Interview Requirements

Rights and Responsibilities

The EW must inform the household of the following CalFresh rights and responsibilities as part of the RC.

  • The right to confidentiality.
  • The right to nondiscrimination.
  • A review of the pamphlet, “Your Rights Under California Welfare Law” (PUB 13).
  • EBT Card and PIN Responsibilities.
  • Availability, when applicable, of second language forms for non-English speaking households. Document this in the Journal Detail page.
  • Sales tax may not be charged on approved items purchased with CalFresh.
  • Disqualification penalties for failure to cooperate with:
    • QC reviews (discuss sanction time frame; Refer to Processing Time Frames [63-301]
    • Work Registration requirements
    • SSN requirements
    • Reporting requirements (explain IPV disqualification penalties)
  • 10-day mid-period reporting requirements:
    • Report when gross monthly income received exceeds the HH’s IRT, or
    • If applicable to the HH, report when an ABAWD's work hours drop below an average of 20 hours per week or 80 hours total per month, or
    • Report when the HH is in receipt of substantial lottery and/or gambling winnings (EWs must verbally inform recipients of the substantial lottery and/or gambling winnings mid-period reporting requirement and that substantial winnings will result in the discontinuance of CalFresh benefits. EW must case document that the recipient was informed of this mandatory reporting requirement).

      • Important: Substantial lottery and/or gambling winnings are defined as being equal to or over the Elderly and/or Disabled resource limit. This mandatory requirement is applicable even if the household immediately spends or loses a portion of the winnings and the remaining winnings are below the resource limit for Elderly and/or Disabled households. The client’s verbal statement along with case documentation is sufficient verification.

  • Collect calls will be accepted from outside the local calling area.
  • The opportunity to receive uninterrupted benefits by the next normal issuance date after the certification period ends.

Important: To obtain uniformity when explaining the Rights and Responsibilities to clients, Santa Clara County Staff must play the pre-recorded version to the client, whenever possible. (Until directed otherwise, EWs must verbally inform recipients of the substantial lottery/gambling winnings mid-period reporting requirement.)

Note: If there has been a failure to provide an eligible household with an opportunity to participate due to administrative error, the household is entitled to LOST BENEFITS if the period was the month following the expiration of the certification period. Refer to Delayed Processing for additional requirements.

Related Topics

Delayed Processing