Connecticut Department of Social Services Uniform Policy Manual: 1540.15 General Principles of Verification - Methods of Verification

CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF INCOME MAINTENANCEPRIVATE UNIFORM POLICY MANUAL ______________________________________________________________________________ Date: 7-1-87 Transmittal: UP-87-2 1540.15 ______________________________________________________________________________ Section: Type: The Eligibility Process POLICY ______________________________________________________________________________ Chapter: Program: AFDC General Principles of Verification AABD _______________________________________________________________ MA Subject: FS Methods of Verification ______________________________________________________________________________

1540.15 A. Choice of Method

The information provided by the assistance unit is verified through a cooperative effort between the Department and the members of the unit:

1. The Department determines the adequacy and appropriateness of the method selected.

2. The method of verification which is chosen depends upon the nature of the information being verified and the feasibility of other available methods.

B. Documentary Evidence

1. Documents are the primary sources of verification whenever such evidence can be acquired.

2. The Department accepts any document which it feels clearly establishes the veracity of the unit's declarations without restricting the evidence to any one particular type of document.

C. Collateral Contacts

1. In the absence of available documentary evidence, the Department verifies information through contacts with persons who are not members of the assistance unit.

2. Verification through collateral contacts consists of obtaining oral or written affirmations of the unit's statements from persons who are capable of providing first-hand testimony.

3. The persons who serve as the sources of verification are selected by:

a. the Department; or

b. the assistance unit subject to the Department's approval of the persons as acceptable sources of verification.

CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF INCOME MAINTENANCE UNIFORM POLICY MANUAL ______________________________________________________________________________ Date: 7-1-87 Transmittal: UP-87-2 1540.15 page 2 ______________________________________________________________________________ Section: Type: The Eligibility Process POLICY ______________________________________________________________________________ Chapter: Program: AFDC General Principles of Verification AABD _______________________________________________________________ MA Subject: FS Methods of Verification ______________________________________________________________________________

1540.15 D. Home Visits

Home visits are made to facilitate verification when:

1. the Department regards it as necessary to determine eligibility or calculate benefits; and

2. the unit agrees to being interviewed at home.

E. IEVS

In addition to other methods of verification, the Department also uses the Federally-mandated Income Eligibility Verification System (IEVS) to obtain and utilize information on income.

1. IEVS is used in regard to the income of the following persons:

a. applicants for and recipients of assistance under all programs;

b. former members of FS units who received benefits for at least one month within the quarter;

c. other persons who:

(1) are not applying for or receiving assistance; and

(2) have income or assets that are counted in determining the unit's eligibility or in calculating the unit's benefits; and

(3) have their Social Security number on file with the Department or voluntarily furnish it at the request of the Department.

2. All information obtained through IEVS is verified whenever the information is not being obtained from its primary source.

CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF INCOME MAINTENANCE UNIFORM POLICY MANUAL ______________________________________________________________________________ Date: 12-1-88 Transmittal: UP-90-26 1540.15 page 3 ______________________________________________________________________________ Section: Type: The Eligibility Process POLICY ______________________________________________________________________________ Chapter: Program: AFDC General Principles of Verification AABD _______________________________________________________________ MA Subject: FS Methods of Verification ______________________________________________________________________________

1540.15 E. IEVS (continued)

3. All verified IEVS information is used for the following purposes:

a. to determine eligibility;

b. to calculate benefits;

c. to detect overpayment and to calculate the amount;

d. to investigate violations of program regulations and to support resulting prosecutions.

4. IEVS obtains and utilizes information from the following sources:

a. Social Security Administration;

b. Department of Labor;

c. Internal Revenue Service;

d. State Wage Information Collection Agencies (SWICA).

5. Members of the assistance unit and deemors who are subject to the IEVS process are provided with written notification of IEVS:

a. at the time of application for assistance;

b. when eligibility is redetermined;

c. when an adult member is being added to the needs group.

CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF INCOME MAINTENANCE UNIFORM POLICY MANUAL ______________________________________________________________________________ Date: 12-1-91 Transmittal: UP-91-51 1540.15 page 4 ______________________________________________________________________________ Section: Type: The Eligibility Process POLICY ______________________________________________________________________________ Chapter: Program: AFDC General Principles of Verification AABD _______________________________________________________________ MA Subject: FS Methods of Verification ______________________________________________________________________________

1540.15 F. SAVE

The Department uses the Federally-mandated Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlement (SAVE) to obtain information from the Immigration and Naturalization Service regarding the status of all individuals who are not citizens, except those ineligible non-citizens applying for emergency medical treatment.

1. The status of individuals who are subject to SAVE is verified:

a. at the time of application; or

b. when eligibility is being redetermined; or

c. when a temporary status is expiring; or

d. when a request is made to add a new member to the assistance unit.

2. Non-citizens with permanent status will be subject to the SAVE process only one time.

3. In addition to the initial process non-citizens with temporary or conditional status will be subject to SAVE:

a. when their temporary status expires; and

b. until permanent status is granted by INS.

4. Information from SAVE is obtained through two processes:

a. Primary verification - a direct access to INS files;

b. Secondary verification - a manual procedure in addition to or in lieu of primary verification.

CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF INCOME MAINTENANCE UNIFORM POLICY MANUAL ______________________________________________________________________________ Date: 11-15-90 Transmittal: UP-90-26 1540.15 page 5 ______________________________________________________________________________ Section: Type: The Eligibility Process POLICY ______________________________________________________________________________ Chapter: Program: AFDC General Principles of Verification AABD _______________________________________________________________ MA Subject: FS Methods of Verification ______________________________________________________________________________

1540.15 G. Affidavits

1. Affidavits are accepted for review by the Department:

a. in addition to any documentary evidence or verification through collateral contacts or home visits; or

b. when documentary proof is required, and the assistance unit cannot provide it after good faith efforts; or

c. when submitted as proof of the nonexistence of an eligibility factor.

2. When an affidavit is reviewed by the Department, it is evaluated along with all other evidence relative to the eligibility factor.

3. The Department uses all the available evidence, including the affidavit, to determine whether it is more likely than not that the eligibility factor has been established.