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Published under s. 35.93, Wis. Stats., by the Legislative Reference Bureau. DCF 101.21 WISCONSIN ADMINISTRATIVE CODE 14 employer after receiving written or oral directions or training from the Wisconsin works agency regarding interviewing and filling out employment applications. (h) Voluntarily leaves appropriate employment or refuses a bona fide offer of appropriate employment. (i) Is a member of a Wisconsin works group whose benefit has been reduced by 20 percent or more under s. 49.148 (1) (b) or (c), Stats., for 2 consecutive participation periods or for 3 non- consecutive participation periods in a rolling 6-month period. (j) Refuses or fails to follow a verbal or written direction from Wisconsin works agency staff or staff at an employment site. (k) Uses vulgar or profane language or engages in abusive be- havior directed towards staff or others in the Wisconsin works agency or employment site. (L) Violates written work rules developed by the employer, if the work rules were provided to the individual and there is a signed acknowledgement of receipt of the work rules in the indi- vidual’s case record. (4) Notwithstanding sub. (3) (intro.), an individual who does any of the actions specified in sub. (3) (a) to (L) does not demon- strate a refusal to participate if the Wisconsin works agency de- termines that the individual has good cause under s. DCF 101.20. History: Cr. Register, October, 1997, No. 502, eff. 11-1-97; am. (1) (a) and (b) (intro.), Register, July, 2000, No. 535, eff. 8-1-00; corrections in (1) made under s. 13.92 (4) (b) 7., Stats., Register November 2008 No. 635; CR 17-066: r. and recr. (1) Register July 2018 No. 751, eff. 8-1-18; correction in (1) (a) (intro.) made under s. 13.92 (4) (b) 7., Stats., Register July 2018 No. 751; CR 21-091: renum. (1) to DCF 101.21, r. (2) Register July 2022 No. 799, eff. 8-1-22; correction in (1) (intro.), (2) (b), (4) made under s. 13.92 (4) (b) 7., Stats., Register July 2022 No. 799. DCF 101.23 Recovery of overpayments. (1) DEFINI- TIONS. In this section: (a) “Administrative error” means an error committed by an agency or the department in determining benefits given under s. 49.148, 49.155, 49.157, or 49.19, Stats., that results in an overpayment. (b) “Client error” means an error caused by an individual who is a member of a W-2 or AFDC group reporting incorrect infor- mation or failing to report information due to misunderstanding or mistake that results in an overpayment under s. 49.148, 49.155, 49.157, or 49.19, Stats. (c) “Complies with the payment schedule” as used in s. 49.195 (3m) (h), Stats., means the debtor submits each payment due on an overpayment so that it is received by the department by the due date every month over the life of the debt. (d) “Debtor” means a liable person who received an overpay- ment of benefits under s. 49.148, 49.155, 49.157, or 49.19, Stats., and has not repaid it in full. (e) “Disposable earnings” means that part of the earnings of any debtor after the deduction from those earnings of any amounts required by law to be withheld, any life, health, dental or similar type of insurance premiums, union dues, any amount nec- essary to comply with a court order to contribute to the support of minor children, and any levy, wage assignment, or garnishment executed prior to the date of a levy under this section. (f) “Intentional program violation” means an individual who is a member of a W-2 or AFDC group intentionally made a false or misleading statement or misrepresented, concealed, or with- held facts that resulted in an overpayment under s. 49.148, 49.155, 49.157, or 49.19, Stats. An intentional program violation may be determined based on an administrative hearing, a court finding, a signed waiver of an administrative hearing for an al- leged intentional program violation, or a consent agreement in lieu of prosecution based on the same facts or events as the inten- tional program violation. (g) “Overpayment” or “debt” means any benefit or payment received under s. 49.148, 49.155, 49.157, or 49.19, Stats., in an amount greater than the amount that the individual, AFDC assis- tance group, or W-2 group was eligible to receive under applica- ble statutes and rules, regardless of the reason for the overpay- ment. An overpayment may be the result of client error, adminis- trative error, or intentional program violation. (h) “Recoupment” means the process of repayment of an overpayment by the department withholding a portion of a W-2 participant’s grant under s. 49.148, Stats. (2) OVERPAYMENT DETERMINATION AND NOTICE. (a) A county, tribal governing body, W-2 agency, or the department shall determine whether an overpayment has been made under s. 49.148, 49.155, 49.157, or 49.19, Stats., and if so, the amount of the overpayment. (b) The county, tribal governing body, W-2 agency, or depart- ment shall send notice of the overpayment at the address of a debtor as it appears on the records of the department. Documen- tation that a county, tribal governing body, W-2 agency, or the de- partment properly mailed the notice to the address of the debtor as it appears on the records of the department and that it was not returned as undeliverable shall be prima facie evidence that no- tice was delivered and received. (c) The notice shall include the reason for the overpayment, the time period in which the overpayment occurred, the amount of the overpayment, and notice of the right to appeal the overpay- ment determination. (d) The department shall give the debtor an opportunity for review following the procedure specified under s. 49.152 (2), Stats., if the debtor received the overpayment under s. 49.148 or 49.157, Stats., or for a hearing under ch. 227, Stats., if the debtor received an overpayment under s. 49.155 or 49.19, Stats. (3) LIABILITY. (a) Liability shall extend to any parent, non- marital coparent, or stepparent whose family receives benefits under s. 49.148, 49.155, 49.157, or 49.19, Stats., during the pe- riod that the parent, nonmarital coparent, or stepparent is an adult member of the same household, but each individual’s liability is limited to that period. For the purpose of determining liability for an overpayment of a child care subsidy under s. 49.155, Stats., “parent” has the meaning given in s. 49.155 (1) (c), Stats. (b) Liability for repayment of an overpayment shall be joint and several. (c) Liability for overpayments caused by administrative error shall be limited to one year prior to the date that the agency or de- partment discovers the error for overpayments determined on or after August 1, 2005. (4) SIMULTANEOUS COLLECTION. A county, tribal governing body, W-2 agency, or the department may recover an overpay- ment by more than one method of collection at the same time. (5) RECOUPMENT FROM CURRENT W-2 PARTICIPANTS. (a) Administrative error and client error. 1. If any overpayment of benefits paid under s. DCF 101.18 (1) (b) or (c) is due to adminis- trative error or client error, the W-2 agency or the department shall recoup the overpayment from a debtor who continues to re- ceive benefits under s. DCF 101.18 (1) (b) or (c) by reducing the amount of the benefits amount by no more than 10%. 2. The debtor may make a voluntary repayment in addition to the amount withheld from the benefit under subd. 1. 3. The county, tribal governing body, or W–2 agency shall ask a debtor who has received an overpayment to voluntarily re- pay the overpayment. If the debtor fails to pay voluntarily, the county, tribal governing body, or W–2 agency shall refer the debt to the department for further collection efforts. Published under s. 35.93, Stats. Updated on the first day of each month. Entire code is always current. The Register date on each page is the date the chapter was last published. Register May 2026 No. 845