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Subject: SNAP General Administrative Procedures

Policy 24.01 Date of Last Review: 11/30/2023 Effective Date: 12/31/2019 Date of Next Review: 11/30/2026 RDA: SW22 Page 3 of 6 7. Number of recipients and other statistical information across the agency or by program; and/or 8. Social data contained in general studies. E. Applications by Department Employees, Their Relatives, or Other Individuals That May Create a Conflict of Interest 1. Cases involving TDHS employees, an employee’s relative, any individual that resides at same physical residence as a TDHS employee, any individual(s) with whom a TDHS employee has a close personal relationship or any individual in with which a conflict of interest may arise are required to be maintained in a confidential caseload. a. A conflict of interest may arise in a situation where the employee’s personal interest or activities could influence their judgement or decisions, and therefore, their ability to act in the best interests of TDHS. b. Close personal relationships include, but are not limited to: i. Dating or co-habiting relationships; ii. Relationships in which business transactions are regularly conducted; iii. Personal friendships that transcend a casual acquaintance, such as: a person whose home is frequently visited by the employee, or vice-versa or a person with whom the employee socializes “one-on-one” on a regular basis; or iv. Individuals that reside at the same physical residence of an employee. 2. To avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest and ensure privacy, special handling is given to cases involving TDHS employees, their relatives and any close personal relationships with a TDHS employee who apply for and receive Family Assistance benefits. • All cases involving TDHS employees, any individual that resides at same physical residence as a TDHS employee, their relatives or close personal relationships must be placed in a confidential caseload to ensure the privacy and the integrity of these individuals. 3. Any TDHS employee shall remove themselves from acting on any case or issue which involves a relative, close personal relationship, or their own records. When potential conflicts arise, TDHS employees must immediately alert their supervisor or appropriate manager to the conflict of interest. • TDHS maintains a plan for limited access to these cases by other staff members and the empoyee themselves. Such cases must be assigned to a special caseload number in the ACCENT system. F. Release of Information to the Applicant/Participant or their Representative 1. Federal regulations require that information in SNAP cases be made available upon written request to a responsible member of the SNAP HH; the HH’s currently authorized representative or a person acting on the HH’s behalf. Therefore, the SNAP case must be made available for inspection by authorized persons during regular business hours.