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COMBINED MANUAL

ISSUE DATE 10/2019

UNIVERSAL PARTICIPATION PROVISIONS

0028.06.02

MFIP: Universal Participation requires all caregivers receiving assistance and caregivers disqualified due to an Intentional Program Violation (IPV) to engage in Employment Services (ES), with the exception of participants with a birth child under the age of 12 months regardless if the child’s needs are included in the grant.

NOTE: The participation requirements for caregivers disqualified due to an IPV apply only to caregivers disqualified effective 10- 1-07 or later.

CHILD UNDER 12 MONTHS ES EXEMPTION

Under the law there is a time-limited ES exemption for MFIP and DWP caregivers with a birth child under 12 months.

The child under 12-month ES exemption does not apply under employed extension.

The 1st month of an ES exemption begins the month after the month that the participant claims the child under 12 months exemption.

The 3 periods for which an ES exemption for the care of a child under the age of 12 months could have been or can be claimed are:

● The original child under age 1 exemption that was in effect from January 1, 1998 through June 30, 2004.

● The child under 12 weeks ES exception that was in effect from July 1, 2004 through February 28, 2010. Do not count more than a total of 3 months for any participant who used the 12 week exception during this period.

● The child under 12 months ES exemption effective March 1, 2010.

All months used on DWP and MFIP under any of these periods count toward the 12-month lifetime limit for a household.

MFIP parents who have not used a total of 12 months of the exemption (up to 12 months combined total per household for a 2- parent family) may choose to use the remaining months. Parents are allowed to choose to claim the exemption for more than 1 child, and in different spans of time. This ES exemption applies even if the child’s needs are not included in the grant, such as for a child that is ineligible for cash due to receipt of Supplemental Security Income (SSI).

Parents whose needs are not included in the grant (SSI, non-citizens or removed post-60) are not subject to ES participation and should not be coded as using the child under 12-month exemption to Employment Services.

In a 1-parent household, the ES exemption for the care of a child under the age of 12 months is available for a cumulative 12 months lifetime limit.

In a 2-parent household, the parents’ exemption usage is combined to determine the 12 months total rather than being available in full to each caregiver. The 12 months are clocked separately for each parent and follow the parent that uses them. Only 1 parent is allowed to claim the exemption in any 1 month but the exemption can switch between parents from month to month.

If a parent in a 2-parent unit moves out and joins a 1-parent assistance unit to form a new 2-parent assistance unit, the newly formed unit is limited to 12 months total when the 2 parents’ exemption months are added together. If the combined months of the new unit exceed 12 months, they would not be eligible for any more exempt months as long as they live together.

The ES exemption for the care of a child under 12 months ends at the earliest of the following dates:

● The 1st day of the month after the month the child reaches 12 months of age.

OR ● The 1st day of the month after the parent uses the last month of the lifetime exemption.