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24 North Carolina

be released and will be included in the Work Participation Rate. Good cause is defined as:

• A significant family crisis or change; • Illness of the caretaker or child, including participation in substance abuse treatment or medical appointment; • Civil leave, including jury duty, or a required court appearance. • A significant change in the participant’s work schedule by the employer. • Disruption in childcare arrangements. • Loss of transportation.

If a participant fails to meet their required hours of work activities or other MRA-B requirements, without good cause, the MRA-B/Outcome Plan serves as notification that their Work First case will be terminated. An adequate notice outlining the participant’s rights to a hearing, is required to be sent to all households prior to termination of their case. When a case terminates, due to failure to comply with MRA-B requirements, it then becomes “Non-Public Assistance” for child support purposes, and the caretaker is eligible to receive child support payments processed through Child Support Services. For this reason, case managers are directed to promptly terminate cases when a Work First benefit payment is not issued. The child support payment for the following month (if they have one) will be sent directly to the participant. The family will have to reapply for Work First following termination for failure to meet their required hours of work activities or other MRA-B requirements. The family is eligible for any child support payment in a month a TANF benefit was not received.

ELECTRONIC FUNDS TRANSFER (EFT)

All Work First Cash Assistance payments are issued by electronic funds transfer (EFT). The two methods of issuance are direct deposit to a financial institution or electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card.

Direct deposit allows for the monthly Work First Cash Assistance payment to be electronically deposited to a personal savings or checking account of the case head. There may be fees associated with direct deposit that are imposed by the financial institution. These fees are the responsibility of the participant. The financial institution cannot impose charges for an account that it does not impose on its other customers for that same type of account. EBT is an electronic system that allows participants to access their benefits with a plastic card, similar to a bank card. Work First households will receive the initial EBT card at no cost. If the family receives Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) benefits, the Work First payment may be issued on the same card. The first cash withdrawal transaction at an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) is free. There are not any fees for point-of-sale (POS) transactions. Work First households that request a replacement EBT card shall be assessed a $2.50 fee. The fee shall be deducted from the account of the Work First household. The fee shall be refunded if the EBT card: