1. (1) Appeals or requests for a hearing will be accepted only if they are filed within the required time limit.

   1. (a) Adult and Community Services Program Appeals.

      1. 1. Except as otherwise specified by these rules or laws or regulations specifically applicable to a program, appellants or individuals acting in their behalf involving Adult and Community Services programs, in the:
   2. (i) Emergency Shelter Grant Program;
   3. (ii) Refugee Services Program;
   4. (iii) Adult Day Care Services Program; or
   5. (iv) Homemaker Program, will be allowed thirty (30) days commencing from the date of the notice of action or notice of intended action to appeal any action of the Department.

   6. (b) Adult Day Care Licensing Appeals.

      1. 1. The appeal of denials, revocations, or restrictions of the license of an adult day care center licensed by the Department pursuant to T.C.A. §§ 71-2-401 et seq. shall be made by petition in writing to the commissioner within ten (10) days of the date of the mailing of notice by the Department to the applicant/licensee.
      2. 2. The appeal of the decision to continue probation for an adult day care center shall be filed in writing within five (5) business days of the receipt of the notice of the Department’s decision regarding the review of the probationary status pursuant to T.C.A. § 71-2-409(2) and (3).

   7. (c) Child and Adult Care Food Program Appeals. 7 C.F.R. § 226.6 and State Rule 1240- 05-08-.01(9) govern appeals in the Child and Adult Care Food Program.

      1. 1. Applicants and participating institutions and responsible principals and responsible individuals and day care homes will be allowed fifteen (15) days from the date on which notice of action, sent by certified mail, return receipt requested (or the equivalent private delivery service), by facsimile, or by email, is received to appeal an action of the Department of Human Services as allowed under 7 C.F.R. § 226.6(k)(2) and 7 C.F.R. § 226.6(l)(2) and (3). If the notice is undeliverable, it is considered to be received by the institution, responsible principal or responsible individual, or day care home five days after being sent to the addressee’s last known mailing address, facsimile number, or email address.
      2. 2. The receipt of the appeal requesting an administrative review pursuant to this subparagraph (c) must be acknowledged by the Department within ten (10) days of receiving the request.
      3. 3. Where inconsistencies are present between the requirements of the Tennessee Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, as amended, and the Federal regulations governing the Child and Adult Care Food Program, appeals of the Child and Adult Care Food Program will be processed in accordance with 7 C.F.R. § 226.6(k) and 226.6(l) and State Rule 1240-05-08-.01(9) and not the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act.
   8. (d) An appeal of an agency’s dispute of the result of the Intradepartmental Review of a child care agency program assessment under Chapter 1240-04-07, shall be submitted to the Commissioner in writing within (10) business days of receiving the Department’s written decision regarding the Review.
   9. (e) Criminal history exclusions for persons having access to children in child care agencies or having access to adults in adult day care centers pursuant to T.C.A. §§ 71-2-403(a) and 71-3-509(e) and (f) shall be filed within ten (10) days of the mailing date of the notice of exclusion or denial of a waiver of the exclusion.

   10. (f) Child Support Appeals. Timely filed child support appeals shall be in writing and shall be filed within:

       1. 1. Twenty (20) days from the date of service of the notice in license revocation proceedings, such as professional, business, fishing, hunting licenses, etc. under T.C.A. §§ 36-5-701 et seq.; and
       2. 2. Fifteen (15) days of the date of the notice of administrative action for all other appeals as governed under T.C.A. §§ 36-5-1001 et seq. and for all other administrative actions where otherwise not established by statute.
   11. (g) Families First Program appellants or individuals acting in their behalf will be allowed ninety (90) days commencing from the date of the advance written notice of intended action to appeal any action of the Department.

   12. (h) SNAP Appeals.

       1. 1. A SNAP household or its representative shall be allowed to request a fair hearing on any adverse action by the Department of Human Services within ninety (90) days of the date of such action as established by the date of the notice to the household of such action. In the event an appellant successfully appeals an adverse action, such appellant will only be entitled to receive retroactive benefits from the date that is twelve (12) months prior to the date upon which the beneficiary requests such retroactive benefits. For example, a beneficiary begins receiving benefits from the SNAP Program on January 1, 2000. On January 1, 2003, the beneficiary determines that the amount of benefits that she has been receiving is incorrect; she actually should have been receiving a greater amount of SNAP benefits since she first entered the program on January 1, 2000. On January 2, 2003, the beneficiary contacts her local DHS office to request that her benefits be increased according to her calculations and that she receive retroactively the benefits that she believes she should have been entitled to since January 1, 2000. DHS sends the beneficiary a written notice on January 30, 2003, which states that DHS is denying her request for increased benefits and retroactive benefits. The beneficiary timely appeals this determination on February 15, 2003, and is informed that she won the appeal on March 31st, 2003. The beneficiary would be entitled to have her benefits increased going forward, and she would be entitled to retroactive benefits from January 2, 2002, to present. She would not be entitled to retroactive benefits from January 1, 2000 through January 1, 2002, because this period is more than twelve months prior to the date when the beneficiary first requested the retroactive benefits, January 2, 2003.
   13. (i) Refugee Assistance Program appellants or individuals acting in their behalf will be allowed ninety (90) days commencing from the date of the advance written notice of intended action to appeal any action of the Department.

   14. (j) Rehabilitation Services Appeals.

       1. 1. Vocational Rehabilitation Services Appeals.
   15. (i) Vocational Rehabilitation Services appellants or individuals acting in their behalf, as set forth in Tennessee State Rule 1240-05-01-.05, will be allowed thirty (30) calendar days after the date of notification of the Informal Administrative Review finding to appeal any action of the Department with regard to the furnishing of, denial of, or failure to deliver Vocational Rehabilitation Services, subject to good cause exceptions as determined by the Appeals and Hearings Division.

   16. (ii) If the appellant or appellant’s representative elects not to utilize the Informal Administrative Review, the appeal, as specified in State Rule 1240-05-01-.05(9), must be filed within thirty (30) calendar days of the date of the notice by the Division of Rehabilitation Services to the appellant of the action with regard to the furnishing of, denial of, or failure to deliver Vocational Rehabilitation Services, subject to good cause exceptions as determined by the Appeals and Hearings Division.

       1. 2. Tennessee Blind Enterprises Appeals.
   17. (i) A manager in the Tennessee Blind Enterprises program who is dissatisfied with any action arising from the operation or administration of the vending facility program may ask for a review of the action as permitted by State Rule 1240-06-11-.01 by filing a written request within thirty (30) days of the Department’s action with the Director of the Services for the Blind Division, Tennessee Department of Human Services; or the manager may file an appeal by a written request by the manager, or by a representative selected by the manager, within thirty (30) days of the agency’s action from which the grievance arises or within fifteen (15) days following the manager’s receipt of an administrative review decision issued by the Director of Services for the Blind Division pursuant to Rule 1240-06-11-.01. Receipt is deemed to be five (5) days from the date of mailing for purposes of this subpart.
   18. (ii) Appeals and arbitration proceedings related to the Randolph-Sheppard Act or the Tennessee Business Enterprises Program will be accepted only if they are filed within the time limits specified in this Chapter and State Rules 1240-06-11-.02 and .03, and must be appealed as set forth in those rules; provided, however, time frames for filing petitions for appeals, reconsideration of initial orders and final orders and stays of effectiveness of those orders in contested case proceedings conducted under the Administrative Procedures Act shall be governed by this Chapter.

   19. (k) Summer Food Service Program Appeals. 7 C.F.R. § 225.13 and State Rule 1240-05- 08-.01(8) govern appeals in the Summer Food Service Program.

       1. 1. Applicants and participants will be allowed ten (10) days from the date on which the notice of action, sent by certified mail return receipt requested (or the equivalent private delivery service), by facsimile, or by email, is received to appeal an action of the Department of Human Services as allowed under 7 C.F.R. § 225.13(b). If the notice is undeliverable, it is considered to be received five days after being sent to the addressee’s last known mailing address, facsimile number, or email address.
       2. 2. Where inconsistencies are present between the requirements of the Tennessee Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, as amended, and the Federal regulation, appeals of the Summer Food Service Program will be processed in accordance with 7 C.F.R. § 225.13 and State Rule 1240-05-08-.01(8), and not the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act.

2. (2) Continuation of Assistance or Services Pending Appeal.

   1. (a) Continuation of Eligibility for Assistance or Services in SNAP and Families First Program Appeals. Assistance for a recipient of Families First or SNAP shall continue pending the appeal, until such determination is made under 1240-05-03-.03(2)(c) below, if the appeal is received within ten (10) days from the date of the advance written notice of intended action, unless the appellant specifically requests assistance or services not be continued while the appeal is pending.
   2. (b) If the recipient can show good cause existed for the failure to appeal within the time frames in subparagraph (a) for the SNAP and Families First Programs, assistance or services may be reinstated or continued pending appeal.

   3. (c) Once continued, the assistance or services designated in subparagraph (a) for the SNAP and Families First Programs will, nevertheless, cease as of the earliest of the following events:

      1. 1. A change affecting the recipient’s assistance occurs while the hearing decision is pending, and the recipient fails to request a hearing after notice of the change; or
      2. 2. In SNAP cases, the certification period ends; or
      3. 3. A final decision is made by the agency that the appellant is not entitled to the assistance or services.
   4. (d) Continuation of services in Vocational Rehabilitation Services appeals is governed under State Rule 1240-05-01-.05(5) and State Rule 1240-05-01-.05(10)(b).
   5. (e) Continuation of services in Summer Food Service Program appeals is governed under 7 C.F.R. § 225.13(11) and State Rule 1240-05-08-.01(8).
   6. (f) Continuation of services in Child and Adult Care Food Program appeals is governed under 7 C.F.R. § 226.6(k)(10) and State Rule 1240-05-08-.01(9).
   7. (g) Continuation of services in Refugee Cash Assistance Program appeals is governed under 45 C.F.R. § 400.54.
   8. (h) Continuation of services in appeals for other Programs administered by the Department is contingent upon other Federal regulations applicable to the Program.

Authority: T.C.A. §§ 4-5-202, 4-5-301, 4-5-307, 71-1-105, 71-2-408, 71-3-101, 71-3-104, 71-4-508, 71- 4-610, 71-5-106, 71-5-110, and 71-5-305; 7 U.S.C. § 2020(b), (e)(10), and (e)(11); 20 U.S.C. §§ 107d-1 and 107b(6); 29 U.S.C. § 722(c); 42 U.S.C. § 1396 et seq.; 42 U.S.C. §§ 1761 and 1766; 42 U.S.C. § 6851; 42 U.S.C. § 8624; 7 C.F.R. §§ 225.13 and 226.6; 7 C.F.R. §§ 273.13, 273.13(a)(1), 273.13(a)(3)(v), 273.15 (g) and (k), and 273.17; 34 C.F.R. §§ 361.48 and 361.57; 34 C.F.R. §§ 395.4 and 395.13; 42 C.F.R. § 431.200 et seq.; 42 C.F.R. §§ 431.210, 431.211, 431.221, 431.230, and 431.231; 45 C.F.R. § 205.10(a)(4)(i)(A) and (ii)(K); 45 C.F.R. § 205.10(a)(5)(iii) and (a)(6) and (7); and 45 C.F.R. §§ 400.23, 400.54, and 400.145. Administrative History: Original rule filed January 19, 1977; effective February 18, 1977. Amendment filed July 10, 1980; effective August 25, 1980. Amendment filed December 17, 1982; effective March 16, 1983. Amendment filed January 20, 1984; effective February 19, 1984. Amendment filed August 30, 1985; effective November 12, 1985. Amendment filed September 30, 2004; effective December 14, 2004. Amendment filed February 26, 2007; effective May 12, 2007. Amendments filed June 13, 2025; effective September 11, 2025.