Penalized Teens

[EAS 40-105.5/42-719.3]

When a 16 or 17-year old teen does not attend high school or vocational/technical training, a financial penalty is applied, and the teen must be registered with CalWORKs Employment Services (CWES). The needs of the teen are removed from the grant computation; however, that teen continues to be considered part of the Assistance Unit (AU).

Note: The needs of each individual in the AU can only be removed once.

Example Example If a 16 or 17-year old teen’s needs are removed due to a school penalty, and the teen also fails to comply with CWES requirements, do not remove the teen’s needs again. 

Once the teen is successfully enrolled in and attending school or an equivalent CWES activity, the Associate Employment Counselor (AEC)/Employment Counselor (EC) will inform the Social Services Benefits Specialist (SSBS), and the SSBS will remove the financial penalty.

Cal-Learn Teens

A CWES penalty is not applied to a Cal-Learn pregnant or parenting teens. Refer to Cal-Learn for more information.

Related Topics

CWES Sanctions

Exemptions - Sanctions

Volunteers who Fail to Cooperate and Delayed Sanction

Vendor Payment and/or Designated Alternate Cardholders