A person will be eligible for general assistance if he/she is in need and has complied with the eligibility requirements set forth below.
A. 
Initial application. For initial applicants, except as provided immediately below, need will be the sole condition of eligibility. The exception to this general rule, as provided by law, applies to all applicants, including initial applicants, who are disqualified for a defined period for quitting employment without just cause or for being discharged from employment for misconduct [22 M.R.S.A. § 4316-A(1-A), § 157-21 of this chapter]. An initial applicant is a person who has never before applied for general assistance in any municipality in Maine [22 M.R.S.A. § 4308(1)].
B. 
Need. "Need" means that the applicant's income (including pro-rated income, where applicable), property, credit, assets or other resources are less than the overall maximum level of assistance contained in § 157-32 or the applicant's thirty-day need, whichever is less, and he/she does not have adequate income or other resources available to provide basic necessities.
C. 
Subsequent applicants. Persons who are not initial applicants are repeat applicants. Repeat applicants are people who have applied for general assistance at any time in the past. Repeat applicants are also people on whose behalf a general assistance application was made at any time in the past, provided that at such a time the applicant was not a dependent minor in the household. For repeat applicants to be eligible for general assistance, they must be in need and meet all other eligibility requirements. The eligibility of repeat applicants may also be adversely affected to the extent they have not used their income and resources to secure basic necessities.
A. 
Receipt of categorical assistance will not disqualify a person from receiving general assistance, if he/she is otherwise eligible. Benefits received from other assistance programs will be considered as income when determining need, with the exception of food stamps, which will not be counted as income or resources or otherwise taken into consideration when determining need [7 U.S.C. § 2017(b)]. Also, any fuel assistance (HEAP/ECIP) received by an applicant will not be considered as income or resources; that is, the Administrator will always compute the heating needs of an applicant who has received HEAP or ECIP as if that applicant paid all costs associated with his/her fuel needs [42 U.S.C. § 8624(f)]. The computation of general assistance for heating energy needs when an applicant has received HEAP or ECIP shall be accomplished in accordance with Subsection C under types of income at § 157-30.
B. 
Applicants or recipients must apply for other program benefits within seven calendar days after being advised in writing to do so by the General Assistance Administrator. Persons who, without just cause, make no good-faith effort to secure a potential resource will be disqualified from receiving assistance until they make a good-faith effort to obtain the benefit (22 M.R.S.A. § 4317).
A. 
Liquid assets. No person owning assets easily convertible into cash, including, but not limited to, bank deposits, stocks, bonds, certificates of deposit and other marketable security, will be eligible for general assistance unless and until he/she uses these assets to meet his/her basic needs and thereby exhausts them.
B. 
Tangible assets. No person owning or possessing personal property consisting of more than one motor vehicle, or a boat, motor, trailer, recreation vehicle or other assets that are convertible into cash and are nonessential to the maintenance of the applicant's household will be eligible for general assistance. Exceptions may be made when a person is making an initial application and when reasonable efforts to convert assets to cash at fair market value are unsuccessful.
(1) 
Other examples of property which should be converted to cash if of significant value include: antiques, paintings, furs, jewelry, cameras, musical instruments, video and sound equipment, guns, fishing equipment, golf, tennis, other sport and fitness equipment, various collections, including stamps, coins, cards, glass, etc., exotic pets and equipment, etc.
(2) 
Tools of a trade, livestock, farm equipment and other equipment used for the production of income are exempt from the above category and are not considered available assets.
C. 
Automobile ownership. Ownership of one automobile per household will not make a person ineligible for assistance if such vehicle is essential for transportation to employment, medical care, rehabilitation or training facilities, or if it is essential to the maintenance of the applicant's household. Recipients of general assistance who own an automobile with a market value greater than $5,000 may be required, with written, thirty-day notice, to make a good-faith effort to trade that automobile in to a reputable automobile dealer for an automobile with a market value of less than $5,000. Any income received by the applicant by virtue of such a trade-down must be used for his/her basic necessities. Failure to liquidate or trade down the excess value of an automobile asset can result in disqualification (22 M.R.S.A. § 4317). The City will neither pay nor consider as necessary expenses any car payment for which the applicant is responsible. General assistance for travel-related needs shall be computed in accordance with § 157-32C(6)(f) and (g), regarding travel and work-related expenses.
D. 
Insurance. Insurance that is available to an applicant on a noncontributory basis or that is required as a condition of employment will not be a factor in determining eligibility for general assistance. Life insurance with a cash surrender value may be considered as a tangible asset when an applicant has received assistance for four weeks or more after an application for assistance.
E. 
Transfer of property. Applicants who transfer assets for less than fair market value to someone else solely for the purpose of establishing eligibility for general assistance will not be granted general assistance to replace the uncompensated value of the transferred assets. Assistance will be denied within a one-hundred-twenty-day limit up to the uncompensated value of the asset which was transferred unless the transfer of asset is fraudulently misrepresented, in which case, a one-hundred-twenty-day disqualification will be issued. There will be a presumption that the applicant transferred his/her assets in order to be eligible for general assistance whenever property is sold for less than the fair market value or when the transfer occurred within 30 days prior to applying for general assistance unless the applicant can demonstrate the existence of an arms-length transaction.
A. 
If the applicant or dependents own real property other than that occupied as the principal home, continued eligibility will depend on the applicant making a reasonable effort to:
(1) 
Dispose of the property at fair market value in order to convert the property into cash which can be applied toward meeting present need; or
(2) 
Obtain a loan against such property which may be used to meet present need.
B. 
Applicants who transfer their excess property to someone solely to appear eligible for general assistance will be ineligible.
C. 
If an applicant is granted assistance in the form of a mortgage payment or capital improvement payment, the City may claim a lien against the property. The lien shall not be enforceable until the time of sale of the property or upon the death of the recipient (22 M.R.S.A. § 4320; see also § 157-32).
A. 
All general assistance recipients are required to register for work, look for work, work to the extent of available employment, and otherwise fulfill the work requirements, unless the applicant is exempt from such requirements as provided below.
B. 
Employment; rehabilitation. All unemployed applicants and members of their households who are 16 years of age or older will be required to accept any suitable job offer or opportunity for rehabilitative services, except as provided below (see exemptions). Applicants must demonstrate to the Administrator that they are available for work and are actively seeking employment.
C. 
A "suitable job" means any job which the applicant is mentally and physically able to perform.
D. 
"Available for work" means that applicants must make themselves available for work during normal business hours prevailing in the area, and show that no circumstance exists which would prevent them from complying with the work requirement.
E. 
Verification of job search. Unemployed applicants or applicants employed on a part-time basis will be required to provide verifiable documentation of their pursuit of employment at the time of each application. At a minimum, such documentation shall consist of a list of the employers contacted, the date and time of the application contact, the name of the employer representative contacted and the job applied for. "Pursuit of employment" means actually submitting a written application or applying for a job in person when reasonable, or submitting a written application or letter of inquiry to employers. For the duration of any repeat applicant's period of unemployment or partial employment, the Administrator will establish the number of employers per week to whom each nonexempt applicant shall be required to apply in order to fulfill his/her work search requirements. The number of weekly employer contacts required by the Administrator shall be reasonably related to the number of potential employers in the region and the number of hours in the week the applicant has available for work search activities after considering all time the applicant must devote to existing employment obligations, workfare obligations, and required classroom or on-site participation in job training, educational, or rehabilitation programs. Fulfillment of these requirements will not be expected at the time of the initial application, but will be a condition of eligibility for subsequent assistance. The City will provide the applicant with a form to be used for the purpose of verification of job applications/searches and of employment. The completed form must be returned each week to maintain weekly eligibility and in some cases may be required daily.
F. 
Disqualification. After being granted assistance at the time of initial application, applicants will be considered ineligible for further assistance for 120 days if they, without just cause:
(1) 
Refuse to register for employment with the Maine Job Service;
(2) 
Refuse to search diligently for employment when the search is reasonable and appropriate. Recipients who unreasonably seek work at the same places repeatedly will not be considered to be performing a diligent work search and will be disqualified, as will persons falsifying their job search;
(3) 
Refuse to accept a suitable job offer;
(4) 
Refuse to participate in an assigned training, education or rehabilitation program that would assist the applicant in securing employment;
(5) 
Fail to be available for work;
(6) 
Refuse to participate or participate in a substandard manner in the municipal work program (see § 157-22).
G. 
Period of ineligibility for job quit or discharge for misconduct. No applicant, whether an initial or repeat applicant, who has quit his/her full-time or part-time job without just cause or who has been discharged from employment for misconduct will be eligible to receive general assistance of any kind for a one-hundred-twenty-day period from the date of separation from employment [22 M.R.S.A. §§ 4301(8), 4316-A(1-A)].
H. 
Just cause. Applicants will be ineligible for assistance for 120 days if they refuse to comply with the work requirements of this section without just cause. With respect to any work requirement, just cause will be considered to exist when there is reasonable and verifiable evidence furnished to the Administrator that:
(1) 
The applicant has a physical or mental illness or disability which prevents him/her from working;
(2) 
The work assignment pays below minimum wages;
(3) 
The applicant was subject to sexual harassment;
(4) 
The applicant is physically or mentally unable to perform required job tasks, or to meet piece work standards;
(5) 
The applicant has no means of transportation to or from work or a training or rehabilitation program;
(6) 
The applicant is unable to arrange for necessary child care or care of ill or disabled family members;
(7) 
Any reason found to be good cause by the Maine Department of Labor, or any other verifiable reason which the Administrator considers reasonable and appropriate will be accepted as just cause [22 M.R.S.A. § 4316-A(5)].
I. 
Applicant's burden of establishing just cause. If the Administrator finds that the applicant has violated a work-related rule without just cause, it shall be the responsibility of the applicant to establish the presence of just cause (22 M.R.S.A. § 4316-A).
J. 
Eligibility regained. Persons who are disqualified for 120 days because they violated the work requirement may regain their eligibility if and only when they become employed or otherwise satisfy the Administrator that they are complying with the work requirement by fulfilling the work requirement or requirements they violated.
K. 
For the purpose of regaining eligibility under §§ 157-21 and 157-22 of this chapter by becoming employed, "employment" shall mean employment by an employer as defined in 26 M.R.S.A. § 1043 et seq., or the performance of a service for an employer who withholds from the employee a social security tax pursuant to federal law.
L. 
The special provisions regarding the opportunity to regain eligibility after a disqualification for workfare violations are detailed in § 157-22 of this chapter, Subsection G, Eligibility regained.
M. 
Dependents. Failure of an otherwise eligible person to comply with the work requirements shall not affect the eligibility of any member of the person's household who is not capable of working, including:
(1) 
A dependent minor child;
(2) 
An elderly, ill, or disabled person; and
(3) 
A person whose presence is required in order to provide care for any child under six years of age or for any ill or disabled member of the household [22 M.R.S.A. § 4309(3)].
N. 
In the event one (or more) member(s) of a household is disqualified and assistance is requested for the remaining members of the household who are dependents, the eligibility of those dependents will be calculated as though the household is composed of the dependents only, except that all household income will be considered as available to them.
O. 
Exemptions. The above work requirements do not apply to any person who is elderly, physically or mentally ill or disabled. Any person whose presence is required to care for any pre-school-age child or for any ill or disabled member of the household is also exempt from these requirements.
P. 
The requirements of this section will not be imposed so as to interfere with an applicant's existing employment, ability to pursue a bona fide job offer, ability to attend an interview for possible employment, classroom or on-site participation in a primary or secondary educational program intended to lead to a high school diploma, classroom participation in a training program which is either approved or determined by the Department of Labor to be expected to assist the applicant in securing employment, or classroom participation in a degree-granting program operated under the control of the Department of Health and Human Services or Department of Labor.
Q. 
Verification. The applicant will be required to provide verifiable documentation of any of the aforestated exemptions from work requirement participation and to provide notice in advance of occurrence. The applicant will furnish copies of any agreements, plans, contracts, etc. for educational, training, or rehabilitative services entered into with or provided by any municipal, county, state or federal agency. Any supportive services or aid, financial or otherwise, available to the applicant will be reported and verified when applied for and when received. Schedules for participation and verification of attendance on a weekly or daily basis will be required. This Subsection Q applies to both work requirements and the municipal work program (see § 157-22).
R. 
A person who indicates on his/her application or on his/her municipal work order that he/she is physically or mentally unable or is limited in his/her ability to fulfill any work requirements, including any bona fide employment, or to participate in the workfare program will be required to provide verification of his/her condition from a physician within 48 hours. A person who fails to complete any work requirements or workfare assigned and claims to be sick more than two consecutive days or who makes repetitive claims of illness over a period of time will be required to provide medical verification as to his/her condition from a physician. The City will pay for the examination if the applicant has no means to pay, in which case, the Administrator will choose the physician and may refer the applicant to free or reduced-cost medical services available. The Administrator will not require verification of medical conditions which are apparent or which are of such short duration that a reasonable person would not ordinarily seek medical attention [22 M.R.S.A. § 4316-A(5)]. This Subsection R applies to both work requirements and the municipal work program (see § 157-22).
A. 
Each applicant and any member of the household who is capable of working may be required to perform work for the City, including work for a nonprofit organization, as a condition of receiving assistance. The municipality may also require recipients, as a part of the municipal work program, to participate in training, education or rehabilitative programs that will assist the recipient in securing employment [22 M.R.S.A. § 4316-A(2)]. The work requirement provisions found in § 157-21 regarding just cause, dependents, exemptions and verification also apply to the municipal work program. A person's performance obligations and conduct requirements in fulfilling workfare assignments will be considered comparable to those inherent in bona fide employment. Persons participating in the City work program are not compensated for work performed.
B. 
Consent/Work order. Persons assigned to the work program are required to sign a form stating that they understand the requirements of general assistance and the work program (workfare). Prior to signing the form, the Administrator will read it to the applicants or the applicants will read it themselves. The form will also state the dates and the number of hours the applicants must work or attend training or educational programs, the job or training site and the hourly rate by means of which the duration of the work assignment is calculated. In addition, the consent form shall describe the consequences of failing to adequately perform part or all of the workfare or workfare-first assignment.
C. 
Limitations. The municipal program work requirements are subject to the following limitations [22 M.R.S.A. § 4316-A(2) and (3)]:
(1) 
No person shall, as a condition of eligibility, be required to do any amount of work that exceeds the value of the net general assistance that the person receives under municipal general assistance standards. Any person performing work under this subsection shall be provided with net general assistance, the value of which is computed at a rate of at least the prevailing minimum wage under state or federal law. (Note: The federal minimum wage is $4.75/hour as of October 1, 1996, and shall be increased to $5.15/hour on September 1, 1997.[1])
[1]
Editor's Note: The federal minimum wage was last updated in 2009 to $7.25/hour.
(2) 
No workfare participant shall be required to work for a nonprofit organization if that work would violate the participant's basic religious beliefs;
(3) 
In no case shall eligible persons performing work under this subsection replace regular municipal employees.
(4) 
In no case will work performed under this subsection interfere with an eligible person's:
(a) 
Existing employment;
(b) 
Ability to follow up on a bona fide job offer;
(c) 
Attendance at an interview for possible employment;
(d) 
Classroom participation in a primary or secondary educational program intended to lead to a high school diploma; or
(e) 
Classroom or on-site participation in a training program which is approved or determined by the Department of Labor to be reasonably expected to assist the person in securing employment or classroom participation in a degree-granting program operated under the control of the Department of Health and Human Services or the Department of Labor.
(5) 
In no case may an eligible person be required to work more than 40 hours per week. An eligible person who has full- or part-time employment shall be exempt from the work requirement to the extent that the work requirement in combination with his/her regular employment would result in the person working more than 40 hours per week.
(6) 
In no case will an eligible person be required to perform work beyond his/her capabilities. However, when an illness or disability is claimed, an eligible person will be required, as a condition of receiving assistance, to present a doctor's statement detailing the extent of the disability or illness (22 M.R.S.A. § 4309). If the Administrator requires a doctor's statement to verify an applicant's illness or disability, the municipality will pay for the doctor's evaluation if the applicant cannot access free or reduced-cost services and has no means to pay for the exam; however, in such a case the Administrator will choose the doctor. The Administrator will not require verification of medical conditions which are apparent or which are of such short duration that a reasonable person would not ordinarily seek medical attention [22 M.R.S.A. § 4316-A(5)]. The receipt of SSI benefits, VA benefits, etc., is not sufficient evidence to constitute inability to participate in a municipal workfare program. Workfare programs can be structured to accommodate the individual abilities of most clients and, in most instances, can be considered beneficial to health and well being as well as rehabilitative. Good work habits can be developed, training acquired and work references acquired.
(7) 
In no case may an eligible person with an immediate need (i.e., a person in an emergency situation who has not been disqualified from receiving assistance for committing a program violation) be required to perform work under this subsection prior to receiving general assistance. The Administrator shall meet immediate needs upon receiving written assurance from the eligible person that he/she is willing to work to maintain eligibility for general assistance. When the recipient has no immediate need, workfare participation may be required prior to receiving general assistance in accordance with the following "workfare first" policy.
D. 
"Workfare first" policy. Under the authority of 22 M.R.S.A. § 4316-A(2)(D), the Administrator may, in accordance with the following guidelines, require a recipient of general assistance to perform a workfare assignment prior to the actual issuance of the general assistance benefit conditionally granted.
(1) 
In no circumstance will emergency general assistance for which an applicant is eligible be withheld pending the satisfactory performance of workfare.
(2) 
All workfare participants under this policy will be provided a written decision, as otherwise required by law, within 24 hours of submitting an application for general assistance and prior to performing any workfare for the municipality associated with that request for assistance. That written decision must include:
(a) 
A specific description of the amount of general assistance being conditionally granted to the household, and for which basic needs;
(b) 
The period of eligibility for which the general assistance grant is being issued (in days or weeks, but not to exceed 30 days);
(c) 
The rate, at a dollar-per-hour basis (but not less than the prevailing minimum wage), upon which the duration of the workfare assignment is calculated;
(d) 
The actual duration of the workfare assignment that must be performed, in hours, before the general assistance grant will be actually issued;
(e) 
The specifics of the workfare assignment(s), including the general nature of the type of work being assigned, location(s) of work-site, date(s) and time(s) of assigned workfare, workfare supervisors, names and contact telephone numbers; and
(f) 
Any other pertinent information related to the workfare assignment(s) the recipient will be expected to perform.
(3) 
As previously provided in this section, all workfare participants under this policy must sign a consent form that informs the participant of his/her workfare-related rights and responsibilities, including the consequences of failing to perform all or part of the workfare assigned without just cause.
(4) 
In addition to any disqualification penalty that may apply, the consequences of refusing to perform or completely failing to perform the workfare assignment, without just cause, or performing the entire workfare assignment below the average standards of that job without just cause, will be the termination of the entire general assistance grant. Notice of the grant termination will be provided the workfare participant in accordance with § 157-33 of this chapter.
(5) 
If some of the workfare-first assignment is satisfactorily performed but there has been a failure to perform the remainder of the assignment, without just cause, the Administrator shall issue a grant of general assistance in the amount of the number of workfare hours satisfactorily performed times the hourly rate used to calculate the duration of the workfare assignment. In addition to any disqualification penalty that may apply, the remaining value of the conditionally issued general assistance grant shall be terminated, and notice of the partial termination, and the reasons therefor, will be issued to the workfare participant in accordance with § 157-33 of this chapter.
(6) 
Any amount of the workfare assignment that is not performed because the workfare participant was temporarily unable to perform the assignment for just-cause reasons shall be reassigned.
E. 
Work-related expenses. A participant's expenses related to work performed under this subsection will be added to the amount of net general assistance to be provided to the person [22 M.R.S.A. § 4316-A(2)(E)]. The City will provide any special clothes or equipment the recipient needs to perform his/her work assignment.
F. 
Disqualification. Any person who willfully fails to perform or willfully performs below average standards the work assigned by the City, without just cause, will be ineligible for either regular or emergency assistance for 120 days [22 M.R.S.A. § 4316-A(1)]. As soon as the Administrator knows that a recipient failed to fulfill the work assignment, the Administrator will notify the recipient that he/she is disqualified for 120 days unless the recipient can show just cause.
(1) 
The burden of demonstrating a just-cause failure to perform a workfare assignment falls on the workfare participants.
(2) 
Persons who are disqualified for violations of the work requirement or the municipal work program are not eligible for any form of general assistance, including emergency assistance, during the period of time for which the person is disqualified, nor will any person be retroactively eligible for general assistance to cover a debt for a basic necessity incurred during a period of time for which that person has been disqualified [M.R.S.A. § 4308(2)(A)].
(3) 
Dependents in the household may continue to be eligible (see § 157-21M, Dependents).
G. 
Eligibility regained. Recipients who are disqualified from receiving assistance because they have violated the requirements of the municipal work program may regain their eligibility under the following conditions:
(1) 
If during the one-hundred-twenty-day disqualification period the recipient makes a timely and reasonable request to perform the work assignment which he/she, without just cause, failed to perform, the disqualified recipient will be given one opportunity to regain eligibility. The Administrator will give the recipient a work assignment as soon as possible.
(2) 
Recipients who have asked to regain their eligibility during a one-hundred-twenty-day disqualification period and who agreed to fulfill the assignment which they previously failed to perform and who, without just cause, again fail to fulfill their municipal work assignment will be considered to have acted in bad faith. In such a circumstance, the Administrator will enforce the one-hundred-twenty-day disqualification for the term of its initial duration.
(3) 
If a workfare participant regains eligibility under this section but is subsequently disqualified within the initial one-hundred-twenty-day period of disqualification for failing to comply with the municipal work program, that participant will be ineligible for a new one-hundred-twenty-day period beginning with the new disqualification date, but with no opportunity to requalify.
(4) 
Assistance issued to workfare participants who were disqualified but regained eligibility will commence at the point in time eligibility is regained. The recipient is not eligible for assistance applicable to any period during which he/she was disqualified.
(5) 
Any recipient who intentionally causes damage to property or harms or endangers other employees by his/her actions and is discharged by the work supervisor will not be entitled to regain eligibility by returning to the work program. Eligibility may be regained by otherwise becoming employed and meeting the definition of need (see § 157-21 for definition of becoming employed).
(6) 
Persons who establish just cause for failure to fulfill work assignments are not disqualified and remain eligible for assistance. When appropriate, the work assignment(s) missed will be reassigned at a later date during the eligibility period.
H. 
Reports. The Administrator will itemize the assistance that has been provided to persons who work for the municipality in reports in the Department of Health and Human Services [22 M.R.S.A. § 4316-A(2)].
A. 
Each applicant has the responsibility to make a good-faith effort to secure every available or potential resource which may reduce his/her need for general assistance (see definition of "resources" in § 157-3). People who refuse or fail to make a good-faith effort to utilize a potential resource after receiving a written seven-day notice to do so are disqualified from receiving assistance until they make an effort to secure the resource. Applicants are required to prove that they have made a good-faith effort to secure the resource (22 M.R.S.A. § 4317).
B. 
Minors.
(1) 
A minor under the age of 18 who has never married and is applying independently for general assistance and who is pregnant or has a dependent child or children will be eligible to receive general assistance only if the minor is residing in the home of his/her parent, legal guardian or other adult relative, in which case the entire household will be evaluated for eligibility. Exceptions to this limitation on eligibility will be made when:
(a) 
The minor is residing in a foster home, maternity home, or other adult-supervised supportive living arrangement; or
(b) 
The minor has no living parent or the whereabouts of the parents are unknown; or
(c) 
No parent will permit the minor to live in the parent's home; or
(d) 
The minor has lived apart from both parents for at least one year before the birth of any dependent child; or
(e) 
The Department of Health and Human Services determines that the physical or emotional health or safety of the minor or the minor's dependent child or children would be jeopardized if the minor and his/her child or children lived with a parent; or
(f) 
The Department of Health and Human Services determines, in accordance with its regulation, that there is good cause to waive this limitation on eligibility [22 M.R.S.A. § 4309(4)].
(2) 
Any person under the age of 25 who is applying independently from his/her parents for general assistance will be informed that until he/she reaches the age of 25, the applicant's parents are still legally liable for his/her support (19 M.R.S.A. §§ 441 through 443[1]) and the municipality has the right to seek recovery from the parents of the cost of all assistance granted to such an applicant to the extent his/her parents are financially capable of repaying the municipality (22 M.R.S.A. § 4319). With regard to any such application, the City may seek verification of the applicant's need for general assistance by contacting his/her parents (City of Bangor v. DHS, Penob. Cty #CV-90-28). If the applicant's parents declare a willingness to provide the applicant with his/her basic needs directly, and there is no convincing evidence that the applicant would be jeopardized by relying on his/her parents for basic needs, the Administrator may find the applicant to be in no need for general assistance for the reason that his/her needs are being provided by a legally liable relative.
[1]
Editor's Note: 19 M.R.S.A. § 441 was repealed by L. 1995, C. 694, § B-1, effective 10-1-1997; 19 M.R.S.A. §§ 442 and 443 were repealed by L. 1991, C. 376, §§ 29 and 30, effective 6-18-1991.
C. 
Mental or physical disability. Any applicant who has a mental or physical disability must make a good-faith effort to utilize any medical or rehabilitative services which have been recommended by a physician, psychologist or other professional retraining or rehabilitation specialist when the services are available to the applicant and would not constitute a financial burden or create a physical risk to the individual.
D. 
Written notice; disqualification.
(1) 
The Administrator will give each applicant written notice whenever the applicant is required to utilize any potential resources. Any applicant who refuses to utilize potential resources, without just cause, after receiving a written seven-day notice will be ineligible for further assistance, including emergency assistance, until he/she has made a good-faith effort to utilize the resources.
(2) 
General assistance will not be withheld from the applicant pending receipt of a resource if the applicant has made, or is in the process of making, a good-faith effort to obtain the resource.
E. 
Forfeiture of benefits. Any applicant who forfeits receipt of or causes a reduction in benefits from another public assistance program due to fraud, misrepresentation, or a knowing or intentional violation of program rules or a refusal to comply with that program's rules without just cause will be ineligible to receive general assistance to replace the forfeited benefits. To the extent the forfeited benefits can be considered income under general assistance law, the worth of the forfeited benefits will be considered income that is available to the applicant for the duration of the forfeiture. To the extent the forfeited benefits were provided not in the form of income but, rather, in the form of specific, regularly issued resources of a calculable value, that resource, up to its forfeited value, need not be replaced with general assistance for a period of 120 days from the date of the forfeiture unless the municipality is prohibited by federal or state law from considering the forfeited resource as available with respect to local public assistance programs (22 M.R.S.A. § 4317).
A. 
No one will have his/her assistance terminated, reduced, or suspended prior to being given written notice and an opportunity for a fair hearing (22 M.R.S.A. §§ 4321, 4322). Each person will be notified in writing of the reasons for his/her ineligibility or disqualification and of the period of ineligibility or disqualification. He/She will also be notified that disqualifications are effective statewide and disqualified recipients are not to be found eligible for general assistance anywhere in the state unless the disqualification is lifted by the municipality which initiated the disqualification.
B. 
As stated in 22 M.R.S.A. § 4308(2)(A), persons who are disqualified for violations stated in this section are not eligible for any form of general assistance, including emergency assistance, during the period of time for which the person is disqualified; nor will any person be retroactively eligible for general assistance to cover a debt for a basic necessity incurred during a period of time for which that person has been disqualified.
C. 
Work requirement. People who do not comply with a work requirement are disqualified from receiving assistance for a period of 120 days (unless they regain their eligibility; see §§ 157-21, 157-22). People who do not comply with the work requirement associated with their grant of assistance and are disqualified before the period covered by the grant of assistance expires shall be disqualified for 120 days following the end of the period covered by the assistance grant. People who do not comply with a work requirement and are disqualified after the period covered by the grant of assistance expires will be disqualified for 120 days from the date of the written notice of disqualification. The Administrator shall give recipients written notice that they are disqualified as soon as the Administrator has sufficient knowledge and information to render a decision of disqualification.
D. 
Use of resources. See § 157-23. Disqualification continues until a good-faith effort is made to utilize the resources.
E. 
Forfeiture of benefits. See § 157-23. The worth of the forfeited benefit is considered available income for 120 days.
F. 
Fraud. People who commit fraud are disqualified from receiving assistance for a period of 120 days. (See § 157-28, Fraud.) The Administrator will notify recipients in writing that they are disqualified as soon as the Administrator has sufficient knowledge and information to render a decision. If a disqualification for fraud is issued before the expiration of a grant of assistance, the period of disqualification shall commence on the day following the end of the period covered by the grant of assistance or on the day the fair hearing authority renders its decision, whichever is later. If fraud is discovered after the period covered by the grant of assistance has expired, the period of ineligibility will commence on the day of the written notice of disqualification.