County of San Diego Health and Human ServicesAgency HHSA CalFreshProgram Guide Students Number Page 63162 1 of 5 Revision Date 08012021 Background For CalFresh purposes students are defined as individuals ages 18 to 49 who are physically and mentally fit and enrolled at least half time in an institution of higher education To be eligible to receive CalFresh benefits students must meet one of the student eligibility requirements PurposeThis section defines student eligibility for CalFresh This section is being revised to remove the mandatory verification requirement for student exemptions PolicyCustomers who are enrolled at least half time in college or business or technical or trade schools that require a high school diploma are considered students Enrollment status is determined by the school and may be verified using customers statement or information gathered while completing the 0955 HHSA Student Eligibility Worksheet Enrollment begins on the first day of the school term and will continue through normal periods of class attendance and vacation unless the student graduates is suspended drops out or does not intend to register for the next school term Evaluate student status at intake and recertification To assist in determining student eligibility the 0955 HHSA Student Eligibility Worksheet must be completed and imaged Note The 0955 HHSA Student Eligibility Worksheet is not to be completed by the customer 1Eligibility Requirements Students must meet one of the following exemptions to be eligible for the CalFresh program Be age 17 or younger or age 50 or older Physically or mentally unfit for employment This may be verified by receipt of temporarypermanent disability benefits or a statement from a doctor or licensed psychologist Have a disability Customers who have a disability and receive disabilitybased income like Social Security Disability Supplemental Security Income Veterans Disability Workers Compensation or other disabilitybased income qualify for an exemption The disability must be expected to last more than 30 days Receive CalWORKs Work at least 20 hours per week or a total of 80 hours per month in paid employment Be approved for a State or Federally financed work study program and anticipate participating in work study Exerting parental care and control for a child under the age of 6 If two people exert parental care and control in the household allow the exemption status to only one person Exerting parental care and control for a child age 611 and customer does not have adequate childcare to attend school work 20 hours per week or participate in a work study A single parent enrolled full time in college and exerting parental care and control of a child under age 12 Voluntarily participating in a State or local program that increases employability Participating in a foster youth program that increases employability Participating in an onthejob training program County of San Diego Health and Human ServicesAgency HHSA CalFreshProgram Guide Students Number Page 63162 2 of 5 Receiving Cal Grant A or B that meets Temporary Assistance for Needy Families TANF requirements Refer to Attachment A for a detailed list of individual programs that meet the exemptions 2 Ineligible Students Students who do not meet any of the exemptions listed above will be considered ineligible students and will be treated as excluded household members The income and resources of ineligible students are exempt 3 Reporting a Students Status A students status is to be reported at application and recertification Student eligibility criteria will be applied on the date of enrollment in school Enrollment begins on the first day of school Student eligibility is not a mandatory midperiod reporting requirement and is not considered Verified Upon Receipt VUR If the household reports student status midperiod document the voluntarily reported change in the case file that does not impact the CalFresh benefit Below are two examples on how to determine the student enrollment status Example One Application received and customer interviewed on July 2 During the interview the customer states they are enrolled to start college in the fall The first day of school is August 20 At the time of the interview the customer meets no student exemptions This customer is evaluated and determined eligible for CalFresh because the school term has not started yet the customer is not considered a student Since the customer has reported that the first day of school is August 20 staff must follow up with a Request for Information RFI to confirm student eligibility requirements are being met at that time Example Two Application for CalFresh received on August 3 During the interview the customer states they are enrolled in college and will start school on August 14 This customer must meet a student exemption to be eligible since the first day of school is on the same month as the application If the customer does not meet any of the exemptions listed in 631621 they will be an ineligible student 4 Student Meal Plans Students who receive more than half their meals from a meal plan are ineligible for CalFresh benefits Students whose meal plan provides less than half of their meals ten meals per week may qualify for CalFresh benefits if all other eligibility criteria is met Review the college website to obtain the latest meal plan information to determine eligibility for CalFresh Refer to Attachment B for website information for local colleges 5 Verification of Student Exemption The case record must document what exemption is met A customer statement is sufficient to verify the student exemption Verification for a student exemption should only be requested when the information provided by the household is questionable or a students claim of physical or mental unfitness is not evident to the Human Service Specialist HSS County of San Diego Health and Human ServicesAgency HHSA CalFreshProgram Guide Students Number Page 63162 3 of 5 To be considered questionable the information on the application must be inconsistent with statements made by the applicant andor inconsistent with other information received by the county When determining if information is questionable the decision must be based on the households individual circumstances When verification is required to resolve questionable information it must be documented why the information is considered questionable and what documentation is being requested to resolve the discrepancy Nonreceipt of financial aid is verified by customer statement and must be narrated in case comments This guidance does not alter the need to verify a households gross nonexempt income including any applicable educational assistance Receipt of certain types of educational assistance or studentrelated income may indicate that the student meets an exemption from the student eligibility rule While the exemption is no longer a mandatory verification income must be verified for purposes of determining the households income eligibility for CalFresh Procedures 0955 HHSA CalFresh Student Eligibility Worksheet 0821 ImpactsNone References ACL 2158 ACL 2034 1932 1827 ACL 1705 ACL 1705E ACIN No I8915 MPP 634061 MPP 633005 7 CFR 2732f1i 0955 HHSA CalFresh Student Eligibility Worksheet 0821 Sunset Date This policy will be reviewed for continuance by 08312024 Approval for Release RICK WANNE Director SelfSufficiency Services Attachment A Attachment B Type of Program Individual Programs State Funded Work Study Programs Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act WIOA Extended Opportunity Programs and Services EOPS Educational Opportunity Program EOP EOP at the University of California and California State University is comparable to EOPS at the California Community Colleges College Disabled Students Programs and Services DSPS CSU Student Academic Services SAS Cooperative Agencies Resources for Education CARE Program Mathematics Engineering Science Achievement MESA Program Job Opportunities and Basic Skills JOBS program Programs under Section 236 of the Trade Act of 1974 McNair Scholars Program Local Programs thatIncrease Employability ACE Program at California State University San Marcos CSUSM Disability Support Services and Work Ability III at Southwestern Community College SWCC CASP Hope Scholars at University of California San Diego UCSD Torero Renaissance Scholars Program at University of San Diego USD Juris Doctor JD degree UCI School of Law Refer to the California Department of Social Services CDSS website for a list of approved local programs that meet the student exemption Website is found on the CalFresh Resource Center Policy page under Student Resources httpswwwcdsscagovinforesourcescalfreshresource centerpolicy Foster Youth Programsthat Increase Employability Guardian Scholars Program Foster Youth Success Initiative FYSI Cooperating Agencies Foster Youth Educational Support CAFYES Chafee Education and Training Voucher ETV Program Extended Foster Care AB12AB 212 Unaccompanied Refugee Minors URM Program California CommunityColleges CCCs offering a Baccalaureate Degree Students participating in this program must receive Cal Grant A or B Currently there are two colleges in San Diego area that offer this degree Mesa College and Mira Costa College Cal Grant A or B Students attending a California State or University College who receive Cal grant A or B must meet TANF requirements Students will receive written notification from the California Student Aid Commission CSAC verifying receipt of a TANF Cal Grant A or B College Meal Plan Information University California San Diego UCSD For detailed information about meal plans offered at UCSD visit Housing Dining Hospitality page at httpshdhucsdeduhousingdiningplan San Diego State University SDSU For information about meal plans offered at SDSU visit SDSU Dining page at wwweatatsdsucom