Ohio Administrative Code|Rule 5101:1-2-20 | Ohio works first, and refugee cash assistance: verification and reporting requirements.

                                                
(A) What is verification?
(1) "Verification" is a document or statement from a
			 third party or collateral contact that confirms statements made by the
			 assistance group regarding need and/or a specific eligibility
			 factor.
(2) Verification
			 establishes that the factors of eligibility are met and the assistance group is
			 eligible to receive benefits under the program. Verification is not an
			 eligibility requirement in its own right, but a method for assuring that an
			 eligibility requirement is met.
(3) A telephone contact
			 may be made by the county agency to secure verification. Written consent from
			 the assistance group is necessary unless an exception described in rule
			 5101:1-1-03 of the Administrative Code is met. The following information shall
			 be included:
(a) The name and telephone number of the person who gave the
				information;
(b) The name of the agency or business contacted, when
				appropriate;
(c) The date of the contact; and
(d) An accurate summary of the information.
(B) What is required to be
		  verified?
(1) All eligibility
			 factors required to establish initial and continuing eligibility and items
			 subject to change shall be verified at the time of application, reapplication
			 and when a change in circumstances occurs in the assistance group. A change in
			 circumstances includes the discovery of a discrepancy in income and a change in
			 income amounts.
(2) All income of a
			 member of the assistance group and any person whose income affects the
			 assistance group must be verified.
(C) What happens when verifications are
		  not received?
(1) It is the assistance
			 group's responsibility to provide the information necessary to establish
			 eligibility.
(2) When the assistance
			 group is aware of the requirements of verification but refuses to provide both
			 consent and necessary verification, the county agency shall deny or terminate
			 assistance as eligibility cannot be established.
(3) Assistance may not be
			 terminated when the assistance group refuses to cooperate in validating past
			 eligibility because past eligibility has no bearing upon present need and
			 eligibility.
(4) The assistance group
			 may not be compelled to cooperate in giving testimony or records that may prove
			 guilt of a crime because of protections of the Fifth Amendment to the
			 Constitution of the United States.
(D) When is verification not
		  required?
(1) When the assistance
			 group's own statement on the application establishes that the assistance
			 group is ineligible for cash assistance, verification is not required. The
			 county agency shall confirm the statement on the application to assure it was
			 an accurate statement and not a mistake in completing the form.
(2) Verification of
			 earned or unearned income is not necessary when the assistance group either
			 alleges no income or employment in the current period and there is no reason to
			 question the statement, or the assistance group reports earnings sufficiently
			 high to make them clearly ineligible for benefits.
(3) Verification is not
			 required when some other factor of eligibility, such as age or citizenship, is
			 clearly not met.
(E) What are the county agency's
		  responsibilities?
The county agency shall:
(1) Explain what
			 verifications and information are necessary to establish eligibility for cash
			 assistance programs. Explain where and how to obtain the required
			 verifications.
(2) Assist in securing
			 all the required verifications necessary to establish eligibility when the
			 assistance group requests such assistance because of an inability to provide
			 them without the agency's help.
(3) Obtain the
			 verifications when the assistance group is not financially able or is not
			 competent to secure them. This shall not be interpreted as noncooperation, nor
			 shall it be used to deny assistance.
(4) The JFS 07341
			 "Applicant/Recipient Authorization for Release of Information" shall
			 be obtained each time verification of an eligibility factor is
			 required.
(a) Verification of information from public records does not
				require written consent.
(b) Verification need be obtained only once when the eligibility
				factor is not subject to change.
(F) How is verification handled between
		  reapplications?
(1) The county agency
			 shall pursue clarification and verification of the assistance group's
			 circumstances by issuing the JFS 04219 "Request for Contact Important
			 Notice" or the statewide automated eligibility system generated
			 equivalent, that clearly advises the assistance group of the verification it
			 shall provide or the actions it shall take to clarify its
			 circumstances.
(a) The JFS 04219 or the statewide automated eligibility system
				generated equivalent shall afford the assistance group at least ten days to
				respond and to clarify its circumstances, either by telephone or by
				correspondence, as the county agency directs. It shall further state the
				consequences when the assistance group fails to respond to the county
				agency.
(b) When the assistance group does not respond to the county
				agency, or does respond but refuses to provide sufficient information to
				clarify its circumstances, the county agency shall terminate the cash
				assistance case.
(c) When the assistance group responds to the county agency and
				provides sufficient information, the county agency shall act on the new
				circumstances and adjust the budget accordingly.
(G) What happens when verification is not
		  available or there is a discrepancy?
(1) When verification is
			 not available through no fault of the assistance group, the determination is
			 based on the best possible evidence.
(2) Where information
			 from another source contradicts statements made by the assistance group, the
			 assistance group shall be afforded a reasonable opportunity to resolve the
			 discrepancy prior to an eligibility determination.
(3) In situations that
			 there is no available verification, the county agency shall not deny or
			 terminate the case but shall accept a signed affidavit, a third-party
			 statement, notarized statement, or the statement on the application as
			 verification when the information is consistent with other facts and
			 statements.
(4) When the statement
			 provided is incomplete and/or inconsistent and the assistance group is unable
			 to clarify the statement, the county agency shall deny or terminate the case as
			 eligibility cannot be established.
(5) The county agency
			 shall exhaust all possibilities for verification before accepting these
			 statements. The use of a statement shall be on a case-by-case basis. This
			 approach shall not be used for the sole purpose of meeting the promptness
			 requirement of rule 5101:1-2-01 of the Administrative Code.
(6) Homeless and migrant
			 assistance groups may not have easy access to required verifications that may
			 exist. In order to ensure that these assistance groups do not experience a
			 lengthy delay in receiving Ohio works first (OWF) or refugee cash assistance
			 (RCA) benefits, the following procedures shall be followed:
(a) Once the homeless or migrant assistance group has submitted
				verification of identity, the county agency shall approve the application for
				assistance when the assistance group appears to meet eligibility criteria based
				on statements on the application or a signed affidavit, and the best evidence
				available.
(b) The county agency shall attempt to obtain verification of all
				other eligibility factors by the next reapplication. When the verifications
				cannot be obtained by the next reapplication, the county agency shall continue
				the attempt and document in the case record.
(7) The methods used for
			 verification shall be thoroughly documented in the case record. All documents
			 submitted to the county agency shall be photocopied and retained in the case
			 record.
(H) What are the assistance group's
		  change reporting requirements and the time frames?
(1) The following changes
			 shall be reported within ten calendar days of the date that the change occurs
			 for OWF, or RCA assistance groups:
(a) Change in the source of earned and unearned income. This
				includes new employment, loss of employment, changing of jobs and initial
				receipt of unearned income;
(b) Change in the amount of gross monthly income of more than
				fifty dollars;
(c) Changes in the legal obligation to pay child
				support;
(d) Change in the assistance group composition;
(e) An assistance group member becomes pregnant, or a pregnancy
				ends when there are no other children;
(f) Change in residence;
(g) Withdrawal from school for individuals subject to the
				learning, earning and parenting program requirements;
(h) Change in address, job or other information related to an
				absent parent;
(i) Change in living arrangement for a minor parent;
(j) An assistance group member violates a condition of his
				probation or parole or becomes a fugitive felon.
(2) The county agency shall use the time
			 frame provisions described in paragraph (M) of rule 5101:1-2-01 of the
			 Administrative Code when calculating the ten day reporting time
			 period.