55 Pa. Code § 257.21 - Policy
(a)
General. AFDC/GA reimbursement policy in general is as
follows:
(1) There are two closely related
reasons for reimbursement. The first rests on the basic principle that public
assistance supplements resources and that whenever assistance is granted in
lieu of the utilization of certain resources, the assistance should be repaid
whenever these resources become available. The second reason relates to the
financing of the program. Reimbursement results in a recovery of money that is
then available for redistribution as assistance, thereby reducing to this
extent the need for additional tax revenues.
(2) Requiring reimbursement from persons who
receive assistance in lieu of the utilization of certain resources will insure
that they are treated equitably with other persons who have the same kind of
resources but who use their resources instead of seeking public assistance.
Inherent in this concept is a further saving of tax moneys, since persons will
thereby be encouraged to find ways of remaining independent of public
assistance.
(3) The obligation of
reimbursement has always been inherent in the receiving of public assistance in
the Commonwealth. The Supreme Court emphasized this and recognized the right of
the Commonwealth to repayment under the common law when it decided in
Waits' Estate, 336 Pa. 151, that "there is an implied duty on
the part of a recipient of public assistance, or his estate, to make
reimbursement." The Support Law (see
62
P. S. §§
1971-1977) sets forth certain
conditions pertaining to reimbursement. The rules and regulations of the
Department which have been developed with the advice of the Attorney General
implement the common law and the Support Law (62 P. S. §§
1971-1977) by establishing the
limits of liability specifically.
(4) Protection and collection of the
Commonwealth's claim for reimbursement are mandatory, and the interests of the
Commonwealth are best protected by providing that property owners pledge
property which is liable for reimbursement as security for future reimbursement
of assistance received by them or by persons for whom they are held
responsible.
(b)
Applicability. Reimbursement will be required for Aid to
Dependent Children, General Assistance and all burial payments. Blind Pension
itself, including payments made for nursing home care, will not be
reimbursable. Medical Assistance payments will not be reimbursable. Assistance
payments paid to an individual for the period that the individual actually
works in community work experience programs are not reimbursable from the
individual's real property.
(c)
Liability. Regulations regarding liability for reimbursement
are as follows:
(1) The rules which have been
established by the Department are a result of progressive interpretation and
application of the Support Law (62 P. S. §§
1971-1977), as well as the common
law, to questions of liability during the past 10 years. They are embodied in
the repayment agreements which property owners have been required to sign in
order to insure repayment. Although new repayment agreements were devised in
order to cover revisions in regulations from time to time, it was not required
that persons who had already signed agreements execute the new ones.
Nevertheless, claims for repayment will be computed as though new reimbursement
agreements had been taken each time the basis for computation
changed.
(2) Liability for
reimbursement will depend on three things: ownership of property during receipt
of assistance, type of property owned, and the relationship of the property
owner to the recipient of assistance.
(3) Liability will begin with the first
assistance payment following the acquisition of property or a right to property
or the date a resource was due, whichever is appropriate to the kind of
property involved.
(4) The owner of
real or personal property will be liable for the assistance received by himself
and certain of his relatives. This liability for reimbursement will differ from
his liability to contribute out of income to the support of his relatives,
which is covered by Chapter 187 (relating to support from relatives not living
with client).
(d)
Collection. Collection of reimbursement claims will be as
follows:
(1) The area office will be
responsible for collecting reimbursement claims except as provided in §
257.24 (relating to procedures).
Records will be maintained of all collections and an Official Receipt, Form PA
175, will be issued for payments received.
(2) The general rule on collection of
reimbursement claims is that the Department will proceed in the same way as
other creditors. However, there is one very important exception to this rule:
the Department will never execute on real property as long as it is the home of
the person who is liable for reimbursement, his spouse or children.
(3) The maximum amount the Department will
attempt to collect will not exceed the amount of assistance received plus legal
costs. Frequently settlement will be made for less, depending upon the
circumstances involved in receipt of assistance and ownership of property.
Settlements for less, commonly called compromise settlements, will be agreed to
only with the approval of the Department of Justice after approval by claim
settlement which will take into consideration such factors as degree of
ownership, present and future value of property, prior encumbrances, costs of
legal action and known court practices. In short, compromise settlements, when
made, will be based on good business practice. In addition, escrow agreements
as provided in §
257.24 may postpone payment of a
claim.
(4) The market value of the
property at the time the claim is paid will be one of the bases for settling
the claim. The market value at the time of acknowledgment of liability will not
be considered.
Notes
The provisions of this § 257.21 issued under sections 201(2) and 403(b) of the Public Welfare Code (62 P. S. §§ 201(2) and 403(b)).
This section cited in 55 Pa. Code § 257.24 (relating to procedures).
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