Ariz. Admin. Code § R6-5-4924 - Appeals
A. Entitlement to a
Hearing.
1. An applicant for or recipient of
Child Care Assistance is entitled to a hearing to contest the following
Department actions:
a. Denial of the right to
apply for assistance;
b. Complete
or partial denial of an application for assistance;
c. Failure to make an eligibility
determination on an application within 30 days of the application file
date;
d. Suspension, termination,
reduction, or withholding of assistance except as provided in subsection
(B);
e. Increase in the fee level
and DES-required copayment amount; or
f. The existence or amount of an overpayment
attributed to the family or the terms of a plan to repay the
overpayment.
2.
Applicants and recipients are not entitled to a hearing to challenge benefit
adjustments made automatically as a result of changes in federal or state law,
unless the Department has incorrectly applied such law to the individual
seeking the hearing.
B.
Request for Hearing; Time Limits.
1. A person
who wishes to appeal a negative action shall file a written request for a fair
hearing with a local CCA office, within 10 days of the negative action notice
date.
2. A request for a hearing is
deemed filed;
a. On the date it is mailed, if
transmitted via the United States Postal Service or its successor. The mailing
date is as follows:
i. As shown by the
postmark;
ii. As shown by the
postage meter mark of the envelope in which it is received, if there is no
postmark; or
iii. The date entered
on the document as the date of its completion, if there is no postmark or no
postage meter mark, or if the mark is illegible.
b. On the date actually received by the
Department, if not sent through the mail as provided in subsection
(B)(2)(a).
3. The
submission of any document is considered timely if the appellant proves that
delay in submission was due to Department error or misinformation, or to delay
caused by the U.S. Postal Service or its successor.
4. Any document mailed by the Department is
considered as having been given to the addressee on date it is mailed to the
addressee's last known address. The date mailed shall be presumed to be the
date shown on the document, unless otherwise indicated by the facts.
5. The Office of Appeals shall deny any
request that is not timely filed. A party may appeal a decision on the
timeliness of an appeal.
C. Hearing Requests; Preparation and
Processing.
1. Within two work days of
receiving a request for appeal, the local CCA office shall notify the Office of
Appeals of the hearing request.
2.
Within 10 days of receiving a request for appeal, the local CCA office shall
prepare and forward to the Office of Appeals a prehearing summary which shall
include:
a. The appellant's name (and case
name, if different);
b. The
appellant's SSN (or case number, if different);
c. The local office responsible for the
appellant's case;
d. A brief
summary of the facts surrounding, and the grounds supporting, the negative
action;
e. Citations to the
specific provisions of this Article or the Department's CCA manual which
support the Department's action; and
f. The decision notice and any other
documents relating to the appeal.
3. The local office shall mail the appellant
a copy of the summary. Upon receipt of a hearing request, the Office of Appeals
shall schedule the hearings.
D. Continuation of Assistance Pending Appeal;
Exceptions.
1. If an appellant files a request
for appeal within 10 calendar days of the negative action notice date, the
Department shall continue assistance at the current level unless:
a. The appellant waives continuation of
current assistance,
b. The appeal
results from a change in federal or state law which mandates an automatic
adjustment for all classes of recipients and does not involve a misapplication
of the law, or
c. The appellant is
requesting continuation of TCC benefits for longer than the 24-month
eligibility period.
2.
The negative action shall be stayed until receipt of an official written
decision in favor of the Department, except in the following circumstances:
a. At the hearing and on the record, the
hearing officer finds that the sole issue involves application of law, and the
Department properly applied the law and computed the assistance due the
appellant;
b. A change in
eligibility or assistance amount occurs for reasons other than those being
appealed, and the eligible family receives and fails to timely appeal a notice
of negative action concerning such change;
c. Federal or state law mandates an automatic
adjustment for classes of recipients;
d. The appellant withdraws the request for
hearing; or
e. The appellant fails
to appear for a scheduled hearing without prior notice to the Office of
Appeals, and the hearing officer does not rule in favor of the appellant based
upon the record.
3. Upon
receipt of a decision in favor of the Department, the Department shall write an
overpayment for the amount of any assistance the family received in excess of
the correct amount, while the stay was in effect.
Notes
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