County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency HHSA CalFreshProgram Guide Verification and Documentation Number Page 63117 1 of 4 Revision Date 09012021 BackgroundVerification is the use of thirdparty information or documentation to establish the accuracy of statements on the application PurposeThis section details mandatory and optional verifications for CalFresh and the different ways to verify PolicyThe household has primary responsibility for providing required verification and to resolve any questionable information Before requesting additional verifications from the household the Human Services Specialist HSS is to attempt verification via electronic means such as Income Eligibility Verification System IEVS Payment Verification System PVS MediCal Eligibility Data System MEDS and the Work Number WN If unable to verify or information is questionable send a request for information to the household Do not limit verification to any single type of document Assist customers in obtaining required verifications as needed Use a collateral contact or home visit if necessary Households or the Authorized Representative may provide verification in person through the mail online fax or email Any reasonable verification provided by the household will be accepted and used to verify the statements given on the application Issue receipts to CalFresh applicants and recipients when they submit verifications inperson at the office When documents are submitted other than in person a receipt is not required 1 Questionable Information For information to be considered questionable the information on the application must be inconsistent with statements made by the applicant with other information on the application or previous applications or with information received by the County When determining if information is questionable base the decision on the households individual circumstances For example a report of expenses exceeding the households income prior to deductions may be grounds to request verification or additional verification A household reporting no income while still managing their financial affairs could justify the need for an additional verification request These circumstances however will not be grounds for an immediate denial or discontinuance Instead explore with the household how they are managing their finances whether the household receives excluded income or has resources and how long the household has managed under these circumstances When verification is required to resolve questionable information the HSS must document in case comments Why the information is considered questionable or at a minimum indicate where in the case the inconsistency exists What documentation was used to resolve the questionable information if it is resolved and if applicable the reason why an alternate source of verification such as a collateral contact or home visit was needed County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency HHSA CalFreshProgram Guide Verification and Documentation Number Page 63117 2 of 4 2 Mandatory Verifications Verification must be obtained in these categories if it is applicable to the household Gross NonExempt Income Determine the amount to be used for certification purposes based on the best available information Households must provide information about income received during the 30 days prior to submission of their application or recertification See 63220 and 63304 NonCitizen Eligibility Verify the immigration status of those noncitizens who are applying for CalFresh benefits See Processing Guide 11702 for additional information regarding noncitizen eligibility Identity See 63152 for information regarding identity See the Verification Requirements Chart for additional information Social Security Numbers SSN Households must provide the SSN of each member or provide verification of application for an SSN prior to certification If individuals have more than one SSN all numbers are required See 63161 for additional SSN information Residency Verification of residency in the County of San Diego will be accomplished to the extent possible using the verification of other information such as identity or as a last resort the customers statement on the Statement of Facts SOF See 63152 for additional residency information 3 Mandatory Verifications That Do Not Impact Eligibility Verifications obtained in these categories do not impact eligibility however they do impact benefit allotment amount Failure to provide the verification is not a basis for denying or discontinuing a case if the person is otherwise eligible If verification is not provided the expense exemption or exclusion is not allowed Medical Expenses Prior to allowing the Excess Medical Deduction or Standard Medical Deduction SMD verify the amount of medical expenses that are deductible as listed in 63232 Disability Receipt of any of the benefits listed below qualifies as verification of disability o Social Security Disability Benefits o Disability Retirement Benefits o Disability Related MediCal Assistance Verify through county records that the individual receives disability based MediCal as determined by the State Program Disability Determination Service Division DDSD o Veteran Related Disabilities o Railroad Retirement Student Exemption A customers statement is sufficient evidence that a student meets one of the exemptions unless the information provided is questionable or when a students claim of physical or mental unfitness is not evident Legally Obligated Child Support and Actual Payments Verify child support or obtain payment information from the Local Child Support Agency LCSA automated data files if the data is available Once the verification is received the circumstances need not be verified again unless County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency HHSA CalFreshProgram Guide Verification and Documentation Number Page 63117 3 of 4 there is a change in the legal obligation or an increase in the amount of the payment See 63224 for additional child support payments exclusion information 4 Optional Verifications Below is a list of items that fall under optional verifications Optional verifications are nonmandated and must only be requested if relevant information is questionable Request optional verifications for the purposes of maximizing benefits however they must be marked as optional on the request Failure to provide verification of optional verifications must not result in a denial or discontinuance or cause a delay in the determination of eligibility Dependent Care Costs Dependent care costs can be verified through an affidavit on the application the Dependent Care Cost Affidavit or other affidavit The household must specify under penalty of perjury on the affidavit o The name of the provider o The total amount billed o The amount of outofpocket expenses o The amount of any subsidies Once verified the expense will not be verified again unless the provider has changed the amount has changed which could affect the amount of the deduction or the expense is questionable See 63233 for additional information regarding dependent care costs Liquid Resources and Loans A legally binding agreement is not required A simple statement signed by both parties indicating the payment is a loan that must be repaid is sufficient for verification If the household receives payments on a recurring or regular basis from the same source but claims the payments are loans request a statement or affidavit from the provider of the loan stating repayments are being made or that the payments will be made in accordance with an established repayment schedule See 63200 for additional information regarding resources Note The resources of Categorically Eligible CE and Modified Categorical Eligible MCE households will not be evaluated See 63201 and 63120 for additional information regarding CE and MCE Household Size Composition If separate household status is questionable individuals who claim to be a separate household from those with whom they reside will be responsible for proving that they are a separate household See 63101 for additional information Standard Utility Allowance SUA Accept the customers written or verbal statement as verification See 63236 for additional information regarding the SUA and the Standard Utility Assistance Subsidy SUAS RentMortgage Expense A narrative entry of the amount claimed is required Accept and document any verification of shelter costs voluntarily provided by the household See 63235 for additional information regarding shelter deductions Reminder Shelter expense changes reported midperiod are considered verified upon receipt VUR See 63284 for additional information on VUR County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency HHSA CalFreshProgram Guide Verification and Documentation Number Page 63117 4 of 4 Citizenship Acceptable forms of verification include o Birth certificates religious records o Certificates of citizenship N560 or its replacement N561 for AcquiredDerivative Citizenship o An Application for Certification of Naturalization form N600 for a child or form N643 for an adopted child provided by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services USCIS o A United States US passport If the above forms of verification cannot be obtained accept a signed statement from someone who is a US citizen declaring under penalty of perjury that the person in question is a US citizen The signed statement will contain a warning of the penalties for helping someone commit an intentional program violation See 63153 for information regarding citizenship The member whose citizenship is in question will be ineligible to participate until proof of US citizenship is obtained and will have hisher income and resources treated as an ineligible noncitizen See 63244 Voluntary Quit and Reduction of Work Effort Acceptable sources of verification include but are not limited to o The previous employer o Employee associations o Union representatives o Grievance committees or organizations The household will not be denied CalFresh if they are unable to obtain the requested verification from these or other sources because the reason for the quit was from circumstances that for good reason cannot be verified such as o A resignation from employment due to discrimination practices o Unreasonable demands by an employer o The employer cannot be located References 7 CFR 273 MPP 3005 All County Letters ACL 13102 1454 1466 14100 1798 1986 2048 20135 and 2124 All County Information Notices ACIN I1004 I4511 and I4511E Processing Guides 11701 11702 Sunset Date This policy will be reviewed for continuance by 09302024 Approval for Release RICK WANNE Director SelfSufficiency Services