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WorkFirst Sanctions
by: Northwest Justice Project
Introduction
This publication explains:
- sanctions
under the WorkFirst program; and
- how to fight a sanction that is wrong.
What is a
sanction?
A sanction is a penalty that reduces the amount of money you get each
month through TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families).
DSHS may sanction your TANF grant when it decides that you failed or
refused?without good reason--to do all the activities in your
Individual Responsibility Plan (IRP) or to meet some other requirements
of the WorkFirst program. (Our publications called Questions
and Answers about WorkFirst and WorkFirst
Individual Responsibility Plans have more information.
Get them at www.washingtonlawhelp.org
or by calling CLEAR.)
Your food assistance may also be reduced under the food stamp program
rules. Your medical assistance will not change.
A sanction means a 40% reduction in the family's TANF grant.
After six consecutive months in sanction, your TANF grant will
close. But, as described below, DSHS should give you chances to
fix ("cure") the sanction before you reach the six-month mark and face
termination of your TANF grant.
**Starting November 1, 2011, your TANF will be permanently cut off if
you have been sanctioned for WorkFirst noncompliance three or more
times since March 1, 2007. No one in your household will be able to get
TANF again, either.
Why might DSHS sanction my TANF grant?
DSHS may sanction your grant if it decides that you "failed or refused"
without "good reason" to:
- Give your DSHS case manager information she needs to write or
update your Individual Responsibility Plan (IRP) (our publication
called WorkFirst
Individual Responsibility Plans has more information on IRPs),
- Go to scheduled appointments listed in your IRP,
- Show that you are doing the best you can to do all of the
activities listed in your IRP, or
- Accept a job that complies with worker's compensation, safety,
minimum wage, and other labor laws and does not have working hours,
demands, or conditions that are unreasonable (such as not paying you on
schedule) or that interfere with your religious beliefs or
practices.
There must be an IRP in place before DSHS can sanction you. If
you do not speak English well or at all, there must be a signed copy of
your IRP in your primary language in your file. If not, DSHS must
cancel the sanction.
If you disagree with your IRP, do not sign it. But to avoid a
sanction for refusing to sign your IRP, you should also request a Fair
Hearing regarding your IRP right away.
What does DSHS have to do before sanctioning
my grant?
DSHS must first send you a letter stating:
If you do not reply within ten days, DSHS will make its decision about
the sanction without you. DSHS should make sure you have been
screened for family violence and other barriers to participation.
It will then use the information it already has to determine whether
you were unable or able, but refused, to do what was required.
Before sanctioning you, DSHS must have a "case staffing" to determine
why you did not do what you were supposed to. DSHS will let you
know about the staffing. You must attend. Your case
manager will also attend, and other people involved with your DSHS
case. You may invite anyone you like to come with you. This is
your chance to explain your good reason for not doing what DSHS thought
you should.
If DSHS decides (with our without your input) to sanction your grant,
it must then mail you a notice at least 10 days before the date that it
will reduce your grant. The notice must be written in your
primary language and tell you:
-
when DSHS plans to reduce your grant, and by how much,
-
what you were required to do but did not do,
-
what you can do to end the sanction,
-
the specific rule or regulation supporting the sanction,
-
how you can ask for and get a fair hearing to appeal the
sanction, and
-
how you can keep getting your full grant during the appeal.
How can I show the sanction was wrong?
You can show the sanction was wrong and get your full grant back if:
-
you have actually done what WorkFirst requires, but the DSHS
worker did not understand the facts or use the rules correctly
-
DSHS did not give you a written notice giving you ten days to
contact them to explain what happened before imposing the sanction
-
DSHS did not give you advance or enough notice before reducing
your grant (example: the notice did not tell you exactly what you
failed to do, or it did not cite the correct rule supporting the
sanction WAC
388-310-1600)
-
the IRP that DSHS says you did not follow was never finished,
was not given to you to read, or was not provided in your primary
language
-
you had "good reason" for not doing the requirement(s) in your
IRP. It was not possible due to events outside of your control.
Some examples of good reasons:
-
your health care provider writes a statement that a serious
physical, mental or emotional condition interfered with your ability to
participate
-
you were threatened with, or subjected to, family violence-- our
publication called WorkFirst
and the Family Violence Amendment
has more information
-
DSHS did not send you a notice telling you what information they
needed or about the appointment you missed
-
you could not find child care for your child under 13 that was
affordable, appropriate, and within a reasonable distance normally
expected in your community. (Our publication called Working
Connections Child Care has more information about child
care assistance.)
-
your transportation or child care arrangements broke down
and you could not make new ones in time (if this happens, call your
worker and ask the worker or on voicemail that the call be noted in
your file, and make a note of the call yourself)
-
you could not find other care for a person age 13 or older who
lives in your home who cannot care for him/herself
-
you had an immediate legal problem, such as an eviction notice
-
you are (or should have been) designated as a person receiving
Equal Access (formerly, "NSA") services. DSHS either failed to make
this designation or failed to provide or follow an accommodation
plan. See our publication called Necessary Supplemental
Accommodations.
If I cannot show the sanction is wrong, how
else do I get it removed from my grant?
If the sanction is for failure to follow the requirements in your
IRP, you must start and continue to follow your IRP for four weeks in a
row (28 calendar days). After that, DSHS will lift the sanction
and your grant will return to the normal amount, beginning with the
month following your four weeks of participation. If the sanction
is for failure to provide information necessary to develop your IRP,
DSHS should lift the sanction as soon as you provide the information.
What happens if my grant stays in
sanction status for six months?
DSHS may close your TANF case (cut off your cash grant) if your
WorkFirst sanction lasts for six months.
What if I go off TANF while in sanction
status, and then need to get back on TANF?
If you leave TANF while your grant is in sanction status, your
grant will still be in that status if you start receiving TANF again
within six months. But if you leave TANF for more than six
months, your grant will not be in sanction status
when you start receiving TANF again. Months in which your grant
is sanctioned still count toward the 60-month TANF time limit.
For more information on the TANF time limit, see our brochure Questions
and Answers on the TANF Five-Year Time Limit.
What things have to happen before my grant
can be closed (after six months in sanction)?
After your grant has been in sanction for three months, your case
manager should review your case to make sure DSHS has:
-
explained WorkFirst requirements to you;
-
explained how to end your sanction;
-
tried to talk to you to get you to participate; and
-
given you a chance to explain why you could not
participate.
Your case manager will also schedule a "non-compliance" case
staffing. DSHS will notify you of the case staffing. You
must attend. Your case manager will invite other people who are
working with your family. If you do not attend this meeting, DSHS
will make its decision without your input. But DSHS should
also try to visit you to talk to you about how to end your sanction.
If the case manager decides you are refusing to participate without a
good reason, s/he will send your case of the CSO Administrator for
review. If the Administrator agrees with the case manager's
assessment, s/he will send your case for final review by the DSHS
"sanction review panel" in Olympia, recommending that your TANF case be
closed.
If the "sanction review panel" agrees with the recommendation to close
your TANF case, DSHS must send you advance notice telling you:
-
what you failed to do;
-
when they will cut off your grant;
-
how to request a fair hearing; and
-
how to end your penalties and keep your case open.
* IMPORTANT: If you disagree with
the decision to close your TANF case, ask for a fair hearing and
continuing benefits right away. If you wait until after DSHS has
closed your case, you will probably not be eligible for continuing
benefits.
What can I do if I disagree with the
sanction?
If you disagree with a WorkFirst sanction, you may ask for a fair
hearing. You may do this by calling your welfare office, filling
out a Fair Hearing Request at your local welfare office or writing to
the Office of Administrative Hearings, P.O. Box 42488, Olympia, WA
98504. If it is an emergency, you may ask to have your hearing
held as soon as possible by calling the Office of Administrative
Hearings at (360) 664-8717. This is called an "expedited"
hearing. Please see our publication Representing
Yourself at a Fair Hearing for more information.
You may keep getting the same benefits if you request a hearing within
10 days of the date on the notice or before the date the notice takes
effect. This is called "continued assistance." If the
sanction is upheld at the Fair Hearing, you may have to repay this
assistance. This is called an "overpayment." But DSHS
cannot collect more than sixty days of assistance and the amount of the
overpayment will only be the amount of the sanction that was
upheld. If you are on TANF, DSHS can deduct only 5% of your grant
per month.
How can I get legal help?
CLEAR is a toll-free intake, advice, and
referral service run by Northwest Justice Project: Call
1-888-201-1014 between 9:15 a.m. and 12:15
p.m., Monday through Friday.
Read
DSHS?s sanction rule (WAC 388-310-1600) at
your local library or on-line at http://apps.leg.wa.gov/WAC/default.aspx?cite=388-310-1600.
DSHS's policy guidebook, the WorkFirst
Handbook, explains how the sanction process is supposed to work. Find
it at http://www1.dshs.wa.gov/ESA/wfhand/3_6_1.htm
This
publication provides general information concerning your rights and
responsibilities. It is not intended as a substitute for specific legal
advice.
This information is current as of the date of its printing,
October 2011.
© 2011 Northwest Justice Project. 1-888-201-1014
(Permission for copying and distribution granted to the Alliance for
Equal Justice and individuals for non-commercial use only.)
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