Family Reunification Services Only (AB 429)

Background

Assembly Bill (AB) 429 provides for the continuation of CalWORKs services only for the parents of children who have been removed from the home and are receiving out-of-home care when DFCS or a court recommends Family Reunification (FR) services only. These cases are referred to as FR-AB 429 cases.

Refer to Family Reunification Cash Aid and Services (AB 135) when DFCS or a court recommends both FR cash aid and services.

Note: Refer to Chewable Byte 23-59: How to Process Family Reunification Case for CalSAWS entries.

Important: Once a common DFCS/CWES case is identified, staff must start entering their documentation using "CalWORKs Common Case" in the "Short Description" field of the CalSAWS' "Journal Detail" page.

Cash Aid Benefits

Although FR-AB 429 cases are eligible for CWES, they will no longer receive a cash grant when all the children have been removed from the home or if the remaining Assistance Unit (AU) members become financially ineligible.

Reporting & Redetermination Requirements

Semi-Annual Report (SAR 7)

FR-AB 429 families are not required to submit a SAR 7 for CalWORKs; however, a SAR 7 will be required if the household continues to receive CalFresh. If a change is reported mid-period for CalFresh that results in ineligibility for CalWORKs, mid-period action will not be taken. The earliest opportunity to discontinue the CalWORKs case due to ineligibility will be at the end of the current cycle.

Redetermination (RD)

Although the CalWORKs reunification parents are not required to provide a SAR 7, an eligibility RD must be made at six-month intervals in coordination with the county review of the reunification plan. If the children are returned to the home before or after the six-month period, an eligibility RD must be done in order to issue cash benefits. All forms that are required for an RD must be completed.

Family Reunited

CalWORKs Benefits

Once the child has been returned to the home and the family is determined eligible for cash aid, the EW will change the aid type to the appropriate cash aid type and begin paying cash assistance. The client is not required to go through intake. Since the CalWORKs case remains open for FR-AB 429 with no grant, the children cannot be added back to the CalWORKs case until the 1st of the month following their return to the home; however, if the CW case was discontinued, the family will begin receiving their cash grant from the date of application, if eligible.

Reminder: FR cases are always considered recipient families.

CWES Case

Once the child has been returned to the home and the family is eligible for regular CalWORKs cash aid, a case flag titled “CalWORKs Common Case - FM” must be added in CalSAWS to identify the case as Family Maintenance (FM). Refer to Chewable Byte 23-03: How to Add a Case Flag for CalSAWS entries. A new/amended WTW Plan is required.

Extension of the Six Month Period

A reunification family can be granted a good cause extension of CWES services for a Common case beyond the six month period for the following situations:

• If the extension is for the number of days between the date of removal and the court ordered reunification plan. ExampleExample The child is removed from the home on 2/3/25, but the reunification plan is not developed until 4/11/25. The six full months from removal would be through 8/31/25 (March through August, since February was not a full month), but the extension can be granted until 10/31/25 - 6 full months from the court plan development (May through October, since April was not a full month).
• DFCS or a court determines that additional time is needed to complete the court ordered plan.

Note: If the court determines that a reunification plan is not possible, then the family is not eligible for reunification services and the CalWORKs case must be discontinued unless there are other CalWORKs eligible children remaining in the home.

CWES Volunteers

If a client has an exemption which does not require them to participate in CWES activities, they may choose to volunteer to participate in CWES activities.

Notice of Action (NOA)

The Welfare to Work Family Reunification Plan (WTW 34), with a revision date of 4/2004, is an informing notice that tells parents that their cash aid has been reduced because all their children have been removed from the home, the county has determined that they may continue to receive WTW activities and supportive services because those services will assist the family to reunify, and that those services will be provided under the FR Plan, WTW Plan, or both.

The Partnership Employment Counselor (EC) must mail the WTW 34 to the FR client at the time of approval when a FR-AB 429 Plan is adopted in lieu of the WTW Plan, or in other words, the WTW 34 notice must be mailed when there is no WTW Plan signed by the client and supportive services are paid for DFCS activities based on the FR Plan. This version of the WTW 34 was removed from CalSAWS and is available in the DEBS Forms Library, titled “WTW_34_EN_04_2004” and should only be used for FR participants receiving FR services only. 

Note: AB 135 participants should receive the WTW 34 with a revision date of 1/2024.

CWES Sanctioned Clients

Individuals who are currently serving a CWES or child support sanction are encouraged to cure the CalWORKs sanction. The client will be referred to an Orientation for WTW sanction lift. After the Orientation completion, the client will be assigned to the Partnership EC. The DFCS activities are included in the integrated WTW plan.

AB 429 sanctioned clients are directly assigned to Partnership EC. The Partnership EC will obtain the SCD 1811 from the DFCS social worker, update CalSAWS with the DFCS activities, pay supportive services, and issue the WTW 34 approval notice.

Note: In CalSAWS, the Partnership EC will change the Status to "Non-Comp" with the Status Reason of "In the process of curing sanction."

In order to pay for supportive services, the client is placed in a Status Reason of "In process of curing sanction." Once the FR plan is completed and the child(ren) is returned to the home, the family may request to have CalWORKs for the family.

CWES Noncooperation

Individuals who fail to participate in CWES activities or any other activity required under the FR plan are not subject to the non-compliance or sanction process. CWES will continue to offer supportive services for activities that are part of the FR plan when the client continues to attend the DFCS activities until the plan is terminated by DFCS.

Note: The Partnership EC must inform the DFCS social worker of the client’s non-compliance, keep the CWES case open, and pay supportive services for the activities the client actually attends, with proper verification, until the DFCS social worker determines the FR case is closed.

Good Cause

An individual required to participate in other activities as a requirement of family reunification which interferes with the client’s ability to meet the CWES hours of participation requirement must be granted good cause for not participating in their activity.

WTW Plan

WTW services may be given based only on the FR Plan in lieu of the WTW Plan; however, this doesn’t preclude the FR client from later participating in WTW activities. FR-AB 429 clients have the option to develop or amend a WTW Plan.

Child Placed with a Relative

If a child is placed with a relative who then applies for CalWORKs cash aid for that child, CalWORKs cash aid can be granted based on the date of application in the month following the month the child was removed from their parents’ home.

ExampleExample

Cal-Learn Teens

If a Cal-Learn teen meets the requirements for reunification services, then they are eligible to continue participating in the Cal-Learn Program and receive Cal-Learn case management services as part of their FR plan. This would include nested teens in AUs that remain financially eligible for a CalWORKs grant.

Cal-Learn reunification parents are eligible to receive supportive services in order to attend school, as well as the $500 graduation bonus. Cal-Learn reunification parents are not eligible for the $100 satisfactory progress bonus.

Note: In order to better serve the Cal-Learn teen, these cases will remain with the Cal-Learn case manager and not transfer to the Partnership EC. The DFCS activities and the Cal-Learn activities are integrated in the WTW Plan, and the teen receives supportive services for these activities.

Time on Aid (TOA)

CalWORKs 60-Month Clock

The months that reunification families only receive supportive services will not count toward the CalWORKs 60-month TOA clock.

Exception: If the client receives Temporary Homeless Assistance (THA), months will count towards the CalWORKs TOA clock.

TANF 60-Month Clock

Supportive services that are provided to an unemployed parent are considered “assistance” and the months in which the services are provided would count towards the federal TANF 60-month time limit. Supportive services for employed parents are not “assistance” and therefore do not count against the federal TANF time limit.

Reminder: State-only funded programs are not subject to the TANF 60-month time limit. Individuals will not accrue months towards the federal TANF 60-month time limit if they are in state-only funded programs.

CalWORKs timed-out parents are not eligible to receive CalWORKs FR services because they are not eligible to receive CalWORKs benefits.

Determining Income Eligibility

Although reunification families will not be receiving a cash grant, the following determination must be made at either the 6-month redetermination or semi-annually if the client continues to submit a SAR 7 for CalFresh:

• Determine the AU's Net Non-exempt Income (NNI) after applying all appropriate disregards.
• Compare the NNI to the family Maximum Aid Payment (MAP) for a family size that includes the parent(s) and any remaining child(ren) in the home.
• If the NNI does not exceed the MAP, the AU will remain eligible for FR-AB 429.

ExampleExample

Post-Aid Services (PAS)

Clients who have timed out of CalWORKs are not eligible for FR-AB 429 services; however, if the client is employed at the time of the 60-month discontinuance, they are eligible for 12 months of PAS.

Related Topics

Family Reunification Program Overview

Family Reunification Cash Aid and Services (AB 135)