The cooperation requirements in state law (23 Pa. C.S. 4379) and the IV-D Cooperative Agreement are not in conflict because they serve different purposes. State law spells out the obligations of individual Cash Assistance applicants and recipients while the IV-D Cooperative Agreement allocates responsibilities and funding between the CAO and the DRS. Only state law controls sanctions against individuals.
The applicant or recipient is required to provide the social security number or date of birth of the putative father or noncustodial parent as indicated in the Title IV-D Cooperative Agreement if she has that information or can reasonably obtain it. Cooperation includes coming forward with as much information as possible about the absent LRR. State law supports collection of the information since it requires the Cash Assistance applicant or recipient to provide information requested by the Department or DRS [23 Pa.C.S. Section 4379(2)(i)(C)]. The DRS can then use its resources to establish paternity and a support order.
It is important to note that a DRS relies heavily on the information it receives from the CAO making the referral and from the client who is seeking benefits and services from these agencies. DRS staff can locate resources effectively to establish orders only if accurate information about the noncustodial parent or putative father is fully disclosed. Therefore, the more information the DRS receives, the more likely the whereabouts of the noncustodial parent or putative father will be determined. If DRS has insufficient information to conduct a locate search and initiate support action, the DRS will notify the CAO. It is then the CAO’s responsibility to decide whether the mother has cooperated with the support requirements. Bear in mind that some fully cooperating clients will simply be unable to supply enough information for DRS to locate the putative father or noncustodial parent.
The CAO may not presume that an applicant or recipient is not cooperating simply because she is unable to give the IV-D agency information beyond the name of the putative father. If the applicant or recipient is unable to provide a Social Security number or date of birth despite her reasonable efforts to get this information, she may not be sanctioned.
The CAO must evaluate an applicant or recipient’s efforts to cooperate on a case-by-case basis to determine the specific facts and circumstances reported by the applicant or recipient. An applicant or recipient is required to provide a name and sufficient information necessary to identify and locate the noncustodial parent or putative father unless she establishes good cause as described in Cash Assistance Handbook Chapter 131, Section 131.6 or cannot reasonably be expected to know or get the information about the noncustodial parent or putative father. This will require some judgment on the part of the caseworker and further interviewing to determine whether the client simply has no information beyond the noncustodial parent’s or putative father’s name. The interview could include asking where the client met the putative father, how long she knew him, and his last known address.
If the client states she has no additional information to give beyond the putative father’s name, the CAO must decide whether it believes she has cooperated. The CAO may not make a presumption of noncooperation if the client has supplied the putative father’s name and has not previously had the names of two putative fathers rejected by genetic testing. The CAO must decide whether the client has cooperated based on available information about the situation and be prepared to defend that decision if necessary at a fair hearing, where the CAO will have the burden of proof.
There are only two situations where the CAO may presume that an applicant or recipient is not cooperating. In both situations, she has the burden of proving, by clear and convincing evidence, that she has cooperated. These situations are:
She does not provide the name of the putative father.
She names two putative fathers, each of whom is eliminated by genetic testing.
BCSE provided input on this issue.
Issued July 28, 2007; reviewed October 7, 2013