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ESA SNAP Policy Manual 247 is unwilling or unable to provide monthly earnings amounts, ESA will average the quarterly wages over the quarter and use the resulting monthly average to determine the correct payment amounts. ESA must attempt to get monthly wage information directly from the recipient’s employer before using an estimate on best available information. When calculating overpayments or underpayments for SNAP households that also receive TANF, ESA will use the amount of TANF cash assistance actually received in the payment month, even if the cash assistance was later determined to be an overpayment. 23.1.3 Reporting Overpayments All ESA staff who identify an overpayment must complete the Claim Referral Form and provide sufficient documentation/justification for the identified overpayment. The completed form and documentation/justification must be sent to the ESA Overpayment Unit (OPU) within two business days from the date an overpayment is suspected. OPU will review the Claim Referral Form, along with the documentation/justification, and validate whether a claim should be established. If a claim is established, OPU will mail a demand letter and, for SNAP claims, the repayment agreement letter. 23.1.4 When ESA Does Not Establish an Overpayment An overpayment claim is established, but no collection action will take place when the claim amount is $125 or less and the household is not currently participating, unless the overpayment was discovered through a QC review. If a recipient promptly reports a change, but ESA does not act on a reported change within the 10-day standard, the household would have a Department error overpayment for the excess benefits the household received because ESA did not act within the 10-day standard. For simplified reporting households, if the household reports an income change between certifications, there is no overpayment if the income is below the household’s reporting threshold or if the household reports the change timely. ESA must provide an adequate and timely notice before reducing benefits. If an administrative review, fair hearing or court ruling decides that an overpayment claim is unjustified, ESA will terminate the claim and return any benefits already recovered through recoupment or any other mechanism to the household.

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