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c. In the case of a participant with a verified disability, or a household member with a verified disability cared for by the participant, the participant must have been enrolled for at least 6 months out of the previous 12 months, have been satisfactorily participating for those 6 months, and be able to complete the course of study in no more than one year if the exception is granted. The ESW will work with the participant and the educational institution or skills training program to arrange any accommodations needed by the participant in order to complete the course.
d. For purposes of this hardship exception, the following education activities are not considered “employment-related education or training”: adult basic education (ABE), General Educational Development (GED), English as a Second Language (ESL, ESOL), High School.
F. Conditions Under Which a Hardship Exception May Be Granted for Up to 90 Days
A hardship exception of up to 90 days may be granted by the local agency based on the participant’s inability to find employment or loss of employment if the participant meets the general qualifying criteria outlined above.
1. The client is actively seeking but is unable to find employment.
The participant is enrolled in a job seeking activity and has been satisfactorily participating, but has been unable to find employment that, in combination with all other income (this includes earned and unearned income) or sources of assistance available to the individual, would pay an amount equal to or exceeding the TANF cash benefit plus a standard deduction of $198.
2. The client has been employed but has lost employment due to factors not related to job performance.
a. The participant has applied for unemployment compensation from the Virginia Employment Commission and has been denied. b. The participant is able to provide a copy of the determination of ineligibility for unemployment compensation from the Virginia Employment Commission. c. The Virginia Employment Commission determination of ineligibility verifies that eligibility for unemployment compensation would have existed if the participant had worked sufficient hours to qualify.
G. Responsibilities of the ESW - Decision on Exception Request
1. The ESW will notify the participant within 5 working days that the request for a hardship exception has been received. The notification to the participant will provide the date by which a decision will be made. The date will be no longer than 30 days from receipt of the client’s hardship exception request.
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