For use within the ADC program, the following definition of terms will apply unless the context in which the term is used denotes otherwise.
Absent Parent: A parent who is not in the home where his/her child(ren) is living.
ADC/MA: A categorical program consisting of financial and medical assistance or medical assistance only. Two types of cases are included in the medical assistance only category:
ADC Parent: Wherever the term Parent, Father, or Mother is used, it includes biological, adoptive, and stepparents.
ADC Payee: A parent, other specified relative (see 468 NAC 2-006.02), or a legally appointed guardian or conservator who exercises the responsibility for the care and control of the child(ren) and to whom the assistance payment for the child(ren) is made.
Adequate Notice: Notice of case action which includes a statement of what action(s) the worker intends to take, the reason(s) for the intended action(s), and the specific manual reference(s) that supports or the change in federal or state law that requires the action(s), (see also 468 NAC 1-009.03A1).
Applicant: An individual who applies for assistance.
Application: The action by which the individual indicates the desire to receive assistance by submission of an application.
Application Date: For new and reopened cases, the date a properly signed application is received. When adding a program to a properly signed application, this is the date that the new program is requested.
Application Signature: Applications may be signed in writing or by electronic signature.
Application Submission: Applications may be submitted in person, by mail, by fax or by electronic transmission.
Approval/Rejection Date: The date that the new or reopened case is determined eligible or rejected by the local office.
Arrearage: Unpaid child, spousal, and cash medical support which is due according to a court order.
Assignment: The legal transfer of an individual's right to benefits to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. This includes child, spousal, and medical support and third party medical.
Basic Education: Education which provides participants with the minimal literacy and computational skills required for occupational training and/or job performance.
Budget Month(s): The calendar month(s) for which the worker uses verification and information on income, resources, and household composition of the unit to compute the amount of the assistance.
Budgetary Need: The amount the client is eligible for before adjustments for over and underpayments and $10 minimum payment.
Cash Medical Support: An amount ordered to be paid toward the cost of health insurance provided by a public entity or by another parent through employment or otherwise or for other medical costs not covered by insurance.
Categorical Assistance: Assistance administered by Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. For the purposes of this definition it includes ADC/MA; Child Welfare Payment and Medical Services Program/MA; Assistance to the Aged, Blind, and Disabled (AABD)/MA; State Disability Program (SDP)/MA; Refugee Resettlement Program (RRP)/MA; Kids Connection; and Children's Medical Assistance Program.
Child Support: Money that is:
Client: An individual applying for or receiving ADC/MA. This term is used when the same policies apply to an applicant and a recipient.
Components: Employment First activities in which ADC applicants and recipients participate. A participant may be in more than one activity.
Contributions: Verified payments which are paid by an individual other than a noncustodial parent:
See 468 NAC 2-009.04B for further discussion of contributions.
Current Support: The monthly amount of child/spousal support ordered by a court.
Debt to the State: The amount of support owed to the State of Nebraska when a partial termination of the assignment is filed as a result of the ADC paid on behalf of the child(ren). The amount of the debt is the lesser of the following figures:
Department: The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.
Dependent Child: A child who is:
The child must be living in the home of a relative specified by law (see 468 NAC 2-006.02) or a legally appointed guardian or conservator unless removed from the home by judicial determination (see Title 479). For medical assistance, see 468 NAC 4-000.
Emancipated Minor: A child age 18 or younger who is considered an adult because s/he has:
Enumeration at Birth: The process of obtaining an SSN for a newborn by allowing the hospital to provide the Social Security Administration with the necessary information.
Equity: The fair market value of property minus the total amount owed on it.
Fair Market Value: The price an item of a particular make, model, size, material, or condition will sell for on the open market in the geographic area involved.
Final Termination of Assignment: The ending of an assignment of child/spousal support so that no additional funds will be transmitted to the Department by a court. A final termination is filed when an ADC case is closed, and no debt remains due to the State.
Fugitive Felon: A person who has been charged with a felony and who has fled from the jurisdiction of the court where the crime was committed.
Grant Case: A case receiving an ADC payment or eligible to receive payment but not receiving it because of the minimum payment.
Household: Individuals living together. There may be more than one public assistance unit within a household.
Inquiry: Any question received by phone, letter, or personal contact without any indication that the individual wishes to apply. This may or may not be followed by a request or application for assistance.
Intercept or Withholding Programs: Programs to capture benefits payable to an absent parent when the Department has identified a debt to the State or to the custodial parent. Intercept or withholding programs include:
Intentional Program Violation (IPV): Any action by an individual to intentionally:
Legal Guardian: An individual appointed by a court of competent jurisdiction to be in charge of the affairs of a person who cannot effectively manage his/her own affairs because of his/her age or incapacity.
Minimum Payment: The smallest amount for which a grant is issued. No grant is issued for $9.99 or less (for exceptions see 468 NAC 3-003).
Minor Parent: An individual age 18 or younger, with a child (see 468 NAC 2-007.01). If emancipated, a minor parent is treated as an adult for ADC/MA purposes.
Note: For treatment of child support when a noncustodial parent pays support for his/her child who is a minor parent, see 468 NAC 2-009.04A1.
Need: Economic need when referred to as a condition of eligibility.
Needy Individual: One whose income and other resources for maintenance are found under assistance standards to be insufficient for meeting the basic requirements, and to be within the resource limits allowed an individual (see also 468 NAC 2-008.08 and 2-009.01).
Partial Termination of Assignment: A filing with the clerk of the district court when -
Current support and any arrearage owed to the former client is paid first; any additional support is collected by the State to reimburse the debt to the State.
Payment Effective Date: The month, day, and year that the grant payment is to be effective.
Payment Month: The calendar month in which assistance is paid.
Payment Standard: The maximum grant payment that an ADC family may receive. In "gap" budgeting, net earned income is subtracted from the Standard of Need and the result is compared to the payment standard (see 468 NAC 3-000).
Pending Case: A case in which the application has been taken and eligibility is yet undetermined. All pending cases must be entered into N-FOCUS within two working days.
Power of Attorney: A written statement allowing one person to act for another person. A power of attorney may be authorized generally for the management of a specified business or enterprise or more often specifically for the accomplishment of a particular transaction. There is no court involvement or supervision in the appointment. The statement does not have to be notarized.
A standard or non-durable power of attorney automatically becomes null and void when the appointing individual becomes incompetent. A durable power of attorney continues in effect even when the appointing individual becomes incompetent. The power of attorney document should clearly specify if it is a durable power of attorney.
Prospective Budgeting: A procedure whereby the worker computes the amount of assistance for a payment month based on his/her best estimate of the client's income and circumstances which will exist in that month.
Prospective Eligibility: A procedure whereby the client's eligibility is based on the worker's best estimate of income, resources, and household composition for the payment month.
Prospective Eligibility for Medical Assistance (MA): The date of eligibility beginning the first day of the month of the date of request if the client was eligible for MA in that same month.
Prudent Person Principle: The practice of assessing all circumstances regarding case eligibility and using good judgment in requiring further verification or information before determining initial or continuing eligibility (see also 468 NAC 1-008).
Quarterly Report Form: A form that is sent quarterly to certain employed ADC households.
Recipient: An individual who is receiving ADC/MA.
Rejected Case: A case in which an application was completed and signed, but the applicant did not meet the categorical, procedural, or financial requirements of the program.
Request: An action by which an individual's desire to receive assistance is made known to the local office. A request may be made by telephone, letter, fax, electronic transmission or in person.
Request Date: The date the client requests assistance. For reopened cases, this is the date of the new request. For program changes, this is the request date for the new program (see 468 NAC 1-009.01).
Retroactive Eligibility for MA: The date of eligibility beginning no earlier than the first day of the third month before the month of request if the following conditions were met:
Retroactive Payment: Any payment made during the current month but for a prior month.
Specified Relative: A relative with whom a dependent child may live and receive assistance. See 468 NAC 2-006.02 for the list of specified relatives.
Spousal Support: Alimony or maintenance support for a spouse or former spouse.
Standard of Need: The initial income test in ADC "gap" budgeting against which net earned income is measured (see 468 NAC 3-000).
Subsidized Employment: Employment for which the salary is wholly or partially paid by a source other than the employer.
Supplemental Payment: Any payment made for and during the current month after N-FOCUS cutoff.
TANF: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. A block grant from the federal government which funds ADC, Employment First, Emergency Assistance, and some child care.
Third Party Medical Payment: A payment from any health insurance plan, individual, or group for medical expenses.
Third Trimester of Pregnancy: Three calendar months prior to the month in which the child is expected to be born and the month of birth.
Timely Notice: A notice of case action dated and mailed at least ten calendar days before the date the action becomes effective (see 468 NAC 1-009.03A ff.).
Transaction Month: The calendar month in which computation of payment is done.
Unit: Eligible individuals considered in determining the grant and/or medical assistance.
Unreimbursed Assistance: The total ADC paid by the State since February, 1976, minus any court-ordered child/spousal support collections received by the Department.
Unsubsidized Employment: Employment for which the salary is paid wholly by the employer.
Withdrawal: A voluntary written retraction of an application.
Work Experience: A component of Employment First that provides work experience for a mandatory participant of Employment First.
{6/28/11}