State Appeals Requests

A State Appeal is a method whereby a dissatisfied client, applicant or Authorized Representative may obtain an impartial review of a County action or inaction. This process is mandated by federal law and is administered by the California Department of Social Services (CDSS).

The right to an Appeal belongs to the client, not to the county.

Note: Eligibility staff must not suggest clients to file for Appeal as an alternative to explaining County action or inaction. Eligibility staff have the responsibility to clearly explain County actions at the client’s request. If after a thorough explanation the client does not agree with the action or inaction taken by the County it is the client’s right to file for an Appeal.

Appeal Requests

All Appeal requests must be accepted and allowed to move forward in the Appeal process. For Appeal requests involving improper claimants or if there is no jurisdiction it is the duty of the Administrative Law Judge to determine if the case is heard. Requests for an appeal may be oral or written.

Oral Requests

Oral requests are only accepted by the CDSS State Hearings Division (SHD) by calling 1-800-743-8525. Speech impaired claimants can reach the SHD at 1-800-952-8349.

Written Requests

Claimants are not required to use a specific County or State form to initiate a written appeal request. The request must contain sufficient information to identify the claimant and the issue being appealed. The "NA Back 9”, available in the DEBS forms library, can be provided to claimants asking for a form to file for appeal.

Written requests can be mailed in to the SHD or to the Appeals Unit at:

  • CDSS State Hearings Division, PO Box 94424, MS 21-37 Sacramento, CA 94244-2430
  • Appeals Unit, 353 West Julian St, San Jose, CA 95110.

Written Requests Received at District Office

Claimants may hand deliver appeal requests to any District Office (DO). If a request is mailed or dropped off at a DO, follow the steps below:

  1. Date stamp the envelope, and each page received with the date the documents were received.
  2. Image all documents, including the envelope.
  3. Email or fax the request to the Appeals Unit within 24-hours of being received.
    1. Email documents to asbappeals@ssa.sccgov.org
    2. Fax documents to (408) 817-6099.

Important: It is critical that any request received at DO is date stamped and sent to the Appeals Unit without delay to ensure Aid Paid Pending (APP) is evaluated and issued timely.

Electronic Requests

There are two types of electronic requests. Claimants can:

  • Email their request directly to SHDCSU@DSS.ca.gov
  • Submit an online request via the California Department of Social Services (CDSS)  Appeals Case Management System (ACMS) at www.acms.dss.ca.gov.

Important: Claimants can create an ACMS account, but it is not a requirement for claimants to create an account to submit a request.