12 Fair Hearings,2605(b)(13) - Assurance 13

12.1 How many fair hearings did the Grant recipient have in the prior federal Fiscal Year? 2 12.2 How many of those fair hearings resulted in the initial decision being reversed? 0 12.3 Describe any policy and/or procedural changes made in the last federal Fiscal Year as a result of fair hearings? None. 12.4 Describe your fair hearing procedures for households whose applications are denied and/or not acted upon in a timely manner. Information about requesting a review or fair hearing is included in the clients' notice of action. If a client decides to pursue a fair hearing they must notify the Heating Assistance Program in writing within 30 days. Once the request is received, the supervisor reviews the case for accuracy and then a pre-hearing conference follows. If the matter is not resolved at the pre-hearing conference, a copy of the entire file and all case notes are forwarded to the Hearing Officer in Anchorage for them to proceed with the fair hearing. If a client informs the Heating Assistance Program their application hasn't been processed in a timely manner, and it is over 45 days old, the application is forwarded to our Workflow Management Team. The Workflow Management Team will review the application and the Division’s Unacted Report to confirm if the client is in crisis, elderly, legally disabled, or has children under 6, and then determine when the application can be assigned to an Eligibility Technician for processing. 12.5 When and how are applicants informed of these rights? Applicants are informed in the application booklet under the "Rights and Responsibilities Section." It is also printed on each client's notice of action they receive in the mail informing them of the decision on their application. Clients are informed of their rights when they apply telephonically. They must agree to understanding their rights. This is all recorded. If any of the above questions require further explanation or clarification that could not be made in the fields provided, attach a document with said explanation here.