N.J. Admin. Code § 10:90-6.9

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 21, November 4, 2024

Section 10:90-6.9 - Provisional Housing - Awaiting Supplemental Security Income/Social Security/Disability Insurance (SSI/SSDI) Eligibility (PHASE) Pilot Program

(a) The PHASE pilot is established pursuant to N.J.S.A. 44:10-53, wherein the Commissioner of the Department of Human Services is authorized to waive, for a period not to exceed three years, compliance with the requirements of the Work First New Jersey (WFNJ) program to the extent that the Commissioner deems it necessary to conduct an experimental pilot that is likely to help promote the objectives of the WFNJ program, which are client empowerment and self-sufficiency.

1. Eligibility for PHASE shall be no more than 36 months and is limited to WFNJ General Assistance (GA) or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) assistance units that are otherwise eligible for emergency assistance (EA) pursuant to this subchapter. To be eligible, the assistance unit shall:

i. Contain an adult member who is permanently disabled, as evidenced by presenting and maintaining a current WFNJ Med 1, indicating a medical condition expected to last 12 months, or contain adult or child members who are disabled and are being cared for by another member of the assistance unit full time, such that the caregiver is unable to work as evidenced by a WFNJ 5S-DEP, indicating a condition expected to last 12 months. The physician's signature on the WFNJ 5S-DEP shall constitute proof of the disability; however, the caregiver's status as the only person who can provide the care shall require additional corroboration, if deemed necessary by the agency or DFD;

ii. Have exhausted its applicable EA benefits pursuant to the time limits provided in N.J.S.A. 44:10-51 and N.J.A.C. 10:90-6.4;

iii. Remain in imminent danger of homelessness; and

iv. Have applications or appeals pending for SSI or SSDI for all disabled members of the assistance unit.

2. A client must exhaust the traditional EA time limit and hardship extensions prior to being enrolled in PHASE. If it is later discovered that an assistance unit was somehow determined eligible for PHASE prior to exhausting the traditional EA time and extensions, the unit's remaining EA time will be reduced immediately to reflect each month that the recipient received assistance through PHASE. When the traditional EA time is fully exhausted, then all subsequent months of EA shall count against the PHASE clock.

3. PHASE recipients who remain otherwise eligible for EA, may continue to receive PHASE assistance for a period of up to three full months from the date of the SSI or SSDI awards. The three-month transition period shall start in the month after the date on the Notice of Award. WFNJ cash assistance eligibility is not a factor that will prevent the assistance unit from receiving the three months of transitional assistance, unless WFNJ eligibility was terminated for a reason other than the increased income from the SSI or SSDI award.

4. Temporary housing assistance benefit payments made under this section may include security deposits, rent, mortgage, moving expenses, and utilities for living arrangements. Additional payments may be authorized for emergency food and clothing as provided for under the traditional EA program rules.

5. Payment of retroactive rent, mortgage, and utilities is permitted as guided by N.J.A.C. 10:90-6.3(a)5. Payment of retroactive rent, mortgage, or utilities is limited to a maximum of three months, unless additional time is approved by the DFD after a written request by the county welfare agency (CWA) or municipal welfare agency (MWA).

6. Rental units must be at or below the fair market rent for the area in which the housing is situated.

7. Payments authorized for recipients to stay in a hotel, motel, or shelter living arrangements are limited to 60 cumulative days during a recipient's lifetime on PHASE.

(b) Continued eligibility for the PHASE program shall be contingent upon the following:

1. Recipients are required to retain and keep legal representation for the duration of his or her SSI or SSDI application or the appeal process. If not already represented by counsel, recipients will be referred to a pre-paid legal services agency contracted by the Department that will assess the merits of the application or appeal and, if appropriate, will represent the recipient throughout the process. In the alternative, the recipient can retain a private attorney, as selected by and paid for by the recipient.

2. Recipients shall execute any releases necessary to allow the CWA/MWA to obtain information confirming the status of the attorney-client relationship, the reason(s) for the dissolution of the relationship, or the reason(s) they were unable to utilize the contracted legal services agency. DFD retains the discretion to continue eligibility despite the lack of legal representation.

3. Recipients shall contribute 30 percent of the total household income towards their housing costs throughout their time on PHASE. While receiving WFNJ cash assistance, the recipients shall agree to a mandatory vendor-restricted payment, directly from the CWA/MWA to the landlord, from the WFNJ grant.

4. PHASE recipients shall comply with an EA service plan, which includes, among other things, the requirement that the recipient search for, apply for, and agree to accept permanent housing arrangements that will be accessible and affordable with the anticipated SSI/SSDI benefit amount and other available resources, including shared living arrangements and/or housing arrangements outside of the recipients' current county of residence. The EA service plan shall be reviewed and updated by the CWA/MWA, as appropriate, but at least every three months.

5. When recipients' current monthly housing costs exceed the anticipated SSI or SSDI benefit amount, PHASE recipients shall continue to explore more affordable housing arrangements that they discover or that are suggested by the CWA/MWA. The recipient shall accept such an affordable housing arrangement, unless there is good cause to reject. Among other things, a desire to remain in one's present community, aversion to living with a roommate, or aversion to living in another type of shared living arrangement shall not alone form the basis of good cause to reject an affordable housing arrangement.

(c) In concurrence with, or in addition to, the factors set forth in N.J.A.C. 10:90-6.1, the following recipients, when otherwise eligible for EA, shall not be eligible for the PHASE program or will lose eligibility, unless they can demonstrate good cause for their actions or inactions, as appropriate:

1. Credible documentary evidence suggests that the unit failed to abide by SSI/SSDI application or appeals deadlines and other basic steps that the recipient was required to meet in the application or appeals process. Among other things, evidence that a case was closed due to missed appointments or evidence that a case is stagnant due to a failure by the recipient to provide documents, could be examples of the failures under this subsection. Upon request, a recipient shall obtain from the Social Security Administration (SSA) documents that confirm the nature of any delays in the application or the appeals process and provide those documents to the CWA/MWA or DFD or sign a consent allowing the CWA/MWA or DFD to obtain such documents from the SSA;

2. The Appeals Council of the SSA has refused to review the recipient's SSI/SSDI decision or has affirmed the denial of the application. The CWA/MWA or DFD retains the discretion, where good cause exists, to terminate eligibility to the PHASE program when a recipient is making a subsequent application for SSI/SSDI, after an earlier application was withdrawn or denied, or terminate eligibility to the PHASE program, when a recipient is making a subsequent appeal at the same level, after the initial appeal was withdrawn or the initial decision was affirmed. Factors that the CWA/MWA should consider prior to rendering a recipient ineligible under this subsection include, but are not limited to, the reasons for the denials or withdrawals, the number of denials or withdrawals, and the circumstances presented as the basis for a new application to the SSA. At no time shall a recipient be allowed to apply more than two times or appeal at the same level more than two times and remain eligible for PHASE;

3. The recipient lost Section 8 or other subsidized housing due to non-compliance with Section 8 or other subsidized housing rules and regulations;

4. The household contains an employable adult;

5. The recipient previously incurred a six-month EA penalty due to non-compliance, including non-compliance with the EA service plan, within the 12-month period prior to applying for PHASE; and/or

6. An adult in the assistance unit has caused his or her own homelessness.

(d) A circumstance not addressed by this section shall continue to be governed by existing EA rules when those rules are relevant and not in conflict with this section.

(e) The PHASE program will expire on December 18, 2020. Applications will be accepted up to November 18, 2020. Applications that are submitted through November 18, 2020 shall be considered for the program and if determined eligible shall receive assistance. Assistance units deemed eligible for the PHASE pilot prior to December 18, 2020 will continue to receive assistance through the month the program expires, as long as they remain otherwise eligible for EA and continue to comply with the additional PHASE program criteria.

N.J. Admin. Code § 10:90-6.9

Amended by 49 N.J.R. 3990(a), effective 12/18/2017