INTERIM ASSISTANCE REIMBURSEMENT (IAR)

A. AND-SO payments made while an SSI claim is pending, in suspense, terminated, or in appeal shall be classified as interim assistance. At the time of application, the SSI payment procedure shall be explained to the client. 1. All AND-SO payments made to the client are recoverable upon approval for SSI benefits. If the first retroactive SSI payment is sent to the client, rather than the county department, he or she is required to repay any AND-SO grant payments from such lump sum for months he or she was determined eligible for SSI. 2. As a condition of eligibility for AND-SO the client shall be required to sign the IM-14, as defined in Section 3.510, at application and at least annually allowing recovery of the funds from the first retroactive SSI payment. This form must also be completed at every redetermination and whenever the client’s case is transferred to another county. The form must include the selection of one payment designation; client’s signature and date; a county representative’s signature and date, which shall not predate the client’s signature and date; and all requirements for the interim assistance agreement including the applicable county Social Security Grant Reimbursement (GR) Code as described in the SSA Interim Assistance Reimbursement State Handbook, Section 4 (December 5, 2024) which is hereby incorporated by reference. This rule does not contain any later amendments or editions. This handbook is available for no cost at https://www.ssa.gov/gso/eiar/eIAR_InternetHandbook.pdf. This handbook is also available for public inspection and copying at the Colorado Department of Human Services, Division of Economic and Workforce Support, 1575 Sherman Street, Denver, Colorado, 80203, during regular business hours. a. The county shall notify the SSA within 30 calendar days of obtaining a valid IM-14, as defined in Section 3.510, if the notification exceeds 30 calendar days, the county department shall be required to obtain a new valid IM-14 from the client. b. The county department shall be required to review the “IAR Transactions Rejected By SSA Report” in the statewide automated system, Cognos report platform, and shall take all necessary actions to resolve any discrepancies within thirty (30) calendar days of the original transmission date. B. Within ten (10) working days of receipt of the reimbursement from SSA, the county department shall complete and send to the client the Apportionment Notice (IM-19), as defined in Section 3.510, to include the amount of the interim assistance payments made, by month, for all counties that provided AND-SO payments to the client. If the county department recovers excess IAR funds from the initial SSI retroactive payment, the county must reimburse the Social Security Administration utilizing the State prescribed form, within three (3) business days of the mailing of the IM-19. C. The accounting of payments made shall be entered in the Federal SSA eIAR data system. The Federal SSA eIAR data system records the accounting of payments made. After processing this information, it issues payments to the county department and distributes the remainder, if any. Recoveries directly from a retroactive SSI payment can only be made from the first such payment. D. When the SSI payment is received by the client, the county department shall consider the payment as income in the month received. E. In the event that a client receives the initial retroactive SSI payment directly, the county department shall establish a recovery from the client. 1. The county department may agree to recover interim payments by periodic payments or through a lump sum recovery. 2. Any such recovery(ies) made shall be coded as IAR Recovery(ies). 3. Any amount recovered in the same month as the month in which the retroactive payment was received shall not be counted as income. F. The county department shall not pay any portion of its share of the Federal SSI lump sum payment to the client or to any third party for legal, professional, or other fees incurred by the client in securing SSI benefits. All of the IAR payment shall be used to reimburse the AND-SO program for grant payments paid to the client as interim assistance in accordance with the agreement between the Colorado Department of Human Services and the Social Security Administration. The client is not required to obtain legal or other third party representation in order to apply for and/or obtain SSI benefits, and the client is solely responsible for any fees incurred in this process. G. If an SSI client's SSI payment is suspended or terminated, the client may apply for AND-SO and complete the IM-14, as defined in Section 3.510. H. The county department that filed the original IM-14, as defined in Section 3.510, for an AND-SO client shall be the County of Record. The County of Record acting as an agent of the State shall: 1. Collect and apportion all AND-SO grant payments for all county departments that have provided AND-SO grant payments; and, 2. Account for all AND-SO payments to the Social Security Administration

(SSA) timely; and, 3. Make an accounting in the statewide automated system for any reimbursement received. Non-system determined claims (NSDC) shall not be entered for IARs without State Department approval. I. The county department shall maintain records of the IAR case for four (4) years from the end of the Federal fiscal year in which the IAR was processed. J. The county department shall comply with other regulations that the State Department finds necessary to administer the interim assistance provisions.