which is essential for the recipient's health and well-being, such as a refrigerator, wears out, EA funds may appropriately be used to replace it.

iii. Itemized invoices and vouchers shall be provided to the county or municipal agency for all purchases.

iv. Payment of storage costs shall be made at the most reasonable rates available and shall not exceed six months. If additional time is required due to individual circumstances, the agency shall request approval from DFD.

5. Payment shall be authorized for up to any three calendar months of retroactive rental or mortgage payments if it will prevent actual eviction or foreclosure, and/or six calendar months of retroactive utility payments if it will prevent the loss of utilities or make utilities operable.

i. Payment for more than three calendar months of retroactive rental or mortgage payments and/or six months of retroactive utility payments shall be made only under extraordinary circumstances (as found at 10:90-6.4(b)1 ) subject to authorization by DFD.

ii. Basic utilities are those that are necessary to make a dwelling habitable. At a minimum, basic utilities shall include electric, water, a fuel source for heating and cooking and, where applicable, sewerage and garbage disposal. In those instances where it is necessary to pay a utility deposit in order to reinstate utilities, such payment may be made under EA.

6. If appropriate for the individual/family situation, WFNJ recipients shall be notified that temporary rental assistance (TRA) may be provided, when the recipient is facing eviction, in order to maintain current permanent housing which had previously been affordable but which is no longer affordable for reasons such as, but not limited to, loss of employment, temporary unemployment or underemployment and it is anticipated that such housing will again become affordable; or when it is determined that maintaining the unit in the current housing arrangement is both the least costly alternative and serves to preserve the family structure while the search for affordable housing continues. TRA is the preferred form of emergency housing assistance in all situations, as appropriate.

7. If appropriate for the individual/family situation, WFNJ recipients shall be notified that TRA may also be provided to recipients who have experienced an actual state of homelessness and are able to locate a housing arrangement or can be accommodated in a housing arrangement in lieu of temporary shelter when the county/municipal agency has determined that a TRA is the appropriate remedy to address the emergency. The agency may authorize TRA when the total cost of housing inclusive of basic utilities is equal to or below the current Fair Market Rent (FMR), as established by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development for the county of residence. The agency shall also consider the recipient's eligibility for the Universal Service Fund or other utility assistance programs in the FMR calculation.

i. TRA shall be provided when:

(1) The total cost of housing does not exceed the current FMR for the county in which the recipient resides. Amounts in excess of the current FMR will require prior approval and authorization of subsidy level by DFD; and

(2) The recipient's service plan and individual responsibility plan states the conditions under which a TRA has been granted and reflect the recipient's understanding of such.

ii. TRA shall not be discontinued when an adult recipient of WFNJ benefits has been sanctioned for noncompliance with the work requirement until one month after all WFNJ cash assistance to the eligible unit has been terminated and the case closed as a result of a failure to correct a sanction, provided this period of time in sanctions is prior to the 12-month lifetime limit placed on EA.

iii. In a household with two adult recipients, where one adult is noncompliant, and the cash assistance is reduced by the pro rata share, the agency portion of the EA/TRA shall be adjusted to offset the decrease in the cash assistance.

(b) The county or municipal agency may authorize payment for security deposits when a TRA is being provided. Issuance of a new security deposit shall not be contingent upon return of the previous deposit.

(c) EA shall not be provided to adult recipients who are terminated without good cause from an EA placement, such as a hotel/motel shelter or transitional housing for a period of six months when the termination is the result of the adult recipient's actions, which may include, but are not limited to, the actions identified in (c)1 through 6 below. Such a determination cannot be made unless the county and municipal agencies have thoroughly reviewed with the recipient, prior to placement, the hotel, motel, shelter, or transitional housing violations that could result in EA termination and a six-month period of ineligibility.

1. Possession of a weapon or an instrument used as a weapon after entry into the shelter;

2. Destruction of shelter property or the property of others;

3. Threatening and/or disruptive behavior that affects the operations of the shelter or the safety of the other residents;

4. Possession or use of drugs or alcohol on the premises. If the recipient is terminated from the shelter for this reason, EA cannot be terminated unless the recipient is already participating in the SAI and with the consultation of the SAI coordinator. Otherwise, the recipient shall be referred to the SAI;

5. Violation of health and safety policies, including, but not limited to, smoking in undesignated areas, burning of candles or incense in the room, and the use of hotplates or other cooking devices in the room; or

6. More than one violation of the same rule of the hotel/motel or shelter, other than those enumerated in (c)1 through 5 above, which has a substantial effect on the health and safety of the residents, staff or facility.

(d) The CWA/MWA shall request, prior to EA termination, that the facility provide written documentation to support the termination, if possible.

(e) The recipient shall be eligible for continued EA for other violations, including, but not limited to, those identified in (e)1 below, that may result in a termination from a facility. The caseworker shall evaluate the recipient's circumstances and make an appropriate placement. A hotel/motel placement shall be considered as a last resort when there are no supervised placements available.

1. An adult EA recipient who incurs two or more terminations, for reasons that may include, but are not limited to the following will result in a loss of EA for a period of six months.

i. Failure to observe the curfew policy of the facility, without good cause;

ii. An absence from the facility without good cause, for 24 hours or more, without prior notification or approval; or

iii. Violation of the facility's policies concerning visitation, for example, visits to other floors, rooms or outside guests.

(f) For other minor violations that may result in an eviction from the hotel/motel or transitional housing placement, the adult recipient will be eligible for continued EA in a supervised placement only. However, hotel/motel placements may be utilized when there are no supervised placements available. A second eviction will result in a loss of EA for a period of six months, unless good cause has been determined.

(g) Prior to EA termination, the agencies shall review, with the recipient, the reason(s) for the termination. If additional barriers are identified that may have prevented EA compliance, then the recipient is considered to have good cause and shall not be terminated and a penalty shall not be imposed. The recipient shall be required to follow through with services to address those barriers for continued EA eligibility. Such services shall be identified as mandatory activities in the EA service plan.

(h) For any subsequent placement, the CWA/MWA shall revise the EA service plan and ensure that the recipient is made aware that failure to comply with the rules of the placement will render him or her ineligible for EA for six months.

(i) The EA penalty shall be lifted when the applicant or recipient experiences a new emergency, which may include, but is not limited to, a fire, natural disaster or a new eviction, through no fault of the applicant or recipient; or if the family has a Division of Child Protection and Permanency case opened for abuse and neglect pursuant to 10:90-6.1(c)3 xii.

1. On a case-by-case basis and in consultation with DFD, the penalty may also be lifted when deemed appropriate by the county or municipal agency.

N.J. Admin. Code § 10:90-6.3

Administrative change, 46 N.J.R. 855(b).