Narrative: a.

The Temporary Assistance (TA) 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 as mandatory for work participation services but may be referred as a volunteer, in the following situations:

• Child only cases;
• Parents and needy caretaker relatives exempt for children under the age of twelve (12) weeks;
• Parents and needy caretaker relatives who are permanently disabled;
• Parents and needy caretaker relatives who are sixty (60) years of age or older;
• Parents and needy caretaker relatives who are needed in the home to care for a disabled individual; or
• Parents and needy caretaker relatives who received forty-five (45) 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:

• Requiring an applicant or recipient of cash assistance to participate in work activities as defined in this plan with exclusions as provided;
• Requiring a recipient of assistance and each dependent child to be:
  • A resident of the State of Missouri; and
  • A citizen of the United States; or
  • 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).
• 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;
• 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;
• The assistance provided under the Temporary Assistance Program is used for the benefit of the child or children;
• 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 Meeting other eligibility requirements contained in this plan;
• 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.
• The real and personal property considered in determining eligibility for Temporary Assistance shall be as follows:
  • Real or personal property of any kind or character that is not excluded that the recipient owns or possesses, has an interest in, of which s/he is the record or beneficial owner, less encumbrances of record.
  • An applicant may not own personal property with equity greater than one thousand dollars ($1,000), and a recipient who signs an IEP may not own personal property with equity greater than five thousand dollars ($5,000).
  • Any combination of more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) for applicants and five thousand dollars ($5,000) for recipients who have signed IEPs will make the family ineligible.

• 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:
  • 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;
  • 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;
  • Accepting reasonable purchase offers, for example, reflecting a reasonable market value; and
  • Initiating any legal action necessary to force a sale when other owners outside the Temporary Assistance cash assistance group do not wish to sell.
• “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.
• 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 are deprived of parental support or care for the following reasons:
  • Death;
  • Continued absence from or never living in the home;
  • Physical or mental incapacity of a parent;
  • Divorce/separation;
  • Desertion or abandonment;
  • Need; or
  • Confinement in a penal, medical, or custodial institution.
• 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.
• 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.
• Determining the Amount of Cash Payments:
  • 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 eighteen (18), or age eighteen (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.

• Consideration of Available Income
• 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:
  • Eligible children;
  • Biological or adoptive parents of one or more eligible children;
  • 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;
  • Income of a stepparent living in the same home as such child which exceeds the sum of the first ninety ($90) dollars of the stepparent’s earned income, the full need standard, payments by the stepparent to individuals claimed by him/her as dependents, and payments by the stepparent of court ordered alimony or child support;
  • 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;
  • With respect to an eligible child who is living with a parent or legal guardian who is under age eighteen (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
  • Income of all other persons in the household will be considered in the amount made available to the household.
• In computing the income of an applicant or program recipient 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.
• Earned Income Exemption and Disregards: In determining the need and amount of grant for applicants for or program recipients in the Temporary Assistance program earned income exemptions will apply. These include:
  • Standard Work Exemption – An amount for each employed person for all employment related expenses except child care. It includes employment related expenses such as taxes, transportation to and from work, work clothing, etc. The standard work exemption is ninety ($90).
  • $30 Plus 1/3 Disregard – An amount for each employed person that is deducted after deducting the standard work exemption from adjusted gross income. The $30 plus 1/3 disregard is allowed for individuals that are employed when they apply for Temporary Assistance. The $30 plus 1/3 disregard is allowed for 4 consecutive months. Once the $30 plus 1/3 disregard is applied for 4 consecutive months, the individual is not eligible for the $30 plus 1/3 disregard until the individual has not received Temporary Assistance benefits for 12 consecutive months. An applicant’s eligibility is determined without the $30 plus 1/3 disregard unless the applicant received a Temporary Assistance grant in at least one of the 4 months prior to the month of application, except when the applicant previously received the $30 plus 1/3 disregard for 4 consecutive months and has not been off Temporary Assistance for twelve (12) consecutive months.
  • $30 Disregard – After receiving the $30 plus 1/3 disregard for four (4) consecutive months, the recipient is eligible for a continuance of the $30 earned income disregard for the next eight (8) months. The 8-month period begins with the month following the fourth consecutive month in which the $30 plus 1/3 disregard is applied. It ends with the eighth consecutive month regardless of whether the $30 disregard is actually applied to the person’s earned income.
  • Two-Thirds Disregard – An amount for each employed person that is deducted from the adjusted gross income for twelve (12) consecutive months. Once the two-thirds disregard is applied for 12 consecutive months, the individual is not eligible for the two- thirds disregard until the individual has not received Temporary Assistance for twelve (12) consecutive months. The two-thirds disregard is allowed only when an active Temporary Assistance individual becomes employed. An applicant’s eligibility is determined without the two-thirds disregard. If an applicant received a Temporary Assistance grant in at least one of the 4 months prior to the month of application, they can receive the two-thirds disregard for the remainder of the 12 consecutive months, except when the applicant previously received the $30 plus 1/3 disregard for four (4) consecutive months and has not been off Temporary Assistance for twelve (12) consecutive months.
  • New Spouse Disregard – When an active Temporary Assistance recipient gets married, the new spouse’s income and resources are disregarded when determining continued eligibility for six months of consecutive receipt of Temporary Assistance. This is allowed once-in-a-lifetime for the TA recipient that marries, and applied to both parents in a two parent household that marry, if both are active TA recipients on the marriage date. This disregard excludes all income of the individual who is the new spouse of the TA recipient and will be used before other earned income disregards.
• 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.
• 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 ninety ($90) standard work exemption, child care costs, and overhead expenses for self-employment are deducted from gross earnings in the Standard of Need Test.
• 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 ninety ($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.
• 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.
• In the payment of Temporary Assistance benefits the amount shall always be lowered to the nearest dollar interval.
• 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.
• Restitution and recovery may be required if at any time it is determined that a program recipient has received benefits to which s/he was not entitled because of a state or federal statutory or regulatory requirement.
• Transitional Employment Benefit is a fifty ($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—

• • The family received Temporary Assistance cash benefits for at least one (1) month;
  • There is a work eligible individual, as defined in 45 C.F.R.261.10, included in the family;
  • Work eligible individuals in the family continue to meet the minimum work participation hours as outlined in 42 U.S.C. 607; and
  • 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.
• 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 45-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.
• Temporary Assistance Cash Diversion Program is a single lump sum benefit an applicant may opt to receive instead of monthly Temporary Assistance benefits. This payment is intended to resolve a one-time financial need, and to prevent the family from becoming dependent upon monthly benefits. The process for applying for the Cash Diversion program is the same as applying for the Temporary Assistance program. To be eligible for Cash Diversion a household:
  • Must be eligible for the Temporary Assistance Program; and
  • Must meet a verified good cause reason. Acceptable reasons are: Involuntary loss of employment, catastrophic illness, domestic violence or human trafficking victim, or inability to care for the basic needs of their family due to an emergency event.
• The Cash Diversion payment’s one-time lump sum amount is equal to the maximum benefit based on household size for a two (2) or three (3) month period. The head of household must state the amount of money that will satisfy their immediate need and what the money will cover.
• A family is not eligible for Cash Diversion if an adult in the household has reached his or her Temporary Assistance Cash benefit lifetime limit. Months that a family receives a payment under the Cash Diversion program do not count toward the Temporary Assistance Cash benefit lifetime limit.
• A head of household can only receive a total of five (5) Cash Diversion payments in his or her lifetime as the parent, caretaker, or guardian in the household. This counts Cash Diversion payments received in another state.
• A family can only receive one (1) Cash Diversion payment during a twelve (12)-month period. A family who has received the Cash Diversion payment cannot receive regular Temporary Assistance Cash benefits for the number of month’s equivalent to the months covered by the Cash Diversion payment.
• Missouri provides emergency assistance that is authorized under prior law, including but not limited to, child care, respite care and services for children and youth placed under DSS’ care.

The TANF program will be following the guidelines provided by Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) as recommended by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF).

• The effective date for this amendment will be December 1, 2023.
•  Retroactive Claims:
  • Policy staff will review previous denials of replacement benefits due to card skimming, card cloning, and other similar fraudulent methods (electronically stolen benefits) back to October 1, 2022 using information reported by the participant and Welfare Investigation Unit’s report and investigation logs, and reports from the Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) vendor.
  • Upon receipt of the signed benefit replacement affidavit IM-111, staff will validate the claim in 10 calendar days. If the benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 is considered valid, staff will be provided an additional 10 calendar days from date of validation to process the request for benefit replacement. If the benefit is deemed not valid, the benefit request will be denied.
  • The benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 must be received within 10 days of the timely reported theft and is considered timely if the 10th day falls on a weekend or holiday and the form is received the day after the weekend or holiday.
  • The State’s communications team has developed a “Protecting Your Benefits” webpage. This webpage will go live with final implementation of the plan. The webpage instructs participants to report if they believe they may have been previously denied benefit replacement due to electronic theft and/or a victim of electronic theft immediately to see if they are eligible for replacement.
  • The State will accept the benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 from participants upon approval of State plan up to 90 calendar days after implementation for retroactive claims.
  • Upon review of denied benefit replacement affidavit IM-111s, the State will contact participants by telephone and if not reached, will send a request for contact by mail to participants who have reported possible electronically stolen benefits, if participant does not respond to request for contact within 10 days, the IM-111 will remain denied.  This process will be completed and participants will be contacted no later than 60 days after implementation of the plan.
• Submission of Claims – Timeliness:
  • The State considers reports of electronic benefit theft timely if submitted within 30 calendar days of discovery of the theft. Retroactive claims are timely if submitted within 90 calendar days of the date of plan approval. The State will utilize the attached benefit replacement affidavit IM-111, which includes the date that the theft is discovered along with a signed attestation of loss by the household. Participants can return the IM-111 and all forms of necessary documentation through all of FSD’s available means of accepting information: mail, fax, dropping off at a local resource center or online.
  • The benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 is considered timely if the form is received within 10 days of the timely reported theft and is received the day after a weekend or holiday.
• Submission of Claims – Procedure:
  • A participant may report electronic benefit theft by mail, phone, in-person, DSS Chat or DSS upload portal. Upon notification of electronic theft, the participant will be required to complete the agency’s electronically stolen benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 which captures the needed data to process the claim. The participant will be asked to complete this affidavit. The participant can pick this form up in person in a local resource center, download it from the agency’s web site or call center staff will offer to mail them a copy. Once the participant completes the form, they can return it in person to a local resource center, online, by fax, or mail it back to the State agency.
  • The benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 allows for additional dates in the sections where the participant can comment on the loss and provide supporting documentation. Upon timely receipt of the benefit replacement affidavit IM-111, the State will review the EBT transaction history to identify fraudulent transactions and may contact the participant to review transactions. The benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 must be received within 10 days of the timely reported theft and is considered timely if the 10th day falls on a weekend or holiday and the form is received the day after the weekend or holiday.
  • Upon receipt, specialized eligibility staff will:
    • Review these requests to ensure the validity of the request; if fraud is suspected, a referral will be sent to the Welfare Investigation Unit.
    • Review to see if an EBT card has been reissued and if not, issue a new a card.
  • The State intends to use the same process for retroactive claims.
• Validation – Timeliness:
  • Upon receipt of the signed benefit replacement affidavit IM-111, staff will validate the claim in 10 calendar days.  Staff will determine the validity of the claim without requesting additional verification from the participant. If the benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 is considered valid, staff will be provided an additional 10 calendar days from date of validation to process the request for benefit replacement. If the benefit is deemed not valid, the benefit request will be denied.
  • The benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 is considered timely if the 10th day falls on a weekend or holiday and the form is received the day after the weekend or holiday.
• Validation – Criteria:
  • Staff will review the signed benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 for completion including a signature from an adult in the TANF household. Staff will also review the date of report and date of loss on the signed affidavit to determine if the loss is in the allowed timeframe of October 1, 2022 - September 30, 2024. Approvals and denials will be tracked using the State agency’s SharePoint allowing staff to review previous approvals to ensure no more than two replacements are issued to a household per FFY.
  • Staff will review any documentary evidence provided by the participant.  Evidence examples including but not limited to are:
    • Police report number, law enforcement agency, police officer and officer’s phone number
      • The absence of any of the criteria above will not, by itself, disqualify a household from receiving replacement benefits.
    • Retailer or news media reports of identified skimming devices
    • EBT processor data / transaction history
    • Trends occurring in the State, such as known phishing schemes
    • The EBT vendor’s Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system
  • The benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 encourages participants to provide any documentary evidence they may have to support their claim.
• Validation – Denial of Claims:
  • Reimbursement requests will be denied for the following reasons:
    • We are not able to validate the claim of fraudulent activity.
    • The household has already received the maximum of two replacement issuances during the current federal fiscal year October 1, 2022 - September 30, 2024.
    • The report of theft was more than 30 days after it was noticed by the household.
    • The claim of theft does not fall into the allowable replacement timeframe of October 1, 2022 - September 30, 2024.
    • IM-111 affidavit was not received timely within 10 days of reported theft.
• Fair Hearings:
  • The State will provide a letter with fair hearing rights, providing the participant 90 days to dispute the denial or approval.
  • Replacement benefits will not be issued when a fair hearings appeal is pending for the replacement of stolen benefits.
• Record Keeping:
  • The State will store all copies of documents regarding replacement benefits in the participant’s electronic case record along with eligibility staff notes/comments in the eligibility system.
  • Eligibility system changes will be implemented to use a specific code to track and separate these types of replacements from household misfortune replacements.
  • Approvals and denials will be tracked using the State’s SharePoint, and referrals will be made to the State’s welfare investigation team if needed.
• Benefit Distribution:
  • Upon approval of the benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 of fraudulent transactions, staff will:
    • Deactivate the old EBT card and issue a new EBT card, if a new card has not already been issued.
      • Cards are either mailed to a residential or mailing address, or shipped to a Resource Center where the participant can pick it up in person.
    • Issue replacement benefits through the State’s eligibility system.
    • Contact participant and inform of EBT card replacement and need to re-pin the new EBT card.
  • Specific eligibility staff will be assigned to process replacements and prevent the over issuance of replacements, and ensure only two eligible replacements are made within the FFY.
  • The State will follow same procedure and timeframes as currently used for household misfortune.
  • Staff will review the validity of the benefit replacement within 10 calendar days after the report of loss or 2 business days after receiving a signed benefit replacement affidavit IM-111 whichever is later. If more information is still required, the replacement issuance could be delayed in order to ensure all requirements have been met, but no more than 30 calendar days to complete processing of requested replacement benefit.
• Funding
  • TANF Replacement benefits will be implemented as a non-recurrent, short-term (NRST) benefit.  This will be in accordance with 45 C.F.R. §260.31(b)(1) as it is designed deal with a specific crisis situation or episode of need; not be intended to meet recurrent or ongoing needs; and not extend beyond four months. A family experiencing an economic crisis due to the theft of benefits it relies on to meet basic needs could well be facing a specific episode of need.
    • This will be taken from MOE funds not to exceed $10,000 per FFY.
    • A code will be established in the eligibility system for the replacement benefits.
      • The function code will be called TANF Replacement Benefit
    • The replacement benefit amount will be based on how much the agency determines was electronically stolen.
      • This would be a dollar to dollar amount stolen.
    • The agency will ensure only two eligible replacements will be made within the FFY.
• Current Benefit Theft Prevention:
  • Card Verification Value (CVV) Or Card Authentication Value (CAV) is active on MO EBT cards.
  • State does not allow common PIN selection on EBT cards.
  • MO participants have the ability to freeze their cards through the EBT vendor cardholder portal or mobile application.
  • MO participants have the ability to block out of state and internet transactions through the EBT vendor cardholder portal or mobile application.
  • EBT cards are mailed out in plain envelopes and cannot be forwarded.
  • EBT card replacement team consists of individuals unable to authorize benefits.
  • Developing messaging to include skimming device descriptions.
  • Notification is sent routinely to participants through social media reminding them to keep their EBT cards and PINs secure.
• Planned Benefit Theft Prevention:
  • Reviewing educational materials for current and accurate safeguards
  • Informing participants of new types of skimming devices
  • Researching opportunities to enhance IVR security with EBT processor
  • Researching updating IVR scripts
  • Check with EBT card vendor about adding messaging regarding electronically stolen benefits on EBT card mailer, reminding participants to keep their cards and PINS secure.