730-2          EXEMPTIONS FROM WORK ACTIVITIES

A parent or caretaker relative may be fully or partially exempt from the requirement to participate in work activities.  The exemption may be applied at application or at any time during a family’s period of eligibility, if a change in circumstances also changes the individual’s exemption status.

The caseworker should only determine if there is an exemption from work activities for an ATAPAlaska Temporary Assistance Program case in an application situation. Ongoing cases are managed by Work Services so the ATAPAlaska Temporary Assistance Program work exemption determination is made by the Work Services case manager.

Note:

The caseworker should ensure verification of a medical exemption is received before adding the exemption coding to the case. All other exemptions do not require verification. The caseworker should be following the direction provided by the Work Services case manager's email.

An adult applicant or recipient may be exempt from the requirement to participate in work activities for the following reasons:

Caretaker of Baby:  This is a parent or caretaker relative with one or more children under the age of 12 months.  The parent or caretaker relative loses this exemption after retaining it for 12 cumulative calendar months.

Note:

This exemption is only available to families with a single parent or caretaker relative. This exemption is not automatically applied. The parent or caretaker relative must request this exemption.

Caretaker of Disabled Child:  This is a parent or caretaker relative who is providing home care for a child who experiences a disability.  This exemption must be documented by a physician or other licensed medical professional.  

Caretaker of Disabled Adult:  This is a parent or caretaker relative who is providing home care to a related disabled person requiring 24 hour care.  This exemption must be documented by a physician or other licensed medical professional.  

Medical Reasons:  A parent or caretaker relative who has established limitations on their ability to participate in work activities with documentation from a physician or other licensed medical professional may be exempt from work activities.  The documentation may include a doctor’s statement that describes the duration of the condition and the limitations on the ability to participate in activities, or it may be provided on the Health Status Report Form ( TA10).  In some cases, the Work Services case manager may need to request additional information to develop the FSSPFamily Self-Sufficiency Plan and assign activities.

Note:

There are two situations that require a TA 10Health Status Report Form to be used:

1. An incapacity determination for a two-parent household (refer to ATAPAlaska Temporary Assistance Program MSManual Section 720-3 B), and
2. An incapacity decision for an extension past the 60-month time limit (refer to ATAPAlaska Temporary Assistance Program MSManual Section 701-4 B).

For other situations regarding medical exemptions or good cause reasons, a TA 10Health Status Report Form may be used but is not required.

Based on the provided documentation, the parent or caretaker relative may be only partially exempt from participation in work activities.  When the documentation indicates that the parent or caretaker relative is able to work part-time, they may be required to engage in work activities up to the limit set by the physician or other medical professional.

Family Hardship:  This applies when the family shows that circumstances outside of their control prevent the parent or caretaker relative from participating in work activities.  This includes such things as illness or death in the family, or an immediate crisis.

Lack of Child Care:  A parent or caretaker relative of a child under age six is exempt from work activities if he or she demonstrates an inability to find needed child care because:

• Appropriate child care within a reasonable distance from the home or activity site is unavailable;

• Affordable child care is unavailable; or

• Suitable informal child care is unavailable.

During the initial interview it is the responsibility of both the caseworker and the Work Services case manager to inform the parent or caretaker relative of this work activities exemption and ensure the parent or caretaker relative understands that this exemption does not stop the 60-month clock for the number of months of assistance they are eligible to receive in a lifetime.

Although both the caseworker and Work Services case manager inform the parent or caretaker relative of the lack of child care exemption, it is the Work Services case manager who is required to evaluate and determine if the parent or caretaker relative's circumstances warrant the exemption. If the exemption is justified the Work Services case manager will send an email to DPADivision of Public Assistance requesting the exemption.

Note:  

A parent or caretaker relative shall be required to participate in work activities up to the number of hours that appropriate and affordable child care, including suitable informal child care, is available.

Child care is appropriate when a provider who is willing to take care of the participant’s child:

• Appears to have the ability to care for children of the same age and development level as the participant's children; and

• Is, or is willing to become, an approved or licensed provider.

Child care is within a reasonable distance when the provider's location is within 30 minutes travel time by public or private transportation from the participant's home or activity site.

Child care is affordable when the family has PASSParents Achieving Self-Sufficiency I assistance to pay the expense.

Informal child care is care provided by a relative or friend. Informal care is suitable if it is appropriate and within a reasonable distance.

A parent or caretaker relative qualifies for an exemption from work activities if the local Child Care Resource and Referral agency verifies the lack of care that the family requires and it appears that suitable informal care is not available to the family.

No Child Care Funds:  The sole custodial parent or caretaker relative has a dependent child living in their home under age six years and the Division does not agree to pay for the cost of child care determined by the caseworker to be necessary for their participation.

No Transportation Funds:  The Division does not agree to pay for transportation expenses determined by the Work Services case manager to be necessary for their participation.