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18 An applicant family shall not be eligible for CalWORKs unless the family’s income, exclusive of the first four hundred and fifty dollars ($450) of earned income for each employed person, is less than the minimum basic standard of adequate care (MBSAC) as specified in Welfare & Institutions Code (WIC) Section 11452. A recipient family shall remain eligible when a needy child or adult is temporarily absent from the home. Per state regulations, the time period for these initial temporary absences from the home is one full calendar month of at least 30 days. Seven exceptions to this policy are defined in state regulations due to changes in household circumstances. State regulations also requires that the basis for the temporary absence be documented in the case file. Changes in household circumstances that result in an exception to the temporary absence policy include: • confinement to a correctional facility, • hospitalization, • employment, • attending educational and vocational training school, • child with special needs, • child in a group home, and • children receiving out-of-home care. Detailed explanation of these exceptions are in the state’s Manual of Policies and Procedures (MPP) Section 82-812.6. Each exception is subject to specific timeframes based on the household circumstance. Family Reunification In a CalWORKs Family Reunification (FR) case, the eligible children are considered temporarily absent from the home and the CalWORKs case remains open. Family Reunification cases can receive CalWORKs temporary homeless assistance payments, and WTW services. To be eligible for FR, the family must have been receiving CalWORKs assistance when the child was removed, and the county has determined that the provision of CalWORKs services is necessary for reunification. Counties have the option to provide services to FR cases for up to six-months, with an additional option to extend services where reunification happens more than six-months from the date of the child’s removal from the home. These extended services can be continued until termination of the family reunification plan (MPP Section 82-812.679(b)). California’s FR policy is federally