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When the county office processes a food stamp application or any other case action, the county office worker must take the following actions:
This section contains the information necessary to make these determinations. A synopsis of the information is contained in the summary with detailed instructions following.
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Food stamp benefits are based on the number of eligible household members. The casehead is a responsible adult or an emancipated minor in whose name an application for food stamp benefits is submitted. The food stamp household, not the county office, designates the casehead. The household must be residing in Arkansas. There are no restrictions on the duration of residence. Eligible household members are normally those people who live together and purchase and prepare food together. People who live in the home but are not included in the food stamp household may include disqualified members (see [FSC 1623]), ineligible members (see [FSC 1620]), boarders (see [FSC 1624]) and people who have established a separate household unit. See [FSC 1631] for restrictions on separate households. Members of some residential facilities such as drug and alcoholic treatment centers, shelters for battered women, group living arrangements and shelters for the homeless may participate in the Food Stamp Program (see [FSC 1800]). No other person living in an institution may participate in the Food Stamp Program. Boarders may not participate in the Food Stamp Program.
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An eligibility factor is a requirement that must be met before an application for food stamp benefits may be approved. Eligibility factors may be applied to entire households (e.g. residency) or to individual members (e.g. citizenship). In this section of policy, eligibility factors dealing with households and with individual members of households are discussed. The factors are presented in the order in which they are applied.
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1300 Process 1 - Determining Residency The first eligibility factor to be considered is residency. A household must reside in Arkansas. Normally a resident is a person who lives in a structure within Arkansas; however, residency does not require that the household maintain a permanent legal residence (domicile). Also, there is no requirement for a household to have lived in Arkansas for any length of time or even for a household to intend to reside in Arkansas permanently. Thus, eligible households that move frequently may participate in the Food Stamp Program as long as they currently reside in Arkansas and participate in only one state in a given month. A fixed residence is not required. For example, campsites used by homeless individuals or migrant farm workers satisfy residency requirements. Since such households may not have a normal or standard mailing address, and to "reside" does not mean having a mailing address, "General Delivery" may be used as the mailing address. People who are visiting in Arkansas for a brief period for recreational purposes are vacationers. Vacationers do not meet the residency requirements. Students who return to their permanent home during school breaks and elderly retired individuals who spend a portion of the year with relatives are not vacationing and meet residency requirements. Children who spend the summer months with grandparents, other relatives, or friends also meet residency requirements and may participate in the household where they are spending the summer. NOTE: No individual may participate in the Food Stamp Program more than once in any month unless the individual is a resident of a shelter for battered women and children ([FSC 1840]) or the individual is being claimed as a member of one household and actually resides in another if the conditions in [FSC 12226] are met. Unless a household is eligible to receive food stamp benefits through the alternate service procedure described in FSC 1301, the household must receive food stamp benefits through a DHS office in their county of residence. If a household actually moves to another county, the household's food stamp case must be closed and transferred to the new county of residence. The household will be notified of the close and transfer. The notice will advise the household of the case closure, will state that the household must reapply to receive food stamp benefits in the new county of residence and will provide the address and telephone number of the DHS county office in the new county of residence.
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1301 Alternate Service Counties Under the alternate service procedures, a household may apply for and receive food stamp benefits in a county other than the county where the household lives. The county where the household actually lives is called the residence county. The county where the household receives services is called the service county. If a household wants to receive services in a county other than their residence county, a member of the household must sign a Request for Service in Alternate County (DCO-74). The DCO-74 may be accessed via DHS Gold.
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1302 Restrictions to Alternate Service County If any member of the household receives any service through DHS other than food stamp benefits, the household must receive food stamp benefits in their residence county. Households that participate as separate households under the provisions in [FSC 1631] will be evaluated separately. One household may participate in the Food Stamp Program through a service county while the other household participates through their residence county. Households with at least one member subject to Food Stamp E&T or Workfare Requirements must participate in the Food Stamp Program through their residence county.
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1303 Requests to Participate in a Service County When a household requests a transfer to an alternate service county, the request will be evaluated to determine if the household is entitled to service in an alternate county. If not, the request will be denied. The household will be notified of this decision via a Notice of Action (DCO-1). If yes, the request will be approved. The household's records will be transferred to the service county with a copy of the Request for Service in Alternate County (DCO-74). When a change is reported, a semi-annual report is submitted, or another case action is initiated prior to the request for transfer, the case action must be completed prior to the transfer. This includes fraud or field investigations initiated prior to the request for transfer. It also applies to cases undergoing a quality assurance review. The household will not be required to submit a new application for food stamp benefits in the service county. Instead, the case will be reinstated. Upon receipt of the case record, a DCO-1 will be issued to provide the household with the county office's address, telephone number and other pertinent information.
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1304 When an Alternate Service County is Requested at Application When a household submits an application in the residence county and asks to receive service in a different county, the application will be processed by the residence county. If the application is approved, the case will be transferred to the desired service county. Households submitting an application in the desired service county must complete a Request for Service in Alternate County (DCO-74). A copy of the request will be furnished by the service county to the residence county. The residence county will evaluate the request to determine if the household may participate in the Food Stamp Program through a service county. If so, the household's case record, if there is a case record in the residence county, will be furnished to the service county. Both the service county and the residence county must cooperate in the process of determining if the household will be allowed to participate in the service county. Particular attention should be paid to initial applications to ensure a proper determination is made. Should the household be restricted from participating in the desired service county, the application will be transferred back to the residence county. Even if the household is restricted from participating in a service county, the date of the application will remain the same as the date the application was submitted to the service county.
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1310 Household Does Not Meet Residency Requirements IIf an applicant does not live in Arkansas, the application will be denied, and the household will be advised to apply in its state of residence.. Case records are not sent out of the state.
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Each application must contain a complete and correct address. It is also essential that the county office know how to locate the household if a home visit, field investigation or quality assurance review is to be conducted. Instructions about how to locate the home must be documented in ANSWER.
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1330 Verification of Residency Verification of residency will be obtained at initial application and thereafter when information regarding residency is incomplete, inaccurate, inconsistent or outdated. See the Glossary, definition of "Verification" for additional information. Verification may be waived when such verification cannot reasonably be accomplished. For example, verification may be waived when newly arrived households, migrant households, or homeless individuals submit an application. A home visit may be in order for such households. See the definition of "Verification" in the Glossary, for an explanation of a home visit as a part of the application process. No specific source of verification of residency is mandated. Acceptable verification includes rent receipts, mortgage payment books, utility receipts, or a driver's license if these documents contain the applicant's current physical address. Current utility receipts or receipts for utility deposits are preferred. (These items may also serve as verification of identity or expenses.) If verification of residency cannot be established through these sources, collateral contacts or other readily available documentary evidence which reasonably establishes the household's residency must be accepted. Failure or refusal to provide verification of residency will result in denial of the food stamp application for non-expedited households.
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1400 Process 2 - Verifying Identity The identity of the person making application must be verified at the time of the application interview, and thereafter if information regarding identity is incomplete, inaccurate, inconsistent or outdated. See the Glossary definition of "Verification" for additional information. If an authorized representative (AR) applies on behalf of the household, the identity of both the AR and the head of the household must be verified. Suggested sources of verification of identity include, but are not limited to:
Any documents that reasonably establish the applicant or AR's identity will be accepted. If no documentary evidence is available, a collateral contact with sources such as landlords, neighbors or friends may be used. See the Glossary, definition of "Collateral Contact" for information on the process for selecting a collateral contact. Failure or refusal to verify identity will result in denial of the food stamp application.
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1500 Process 3 - Designation of Casehead When a household makes application for food stamps for the very first time, the casehead must be established. After the casehead is established, the case will be filed in the county's file under the name of the casehead and all notices pertaining to the household's eligibility will be sent to the casehead. The household, not the county office worker, normally designates the casehead. It is not necessary that the casehead be present for the interview. Any responsible household member may make application and appear for the interview, or the interview may be conducted with an authorized representative. In no instance will an application be denied solely due to the lack of a responsible adult member to serve as the casehead. If a responsible household member is not available to serve as the casehead and the household cannot find a relative or friend to serve as an authorized representative, the worker will assist the household in completing the application and obtaining the necessary verification. Except for ineligible students or members disqualified for intentional program violations (IPV) or for failure to provide an SSN, only eligible household members will be permitted to serve as the casehead. An ineligible alien will be permitted to serve as the casehead only if he or she is the only adult household member. Until a change must be made because the casehead is no longer in the home or until the household specifically requests a change, the casehead will remain the same. This is true even when the household submits an application at a later date with another responsible household member listed on the food stamp application form. Recoupment of over-issuances are tracked by the casehead. See [FSC 15700]. Therefore, when an overissuance has occurred and the household's case has been referred to the Overpayments Unit for collection, the casehead will not be changed unless the person designated as the casehead dies or actually leaves the home. If the person who is designated as the casehead leaves the household while the household is certified to receive food stamp benefits, another responsible household member must sign the application form. See [FSC 12227].
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