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West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Chapter 1

West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Page 121 Chapter 1 Application/Redetermination Process

All TANF agencies are subject to review by the Office of Civil Rights and any complaints regarding discrimination are to be referred to and investigated by that office. See Section 1.2 for directions on filing a complaint and for the right to fair and equitable treatment of applicants and participants. 1.5.23.B Accommodations for the Disabled in WV WORKS Under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the ADA, a disability is defined as an impairment that may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, sensory, or some combination of these. A disability substantially limits a person’s life activities. The Worker has the responsibility to inform the Work-Eligible Individual that disclosure of any or all of these conditions is voluntary. The Worker must provide any appropriate referrals once the information is provided. Disabled individuals may have a temporary barrier or exemption. Individuals with disabilities should not be automatically excluded because this practice denies those individuals access to the TANF programs and services. This results in the discriminatory exclusion of disabled individuals from participating in the program. Under the law, every effort must be made to modify practices and policy, when appropriate, so disabled individuals may receive modified training and accommodated job opportunities. This policy allows the disabled to participate in the program and benefit from the employment and training opportunities offered to all other participants. Two concepts are central to making WV WORKS accessible to all applicants and participants: • Individualized treatment – All individuals with disabilities must be treated on a case-by- case basis, in a way that is appropriate to accommodate their disabilities. • Effective and meaningful opportunity – All disabled applicants and participants must be allowed to participate and given the opportunity to benefit from TANF programs in the same manner as all other participants and must be allowed to have meaningful access to the program. Reasonable accommodations and services must be available to all disabled participants, so all services and programs are accessible to disabled individuals. These types of modifications are required at application and throughout all stages of the WV WORKS program and continue as necessary through employment or even during an extension of the 60-month limit of benefits. Any accommodation and/or modification must be documented in case comments.