Page 22

Page | 21 D. The SNAP Administrator will submit a report to the appropriate FNS Regional office upon discovery of fraud. The report must include the amount of benefits lost as a result of the fraud and the specific information to support the pertinent facts of the situation. E. The SNAP Administrator will submit a written report to the FNS Regional office following the result of the investigation. F. The FNS regional office will in turn refer the case to the Office of Inspector General requesting they investigate the case.

1230 VOLUNTEERS

Volunteers or other individuals not employed by DSS may not be used for certification interviews or to certify households. Volunteers may assist Benefit Specialists in obtaining necessary verification and in related activities such as prescreening and assisting customers in completing the application form.

Volunteers must follow the same restrictions on disclosing confidential information that DSS staff follow. Volunteers must receive training on the disclosure provisions prior to assisting customers.

1240 BENEFIT SPECIALIST RESPONSIBILITIES

When performing program duties, the Benefits Specialist must keep in mind that technical and other terms which are familiar to DSS staff may be unfamiliar to the household member(s). Poor communication can lead to a misunderstanding which, in turn, may cause denial of an eligible household. Therefore, it is essential that the language used is easily understood by the customer. The policies and procedures throughout this manual are intended to be the guide by which staff implement the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and are written within the limits imposed by federal regulations. The policies contained herein are intended to be sufficiently flexible to allow SNAP staff to exercise reasonable judgment in executing their duties; however, it is impossible to write a procedure that will cover every possible situation.

In the absence of specific policy and procedures for a specific circumstance, the concept of the "prudent worker" is helpful to the Benefits Specialist. The term “prudent worker” refers to the reasonableness of the judgments made by a Benefit Specialist in a given situation. When a Specialist is making a certification decision, he/she should be conscientious of making a decision which is reasonable, based on his/her knowledge of and experience with SNAP. It is extremely important that the Specialist document why his/her reasonable decision was made.

If the Specialist encounters a problem in a specific case that is outside of ordinary policy and procedure, the problem should be referred through administrative channels. However, if the problem is generally covered by existing policy guidelines, the Specialist should make a judgment that can be defined as reasonable and prudent.

Special consideration must be given to customers who need assistance with the application/renewal processes. This could include the following:  Helping customers complete application forms  Scheduling interviews  Helping to obtain required verification  Ensuring that customers understand their rights and responsibilities.