Sanctions for Non-Compliance with Child Support Enforcement 400-19-95

 

Overview 400-19-95-05

(Revised 10/1/10 ML #3241)

View Archives

 

 

(N.D.A.C. 75-02-01.2-79)

 

To benefit the household and assist in leading them to self-reliance, individuals in receipt of TANF are required to cooperate with enforcement of Child Support services. Individuals who fail to meet the Child Support Program requirements will be sanctioned.

 

A sanction serves as a natural and logical consequence for an individual’s noncompliance with TANF program requirements. The consequences of a sanction are the same regardless of how many times an individual may have been sanctioned.

 

If the sanctioned individual is:

  1. A caretaker, the individual remains included in the household size and their income and assets must be considered when determining eligibility. The Standard Employment Expense Allowance and the Time Limited Percentage are applied to the individual’s earned income.
  2. A dependent child who is minor parent, the sanctioned individual remains included in the household size and their income and assets must be considered based on criteria for counting income and assets for dependent children. (See Section 400-19-55-15-30, Student Earned Income Treatment.)

The financial needs of the sanctioned individual, whether the individual is a caretaker or dependent child who is a minor parent, are deducted when determining the assistance payment for the remainder of the household.

 

If the sanctioned individual is a parent or other caretaker relative, assistance payments for the remaining members of the TANF case may be in the form of protective payments. (See Section 400-19-120-35, Protective Payments.)

 

All sanctions are imposed against and follow the responsible individual.  The first month of a sanction period is referred to as the Sanction Penalty Month.    

 

If the sanctioned individual does not cure the sanction prior to the end of the Sanction Penalty Month, the sanction may progress to closure of the entire TANF case effective the last day of the Sanction Penalty Month. This is referred to as Sanction Progression.    

 

If a sanction leads to closure of the entire TANF case, the household will be ineligible for assistance for the month following the Sanction Penalty Month. This is referred to as the Month of Ineligibility.

 

Ineligible caretakers who do not cooperate with Child Support Enforcement for the child(ren) for whom they are receiving TANF, will be sanctioned. Those individual's needs are not being met through the TANF benefit so the Sanction Penalty Month will not apply but the Month of ineligibility will apply.

 

Adequate notice is required for all sanctions.

 

An individual sanctioned for non-cooperation with Child Support Enforcement will be required to comply with the JOBS program requirements. Likewise, individuals sanctioned for JOBS will be required to cooperate with Child Support Enforcement.

 

If the child for whom the custodian is not cooperating leaves the household, the sanction must be ended effective the last day of the month the child left the household.