§ 273.26 General eligibility guidelines.

( a ) Eligible programs. The State agency may elect to provide transitional SNAP benefits to households whose participation in the following programs is ending:

( 1 ) TANF or State Maintenance of Effort (MOE) funded cash assistance programs, as authorized under part A of Title IV of the Social Security Act; or

( 2 ) A State-funded cash assistance (SFCA) program that provides assistance to families with children. Eligible SFCA programs may include programs funded by both state and local funds provided the programs are intended to be statewide.

( b ) Description of State transitional benefits. A State agency that chooses to provide transitional benefits must describe features of its transitional SNAP benefits alternative in its plan of operation, as specified in § 272.2(d)(1)(xvi)(H) of this chapter and as described in § 273.26(b)(1) through (b)(6) .

( 1 ) A statement that transitional benefits are available;

( 2 ) The eligible programs by which households may qualify for transitional benefits;

( 3 ) If the State agency is offering transitional benefits through a SFCA program, in addition to TANF or MOE, whether the SFCA program participation runs concurrently, sequentially, or alternatively to the TANF or MOE program;

( 4 ) The categories of households eligible for such benefits;

( 5 ) The maximum number of months for which transitional benefits will be provided; and

( 6 ) Any other items required to be included under this subpart H.

( c ) Eligible households. The State agency may limit transitional benefits to households in which all members had been receiving TANF, MOE, or SFCA, or it may provide such benefits to any household in which at least one member had been receiving TANF, MOE, or SFCA. If a member of a household has been sanctioned but the household is still receiving benefits, the remaining eligible household members may receive transitional SNAP benefits if the cash assistance ends for another reason.

( d ) Ineligible households. The State agency may not provide transitional benefits to a household that is leaving TANF, MOE, or SFCA when:

( 1 ) The household is leaving TANF or MOE due to a full-family TANF sanction or the household is leaving the SFCA program due to a full-family SFCA program sanction;

( 2 ) The household is a member of a category of households designated by the State agency as ineligible for transitional benefits;

( 3 ) All household members are ineligible to receive SNAP benefits because they are:

( i ) Disqualified for an intentional program violation in accordance with § 273.16 ;

( ii ) Ineligible for failure to comply with a work requirement in accordance with § 273.7 ;

( iii ) Receiving SSI in a cash-out State in accordance with § 273.20 ;

( iv ) Ineligible students in accordance with § 273.5 ;

( v ) Ineligible aliens in accordance with § 273.4 ;

( vi ) Disqualified for failing to provide information necessary for making a determination of eligibility or for completing any subsequent review of its eligibility in accordance with § 273.2(d) and § 273.21(m)(1)(ii) ;

( vii ) Disqualified for knowingly transferring resources for the purpose of qualifying or attempting to qualify for the program as provided at § 273.8(h) ;

( viii ) Disqualified for receipt of multiple SNAP benefits;

( ix ) Disqualified for being a fleeing felon in accordance with § 273.11(n) ; or

( x ) ABAWD who fail to comply with the requirements of § 273.24 .

( e ) Optional household exclusions. The State agency has the option to exclude households where all household members are ineligible to receive SNAP benefits because they are:

( 1 ) Disqualified for failure to perform an action under Federal, State or local law relating to a means-tested public assistance program in accordance with § 273.11(k) ;

( 2 ) Ineligible for failing to cooperate with child support agencies in accordance with § 273.11(o) and (p) ; or

( 3 ) Ineligible for being delinquent in court-ordered child support in accordance with § 273.11(q) .

( f ) Recalculating eligibility for denied households. The State agency must use procedures at § 273.12(f)(3) to determine the continued eligibility and benefit level of households denied transitional benefits under § 273.26 .

[ 82 FR 2043 , Jan. 6, 2017]