SR 10-37 Dated 11/10

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTER-DEPARTMENT COMMUNICATION

SUMMARY

This SR releases the program area responsibilities of the Assessment and Intervention Unit (AIU), which is located at the Brown Building, State Office Park South, Concord. The AIU is responsible for providing:

·   the Family Violence Option (FVO) assessments to:

-   applicants and recipients of Financial Assistance to Needy Families (FANF) cash assistance who are requesting a hardship extension to the FANF 60-month lifetime limit due to domestic violence; and

-   FANF applicants and recipients requesting excused participation in the New Hampshire Employment Program (NHEP) due to domestic violence; and

·   outreach services to:

-   NHEP participants in a Level 3 sanction; and

-   families in a FANF hardship extension who are noncompliant with NHEP work program requirements.

Additionally this SR incorporates the following Director’s Memos into policy:

·   the Director’s Memo dated May 17, 2010, subject line Ending of the Contract with Child and Family Services; and

·   the Director’s Memo dated June 11, 2010, subject line DFA Referral Procedures for Family Violence Option (FVO) Assessments.

POLICY

With the release of this SR, the Assessment and Intervention Unit (AIU) is responsible for providing:

·   the Family Violence Option (FVO) assessment to those FANF applicants and recipients requesting:

-   a hardship extension to the FANF 60-month lifetime limit on receipt of FANF cash assistance due to domestic violence; or

-   excused participation in NHEP due to domestic violence; and

·   outreach services to:

-   NHEP participants in a Level 3 sanction; and

-   families in a FANF hardship extension who are noncompliant with NHEP work program requirements.

DISTRICT OFFICE AND NEW HEIGHTS SYSTEMS PROCEDURES AND IMPLEMENTATION

Changes to client letters, notices of decisions, and report structures to incorporate the AIU has been completed as of the release of this SR.

Special AIU District Office Procedures

Community Referral Resources

Clients needing Family Intervention Assessments, Community Referrals, and Crisis Interventions, must be referred directly to local community resources. Examples of local community resources are:

·   Community Mental Health Centers (CMHC). Located in 10 regions of NH, CMHC agencies have contracted with DHHS to provide publicly funded mental health services to individuals and families who meet certain criteria for services, and all CMHCs have specialized programs for older adults, children, and families. Services provided by CMHC include:

-   24-hour emergency services;

-   assessment and evaluation;

-   individual and group therapy (long and short-term);

-   case management;

-   community-based rehabilitation services;

-   psychiatric services; and

-   community disaster mental health support.

·   Suicide Hotline.

·   Statewide Substance Abuse Treatment Centers. These centers provide state-funded alcohol and drug abuse prevention and treatment programs, as well as other resources related to alcohol and drugs, including:

-   12-step recovery programs;

-   impaired driving intervention programs;

-   statewide alcohol and drug abuse prevention coalitions; and

-   list of alcohol and other drug abuse-related web sites, where in-patient, outpatient, crisis, residential, and methadone maintenance programs can be located statewide.

·   Family Well-Being Resource lists.

·   Statewide NH Domestic and Sexual Violence Crisis Centers. 14 programs throughout the state provide free services to survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, stalking, and sexual harassment. Services include:

-   support and information, available in-person and through a 24-hour hotline;

-   accompaniment, support, and advocacy at local hospitals, courts, and police departments;

-   access to emergency shelters;

-   peer support groups;

-   assistance with protective or restraining orders and referrals to legal services;

-   information and referrals to community programs; and

-   community and professional outreach and education.

·   Bureau of Homeless and Housing Services (BHHS) Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Programs (HPRP).

·   NH Child Care Resources and Referral Network (CCR&R).

All staff have been provided with specific contact information for the above identified resources.

Family Violence Option (FVO) Assessments

Clients requesting a FANF hardship extension and/or excused participation in NHEP activities due to domestic violence must be referred to the AIU for the FVO assessment as follows:

·   Have the client complete DFA Form 754C, Request for Family Violence Option (FVO), and provide the required documentation.

-   For those offices with access to scanning, scan the completed DFA Form 754C and the associated documentation into New HEIGHTS according to current procedures, and then email the AIU that the documentation is available. Non-imaging District Offices must fax this information to the AIU.

-   If the client is requesting an extension to the FANF 60-month lifetime limit, the client must also complete DFA Form 785, FANF Hardship Extension Request, with the FSS if the request is from a current FANF recipient who is exempt from the NHEP work program or the request is from a former FANF recipient who is reapplying for FANF cash assistance after reaching the 60-month lifetime limit. If the hardship request is from a current FANF recipient participating in the NHEP work program, the NHEP ECS completes DFA Form 785 with the client. The process for scanning and then emailing or faxing DFA Form 785 and associated documentation to the AIU is the same process as used with DFA Form 754C, described above.

·   While still with the client, the FSS or NHEP ECS must contact the AIU at 1-800-852-3345 ext. 7354 to schedule the client for the FVO assessment. The AIU Counselor can speak directly with the client to schedule an appointment. If the staff person reaches the AIU answering machine, the FSS or NHEP ECS can either:

-   leave a message on the machine with the client’s name, case number, and request reason; or

-   email that information to the new Lotus Notes mailbox FVO Community Referrals.

If the staff person or client does not make contact with an AIU Counselor to schedule this required FVO assessment, the FSS or NHEP ECS must notify the client that:

-   the client is responsible for contacting the AIU at the number above within 2 days to schedule this assessment; and

-   failure to schedule and participate in this assessment will result in an automatic denial of the hardship request or excused participation in NHEP.

Within 7 days of receiving the referral information from the FSS or NHEP ECS, the AIU Counselor will:

·   conduct the FVO assessment with the client;

·   email the FSS or NHEP ECS with the approval or denial of the FVO request;

·   update New HEIGHTS, entering information in case and/or RID notes. If an FVO has been granted, the AUI Counselor will also enter information on the "Work Programs, Assessment, Family Barriers Con’t" New HEIGHTS screen; and

·   provide on-going case management with the client, as needed.

If the client is not in the office when a FVO request is made, the FSS or NHEP ECS must notify the client that:

·   the client is responsible for contacting the AIU at the number above within 2 days to schedule this assessment; and

·   failure to schedule and participate in this assessment will result in an automatic denial of the hardship request or excused participation in NHEP.

If the client does not contact the AIU in the timeframe indicated, the AIU will attempt to contact the client the 3rd day from the referral. If the client has not responded by day 5, the AIU will attempt to contact the client one more time, and then email the field with the outcome of the contact. If no contact with the AIU is made, the hardship request or request for excused participation in NHEP is denied.

AIU Outreach for Level 3 Sanction & FANF Hardship Extension

·   Level 3 NHEP sanctions: The AIU Counselors receive a New HEIGHTS-generated report on the 16th and 30th of each month listing the clients who enter a Level 3 NHEP sanction. The AIU Counselors then attempt to engage and assess these clients. The outcome of this outreach will be communicated to the NHEP ECS via email and then must be entered into New HEIGHTS by the NHEP ECS.

·   Families receiving a FANF hardship extension who are noncompliant with NHEP work program requirements: Per SR 10-18, dated October 2010, before applying the NHEP noncompliance to the case, the NHEP ECS must first contact their NHEP Field Support Manager (FSM) to review the case. The NHEP FSM will then refer the assistance group (AG) to the AIU, and the AIU Counselor will attempt to contact the AG to determine any outstanding issues or NHEP compliance barriers the AG is experiencing. The AIU Counselor will ensure the client understands the NHEP noncompliance issue, what will happen if the NHEP noncompliance is applied to the AG’s case while the AG is in a hardship extension, and that two NHEP noncompliances resulting in termination of financial assistance while in a FANF hardship extension will result in the AG being ineligible for any additional hardship extensions for any reason:

-   If the AIU Counselor connects with the AG, the AIU Counselor will contact the NHEP FSM with the outcome of the contact. This information and any additional information or actions that have occurred will then be used in determining whether the NHEP noncompliance will be applied, causing the AG’s hardship extension, and therefore cash benefit, to be terminated. If the NHEP FSM determines that the NHEP noncompliance should be applied, the NHEP FSM will forward that information to the Welfare to Work Bureau Chief for a final decision.

-   If the AIU Counselor is unable to make contact with the AG within 7 business days of the referral, the AIU Counselor will contact the NHEP ECS to terminate the AG’s case.

POLICY MANUAL REVISIONS

Revised Family Assistance Manual Topics

Section 134.03  Specified FANF Hardship Extension Criteria

Section 134.11  FANF Hardship Extension Review Process

PART 323  FAMILY/DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OPTIONS (FVO)

Section 808.09  Referral to NHEP Teams

Section 808.35 Sanctions for Voluntary Quit Or Failure/Refusal to Cooperate with NHEP Work Program Participation Requirements

Section 808.39  NHEP Activities: Interim Activities

IMPLEMENTATION

The piloting of the new AIU began on July 1, 2010. The finalization of all policy related to this unit, as presented in this SR, is effective as of the release of this SR.

CLIENT NOTIFICATION

No special client notification is planned.

TRAINING

Training for new AIU counselors occurred in September and October.

DISPOSITION

This SR may be destroyed or deleted after its contents have been noted and the revised manual topics released by this SR have been posted to the On-line manuals.

DISTRIBUTION

This SR will be distributed according to the electronic distribution list for Division of Family Assistance policy releases. This SR, and revised On-Line Manuals, will be available for agency staff in the On-Line Manual Library, and for public access on the Internet at www.dhhs.nh.gov/DFA/publications.htm, effective December 6, 2010. Additionally, this SR, and printed pages with posting instructions, will be distributed under separate cover to all internal hard copy holders of the Family Assistance and Forms Manuals.

DFA/JBV:s