121-14 STOP PAYMENT AND FORGERY PROCEDURES
DPA
will stop payment on warrants that were issued less than six months ago
but were:
not received by the recipient
stolen from the recipient
lost by the recipient
destroyed after
receipt by the recipient
The agency policy is to replace a warrant after ten calendar days from date issued to ensure the warrant has cleared the postal channels and to allow time for it to clear the Department of Administration to determine if the warrant has been cashed.
Reissuance may be done before the ten calendar days have elapsed if the agency receives information from the recipient that the warrant is destroyed (e.g., washed with the laundry) or lost (e.g., thrown out with garbage). The Eligibility Technician will use prudent judgment in these situations.
After the ten calendar
days have elapsed (or the Eligibility Technician determines the warrant
lost or destroyed), and prior to initiating stop payment procedures, the
Eligibility Technician will check the warrant status on EIS by reviewing the issuance history
screen. If the warrant status is outstanding (OS), the Eligibility
Technician will follow the Stop Payment Procedures in section 121-14
A. If the warrant status is redeemed, the Eligibility Technician will
follow the Forgery Procedures in section 121-14
B.
If
the Eligibility Technician receives a returned warrant from the recipient,
the warrant should be stamped 'Void' or 'Cancel' across the face of
the warrant and routed to System Operations.
Note:
Do not mark 'Void' or 'Cancel' on returned warrants to pay an APA overpayment, issued by the Office
of Public of Advocacy or any other warrants not issued by Division of
Public Assistance. These warrants or repayments are sent to Benefit Recovery
Unit.
Staff should review the warrants before voiding or canceling to ensure
they were not issued by DPA
or they are for repayment. Repayment warrants are routed to Benefit Recovery
Unit.
The
Eligibility Technician will have the recipient complete and sign a
Stop Payment Affidavit (Form Gen 21). The Eligibility Technician will
inform the recipient that once a Stop Payment Affidavit has been signed
and sent for processing, it cannot be retracted. The original
affidavit will be retained in the case file and a copy will be given
to the recipient. The recipient will be instructed to notify
the Eligibility Technician immediately if he or she receives the warrant
on which a Stop Payment order has been placed and to return the warrant
to the agency.
If
the non-receipt of warrant is due to an incorrect address, the Eligibility
Technician must make sure the address screen (ADDR) in EIS is updated
and corrected before the warrant is reissued by Systems Operations.
The Eligibility Technician submits a Stop Pay Request by doing the following:
Access the Systems Operations website at: https://dpaworks.dhss.alaska.gov/
Click on Help Desk
Access template for Stop Pay Request
Fill
in the information and click on Send Stop Pay
In the event the website is not working properly the Eligibility Technician may email the request to eishelp@alaska.gov.
The following information must be included:
Case Name
Case Number
Warrant Number
Benefit Month
Statement that the Stop Payment Affidavit (Gen 21) was signed by the recipient
Reason
for the stop pay request
If the Eligibility Technician has been notified by the recipient that he or she has received the warrant after the Stop Payment has been sent to the Help Desk, the Eligibility Technician will request the warrant be brought to the district office and also notify Systems Operations immediately via an email message addressed to eishelp@alaska.gov. The district office must stamp 'VOID' across the face of any returned warrant and forward the warrant to Systems Operations immediately.
If the warrant has already been returned to Systems Operations and has been canceled in EIS the Eligibility Technician can reissue the warrant without going through the Stop Payment process.
If the warrant status is outstanding, Systems Operations will initiate the stop pay process. The Eligibility Technician will be notified when the process is complete and the date the warrant will be reissued.
If
the warrant status is redeemed, the Eligibility Technician will proceed
with the Forgery Procedures in section 121-14
B below.
When a warrant is received in the office, the Eligibility Technician creates a case that explains why the warrant was returned.
If the warrant status is redeemed as indicated on the EIS issuance history screen or as reported by Systems Operations, the Eligibility Technician will inform the recipient.
If the recipient remembers that he or she cashed the warrant, no further action is required.
If the recipient claims he or she did not cash the warrant and requests that forgery procedures be pursued, the Eligibility Technician will take the following actions:
The Eligibility Technician will request a copy of the redeemed warrant from Systems Operations by doing the following:
Access the Systems Operations website at: https://dpasysops.dhss.alaska.gov/production/
Click on Help Desk
Access template for Warrant Copy
Fill in the information and click on the Send Warrant Request
In the event the website is not working properly the Eligibility Technician may email the request to eishelp@alaska.gov.
The following information must be included:
Case Name
Case Number
Warrant Number
Benefit Month
Eligibility Technician Fax number
Systems Operations will obtain a copy of the redeemed warrant and forward it to the Eligibility Technician.
Upon
receipt of the redeemed warrant copy, the Eligibility Technician will
contact the recipient to have them come to the office to examine the
signature on the warrant copy. If the client cannot come into
the DPA office, the warrant copy can
be sent to them so the signature can be examined.
If, after examination of the warrant copy, the recipient changes positions and states that he or she did redeem the warrant, no further action will be taken.
If the recipient, after examination of the warrant copy, states that the signature is not his or hers, and claims it to be a forgery, the recipient will be given a copy of the warrant copy and instructed to file a report at the local police department. The recipient must provide a copy of the police report to the district office prior to any action to reissue the warrant. This requirement may be waived at the regional manager's discretion in two situations:
The recipient lives in an area where a police department is not accessible
The recipient refuses to provide a police report
For cases where fraud is suspected, the Eligibility Technician should make a fraud referral.
The Eligibility Technician has the recipient complete an Affidavit of Forgery (Gen-86) and sign it in the presence of a Notary Public. The Eligibility Technician must make sure the affidavit is complete and accurate (name spelled correctly, dates correct, etc.). The Eligibility Technician is not responsible for comparing the signatures or making a determination of whether the signature has been forged. All responsibility for the forgery claim is on the payee who signs the affidavit.
The Eligibility Technician will mail the original signed, notarized Affidavit of Forgery to Systems Operations. In addition, an email message titled 'Affidavit of Forgery' must be sent to the Help Desk at eishelp@alaska.gov stating that the original affidavit has been mailed. The Eligibility Technician will retain a copy of the affidavit in the recipient's case file.
Systems Operations will examine the Affidavit of Forgery, verifying the affidavit is complete and accurate (name spelled correctly, dates correct, etc.).
Systems
Operations assembles a packet containing the following:
Original Affidavit of Forgery
Copy of forged warrant—front and back
Copy of Police Report
Warrant Status Change
Request form (signed by certifying officer)
The
packet is then mailed to:
Dept. of Administration
Division of Finance
ATTN: Accounting Technician
PO Box 110204
Juneau,
AK 99811-0204
Systems Operations keeps a copy of all documents included in the packet.
Division of Finance receives packet.
Division of Finance requests a bank credit for the forged warrant and forwards the documentation to Treasury.
Division of Finance receives the bank credit.
Division of Finance reissues the warrant and contacts the certifying officer in Systems Operations.
Systems Operations notifies the Eligibility Technician that a replacement warrant has been issued to the client.
Eligibility Technician notifies the client.
If the case file indicates more than three replacements within a six month period, the Eligibility Technician should investigate the possibility that the problem is related to an EIS entry error on the address (ADDR) screen. Once this possibility is ruled out, the Eligibility Technician may consider requesting that the recipient provide the agency with a protective payee mailing address where the warrant will be mailed and the recipient can pick it up or the payee can deliver it to the recipient. The Eligibility Technician must obtain a written statement for the case file from the person or agency willing to do this. The recipient also may wish to receive their benefits via direct deposit into their bank account.
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