69205 A Refugee Cash Assistance RCA Program
Table of The Refugee Cash Assistance RCA Program section includes the Contents
following information
Topics Background
RCA Eligibility Determination Timeframe
RCA Eligibility Factors
Persons Ineligible for RCA
RCA Time Eligibility
RCA Income Eligibility and Aid Payments
RCA Income Limits
RCA Resource Limits
Required FRC Contact With VOLAGs
RCA Sponsors
Provision of SSN Info for RCA Applicants
Assistance Units AU for RCA
Mandatory SSA Referrals
RCA Case File Documentation
Full Time Students and RCA
RCA for Previous TCVAP Recipients
RCA Notification Requirements
Access to RCA Program Policies
Civil Rights
Refugee Employment Services
Background Family Resource Centers FRCs shall determine the eligibility of refugees in the Refugee Resettlement Program RRP for CalWORKs or Refugee Cash Assistance RCA RCA is cash assistance provided to refugees who have been determined to be ineligible for CalWORKs or SSISSP and who have resided in the United States for no longer than the time eligibility period outlined by federal regulations which is currently 8 months
In San Diego County single refugees and couples without children are served by the WilsonFish Alternative Project operated by Catholic Charities under direct contract with the Federal Office of Refugee Resettlement ORR As the WilsonFish Alternative Project does not serve refugee families FRCs should not refer refugee families to them for services
RCA EligibilityDetermination Timeframe
The eligibility of each RCA applicant shall be determined as promptly as possible within no more than 30 days from the date of application
The date of application is the date to use for the beginning date of RCA Persons receiving RCA also receive full scope MediCal benefits
Refugees who qualify for assistance under the CalWORKs program shall be aided under the CalWORKs program Those who do not qualify for CalWORKs shall have their eligibility determined for RCA
Note
If the refugee refuses to provide information regarding hisher sponsor or VOLAG FRC staff shall deny or discontinue aid
RCA EligibilityFactors
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Persons Ineligible forRCA
Factors which must be evaluated when determining RCA eligibility include
Time Eligibility
Refugee Status see CPG 42400 E Eligible NonCitizen Status
Income and resources
Attendance in an institution of higher education see Full Time Students and RCA below
Employment Requirements see CPG 10200 A Refugee Employment Services
Provision of information regarding sponsor or responsible Volunteer Agency VOLAG
The following persons are not eligible for RCA
Families eligible for CalWORKs
Individualsfamilies whose Date of Entry is over 8 months see RCA Time Eligibility below
Fulltime college students see Full Time Students and RCA
below
Individuals without INS Refugee Status see CPG 42400 E Eligible NonCitizen Status
RCA Time Regardless of the date an applicant applies for RCA benefits the month Eligibility
of arrival date of entry as indicated on the USCIS Form I94 is counted as the first month in determining time eligibility Time eligibility for RCA recipients is currently 8 months
RCA Income Unless specifically superseded by RCA regulations cash aid payments Eligibility and
under RCA follow CalWORKs program regulations relating to financial
Aid Payments
eligibility and payments
RCA Income Limits
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Income for the RCA Program shall be determined based on CalWORKs program regulations see CPG Section 44100 Income for determining need and computing the assistance payment with the following exceptions
The sponsored alien provisions in the CalWORKs program shall not be applied to RCA cases and
Any reception and placement RP cash received by a refugee after their arrival into the US shall be exempted from consideration when determining income eligibility
RCA RCA follows the real and personal property resource limits for Resource
CalWORKs Program see CPG Section 42200 B Property Resource
Limits
Limit with the following exceptions
The sponsored alien provisions in the CalWORKs program shall not be applied to RCA cases and
Any resources remaining in the applicants country of origin shall not be considered in determining resource eligibility
Any reception and placement RP cash received by a refugee after their arrival into the US shall be exempted from consideration when determining resource eligibility
Required FRC Contact with VOLAGs
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National voluntary agencies VOLAGs work with the Federal Government to assist in resettling refugees As part of the application process for RCA FRC staff shall
Notify the responsible VOLAG
Obtain details regarding the assistance if any the Sponsor or VOLAG is providing for the refugee and
Inquire whether the refugee has refused an offer of employment or has voluntarily quit a job
Contact Requirements
A telephone call in the absence of an inperson contact is sufficient to fulfill these requirements
Whenever possible a written statement from the sponsor or VOLAG shall be obtained
All information received by means of an inperson contact telephone call or written statement shall
o Be made part of the case record
o Include the name of the VOLAG and
o Be documented in CalWIN Case Comments
When a VOLAG or sponsor requests the address and telephone number for a timeeligible refugee FRC staff shall provide this information to the VOLAG or sponsor
Where there is an emergency need for financial assistance or the VOLAG fails to respond in a timely manner these requirements shall be temporarily waived in order to meet the emergency or case approval needs
RCA Some applications for cash assistance may be made when the sponsor Sponsors
is unable or unwilling to meet the total needs of the refugees for whom heshe has accepted responsibility When this occurs aid is to be granted in an amount sufficient to meet the unmet needs as determined by the CalWORKs standard
If following the loss of contact with a sponsor and subsequent to the granting of aid to the refugee the resettlement agency secures a new sponsor for the refugee who accepts the responsibilities of sponsorship and meets the needs of the refugees in full in accordance with the CalWORKs standard of assistance cash assistance shall be terminated Only if the subsequent sponsor fails to meet the full needs of the refugee will the county again grant cash assistance to the refugee
Provision of SSN Info for RCA Applicants
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RCA applicants must apply for a social security number SSN however FRC staff cannot deny an RCA applicant for failure to disclose hisher SSN FRC staff shall follow these steps when requesting the applicant to provide a SSN
Inform the applicant the disclosure is voluntary
Advise the applicant how the SSN will be used ie explain IEVS process and
Document the request and required explanation in CalWIN case comments
Note
If the refugee household is also applying for CalFresh benefits please refer to CalFresh Program Guide section 63161 Social Security Number Requirement for CalFresh regulations pertaining to Social Security Number requirements for the CalFresh Program
Assistance Units AU forRCA
Assistance Units AUs shall be established as follows
Refugee parents and their children under 18 years of age shall be in the same AU
Single adult refugees and minor refugees emancipated pursuant to state law shall each be established in their own AU
Married refugee couples without children shall be in the same AU
Unemancipated minor refugees shall not be established in their own AU
Note
US citizen children born of a refugee and a US citizen are not eligible for assistance or services funded by RRP if the household unit includes the US citizen parent In these cases the refugee parent may be eligible for RRP funded RCA and the US citizen parent and the children if eligible may be aided under the regular nonRRP funded CalWORKs program
Mandatory SSA Referrals
All aged blind or disabled refugee applicants shall be referred to the appropriate Social Security Administration District Office to apply for SSISSP This program is a primary resource for refugees who meet the eligibility requirements Application for and receipt of SSISSP is mandatory if determined eligible
RCA Case File
Documentation
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RCA case files shall include the following information in addition to that required by CalWORKs program regulations
The Passport or Alien Registration Number which appears on the appropriate USCIS form This number shall be entered in the NonCitizen field of the Demographics Detail tab in the Collect Individual Demographics Detail window in CalWIN
The name and address of the local sponsor or voluntary resettlement agency which resettled the refugee
Documentation obtained from the sponsor or voluntary resettlement agency as part of the eligibility determination process
For each refugee in the AU a copy of the I94 both front and back and any other USCIS documentation that identifies
o Refugee status and
o Date of entry Entry date shall also be entered in the ORR LetterEntry Date field of the Collect NonCitizen Detail window in CalWIN
Full Time Students and RCA
Refugees are ineligible for RCA if they are fulltime students in a college program attending an institution of higher education
A fulltime student is a student attending an institution of higher education at least
12 semester hours or 12 quarter hours for institutions using standard semester trimester or quarter hour systems
24 semester hours or 36 quarter hours for institutions using credit hours to measure progress and not using semester trimester or quarter hour systems
24 clock hours per week for institutions using clock hours
The program includes both credit and clock hours and the number of
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credit hours per term divided by 12 plus the number of clock hours per week divided by 24 is equal to or greater than one
A series of courses or seminars which equal 12 semester hours or 12 quarter hours in a maximum of 18 weeks or
The work portion of a cooperative education program in which the amount of work performed is equivalent to the academic workload of a fulltime student
An Institution of Higher Education is a public or private nonprofit educational institution which provides
An educational program which awards an associate baccalaureate degree
At least a twoway program which is acceptable for full credit toward a baccalaureate degree
At least a oneyear training program which leads to a certificate or degree and prepares students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation or
Proprietary institution privately owned of higher education which provides at least a sixmonth program of training to prepare students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation
RCA for Previous TCVAP Recipients
When a Trafficking and Crime Victims Assistance Program TCVAP recipient obtains ORR certification a determination shall be made of RCA eligibility If all eligibility factors for RCA are met the TCVAP case shall be discontinued and a new eligibility period for RCA shall be granted for the maximum period allowable currently 8 months from the date of USCIS adjusted entry date
RCA Notification Requirements
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In cases of proposed action to reduce suspend or terminate RCA FRC staff shall provide timely and adequate notice FRC staff shall send or provide a written notice in English and a written translated notice or a verbal translation of the notice to RCA recipients at least 10 days before the date the action is to become effective
If verbal translation is needed FRC staff shall follow procedures outlined in the Civil Rights Section No 3 Services to NonEnglish Speaking and Limited English Proficient LEP ApplicantsRecipients and Individuals with DisabilitiesReasonable
AccommodationsModifications
Access to To ensure that refugees understand what they are eligible for what is RCA
expected of them and what protections are available to them FRC staff
Program
shall make available to RCA applicants the written policies of the RCA
Policies
program including
Agency policies regarding eligibility standards
Duration and amount of cash assistance payments
Requirements for participation in services
Penalties for noncooperation and
Client rights and responsibilities
Clients can be referred to CPG 19000 D Client Request for Information
Civil Rights FRC staff shall follow current HHSA Civil Rights policies to ensure that program information and requirements are communicated effectively for nonEnglish speaking and limited English proficient clients Refer to Civil Rights Section No 3 Services to NonEnglish Speaking and Limited English Proficient LEP ApplicantsRecipients and Individuals with DisabilitiesReasonable AccommodationsModifications
Refugee EmploymentServices
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Eligibility Staff play a major role in ensuring that RCA recipients are referred timely and appropriately to the CalWORKs WelfaretoWork WTWRefugee Employment Services RES Program All nonexempt RCA recipients shall be referred to WTWRES in accordance with CPG 10005 B Overview of Eligibility Staff Responsibilities
It is both the responsibility of eligibility and employment staff to ensure that RCA cases are assigned to the correct regioncaseload number Once referred employment staff shall provide case management services in accordance to the policy outlined in the CalWORKs Program Guide
Recipients participating in the RES Program are eligible to Stage 1 Child Care according to CPG 10010 D Eligibility Requirements for
CalWORKs Stage 1 Child Care