(a) Employed 30 days prior to application date.

1. (1) For initial eligibility, the Program Eligibility Specialist will review the application to determine if the participant was employed at least thirty (30) days prior to the application date.

2. (2)

   1. (A) If the participant was not employed at least thirty (30) days prior to the application date, no initial interview will be scheduled.
   2. (B) The application will be denied, and a TEA-1 will be sent as an adequate notice of the denial.
3. (3) No good cause will be given for not meeting initial eligibility.
4. (4) See 20 CAR §§ 503-302 and 503-303 for more information on adequate notices. Example: An applicant submitted an application dated October 15. On the application, the applicant indicated employment began on September 16. Because the applicant was only employed twenty- nine (29) days, the application is denied.

(b) Automated system review.

1. (1)

   1. (A) If the participant was employed thirty (30) days prior to the application date, the Program Eligibility Specialist will review the following information in the automated system to further determine if the participant meets initial eligibility.
   2. (B) Refer to 20 CAR § 503-1502.

2. (2) The participant must:

   1. (A) Have care and custody of a related minor child, including family cap child and child receiving Supplemental Security Income;
   2. (B) Meet the citizenship or alienage requirement;
   3. (C) Apply for the Arkansas Work Pays Program within six (6) months of transitional employment assistance (TEA) case closure, unless the previous Arkansas Work Pays Program case closed due to insufficient hours;
   4. (D)

(i) Have received at least three (3) months of TEA cash assistance, including deferral and exemption months.

1. (ii) This includes TEA cases that close due to reaching the time limit or have been extended and earnings are included; and

   1. (E) Not have received more than twelve (12) months of Arkansas Work Pays Program benefits.

2. (3)

   1. (A) If the participant fails to meet any of the initial eligibility requirements above at the time of application, the application will be denied.
   2. (B) No initial interview will be scheduled.

   3. (C) A TEA-1 will be sent as an adequate notice of the application’s denial. Example 1: Ms. Davis applied for the Arkansas Work Pays Program four (4) months after her TEA case closed. She received TEA cash assistance for nine (9) months. After reviewing additional eligibility information in the automated system, it was determined that Ms. Davis met the requirements. An initial interview can be scheduled. Example 2: Ms. Wilson applied for the Arkansas Work Pays Program after her TEA case closed. She received TEA cash assistance for a total of two (2) months. Since she did not receive TEA for at least three (3) months, her application is denied.

      1. (c) Income and work hours.
3. (1) If the participant meets the initial eligibility requirements discussed in subsections (a) and (b) of this section, the Program Eligibility Specialist will schedule an initial interview to review documentation of income and work hours for the thirty-day period prior to the date of application.
4. (2) No documentation of resources will be required, as the household’s resources are totally disregarded.

5. (3) See subsection (g) of this section.

   1. (d) Income.

6. (1)

   1. (A) The parent’s gross earnings along with other countable income must be below the one hundred fifty percent (150%) federal poverty level for the family size.
   2. (B) The federal poverty levels in the Appendix are updated annually.

   3. (C) The following types of income are disregarded when determining initial (and ongoing) eligibility for the Arkansas Work Pays Program:

      1. (i) Income of the child or children;
      2. (ii) Income of the stepparent with no child in common; and
      3. (iii) Child support.
   4. (D) Refer to 20 CAR §§ 502-504 and 502-510 for unearned and earned income to disregard.

7. (2)

   1. (A) The Program Eligibility Specialist will deny the application if the participant fails to meet the income requirement upon receipt of initial work documentation.
   2. (B) A TEA-1 will be sent as an adequate notice of the application denial.
   3. (C) See 20 CAR §§ 503-302 and 503-303 for more information on adequate notices.
8. (3) To determine if the household meets the federal poverty level requirement for initial eligibility, the Program Eligibility Specialist will use one (1) of the appropriate calculations indicated below.

9. (4)

   1. (A) If the participant is paid weekly:

      1. (i) Total the gross income actually received in the thirty-day period;
      2. (ii)

(b) (b) See note below; and

1. (iii) Multiply by 4.334.

   1. (B) Note. If the participant is paid weekly but received five (5) checks in the thirty-day period, divide total gross income by five (5) and multiply by 4.334.

2. (5)

   1. (A) If the participant is paid every two (2) weeks (biweekly):

      1. (i) Total the gross income actually received in the thirty-day period;
      2. (ii)

(b) (b) See note below; and

1. (iii) Multiply by 2.167.

   1. (B) Note. If the participant is paid every two (2) weeks (biweekly) but received three (3) checks in the thirty-day period, divide total gross income by three (3) and multiply by 2.167.
2. (6) If the participant is paid twice a month (semi-monthly), total the gross income actually received in the thirty-day period, with no conversion. Example: A participant who meets all the eligibility requirements applies on April 7. The Program Eligibility Specialist will verify the income for the period March 8 through April 6, which is the thirty- day period prior to the date of application.

(e) Work hours requirement.

1. (1)

   1. (A) For initial eligibility, the participant must provide verification of work hours for the thirty-day period prior to the date of application.

   2. (B) The verification can be provided:

      1. (i) By fax;
      2. (ii) By mail;
      3. (iii) By email; or
      4. (iv) In person.
   3. (C) The agency will accept verification of earnings from the employer, check stubs, payroll printouts, etc.
   4. (D) If the information received is not accurate and would affect the participant’s eligibility status, the supervisor (or designee) will be notified immediately.

2. (2)

   1. (A) The participant must be in a paid work activity, i.e., employed, at least twenty-four (24) hours per week.
   2. (B) The participant must also meet the weekly federal participation requirement for the past thirty (30) days.
   3. (C) The participant may be engaged in another countable work activity that, when combined with the paid work hours, will meet the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families work requirement for the family.

3. (3)

   1. (A) If the work hours requirement is met, the information will be documented in the automated system.
   2. (B) If the work hours requirement is not met, the Arkansas Work Pays Program application will be denied.

   3. (C)

      1. (i) A TEA-1 will be sent as an adequate notice of application denial.
      2. (ii) See 20 CAR §§ 503-302 and 503-303 for information on adequate notices.

4. (4) The federal participation requirement is as follows:

   1. (A)

      1. (i) Twenty-four (24) hours per week for a single-parent household with a child under the age of six (6), even if the child is not included in the budget unit.
      2. (ii) All twenty-four (24) hours must be in a paid work activity;

   2. (B)

      1. (i) Thirty (30) hours per week for a single parent with a child age six (6) or older.
      2. (ii) If the household can only participate in a paid work activity for twenty-four (24) hours per week, all six (6) of the remaining hours must be in a core activity.
      3. (iii) Noncore activities cannot be used for the remaining six (6) hours;

   3. (C)

      1. (i) Thirty-five (35) hours per week for a two-parent household not receiving federally funded childcare.
      2. (ii) If the household can only participate in a paid work activity for twenty-four (24) hours per week, six (6) of the remaining hours must be in a core activity.
      3. (iii) The last five (5) hours may be core or noncore; and

   4. (D)

      1. (i) Fifty-five (55) hours per week for a two-parent household receiving federally funded childcare.
      2. (ii) If the household can only participate in a paid work activity for twenty-four (24) hours per week, twenty-six (26) of the remaining hours must be in a core activity.
      3. (iii) The last five (5) hours may be core or noncore. Example 1: Ms. Adams is a single parent with a child over the age of six (6). She applied for the Arkansas Work Pays Program on July 1. It has been verified that she has been employed since May. Check stubs submitted for the thirty- day period before the application date show she worked thirty (30) hours per week. Ms. Adams meets the requirement to be employed (in a paid work activity) for twenty-four (24) hours per week. She also meets the federal participation requirement of thirty (30) hours per week. If otherwise eligible, the application may be approved. Example 2: Mr. Thomas is a single parent with teenaged children. He applied for the Arkansas Work Pays Program on July 7 after receiving TEA for eight (8) months. His TEA case closed in April. He has been employed since March. Check stubs indicate he works twenty-four (24) hours per week. He also attends college at night and has only used two (2) months of career and technical education. He is taking a three-credit-hour course in management and will graduate in December. Mr. Thomas meets the work requirements. He is employed for twenty-four (24) hours per week. He is given three (3) hours of actual class time per week. He will also be given three (3) hours of homework/study time because he is taking three (3) credit hours. This brings his total countable hours to thirty (30) per week. If otherwise eligible, the application may be approved.

(f) Drug screening questionnaire requirements.

1. (1)

   1. (A) All applicants will be required to complete a drug assessment questionnaire (DAQ) as part of the initial eligibility determination process.
   2. (B) The DAQ is a part of the Arkansas Work Pays Program application.

2. (2) Once the DAQ has been completed, the following actions will be taken:

   1. (A) If the applicant answers “No” to all questions on the DAQ concerning illegal drug use, the application will be processed; or
   2. (B) If the applicant answers “Yes” to any one (1) of the questions on the DAQ concerning illegal drug use, then the Program Eligibility Specialist must contact the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Family Support Unit of the Department of Human Services for drug testing coordination.
3. (3) Refusal and/or failure, without good cause, to complete or submit a drug screening questionnaire during the initial eligibility process will result in denial of the application.
4. (4) Refer to 20 CAR § 503-1505 and 20 CAR § 503-1506(g).

(g) Scheduling the initial interview.

1. (1)

   1. (A) No later than two (2) business days from the date the application was received, the Program Eligibility Specialist will send a TEA-1 (Notice of Action) to schedule the initial interview.
   2. (B) The notice must indicate what documentation should be brought to the interview in order to establish initial eligibility.

2. (2) During the initial interview, the Program Eligibility Specialist will:

   1. (A) Present an overview of the program;
   2. (B) Gather information; and
   3. (C) Advise the participant of what and when information is needed.

3. (3)

   1. (A) If the participant misses the interview and does not contact the Program Eligibility Specialist to reschedule, the application will be denied.
   2. (B) A TEA-1 will be sent as an adequate notice of the application denial.

(h) Rescheduling the initial interview.

1. (1) If the participant misses the initial interview, but it is rescheduled, the Program Eligibility Specialist will send a ten-calendar-day advance notice (TEA-1) to inform the participant of the:

   1. (A) New appointment; and
   2. (B) Penalties that may occur if they fail to attend as rescheduled (i.e., application denial).

2. (2) If a participant does not bring the requested documentation to the initial appointment:

   1. (A) The Program Eligibility Specialist will provide the participant with a ten-calendar-day advance notice (TEA-1) requesting the exact documents needed to determine eligibility by the close of business on the tenth day; and
   2. (B) If the documents are not provided, the application will be denied after the notice expires.