Section 351.1 Investigation.
(a) Definition. Investigation is a continuous process which is
concerned with all aspects of eligibility for public assistance or care from the period of
initial application to case closing. Investigation means the collection, verification,
recording and evaluation of factual information on the basis of which a determination is
made of eligibility and degree of need, or of ineligibility, for any form of public
assistance or care.
(b) Responsibility for furnishing information.
(1) The social services official shall:
(i) provide applicants
and recipients, and others who may inquire, with clear and detailed information concerning
programs of public assistance, eligibility requirements therefor, methods of investigation
and benefits available under such programs; and
(ii) inform each
applicant and recipient, at the time of application and subsequently, of such person's
initial and continuing responsibilities to furnish the information described in paragraph
(2) of this subdivision.
(2) Each applicant and recipient must, as a
condition of eligibility for themselves or others:
(i) provide accurate,
complete and current information on his or her needs and re sources as well as the
whereabouts and circumstances of responsible relatives;
(ii) furnish evidence
to provide verification of those factors which affect eligibility and the amount of
entitlement, including:
(a) identity;
(b) residence;
(c) family composition;
(d) rent payment or cost of shelter;
(e) income from any source;
(f) savings or other resources; and
(g) lawful residence in the United States, if the recipient is an alien;
(iii) apply for and
utilize any benefits or resources that will reduce or eliminate the need for public
assistance or care;
(iv) make a timely
report to the district of any changes in his or her needs and resources. A report will be
considered timely if made within 10 days of the changes except as provided in section
352.30(d)(4) of this Title. A report to a social services district concerning changes in
income will be considered timely if made within the timeframes specified in section
351.24(d) of this Part, and;
(v) cooperate with
the social services official in fulfilling necessary reporting requirements for public
assistance programs, and at a minimum provide accurate, current, and complete demographic
and income information required to meet federal reporting requirements, including;
(a)
information concerning themselves if they are caretaker relatives who are not legally
responsible for minor children on whose behalf an application for public assistance has
been made or for whom public assistance is provided and information concerning the
children under their care; and
(b)
information concerning minor siblings of a child on whose behalf an application for public
assistance has been made or for whom public assistance is provided if the siblings reside
in the household of the child.
(c) Responsibility for prompt determination of eligibility. Upon
receipt of an application for assistance, the social services official shall conduct an
investigation and secure, record and evaluate the findings thereof in order to:
(1) promptly determine eligibility or
ineligibility for public assistance;
(2) determine the type of public assistance or
care, including food stamps required, and authorize such assistance;
(d) Constitutional and statutory rights of applicants and recipients.
Any investigation or reinvestigation of eligibility shall be conducted in a manner that
will not result in practices that violate an applicant's or recipient's constitutional
rights. An applicant or recipient shall be permitted to appear with an attorney or other
representative at any interview or conference with a representative of a social services
district, whenever such interview or conference relates to questions of eligibility for
public assistance and care, or the amount to which the person interviewed is or was
entitled.