10:87-2.27 Delays in processing

(a) If the CSSA does not determine a household's eligibility and provide an opportunity to participate within 30 days of the date the application was filed, the CSSA shall take action as indicated below. (b) If the household has failed to appear for two scheduled interviews and has made no subsequent contact with the CSSA to express interest in pursuing the application, the CSSA shall send the household a notice of denial on the 30th day following the date of application. The household must file a new application if it wishes to participate in the program. See (c)5 below for households which express interest in pursuing the application after failing to appear for two scheduled interviews. (c) The CSSA shall determine the cause of the delay. A delay shall be considered the fault of the household if the household has failed to complete the application process even though the CSSA has taken all the action required to assist the household. The CSSA must have taken the following actions before a delay can be considered the fault of the household: 1. For households which have failed to complete the application form, the CSSA must have offered, or attempted to offer, assistance in its completion. 2. If one or more members of the household have failed to register for work (as required at N.J.A.C. 10:87-10.1), the CSSA must have informed the household of the need to register for work and given the household at least 10 days from the date of notification to register those members. 3. In cases where verification is incomplete, the CSSA must have provided the household with a Notice of Required Verification (Form NJ SNAP-33), offered to assist the household in obtaining required verification, and allowed the household sufficient time to provide the missing verification. 4. Sufficient time to provide missing verification shall be at least 10 days from the date of the CSSA's initial request for the particular verification which was missing. 5. For households which have failed to appear for an interview, the CSSA must have attempted to reschedule the initial interview within 30 days of the date the application was filed. i. If the household has failed to appear for the first interview and a subsequent interview is postponed at the household's request or cannot otherwise be rescheduled until after the 20th day but before the 30th day following the date the application was filed, the household must appear for the interview, bring verification and register members for work by the 30th day. Otherwise, the delay shall be the fault of the household. ii. If the household has failed to appear for the first interview and a subsequent interview is postponed until after the 30th day following the date the application was filed, the delay shall be the fault of the household. iii. If the household has missed both scheduled interviews and requests another interview, any delay shall be the fault of the household. (d) Delays that are the fault of the CSSA include, but are not limited to those cases in which the CSSA failed to take one or more of the actions described in (c) above. (e) If, by the 30th day, the CSSA cannot take any further action on the application due to the fault of the household, the household shall lose its entitlement to benefits for the month of application. The CSSA must have offered, or have attempted to offer, assistance in the completion of the application. 1. On the 30th day, the CSSA shall send a Notice of Denial to the household giving an additional 30 days to take the required action. Once the household takes the necessary action and submits the required information, the benefits will be prorated from the date the information is provided. If the household takes the required action within 60 days following the date that the application was filed, the CSSA shall reopen the case without requiring a new application. No further action by the CSSA is required after the Notice of Denial is sent if the household fails to take the required action within 60 days following the date the application was filed. That is, the case shall be closed and the household shall have the opportunity to reapply. The Notice of Denial shall include the following: i. The action that the household must take to reactivate the application; ii. That the case will be reopened without a new application if action is taken within 30 days of the date that the Notice of Denial was mailed; iii. That the household must resubmit a new application if, at the end of the 30- day period, the household has not taken the needed action and wishes to participate in the program. (f) Whenever a delay in the initial 30-day period is the fault of the CSSA, the CSSA shall take immediate corrective action. The CSSA shall not deny the application if it caused the delay but shall instead notify the household by the 30th day after the application was filed that the application is being held pending. The CSSA shall also notify the household of any action it must take to complete the application process. 1. If the household is found to be eligible during the second 30-day period, the household shall be entitled to benefits retroactive to the month of application. If, however, the household is found to be ineligible, the CSSA shall deny the application. (g) The following procedures apply as appropriate when a delay occurs in the second 30-day period. 1. If the CSSA is at fault for not completing the application process by the end of the second 30-day period, and the case record is otherwise complete, the CSSA shall continue to process the original application until an eligibility determination is reached. i. If the household is determined eligible, and the CSSA was at fault for the delay in initial 30-day period, the household shall receive benefits retroactive to the month of application. ii. If the initial delay was the household's fault, the household shall receive benefits in the month following the month of application, retroactive to the date the information was received from the household. The CSSA shall use the original application to determine the household's eligibility in months following the 60-day period. 2. If the CSSA is at fault for not completing the application process by the end of the second 30-day period, but the case record is not sufficiently complete to reach an eligibility determination, the CSSA shall continue to process the original application. If the household is subsequently determined eligible, the procedure in (g)1i above shall be used to determine entitlement for retroactive benefits. 3. If the household is at fault for not completing the application process by the end of the second 30-day period, the CSSA shall deny the application and require the household to file a new application if it wishes to participate. The household shall not be entitled to any lost benefits even if the delay in the initial 30 days was the fault of the CSSA. 4. The CSSA shall not determine the household to be ineligible when a person outside of the household fails to cooperate with a request for verification. The CSSA shall not consider individuals identified at N.J.A.C. 10:87-2.3(a) and (c) as individuals outside of the household. History HISTORY: Amended by R.1985 d.346, effective July 1, 1985. See: 17 N.J.R. 883(a), 17 N.J.R. 1659(a). (a)4ii and (a)6i(2) amended. Amended by R.1989 d.121, effective February 21, 1989. See: 20 N.J.R. 2689(a), 21 N.J.R. 511(b). Substantially amended. Amended by R.1990 d.270, effective May 21, 1990. See: 22 N.J.R. 139(a), 22 N.J.R. 1599(a). In (c)3: added text to specify how CWA must assist households for which verification is incomplete. Amended by R.1991 d.247, effective May 6, 1991. See: 23 N.J.R. 179(a), 23 N.J.R. 1412(b). In (e)2 and (g)1ii revised specific time frames. Added new (g)4. Amended by R.1993 d.62, effective February 1, 1993. See: 24 N.J.R. 3207(b), 25 N.J.R. 584(a). In (c)3, added the Notice of Required Verification Form. Amended by R.1995 d.135, effective March 6, 1995. See: 26 N.J.R. 4298(a), 27 N.J.R. 916(a). Recodified from N.J.A.C. 10:87-2.31 and amended by R.2004 d.181, effective May 17, 2004. See: 36 N.J.R. 28(a), 36 N.J.R. 2425(a). Rewrote the section. Former N.J.A.C. 10:87-2.27 repealed. Amended by R.2012 d.031, effective February 6, 2012 (operative March 7, 2012). See: 43 N.J.R. 2114(a), 44 N.J.R. 241(a). In (c)3, substituted "NJ SNAP-33" for "FSP-33"; and in (g)1ii, substituted "in" for "retroactive to", and inserted ", retroactive to the date the information was received from the household".