Section 1240-01-19-.01 - RECERTIFICATION - FOOD STAMPS ONLYThe Worker shall complete the application process and approve or deny timely applications for recertification prior to the end of the household's current certification period. The county office shall provide eligible households with an opportunity to participate by the household's normal issuance cycle in the month following receipt of a timely application. The Eligibility Worker shall not continue benefits to households beyond the end of the certification period unless the household has been recertified. The joint processing requirement for PA households shall continue to apply to applications for recertification.
(1) Notice Of Expiration Of Certification. The Eligibility Worker shall provide each household with Form HS-0258 (Notice Concerning Your Application or Redetermination) just prior to or at the start of the last month of the household's certification period with the exception of PA households whose applications were jointly processed for Food Stamp and PA benefits. (a) Receipt of Notice by the Household. Households that must receive Form HS-0258 (Notice Concerning Your Application or Redetermination) must receive it during the month immediately prior to the household's last month of certification. If the household is certified for one month or if the household was certified for 2 months and the application was approved the month following the month of application, the Form HS-0458 (Notice Concerning Your Application or Redetermination) shall be provided at the time of certification. The county office shall include with the Notice Concerning Your Application or Redetermination an application form and an appointment for an interview. Regardless of when the interview date is assigned, the household has timely applied if the application is received by the 15th day of the last month of certification.(b) Content of the Notice. The Notice of expiration shall contain: 1. The date the current certification period ends;2. The date by which the household must file an application to receive uninterrupted benefits;3. The household's right to request an application and have the county office accept an application (as long as it is signed and contains a legible name and address);4. The address of the office where the application must be filed;5. The consequences of the household's failure to comply with the Notice Concerning Your Application or Redetermination;6. The household's right to file the application by mail or through an authorized representative; and7. The household's right to a fair hearing if the county office refuses to accept as good cause the household's reason for failure to comply with Form HS-0258 (Notice Concerning Your Application or Redetermination).(c) Submission of Application for Recertification. Households provided Form HS-0258 (Notice Concerning Your Application or Redetermination) at the time of certification as discussed in 1240-1-19-.01(1)(a) shall have 15 days from the date the notice is received to file a timely application for recertification. If such filing deadline is after the end of the certification period, the household's benefits will not be prorated if it reapplied timely. All other households which submit identifiable applications by the 15th day of the last month of the certification period shall be considered to have made timely application for recertification. To aid the county office in determining if adequate time has been permitted, the county office shall use the postmark on the Notice Concerning Your Application or Redetermination, plus two days for mailing time. In cases of dispute the household may demonstrate that the Form HS-0258 (Notice Concerning Your Application or Redetermination) was not, in fact, received in a timely manner.(2) Notification Of Recertification. The Worker shall act on timely reapplications to provide uninterrupted benefits to households determined eligible. The Worker shall take action on timely reapplications within the time standards specified in (a) and (b) below, and provide the household an opportunity to participate by the household's normal issuance in the month following receipt of the timely reapplication, even if the opportunity is outside of the normal issuance system. (a) Thirty Days After Last Allotment Purchase. Households that were provided Form HS-0258 (Notice Concerning Your Application or Redetermination) at the time of certification and have timely reapplied shall be notified of their eligibility or ineligibility and provided an opportunity to participate, if eligible, not later than 30 days after the date the household had an opportunity to obtain its last allotment.(b) End of Current Certification Period. For those households that have filed an application by the 15th of the last month of their certification period, and who have appeared for the scheduled interview after filing the application, and who have timely provided all necessary verification, the Worker shall approve or deny the application and notify the household of its determination by the end of the current certification period. In addition, for households determined eligible, the county office shall provide an opportunity to participate by the household's normal issuance cycle in the month following receipt of the timely reapplication, even if the county office must provide an opportunity to participate outside of the normal issuance system. Households which have timely reapplied, but due to an agency error are not determined eligible in sufficient time to provide for issuance in the household's normal issuance cycle for the following month, shall receive an ATP card and an opportunity to participate upon being determined eligible, even if the county office must provide an opportunity to participate outside the normal issuance system.(3) County Office Failure To Act On Applications For Recertification. County offices' failure to provide eligible households which filed a timely application for recertification with an opportunity to participate in accordance with the above provisions shall be considered an administrative error. These households shall be entitled to restoration of lost benefits if, as a result of such error, the household was unable to participate for the month following the expiration of the certification period.(4) Household Failure To Submit A Timely Reapplication. A household which fails without good cause to submit a timely application for recertification, to appear for an interview scheduled after the household timely filed its application for recertification, or to provide necessary verification timely subsequent to filing the application, loses its right to uninterrupted benefits. Households which refuse to cooperate in providing information shall be denied. Any application not submitted in a timely manner shall be treated as an application for initial certification, except that for applications received within 30 days after the certification period expires, previously verified income, medical expenses, or actual utility expenses need not be verified if the source has not changed and the amount has changed by $25 or less. (a) Good Cause for Failure to Timely Reapply. If the Worker determines that the household's failure to make timely application or to otherwise complete the certification process in a timely manner was for good cause, the household shall be entitled to restoration of lost benefits, if, as a result of its failure, the household was unable to participate in the month following the expiration of its certification period. The determination of good cause shall be made on a case-by-case basis and shall include, but not be limited to, failure to receive timely notice of expiration of personal illness.Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1240-01-19-.01
Original rule filed August 15, 1980; effective September 29, 1980. Amendment filed August 5, 1986; effective November 29, 1986.Authority: T.C.A. §§ 14-1-105, 14-8-115, and 14-27-104; Federal Register, Volume 51, Number 60 (March 28, 1986); 45 CFR 206.10.