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Volume III | Chapter 14

14201 MISSISSIPPI [ CLAIMS: PROCEDURES AFTER APPROVAL OF CLAIM]

Revised 01 - 01 - 07 RECOUPMENT OF IMPROPER PAYMENTS Legal Base According to legal advice obtained from the Office of the State's Attorney General, it is the responsibility of the Department to make demands for refunds and to refer to the Fraud Investigation Unit those cases which represent large amounts of payment. See above for the requirement to collect all improper payments whether they were due to willful or non-willful withholding of information or agency error. It is the duty of the Attorney General's office to seek recourse as the Chief Legal Officer of the state against recipients who have received assistance to which they were not entitled based on agency error. Justifications for Demands by Department The Department considers that it has a firm basis for demands for refunds in the following instances: 1. The county department has put the client on notice in writing that he is no longer eligible, or is eligible for a smaller amount of assistance. That is, the county office has sent Notice of Change, and has set out both the month in which ineligibility or reduction in grant will be effective and the reasons for having to take this action. 2. The applicant or recipient, and spouse, if any, have signed Form MDHS-EA-900 certifying to the validity, completeness, and accuracy of the information entered on the form. TANF Claim Collection Guidelines The State first must seek recovery from the Individual responsible for the overpayment (or from that individual s current assistance unit). This means that States are required to pursue collection of the overpayment from the TANF payee, provided that this individual was also a recipient (i.e., a member of the overpaid assistance unit). There is, however, no obligation to repay the overpayment if the payee was not a member of the overpaid assistance unit. If the caretaker relative was not an overpaid individual because she was not a member of an assistance unit on whose behalf she received TANF payments, the State will be required to seek recovery from members of the overpaid assistance unit (or their current assistance unit). When the parent(s) or caretaker relative is included in the TANF group (including disqualified persons), collection efforts will be focused on this individual. The State must make all reasonable