Extenders - After the 60-Month CalWORKs Time Limit

Mom reaches her 60-month CalWORKs lifetime limit on September 1st. She meets extender criteria because she has caretaker responsibility for her disabled child. Dad has already reached his 60-month CalWORKs lifetime limit and does not meet an extender criteria. Both adults in a two-parent household must meet extender criteria in order to continue to be aided. Mom must be removed from the AU at the end of the month after a timely and adequate 10-day Notice of Action (NOA) is given.

A husband and wife are both timed-out and receiving CalWORKs aid for their common child in an Annual Reporting/Child Only (AR/CO) AU. They have provided verification of the husband’s disability, which qualifies him as unable to maintain employment, and documentation to verify that the wife is needed to provide care for the husband, which impairs her ability to be regularly employed. The husband had a history of participation and full cooperation in WTW when he was aided. Both individuals are timed-out and eligible for time extenders and will be added to the AU the first of the following month.

An AR/CO AU consists of an unmarried couple with a common child. The mother is timed-out, and the father is an ineligible non-citizen. The mother turns 60 next month, at which time each parent will meet an exception to the 60-month time limit rule. The mother will meet the advanced age criteria, and the father is unaided for a reason other than exceeding the time limit. Only the mother is eligible for a time extender and will be added to the AU the next month, as the father is ineligible for CalWORKs.

A Semi-Annual Reporting (SAR) AU consists of an unmarried couple with a common child. The father is timed-out and turns 60 next month. The mother is a long-term WTW sanctioned individual. Each parent meets an exception to the time limit rules. The father will be added to the AU the next month as there is no reported change in household income. However, if the mother cures her WTW sanction, she will no longer meet the unaided exception, and the father will be removed from the AU with a timely notice the same month the mother is added. The father will be eligible for an extender when the mother meets another exception criteria.

A SAR AU consists of a married couple with a common child and a separate child. The father is timed-out, and the mother has a CalWORKs clock stopper due to her disability, which was previously verified as an unable-to-participate in WTW activities exception. The father becomes disabled and provides verification of SSDI benefits. Both parents meet the exception criteria. If adding the father’s SSDI income decreases the CalWORKs grant, he will not be added mid-period and will be added at the start of the next payment period as a mandatorily included individual.

Same scenario in Example 5, except the mother is providing care for a child under 24 months and has elected to take the once-in-a-lifetime CalWORKs 60-month time limit exemption. In this situation, the father is not eligible for a time extender as the mother’s clock stopper does not meet the exception criteria for providing care, as listed above.

A SAR AU consists of an unmarried couple with a common child. The father is timed-out, and the mother is currently aided. The father is a past victim of domestic abuse, and the CalWORKs SW/DV advocate determined good cause exists to waive the time limit program requirement. It is not required for the mother to meet an exception condition. The father will be added back to the AU the month the waiver was granted (ACIN I-14-20).

An aided mom with two children reaches her 60-month time limit and is removed from the AU in March. On June 5th, she informs her Social Services Benefits Specialist (SSBS) that she is disabled. The SSBS provides her with the CalWORKs Exemption Request Form (CW 2186A) and the Authorization to Release Medical Information (CW 61) to verify the disability. On June 15th, she submits the CW 2186A. However, she does not provide the completed CW 61 until August. The CW 61 indicates that she became disabled in August. The verification provided by the client states that her disability impairs her ability to work and that she is currently receiving benefits from SSDI. Mom is considered a mandatory AU member and must be added back into the AU according to BDA rules.

An aided non-parent caretaker relative with two aided grandchildren reaches the 60-month time limit and is removed from the AU in September. On November 15th, she becomes age 60 and informs the SSBS that she would like to receive aid. The SSBS must add her back into the AU according to BDA rules.