County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency HHSA General Relief Program Guide GRPG Good Cause Evaluation Number Page 9070018 1 of 4 Issue Date June 15 2015 Effective Date Upon receipt Background 9070018A This section shows how good cause is evaluated for noncooperation with GR Employable Program requirements Purpose To provide instructions for determining good cause for noncompliance in the Employable Program Policy 9070018B When noncompliance with an Employable Program requirement occurs notify the recipient in writing and allow them five days to offer an explanation of the noncompliance This explanation will be used in the Good Cause evaluation to determine if the noncompliance was due to circumstances beyond the recipients control negligence or willfulness Procedure 9070018C Definitions The table below shows the definitions of terms used in this section Term Definition Circumstances Beyond the Recipients Control A medical emergency hospitalization doctors appointment personal household illness or crisis on the day of absence Incarceration arrest jail or required court appearances Prearranged job interview Nonreceipt of initial aid when no fault of recipient and distance to worksite is too far to walk The recipient was incapacitated during the assignment dates The recipient started a job or paid training Verification requirements are in section D below Negligence Includes haste oversight forgetfulness lack of attention or misunderstanding or any other reason which does not involve a willful failure to comply Willfulness The failure to comply with published and signed expectations when there was no good cause for the failure It is an intentional refusal to comply andor an indifferent disregard of the duty to comply with program requirements 9070018D Verification Requirements The recipients ability and willingness to prove that noncompliance was due to circumstances beyond the recipients control or negligence will be fully evaluated County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency HHSA General Relief Program Guide GRPG Good Cause Evaluation Number Page 9070018 2 of 4 9070018E Standard Verification Standard verification will consist of written proof or a third party verification by phone of circumstances beyond the recipients control or negligence provided by a disinterested third party 9070018F Circumstances Not Requiring Verification When the recipient fails to provide standard verification the CalFresh ET SW will determine if the recipient has become homeless within the past 30 days exhibits physicalmental distress and has no prior history of homelessness within the past six months is visibly incapacitated not to include back injuries migraine headaches arthritis sprains or other conditions not visible to the naked eye has received GR for less than three months identifies a specific program requirement not understood and has not used this excuse in the past SW Supervisors approval and second written explanation of requirements required If one of the circumstances above is applicable the sanction will not be applied 9070018G Lack of Standard Verification Recipients who are unable to provide standard verification or who do not meet one of the conditions in F above will be allowed two unverified instances of noncompliance with Employable requirements not to exceed one days duration due to circumstances beyond control or negligence In such cases the recipient will receive another explanation of program requirements and the sanction will not be applied 9070018H Potential FRC Manager Waiver When the recipients explanation of noncompliance is not verified or the recipient does not meet the conditions described in F above and the two unverified instances of noncompliance for cause have been exhausted the FRC Manager may grant a waiver of the sanction when the following conditions exist No such waiver has been granted during the current certification period The recipient could not have obtained verification of the circumstances The recipients explanation is both consistent and credible When these conditions exist the CalFresh ET SW will refer the matter to the FRC Manager for evaluation If a waiver is approved no sanction will be applied 9070018I Completion of Good Cause Determination Worksheet Form 1167 HHSA Good Cause Determination Worksheet must be completed for all good cause evaluations even when the recipient does not respond The table below shows the actions that must be taken for the good cause determination for each requirement that is not completed Requirement Action Job Searches JS Late and incomplete JSs without a verified excuse are considered one instance only for good cause determinations County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency HHSA General Relief Program Guide GRPG Good Cause Evaluation Number Page 9070018 3 of 4 Expanded JSs only represent one instance if they are incorrect or incomplete A late JS as a third instance of negligence only imposes a onemonth sanction regardless of the type of failure for the first two instances Orientation Missed orientations must be completed before a Work Project WP can be assigned An 1167 HHSA must be completed and applicant rescheduled as appropriate The three months of GR Employability need not be contiguous If an applicant misses orientation and the following two days of the Work Test and contacts the worker three days later this would constitute one instance because the applicant had not yet been assigned to a WP Program Requirements Unfamiliaritymisunderstanding with the GR Employable Program requirements is only acceptable once for any reason in the lifetime of the case and does not count as an instance of negligence Modified Aid Payment Cycle MAPC Cases MAPC status does not reset the threemonth clock for determining the number of negligent instances Work Project WP Recipients sent back by a worksite supervisor require that a good cause determination be made and appropriate action taken based on that determination Each different excuse for a specific day must receive an 1167 HHSA addressing that day for example Day 1 2 and 3 must be addressed separately if they were missed for different reasons If they were all missed for the same reason one 1167 HHSA may be used An expanded JS may be substituted for an interrupted WP which cannot be completed in the remainder of the month however this does not repay GR Waivers A waiver is not required unless the circumstances would require it for example a credible explanation for the Employable requirement that was missed is provided Appeals can overturn a FRC Manager waiver but it must be approved by the GR Hearing Officers Manager FRC Manager waivers may be received once each certification period No Response from Recipient There is no need to determine good cause for a recipient who does not return to provide verification for missing an Employable requirement However a 1167 HHSA must still be completed and checked willful in Section 6 Good cause determination worksheets must be provided in every case closed for failure to comply with Employable requirements Addendum The 1167 HHSA should be signed on the closing date of the case If Good Cause can be determined no instance is counted against the recipient Impacts County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency HHSA General Relief Program Guide GRPG Good Cause Evaluation Number Page 9070018 4 of 4 Other Programs Impacted None References GRPG Letters 62 65 and 81 Sunset Date This policy will be reviewed for continuance by June 30 2018