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Child Added Back to AU
Opting Out of SB 380
The request to add the needs of the excluded child(ren) back to the MAP may be made at:
- “Semi-Annual Report” (SAR 7),
- “Annual Redetermination Form” (SAWS 2 Plus),
- “Mid-Year Status Report AR/CO AUs” (AR 3),
- “Mid-Year Status Report SAR AUs” (SAR 3),
- When the parent or caretaker relative voluntarily reports mid-period that the child support payment or payments have decreased or ended and has submitted a written request to exclude the child,
- Written Statement, or
- Orally/verbally by the parent/caretaker relative.
A request to add a step/half-sibling(s) needs back to the MAP during the SAR 7 or RD that does not result from a decrease or loss of child support is effective the first of the month following the date the request is made.
For mid-period reports the effective beginning date of aid is the first of the month in which the decrease or loss of child support income is reported. The recipients grant must be increased within 10 days after verification is received of the loss or decrease of the child support income is received.
A verbal request to include a previously excluded child must be clearly documented in the case record detailing the request and reported loss or decrease of child support income.No action can be taken until the AU provides verification of the reported change.
Request to add a previously excluded child must be processed within the applicable time-frames identified above. If the AU failed to provide the necessary documents (i.e. birth certificate, social security, etc) at application and has made a request to add the child back to the MAP, the EW must request verifications prior to processing the request to add the excluded child to the CalWORKs case. Failure to provide verification within the allotted time-frame (10 days) will result in a denial of the request and a denial NOA must be sent.
Reminder: EWs must follow the existing business process for verification requests (i.e. CW 2200 process).
Note: Oral/verbal request can only be made when requesting to add a child back into the MAP determination and not for initial requests to exclude a child.
County-Initiated Actions
Deciding to include or exclude the step/half-sibling in the AU’s MAP determination is the decision of the applicant/recipient. However, certain circumstances will require county-initiated action to move the excluded child into the AU’s MAP or discontinue the AU at SAR 7 and/or annual redetermination if the child loses their eligibility to participate in SB 380.
MAP Increases
When statewide MAP levels increase, the Child MAP that determines the amount of child support the child must receive monthly to be eligible for exclusion from the AU’s MAP determination will also change. The new Child MAP will have to be figured based on the MAP increase. If the child is no longer receiving child support in the amount that exceeds the amount of CalWORKs the AU would receive if their needs were included because of the MAP change and it is the AU’s SAR 7 Data Month or month of annual redetermination, the child’s needs will be added back to the AU’s MAP determination because the child no longer meets the requirement that the child support exceeds the MAP amount for the child. It is during the SAR 7 and annual redetermination that county-initiated action is taken without the request from the parent/caretaker relative. SAR 7 and annual redetermination are the two instances when the child’s eligibility/status for SB participation can be re-evaluated.
If it is not the AU’s SAR 7 Data Month or redetermination month, no action will be taken due to the MAP increase. The amount of child support will be re-evaluated at the next SAR 7 or redetermination and the child will be added at that time if the child support is less that the Child MAP.
Reminder: The child may be added back into the MAP determination at any time if the parent/caretaker relative voluntarily reports mid-period that the monthly child support received for that child has decreased below the Child MAP amount or the child support has stopped and verification is provided.
Penalties and Eligibility
Most penalties in CalWORKs affect the parent/caretaker relative’s portion of the grant or a percentage of the entire AU’s grant. The exception to this is the school attendance penalty. Teens 16 and 17 who are deemed chronic truants by the School Attendance Review Board or the School District and who either do not have a good cause reason or fail to attend after efforts to motivate them to improve their attendance are eventually penalized by losing their portion of the AU’s grant.
Although these teens with school attendance penalties are not receiving a grant, they are able to participate under the SB 380 policy. These teens are members of the AU and are receiving a grant amount of $0. Any amount of child support received for that child above the child support disregard would qualify them to be voluntarily excluded. However, once the penalty is lifted and the grant amount the child would receive increases back to an amount above the disregard, the child’s eligibility must be re-evaluated by determining whether the amount of child support they receive exceeds the Child MAP.
After re-evaluating the child’s eligibility, if they are no longer eligible to participate under this policy, the child’s needs would be added back to the AU’s MAP determination at the next SAR 7 or annual redetermination, whichever occurs first. Action may be taken mid-period if the parent/caretaker relative requests to add the child back to the AU’s MAP.
Refusal To Opt Out
Applicants and recipients who choose to not exclude any potentially eligible step/half-sibling must continue to comply with child support requirements for CalWORKs. If these AU’s are in receipt of child support income, the AU will continue to receive the child support disregard and the income of the step/half-sibling will continue to be considered available to the AU. EWs must follow the existing business process for updating child support information when new information is provided regarding the absent parent.
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