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1000.21 TANF MANUAL 10/18 PAGE 80

1. Employment which meets the following conditions represents a verifiable act of compliance for all situations: the employment is verified, it was obtained after the sanction was imposed, it is for 20 hours per week or more and pays at least minimum wage, it continues for at least two weeks after the client reports the job to the agency, and the client is still employed at the end of the fixed sanction period. The participant is still required to comply with other program requirements in conjunction with employment when applicable.

2. A verifiable act may be defined in these situations as follows:

a. For failure or refusal to report for an appointment or required interview (excluding the initial assessment interview) - keeping another scheduled appointment or interview.

b. For failure or refusal to complete and/or return forms or other information to the agency by a required date - returning and/or completing the required form or other information.

c. For failure or refusal to begin, to continue in or participate in an assigned activity - beginning, continuing in or participating in an activity for up to two weeks to show a good faith effort to comply.

d. For failure or refusal to complete an assignment to a program activity - completing an assignment.

e. For failure or refusal to obtain or accept employment – if the client obtains employment during the sanction, the employment must be maintained through the end of the sanction period.

f. If the assignment from which a participant has been sanctioned is no longer available or appropriate, compliance may consist of participating in or completing a different activity. In the case of a participant who was sanctioned for failure to participate in her CWEP or PSP assignment, the client will be allowed the opportunity to develop her own worksite in order to comply.

B. The Activity and Service Plan should reflect the activity the client is to complete in order to comply and the date by which the activity is to be completed. The information from the Activity and Service Plan developed to assist the client in complying with program requirements will not be entered into the ESP module in VaCMS. Once the participant has performed a verifiable act of compliance (with the exception of compliance based on employment), the sanction is lifted at the end of the fixed sanction period, or retroactively to the date the participant complied if compliance was after the end of the fixed period.

C. Effective Date of Compliance:

1. The effective date of compliance for an appointment/ interview or for forms/ other information not completed or returned to the agency, is the date the client keeps the appointment, participates in the interview, or completes/returns the forms/information.

2. Compliance for a program activity must meet the conditions for a verifiable act of compliance outlined in 1000.21A. Once those conditions are met, the effective date of compliance for activities other than employment is the date the client completed the activity.

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