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• The applicant or recipient assistance group does not include a sibling or half sibling of the minor parent; or • The applicant or recipient assistance group includes a sibling or 1/2 sibling of the minor parent but at least one of them fails to meet the definition of dependent child, (i.e., age or "living with specified relative" criteria are not met). (f26)
Minor parents who are not mandatory members of another AG must live with a parent, stepparent, grandparent, legal guardian, or other adult holding legal custody of the minor (these individuals will hereafter be known as "qualifying relatives") to qualify for TANF benefits. (f27) In certain circumstances, the minor is exempt from this requirement.
They are as follows: • The minor parent lived apart from the parent's or guardian's home for a period of at least one year prior to the date of application for TANF or the birth of the minor's oldest dependent child; • The minor has no living parent or legal guardian; • The location of the minor's parent or legal guardian is unknown; • The parent or legal guardian of the minor refuses to allow the minor parent to live in the home; and • The physical and/or emotional health or safety of the minor parent or the dependent child would be jeopardized if the minor and dependent child resided with the minor's parent or legal guardian;
If the minor parent is not exempt from the requirement, both their residence in the home and their relationship to the adult must be verified. Acceptable verifications of the living arrangement include, but are not limited to: • Signed statement from the adult; • Landlord's statement; • Medical records; • School records; • Court Records
Acceptable verifications of the biological or legal relationship between the minor parent and the adult include: • Birth Certificate; • Marriage records (if the adult is a stepparent; the minor parent's relationship to her birth or adopted parent must be verified and the marriage between the minor's parent and the stepparent must be verified); • Court Records; • Social Security Administration records; • Records of social service agencies (including the DFR).
Acceptable verifications that a minor parent is exempt from the requirement to live with a qualifying relative include but are not limited to: • A lease agreement, landlord's statement, utility bills or corroborating a statement from a knowledgeable individual verifying the period of time the minor parent has lived independently;