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request to QAD. Allotment reductions for households with outstanding claims who reapply for assistance will begin with the first FULL month’s allotment. QAD maintains a record of:

a. The full allotment amount the household is eligible to receive. b. The amount withheld from the household’s monthly allotment; and, c. The amount the household actually receives. SNAP benefits not accessed in 274 days are expunged and no longer available to the household. If there is an outstanding overpayment, the benefits are applied towards the overpayment prior to being expunged. This is completed at Central Office. 4. Treasury Offset Program (TOP) - Accounts that are delinquent for 90 days or more will be referred by QAD to TOP or the Department of Revenue for collection. Funds that can be recouped include federal salaries, income tax returns, Social Security benefits, and any warrants issued through the State Department of Revenue. Concerns regarding collections are to be referred to QAD. 5. Offset Debt with Electronic Benefit Balance – SNAP clients may request the eligibility staff member to apply funds toward repayment of an overpayment claim from their Montana Access account. To remove funds from the EBT account: a. The eligibility staff member completes a 'Request to Offset’ form HCS/SNAP- 004. This is applied as a one-time reduction and is not for future ongoing reductions. The household's signature is required on the form. One copy must be provided to the client and the original scanned into the client file in Perceptive. After scanning it into Perceptive, the eligibility staff member must send an email to Julie Nepine, jnepine@mt.gov. The email must include the case number, Perceptive document number for the SNAP-004 form, and indicate the amount the client requested to be deducted, OR b. SNAP clients may also verbally request to apply funds toward repayment of an overpayment claim from their Montana Access account by contacting QAD, 406- 444-2978.

NOTE: Clients should contact EBT Card Customer Service for the balance in their account prior to completing the form to ensure there is the amount of benefits in the account that they want to use for repayment. COMPROMISING CLAIMS: The Department may compromise or reduce an overpayment claim or any portion of an overpayment claim if the Department determines that the household’s financial, mental, or physical situation will prevent repayment of the overpayment claim within three years. Compromises are determined per program. TANF and SNAP overpayment claims cannot be combined when determining compromise.