Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/431369
7 The People's Guide 2015 CalWORKs If you mail in your SAR-7, be sure to at- tach copies of pay stubs, bills and receipts to prove your information. It is wise to keep a copy of every piece of paper you give to DPSS. If the SAR-7 you turn in is incomplete, DPSS treats it as if it was not turned in at all. If you do not turn in a SAR-7 report by the eleventh day of the reporting month, you will get a notice that your cash aid will stop. DPSS must also try to phone you to let you know they don't have the SAR-7. If you get a notice that you are being terminated (your aid stopped) for not filling out a SAR-7, call your worker, go to the DPSS immediately, and fill out a new SAR-7 (or take in your receipt if you already submitted the SAR-7). If you submit a SAR-7 within the month following the discontinuance, you will not have to reapply but your eligibility and benefits will be determined by the date you turn in a complete SAR-7 unless you had a good reason (good cause). If you can show "good cause" your cash benefits will be restored back to the begin- ning of the month. Good cause for turning the SAR-7 in late includes: • errors by DPSS, • a physical or mental condition that prevented you from being on time, • or not being able to provide all the necessary information. If you haven't been able to work it out or haven't heard from your worker, be sure to file for a fair hearing before the date your check is supposed to stop. This way you will not lose your cash aid (see pg. 66). When you first apply, the amount of cash aid you get depends on how much your other income is at that time. What you report on your application will be used to determine what you get the next few months until your first SAR-7 is turned in. If your income goes down, report it right away, so your cash aid will go up. You can do this by calling your worker. DPSS may ask you for proof that it has dropped. You won't get aid if you're in jail or out of the state for 30 days, but you should still report it, or they will charge you with an overpayment. 4. Cooperate with Child Support Collection Unless it could put you or your children in danger to do so, parents on cash aid must help ("cooperate with") the Child Support Agency ("CSA") to collect child support from any absent parent. You must provide information you have about the other parent such as name, an address or social security number, or place of employment. The County keeps most of the child support it collects, up to the amount of the family's cash aid. You will get your CalWORKs grant plus an extra $50 per month for every month the other parent pays on time. Every quarter the CSA should give you an accounting of the child support they collected. Call (323) 890-9800 to ask for this information. Parents will lose their share of cash aid if they refuse to sign over the child support to the county. If you sign over your child support, but the Child Support Agency says you are not cooperating with them, your family's aid can be cut 25%. Many people have good cause for not co- operating. Good cause includes: • You don't know where the absent parent is, or have no other information about the other parent • You are afraid of the absent parent, you or your children may be in danger, or you are a victim of domestic violence. • Rape or incest has occurred • You are planning to place the child for adoption. If your worker at DPSS agrees that you have good cause, you will not have your cash aid cut. If you get a notice in writing that you are "not cooperating" and you think you have a good reason not to, and cannot resolve the issue by talking with your worker, ask for a fair hearing. (See Page 66 Hearings And Complaints.) 2. Rules for Families In Which Only Children Get Money In some CalWORKs families, the children are recieving money but the adults are not. These are called "child only cases".If this is the case, you don't have to complete any written mid-period/mid-year reports, such as the SAR 7, You will still have to fill a written redetermination once a year. You may still have to complete reports every six months for CalFresh (food stamps.) The following are CalWORKs cases that are considered "child only" cases: • All adults that have reached the Cal- WORKs 48-month time limit; • The adult(s) is not eligible because of a fleeing felon status, or has been found by a court to be in violation of probation or parole; • The adult(s) is not eligible for CalWORKs due to immigration status; • The adult(s) is not eligible because of failure to provide a Social Security Number; • The adult(s) is a CalWORKs non-needy relative (did not request CalWORKs as- sistance); • The adult(s) is receiving Supplemental Security Income; or • The adult(s) is CalWORKs sanctioned due to refusal to assign child/spousal support rights. If there is no adult recieving money be- cause he/she chooses not to participant in welfare-to-work requirements, the case is not a "child only" case. 3. Report All Your Income And Gifts You should be careful to report all income you get or changes in your family. The wel- fare department will check bank, employer, and tax records to check your income, and accepts tips of suspected "welfare fraud" from the public. There are serious penalties for individu- als who either are convicted of fraud in court or found to have committed fraud at an administrative hearing. You may have to pay penalties and be disqualified from CalWORKs for six months or even a lifetime, depending on the seriousness of the fraud. You can also be arrested and face jail time.