The electronic Client Information System (eCIS) will generate support pass-through (SPT) payments based on support payments collected and posted on the Pennsylvania Child Support Enforcement System (PACSES). Cash assistance recipients will receive an SPT payment whenever current support is received for a member of the grant group. Each month, the amount of current support collected is passed through to the family, with the following limits:
Up to $100 if there is one child in the family;
Up to $200 if there is more than one child in the family;
Up to $50 for spousal support.
SPT is limited to one payment per grant group per month, except for payment of a late SPT that is owed for a prior month.
SPT income is used to calculate the amount of SNAP benefits See SNAP Handbook, Chapter 550. The income maintenance caseworker (IMCW) is responsible for explaining SPT to clients. If the worker needs assistance with SPT issues, he or she should contact the SPT coordinator or the coordinator's alternate.
After the application month, the caretaker or relative is eligible for an SPT payment for each month that a current support payment and a Cash Assistance payment is made. Payments made on support arrears are not eligible for SPT payments.
When current support is collected for a family receiving Cash Assistance, an SPT payment will be paid to the family the following month. The amount of SPT will match the amount of current support collected, up to the limits listed above. This applies regardless of the number of noncustodial parents who pay support for the children in the grant group that month.
When no current support is collected, an SPT payment will not be issued.
When there is more than one budget group in a common residence, an SPT payment may be issued for each budget group. If there is one budget group containing two grant groups, an SPT payment may be issued to each grant group.
eCIS will issue SPT payments by the 15th of each calendar month. A separate SPT payment will be issued for each period that a client is eligible to receive an SPT payment. The following codes are used:
510 indicates an SPT payment issued within 15 days of the end of the support month. This is a timely issuance and is considered income for SNAP purposes.
511 indicates an SPT payment issued more than 15 days from the end of the support month. This delayed issuance is considered a resource for SNAP purposes.
Type 7 indicates an original support pass through payment made through CIS and is used for financial reporting.
The PA/CS 763 Monthly Support Notice (MSN) and the PA/CS 19 Support Appeal Form are mailed to Cash Assistance clients whenever support has been collected for a client in the previous month. Clients will continue to receive the MSN for each month support is collected after their Cash Assistance case closes, until all arrears owed to DHS are paid. The MSN contains information about current support collected, arrears collected, Cash Assistance benefits paid, SPT payments, unreimbursed assistance (URA), and excess over unreimbursed assistance (EOURA) payments. The MSN provides contact information for questions or legal assistance. The notice includes the PA/CS 19 Support Appeal Form that informs clients of their right to appeal and right to a fair hearing. A Spanish version of the MSN and the Support Appeal Form are issued when PACSES indicates Spanish as the preferred language. The CAO must refer clients to the Domestic Relations Section (DRS) if the client would like to change the language code to English or Spanish. CAOs and DRSs do not receive copies of the MSN; but the data on the MSN is available in CIS and PACSES.
The CAO must manually issue an SPT payment using reason code 101 for either of the following reasons:
A client has not received the entire SPT payment and it has been verified through the Bureau of Child Support Enforcement (BCSE) field office that all support payments have been paid for that month. See Appendix E. The client should have received the SPT but did not in either the first or second month after the support month.
A hearing decision has been made in favor of the client.
NOTE: SPT payments issued by the CAO as a result of a hearing (reason code 101) may also be replaced by using reason code 104.
When the BCSE field office verifies that support payments were paid and no SPT payment was posted to the CQCBBH Cash Benefit and Budget History Inquiry screen, the CAO can manually issue an SPT for that support month to the client. The CAO must not process an SPT until confirming that the system did not issue an SPT in the first or second month.
The CAO must prepare a PW 764 and, on the CCCOTI screen, use reason code 101 and enter the benefit period in monthly intervals.
Example: If the check covers a three-month period:
Support Month |
|
2/1/08–2/29/08 |
=1 payment |
3/1/08–3/31/08 |
=1 payment |
4/1/08–4/30/08 |
=1 payment |
The system will not allow more than $200 per SPT month per grant group.
SPT information transmitted to a CAO will be in the form of alerts; reject reports and updates; case or budget assistance transcripts; and benefit and budget histories.
Alerts are provided to CAOs only for SPT payments that may require CAO action.
Alert No. |
Meaning |
Example |
36 |
The SPT resource amount for a calendar month is greater than $99 (reason code 511). |
Alert 36 in September means that more than $99 of the SPT in September is considered as a resource. |
38 |
The support collected in the previous support month exceeds the monthly grant; further inquiry available on detail screen. |
Alert 38 in July indicates that the support collected in June exceeded the PA grant issued in July. |
39 |
The SPT income for the calendar month is different than the previous month (reason code 510). |
Alert 39 in October indicates the SPT check issued in October is different from the SPT check issued in September. |
NOTE: Alerts are generated on the same day the SPT payments are generated by CIS. SPT client notices are also generated at the same time.
Updates to reflect SPT payments will show on the CIS Cash Assistance Transcript Inquiry (CQCTRN) screen. SPT issuance and replacement information will display through the CIS Cash Benefit and Budget History Inquiry (CQCBBH) screen. SPT will not show up in payment totals.
The following are functions of the SPT coordinator:
To provide assistance to income maintenance caseworkers (IMCWs) in resolving SPT issues;
To act as the liaison between the CAO and the BCSE field offices;
To ensure that CAO staff is familiar with the identity of the SPT coordinator and his or her alternate (who is responsible when the SPT Coordinator is absent);
To ensure that appropriate CAO staff is trained in and knowledgeable about the SPT program.
The following are specific responsibilities of the SPT coordinator:
Serve as the key resource person for the SPT Program and as the liaison between the CAO and the BCSE field office;
Review all SPT systems issues that cannot be resolved by the IMCW or the first-line supervisor;
Ensure that all appropriate systems are inquired and reviewed before contacting the BCSE field office;
Review all PA 364 and PA 207 SPT requests;
Update the eCIS with new addresses on closed cases to ensure that reissuance and replacement checks are sent to appropriate locations;
Assist appropriate staff to ensure that SPT replacement checks are issued timely (Treasury cannot assist clients or provide information about replacement checks);
Develop familiarity with all SPT systems reports, including the CSP040 Reject Report;
Provide answers to IMCWs' and first-line supervisors' questions on SPT issues;
Assist CAO staff at SPT hearings as required.
The BCSE receives the request for fair hearings and notifies the CAO if the issue is SPT. The CAO is responsible for SPT prehearing conferences and hearings. The CAO must notify the BCSE area office if the support agent must attend either the conference or the hearing. The CAO is copied on the scheduling letters from the Bureau of Hearings and Appeals (BHA). The CAO must copy the BCSE area office on any briefs or file notes from the conference or hearing.
Before attending the prehearing conference, the SPT coordinator must do the following:
Review PACSES payment history and CIS CQCBBH and CQCTRN screens for the months affected by the appeal to verify if any SPTs were issued;
Make a printout of the screens to take to the prehearing conference.
Before attending the SPT hearing, the SPT coordinator must do the following
Review PACSES payment history;
If information comes up during a hearing that requires input from a BSCE agent and the Agent is not required to attend, request that the hearing be rescheduled so that the agent can participate.
Reissued: February 8, 2013, replacing January 31, 2012