A specified relative must meet all of the following requirements:
He or she is related to the TANF child, as described in Section 127.21.
He or she is an adult or a minor parent who is not required to live in the home of an adult specified relative or in an adult-supervised supportive living arrangement.
55 Pa. Code § 141.21(p) 55 Pa. Code § 141.21(q)
He or she exercises responsibility for the care and control of the child; that is, the person participates in:
Planning for the child’s support, education, and maintenance.
Carrying out those plans.
Requesting benefits on behalf of the child.
He or she maintains a home where the child lives with the caretaker or relative or is in the process of setting up such a home within 30 days after getting the first TANF payment.
NOTE: The child may not receive two payments for the same period. Therefore, the specified relative requirements do not apply if the child is receiving TANF Placement Maintenance as a foster child (Title IV-E).
To qualify as a specified relative, a person must be related to the TANF child or eligible SSI or Title IV-E foster care child. It is no longer necessary to verify this relationship. Unless the CAO has different information, the person’s statement that he or she is related to the TANF child is enough proof. The following are valid relationships:
Blood relatives, including half-blood
Examples:
Parents, grandparents, and other direct ancestors all the way back to a great-great-great grandparent
Other relationships that begin with the prefix “great,” “great-great,” “grand,” or “great-grand”
Aunt or uncle
Nephew or niece
Brother or sister
First cousin
First cousin once removed (the child of one’s first cousin, or the first cousin of one’s parent)
NOTE: The CAO must not consider second, third or other cousins as specified relatives. See Appendix A for a chart showing different ways people are related to one another.
An adoptive parent and his or her blood or adoptive relatives as listed above
NOTE: Adoption ends the legal relationship between parent and child. However, it does not end the biological relationship. A biological parent may be a specified relative if the child returns to the biological parent’s care and control.
A stepfather, stepmother, stepbrother, stepsister, or stepgrandparent
NOTE: To qualify as a specified relative, a stepgrandparent must be the spouse of a grandparent. A parent of a stepparent does not qualify as a specified relative.
Examples:
Jane applies for Cash Assistance for Tommy, who is her husband’s grandson. Her husband, Martin, is the father of Mary, who is Tommy’s mother. Jane may be designated a specified relative, as she is the spouse of Tommy’s grandparent.
Anna applies for Cash Assistance for Peter. Peter’s stepfather is Anna’s son. Anna does not qualify as a specified relative.
The spouse of any relative named above, even after the marriage ends by death, separation, or divorce.
Example: Twelve-year-old Tommy Bennett continues to live with his stepmother, Mrs. Bennett, after the death of his father. Since Mrs. Bennett is exercising case and control of Tommy and providing a home for him, she is considered to be a specified relative. Because Tommy’s natural parents are no longer in the home, Mrs. Bennett’s income is not deemed for her stepchild. See Chapter 155, Deeming Income and Resources.
A relative of a putative father.
NOTE: The CAO determination is made only to identify a specified relative. It does not establish paternity.
NOTE: The putative father is the alleged father of a child. Until paternity is legally established, he is not considered a parent or a legally responsible relative (LRR). His verbal statement alone does not establish paternity. See Chapter 129, Deprivation.
A legal guardian living with the child, only if he or she is related to the child as described above.
A pregnant woman with no children, or no children receiving TANF, and exempt from the minor parent requirements may receive TANF benefits for herself only if the child would qualify for TANF if it were born. See Section 127.5 and Chapter 110.211, Budget Groups, Pregnant Women.
When the TANF child lives with the specified relative, the child's TANF eligibility is not affected if:
The child is under court jurisdiction and is receiving services such as probation or protective supervision.
The child is in the legal custody of someone other than the specified relative, such as another person or a public or voluntary agency.
In a joint or shared custody situation, the parent who is eligible to apply on behalf of the child is designated as the specified relative. The other parent is the absent parent. If both parents are eligible for a cash benefit, only one parent is designated as the specified relative and payment name for the child's TANF budget.
NOTE: The TANF benefit is to meet the child's need during the entire period, not just when in the physical custody of the parent designated as the specified relative. It is not the CAO’s responsibility to mediate disagreements between parents about use of benefits.
Special arrangements for physical custody of the TANF child on holidays, birthdays, vacations, and special occasions are considered as regular visits to the absent parent.
Example: Mr. and Mrs. Greene, who are divorced, are under a joint-custody court order for the custody of their two children. The children live with each parent every other week. Mrs. Greene applies for cash benefits for herself and the two children because her unemployment compensation benefits ended and she has no other income. Mrs. Greene is designated as the specified relative and payment name for the TANF budget.
To be designated as a specified relative, a TANF minor parent (including a pregnant teen) must be exempt from the requirement to live in the home of the minor parent's parent, legal guardian, or other adult relative or in an adult-supervised supportive living arrangement. The minor parent must be exercising care and control over a dependent child.
55 Pa. Code § 141.21(p) 55 Pa. Code § 141.21(q)
Reviewed July 30, 2013