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Delaware’s TANF State Plan 10-1-2017 to 9-30-2020

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practices and service delivery. No person shall on the basis of sex, age, color, national origin, race, or disability status be excluded from participation in, be denied benefits of, or be subjected to unlawful discrimination under any program or activity receiving or benefiting from federal financial assistance and administered by the agencies.

Further, it is the obligation of the agencies to make reasonable accommodations for an applicant or participant so that no limitation - physical, mental or language - prevents his or her complete participation.

Appeals Process

DSS will provide timely and adequate notice for actions taken which affect eligibility or benefit level. Adequate notice means a written notice that includes a statement of what action the agency intends to take, the reasons for the intended agency action, the specific regulations supporting such action, explanation of the individual's right to request a fair hearing, and the circumstances under which assistance may be continued if a hearing is requested.

Timely notice means a notice that is mailed no later than ten (10) days before the date of action (i.e., ten days before the intended change would be effective). When DSS learns of facts indicating that assistance should be discontinued, suspended, terminated, or reduced because of the probable fraud of the recipient and, where possible, such facts have been verified through secondary sources, notice of a grant adjustment is timely if mailed at least five (5) days before the action would become effective.

An opportunity for a hearing will be granted to any applicant who requests a hearing because his or her claim for assistance is denied or is not acted upon with reasonable promptness and to any applicant or recipient who is aggrieved by any Agency action.

To be considered by the Agency, a request for a hearing must be a clear expression in writing by the appellant or his or her representative to the effect that (s)he wants the opportunity to present his or her case to higher authority. The freedom to make such a request will not be limited or interfered with in any way and the Division will assist the appellant in submitting and processing his or her request. A hearing need not be granted when either state or federal law requires automatic grant adjustments for classes of recipients, unless the reason for an individual appeal is incorrect grant computation.