Narrative: a.

The Temporary Assistance cash program shall include requiring an applicant for or recipient of cash assistance to participate in work activities as defined in an individual employment plan.

Parents and needy caretaker relatives will not be referred for work participation services in the following situations:

• Child only cases; • Parents and needy caretaker relatives who are caring for children under the age of 12 months; • Parents and needy caretaker relatives who are permanently disabled; • Parents and needy caretaker relatives who are 60 years of age or older; • Parents and needy caretaker relatives who are needed in the home to care for a disabled household member; or • Parents and needy caretaker relatives who received 60 months and beginning January 1, 2016 forty–five months Temporary Assistance and are currently extended due to an existing hardship and not employment and training ready.

The eligibility requirements for the Temporary Assistance cash program shall include: a) Requiring an applicant for or recipient of cash assistance to participate in work activities as defined in this plan with exclusions as provided; b) Requiring a recipient of assistance and each dependent child to be: 1) a resident of the State of Missouri; and 2) a citizen of the United States; or 3) a qualified alien defined in 8 United States Code section 1641 residing in the United States for a period of five (5) years on or after August 22, 1996, except as provided in 8 United States Code section 1622(b). 4) Public Law 111-118 enacted on December 19, 2009 provides that Iraqi and Afghan Special Immigrants are eligible for benefits to the same extent and for the same period as refugees pursuant to Section 207 of the Immigrations and Nationality Act. The new legislation supersedes Public Law 110-161 and Public Law 110-181, which granted certain Iraqi and Afghan immigrants special immigrant status under section 101(a)(27) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) effective December 26, 2007 and was time limited. Provided that other eligibility requirements are met, Iraqi and Afghan Special Immigrants are eligible for benefits indefinitely. c) Requiring an applicant for assistance to provide all Social Security numbers for each parent, caretaker, and child and requiring the applicant for or recipient of assistance to cooperate with Family Support Division to obtain Social Security numbers; d) The assistance provided under the Temporary Assistance Program is used for the benefit of the child or children; e) Recipients of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) shall not be eligible for Temporary Assistance. Their income, expenses, and resources are excluded when determining household eligibility. They are excluded for purposes of determining household size; and f) Meeting other eligibility requirements contained in this plan. 2. Application for benefits and timely investigation of eligibility for benefits will be consistent with sections 208.060 and 208.070, RSMo. In Temporary Assistance cases where an eligible individual does not receive the first payment for the month in which the thirtieth day after application falls, a delayed payment will be made for that month and any later months that occur before the application was approved. 3. The real and personal property considered in determining eligibility for Temporary Assistance shall be as follows: a) Real or personal property of any kind or character that is not excluded that the participant owns or possesses, has an interest in, of which s/he is the record or beneficial owner, less encumbrances of record. b) An applicant may not own personal property with equity greater than one thousand dollars ($1,000), and a participant who signs an individual employment plan may not own personal property with equity greater than five thousand dollars ($5,000). c) Any combination of more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) for applicants and five thousand dollars ($5,000) for participants who have signed individual employment plans will make the family ineligible. 4. In determining eligibility for Temporary Assistance benefits real property that the family is making a good faith effort to sell shall be excluded. A claimant must provide proof of good faith effort as requested by Family Support Division. Good faith effort to sell includes the following: a) Listing the real property with a reputable real estate agent and cooperating in marketing the property. Cooperation in marketing the property includes acts such as showing the property and setting a realistic sales price; b) Publicly advertising the property for sale on no less than a weekly basis in a general newspaper, instead of listing the property with a reputable real estate agent; c) Accepting reasonable purchase offers, for example, reflecting a reasonable market value; and d) Initiating any legal action necessary to force a sale when other owners outside the Temporary Assistance cash assistance group do not wish to sell. 5. “Earned Income” encompasses income in cash or in kind earned by a needy individual through the receipt of wages, salary, commissions, or profit from activities in which s/he is engaged as an employee or as a self-employed individual. 6. Temporary Assistance shall be granted on behalf of an eligible child or children in otherwise eligible families. Temporary Assistance may be granted to the parents or other needy relatives caring for a child or children meeting all eligibility criteria, and who: a) Are deprived of parental support or care for the following reasons: 1) Death; 2) Continued absence from or never living in the home; 3) Physical or mental incapacity of a parent; 4) Divorce/separation; 5) Desertion or abandonment; 6) Need; or 7) Confinement in a penal, medical, or custodial institution. b) The relative with whom a child may be living, in order to receive Temporary Assistance, including father, mother, grandfather, grandmother, brother, sister, stepfather or stepmother (but not their parents), stepbrother, stepsister, uncle, aunt, first cousin, first cousin of a parent, nephew, niece, adoptive father or adoptive mother, grandfather-in-law or grandmother-in-law (meaning the spouse of a second marriage of one of the child’s biological grandparents), great-grandfather or great-grandmother (including great-great-grandfather or great-great-grand-mother), brother or sister of half blood, adoptive brother or adoptive sister, brother-in-law or sister-in-law, uncle or aunt of the half blood, uncle-in-law or aunt-in-law, great-uncle or great-aunt (including great-great-uncle or great-great- aunt), and other relatives by adoption, in addition to those specifically mentioned here, may be considered eligible payees within the same degree of relationship as apply to blood relatives. The biological relatives of an adopted child may also continue to be eligible payees. A legal guardian may also serve as a payee for Temporary Assistance, and if the legal guardian is otherwise eligible, may be eligible for a cash payment. 7. Home is interpreted to mean a family setting maintained or in the process of being established as evidenced by the assumption or continuance of responsibility for the child. Usually the child shares the family household with the parent or relative. A home exists as long as the parent or relative takes responsibility for the care and control of the child, even though circumstances may require temporary absence of either the child or the parent or relative from the customary family setting. 8. For the purpose of the administration of Temporary Assistance payments shall be defined as payments by electronic or other means made to the payee at regular intervals. Temporary Assistance benefits will be paid monthly. a) Temporary Assistance benefits are delivered by Electronic Benefits Transfer or are directly deposited into a bank account and are made available monthly in advance. The schedule for availability of benefits is: 1) Benefits for cases in which the payee’s birth month is January through March shall be available on the first day of the month; 2) Benefits for cases in which the payee’s birth month is April through June shall be available on the second day of the month; 3) Benefits for cases in which the payee’s birth month is July through September shall be available on the third day of the month; and 4) Benefits for cases in which the payee’s birth month is October through December shall be available on the fourth day of the month. 9. Temporary Assistance benefits are to be used for the needs of the child(ren). a) Transactions using Temporary Assistance benefits issued by Electronic Benefit Transfer are prohibited in the following locations: 1) Any liquor store; 2) Casino, gambling casino, gaming establishment; 3) Retail establishment providing adult-oriented entertainment in which performers disrobe or perform in an unclothed state for entertainment purposes; and 4) Any place mainly for or used by adults 18 or older and/or not in the best interest of the child or household. b) Transactions using Temporary Assistance benefits issued by Electronic Benefit Transfer are prohibited for the following items: 1) Alcoholic beverages; 2) Lottery tickets, gambling, bingo; 3) Tobacco products; 4) Controlled drugs without a valid prescription; and 5) Any item mainly for or used by adults 18 or older and/or not in the best interest of the child or household. c) Temporary Assistance Electronic Benefit Transfer transactions are blocked at the locations listed above based upon Merchant Category Codes (MCC) and Terminal ID. The MCC describes the type of business, and for businesses that provide multiple goods and services it reflects the greater percentage of the business. The MCC is assigned by the bank or financial institution that processed the business’ application to start accepting bankcard payments. Terminal ID’s have been identified to block specific ATM’s that are placed in prohibited locations. Additional MCCs and Terminal ID’s may be added or deleted at any time. The types of transactions blocked include: 1) Credit or debit card service; 2) Automated teller machine; 3) Point-of-sale terminals; or 4) Any online system for the withdrawal of funds or processing of payment for merchandise or a service. Reports and individual transactions are reviewed using Fraud Navigator, a product of the Electronic Benefit Transfer vendor that recognizes patterns for fraud detection. d) Temporary Assistance recipients using Electronic Benefit Transfer transactions have access to use or withdraw assistance with minimal fees or charges. Access is available in any store that displays the QUEST Mark, or automated teller machine that displays the Quest Mark, Honor, or Shazam logos. Temporary Assistance Electronic Benefit Transfer transactions are not blocked at any retailer authorized as a vendor by the Food and Nutrition Service. Information regarding accessing benefits with no fees and when fees may apply are provided to each Temporary Assistance applicant and recipient, which includes the following information: 1) No fee is charged for the first withdrawal at an automated teller machine. There is an $ .85 charge for each additional withdrawal; 2) No fee is charged for purchases at a point-of-sale terminal. There is an $ .85 charge for each cash withdrawal; and 3) There may be additional surcharges by the retailer. Information regarding accessing Temporary Assistance benefits is publicly available in the form of a brochure at each agency office and on the internet at http://dss.mo.gov/fsd/fstamp/pdf/im4ebt.pdf in English and http://dss.mo.gov/fsd/fstamp/pdf/im-4ebtspanish.pdf in Spanish. The agency will review on a case by case basis any participant report of inability to access their cash assistance due to the restriction of use at these locations. 10. Determining the Amount of Cash Payments: a) The following persons are considered members of the household for purposes of determining household size and Temporary Assistance grant, if eligible: eligible children under the age of 18, or age 18 and in secondary school or the equivalent vocational or technical school if expected to graduate; natural or adoptive parents of one or more of the eligible children; and any needy non-parent caretaker relative or related or unrelated guardian. The non-parent caretaker relative or the guardian, if found to be eligible for inclusion, has the option to be excluded from the assistance group. b) Consideration of Available Income 1) All income of the following persons in the household shall be considered in determining whether the children (including a stepchild and adopted child) are in need and, if so, the amount of that need: (A) Eligible children; (B) Biological or adoptive parents of one or more eligible children; (C) Needy non-parent caretaker relative, or related or unrelated guardian, if s/he desires to be included in the assistance group and is eligible for inclusion; (D) Income of a stepparent living in the same home as such child which exceeds the sum of the first 90 dollars of the stepparent’s earned income, the standard of need, payments by the stepparent to individuals claimed by him/her as dependents, and payments by the stepparent of court ordered alimony or child support; (E) A biological or adoptive brother or sister of an eligible child, if the brother or sister meets certain conditions and is living in the home; (F) With respect to an eligible child who is living with a parent or legal guardian who is under age 18, the income of such minor parent’s parents who are living in the home shall be included to the same extent that the income of a stepparent is included. The minor parent’s parents’ earned income shall be disregarded up to 100% of the federal poverty level; and (G) Income of all other persons in the household will be considered in the amount made available to the household. 2) In computing the income of an applicant or program participant or of the household of which s/he is a member only the income that is available during the period under consideration shall be taken into account. 11. Earned Income Exemption: In determining the need and amount of grant for applicants for or program participants in the Temporary Assistance program earned income exemptions will apply. 12. 185% Test: No family shall be eligible for Temporary Assistance benefits if for that month the total income of the family (other than Temporary Assistance benefits) without application of the earned income disregards equals or exceeds one hundred eighty five percent (185%) of the Standard of Need for a family of the same composition. There are no disregards or deductions allowed for the 185% Test other than overhead expenses for self-employment. 13. Standard of Need Test: No family shall be eligible for Temporary Assistance benefits if for that month the total income of the family (other than Temporary Assistance benefits) without application of the earned income disregards equals or exceeds the Standard of Need for a family of the same composition. The $90 standard work exemption, child care costs, and overhead expenses for self-employment are deducted from gross earnings in the Standard of Need Test. 14. Percentage of Need Test: No family shall be eligible for Temporary Assistance benefits if for that month the total income of the family (other than Temporary Assistance benefits) after application of the earned income disregards equals or exceeds 34.526% of the Standard of Need. The $90 standard work exemption, child care costs, and two-thirds disregard or $30 plus 1/3 disregard, or $30 disregard, and overhead expenses for self-employment are deducted from gross earnings in the Percentage of Need Test. 15. When considering an application for Temporary Assistance the income tests must indicate income below the respective standard. If determined eligible after the application of the tests in paragraphs 11, 12, and 13, the grant will be the deficit determined in the Percentage of Need Test. 16. In the payment of Temporary Assistance benefits the amount shall always be lowered to the nearest dollar interval. 17. In Temporary Assistance cases the initial assistance payment benefit must be prorated when the case is approved in the same month as the filing of the application. 18. Restitution and recovery may be required if at any time it is determined that a program participant has received benefits to which s/he was not entitled because of a state or federal statutory or regulatory requirement. 19. Transitional Employment Benefit is a $50 payment to families with earned income who are no longer eligible for Temporary Assistance benefits due to an increase in income, removal of an earnings disregard or an allowable expense deduction, or a household composition change which causes ineligibility due to income guidelines for Temporary Assistance provided— (A) The family received Temporary Assistance cash benefits for at least one (1) month; (B) There is a work eligible individual, as defined in 45 C.F.R.261.10, included in the family; (C) Work eligible individuals in the family continue to meet the minimum work participation hours as outlined in 42 U.S.C. 607; (D) The family continues to meet all other eligibility requirements contained in 13 CSR 40-2.300 through 13 CSR 40-2.370 with the exception of income. All earned income is disregarded in determining eligibility for Transitional Employment Benefit, but the eligible family must continue to meet the regular Temporary Assistance 185% Test, Standard of Need Test, and Percentage of Need Test. The family is eligible to receive the fifty dollar ($50.00) Transitional Employment Benefit payment for up to six (6) consecutive months as long as the family meets the requirements in subsections (B), (C), and (D). There is no limit on the number of times a family may receive Transitional Employment Benefit payments as long as the family loses eligibility for Temporary Assistance as outlined above. The Transitional Employment Benefit is not included in the 60-month lifetime limit for Temporary Assistance as referenced in 42 U.S.C. 608. Families who receive Transitional Employment Benefits shall not assign to the Family Support Division in behalf of the state any rights to support from any other person on behalf of any member of the family.