[Adopted 11-13-2013 by Ord. No. 13-08. Amendments noted where applicable.]
Unless otherwise apparent or defined, all words in this title
will have their common meanings.
As used in this Title, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
A person who has submitted, either directly or through an
authorized representative, an application for general assistance or
who has, in an emergency, requested assistance without first completing
an application. In addition, all persons on whose behalf an authorized
application has been submitted or on whose behalf benefits have been
granted shall be considered applicants.
A standardized form used by the general assistance administrator
for the purpose of allowing a person to apply for general assistance
and confirming the fact that a person has made application. The application
form must be signed by the applicant to be considered complete.
Food, clothing, shelter, fuel, electricity, nonelective essential
medical services as prescribed by a physician, nonprescription drugs,
basic telephone service where it is necessary for medical reasons,
property taxes when a tax lien placed on the property threatens the
loss of the applicant's place of residence, and any other commodity
or service determined essential by the municipality.
"Basic necessities" do not include:
Phone bills.
Cable or satellite dish television.
Mail orders.
Vehicle payments.
Credit card debt**.
Furniture.
Loan repayments**.
Cigarettes.
Alcohol.
Pet care costs.
Vacation costs.
Legal fees.
Late fees.
Key deposits.
Security deposits for rental property (except for those situations
where no other permanent lodging is available unless a security deposit
is paid, and a waiver, deferral or installment arrangement cannot
be made between the landlord and tenant to satisfy the need for the
immediate payment of the security deposit or payment in full) [22
M.R.S.A. § 4301(1)].
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**
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Repayments of loans or credit will be treated as having been
spent on basic necessities when the applicant can provide verification
of this fact.
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An official file containing application forms; correspondence;
narrative records and all other communications pertaining to an applicant
or recipient; written decision regarding eligibility, including reasons
for those decisions as well as the types and amounts of assistance
provided; and all records concerning an applicant's request for fair
hearing and those fair hearing decisions.
All state and federal income maintenance programs.
A person who has requested a fair hearing.
An applicant's deficit is the appropriate overall maximum level of assistance for the household as provided in § 11.6.8 of this title less the household income as calculated pursuant to § 11.6.7 of this title, provided such a calculation yields a positive number. If the household income is greater than the appropriate overall maximum level of assistance, the household has no deficit.
A person who is presently unable to work or maintain a home
due to a physical or mental disability that is verified by a physician
or qualified mental health provider.
A building or part thereof used for separate living quarters
for one or more persons living as a single housekeeping unit [22 M.R.S.A.
§ 4301(2)].
A person who is qualified to receive general assistance from
the municipality according to the standards of eligibility set forth
in this title [22 M.R.S.A. § 4301(3)]. "Eligible person"
does not include a fugitive from justice as defined in 15 M.R.S.A.
§ 201(4).
Any life-threatening situation or a situation beyond the
control of the individual which, if not alleviated immediately, could
reasonably be expected to pose a threat to the health or safety of
a person. At the municipality's option, a situation which is
imminent and which may result in undue hardship or unnecessary cost
to the individual or municipality if not resolved immediately. [22
M.R.S.A. §§ 4301(4), 4308(2), 4310].
A municipal official designated to receive applications,
make decisions concerning an applicant's right to receive assistance,
and prepare records and communications concerning assistance. He or
she may be an elected overseer or an authorized agent such as a town
manager, welfare director, or caseworker [22 M.R.S.A. § 4301(12)].
A service administered by a municipality for the immediate
aid of persons who are unable to provide the basic necessities essential
to maintain themselves or their families. A general assistance program
provides a specific amount and type of aid for defined needs during
a limited period of time and is not intended to be a continuing "grant-in-aid"
or "categorical" welfare program. This definition shall not in any
way lessen the responsibility of each municipality to provide general
assistance to a person each time that the person is in need and is
found to be otherwise eligible to receive general assistance [22 M.R.S.A.
§ 4301(5)].
An individual or a group of individuals who share a dwelling
unit. When an applicant shares a dwelling unit with one or more individuals,
even when a landlord-tenant relationship may exist between individuals
residing in the dwelling unit, eligible applicants may receive assistance
for no more than their pro rata share of the actual costs of the shared
basic needs of that household according to the maximum levels of assistance
established in the municipal ordinance. The pro rata share is calculated
by dividing the maximum level of assistance available to the entire
household by the total number of household members. The income of
household members not legally liable shall be considered as available
to the applicant only when there is a pooling of income [22 M.R.S.A.
§ 4301(6)].
Any form of income in cash or in kind received by the household,
including:
Net remuneration for services performed.
Cash received on either secured or unsecured credit.
Payments received as an annuity, retirement or disability benefits.
Veterans' pensions and/or benefits.
Retirement accounts or benefits.
Workers' compensation.
Unemployment benefits.
Federal and/or state tax returns.
Benefits under any state or federal categorical assistance program
such as TANF, Supplemental Security Income, Social Security and any
other payments from governmental sources (unless specifically prohibited
by any law or regulation).
Court ordered support payments, e.g., child support.
Income from pension or trust funds.
Household income from any other source, including relatives
or unrelated household members.
Student loans.
Rental income.
The following items shall not be considered as income or assets
that must be liquidated for the purposes of deriving income:
Real or personal income-producing property, tools of trade,
governmental entitlement specifically treated as exempt assets by
state or federal law;
Actual work-related expenses, whether itemized or by standard
deduction, such as taxes, retirement fund contributions, union dues,
transportation costs to and from work, special equipment costs and
child care expenses; or
Earned income of children below the age of 18 years who are
full-time students and who are not working full time.
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In determining need, the period of time used as a basis for
the calculation shall be a thirty-day period commencing on the date
of the application. This prospective calculation shall not disqualify
an applicant who has exhausted income to purchase basic necessities,
provided that the income does not exceed the income standards established
by the municipality [22 M.R.S.A. § 4301(7)].
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Certain public benefit programs are specifically exempt from
being counted as income for purposes of GA. These programs include:
Food stamps [7 U.S.C. § 2017(b)].
Li-Heap (42 U.S.C. § 8624).
Family development accounts (22 M.R.S. § 3762).
Americorp VISTA program benefits [42 U.S.C. § 5044(f)].
Property tax rebates issued under the Maine Property Tax Fairness
Credit program, only so long as the money is spent on basic necessities
[22 M.R.S.A. § 4301(7)].
ASPIRE support service payments (10-144 CMR Chapter 323).
A person who has not applied for assistance in this or any
other municipality is considered an initial applicant.
A valid, verifiable reason that hinders an individual from
complying with one or more conditions of eligibility or from attending
a scheduled fair hearing [22 M.R.S.A. §§ 4301(8), 4316-A(5)].
A one-time or typically nonrecurring sum of money issued
to an applicant or recipient. Lump sum payment includes, but is not
limited to, retroactive or settlement portions of social security
benefits, workers' compensation payments, unemployment benefits,
disability income, veterans' benefits, severance pay benefits,
or money received from inheritances, lottery winnings, personal injury
awards, property damage claims or divorce settlements. A lump sum
payment includes only the amount of money available to the applicant
after payment of required deductions has been made from the gross
lump sum payment. A lump sum payment does not include conversion of
a nonliquid resource to a liquid resource if the liquid resource has
been used or is intended to be used to replace the converted resource
or for other necessary expenses [22 M.R.S.A. § 4301(8-A)].
A fact that necessarily has some bearing on the determination
of an applicant's general assistance eligibility, and which would,
if disclosed to the administrator, have some determinable effect on
the calculation of eligibility or the issuance of a grant of assistance.
The amount of financial assistance for a commodity or service as established in § 11.6.8 of this title or the actual cost of any such basic necessity, whichever is less.
For purposes of the GA work requirement (see 22 M.R.S.A.
§ 4316-A) misconduct shall have the same meaning as misconduct
defined in 26 M.R.S.A. § 1043(23). (See Appendix I of this
title for the official definition of "misconduct.")[1] Generally, employees are guilty of misconduct when the
employee violates his or her duties or obligations to the employer.
Employees who engage in a pattern of irresponsible behavior to the
detriment of the employer's interest may also be found guilty
of misconduct.
Any city, town or plantation administering a general assistance
program.
The municipality which is financially liable for the support
of an eligible person at the time of application [22 M.R.S.A. §§ 4301(9),
4307].
The condition whereby a person's income, money, property,
credit, assets or other resources available to provide basic necessities
for the individual and the individual's family are less than
the maximum levels of assistance [22 M.R.S.A. §§ 4301(10),
4308].
Those direct costs incurred by a municipality in providing
assistance to eligible persons according to standards established
by the municipal officers. These do not include the administrative
expenses of the general assistance program [22 M.R.S.A. §§ 4301(11),
4311].
The time for which a person has been granted assistance.
The period of eligibility may vary depending on the type of assistance;
provided, however, in no event shall this period extend beyond one
month [22 M.R.S.A. § 4309(1)].
The financial relationship among household members who are
not legally liable for mutual support in which there occurs any commingling
of funds or sharing of income or expenses. Municipalities may by ordinance
establish as a rebuttable presumption that persons sharing the same
dwelling unit are pooling their income. Applicants who are requesting
that the determination of eligibility be calculated as though one
or more household members are not pooling their income have the burden
of rebutting the presumed pooling of income.
Any land, buildings, homes, mobile homes and any other things
affixed to the land [22 M.R.S.A. § 4301(13)].
A person who has applied for and is currently receiving general
assistance.
All applicants for general assistance that are not initial
applicants are repeat applicants. For purposes of this title, "repeat"
and "subsequent" shall have the same meaning.
A person who is physically present in a municipality with
the intention of remaining in that municipality in order to maintain
or establish a home and who has no other residence. A person who applies
for assistance in a municipality who is not a resident of that municipality
or any other municipality is the responsibility of the municipality
where the person first applies. That municipality must take an application
and grant assistance to the applicant if he/she is eligible, until
he/she establishes a new residence in another municipality (22 M.R.S.A. § 4307).
Include any program, service, or other sources of support which
are an alternative to or supplement for general assistance. There
are two kinds of resources: "available" and "potential." Potential
resources are programs, services, nonliquid assets, or trusts that
typically require people to apply, in writing, and/or wait a period
of time before eligibility is determined or the potential income is
released.
Potential resources include, but are not limited to, any state
or federal assistance program, employment benefits, governmental or
private pension program, available trust funds, support from legally
liable relatives, child support payments, and jointly held resources
where the applicant or recipient share may be available to the individual
(22 M.R.S.A. § 4317). Potential resources include the TANF
(previously known as AFDC) program, food stamps, fuel assistance (HEAP),
subsidized housing, and similar programs.
Available resources include resources which are immediately
available to the applicant or which can be conveniently secured by
the applicant without delay, such as cash on hand or in bank accounts,
assets for which there is an immediate and available market, or support
from relatives which is being made available at the time of application
and for which the applicant does not have to take any unreasonable
steps to secure (e.g., relocation beyond the immediate region). At
the discretion of the GA administrator, a necessary minimum balance
required by a financial institution in order to obtain free checking
or in order to maintain the account shall not be considered an available
resource.
The municipal GA administrator reserves the right to inform
GA clients of services, commodities or facilities made available by
private organizations or charities. Although GA applicants/recipients
may be informed of the existence of a charitable resource and/or organization,
GA eligibility shall not be based or conditioned on the use of a private
charitable resource(s).
An applicant's thirty-day need is the sum of the household's
prospective thirty-day costs, from the date of application, for the
various basic necessities. For the purpose of this calculation, the
thirty-day cost for any basic need shall be the household's actual
thirty-day cost for the basic necessity or the maximum thirty-day
cost for the basic necessity as established by this title, whichever
is less.
Repeat applicants who have not applied for assistance within
the last 12 months and who have been regularly employed or receiving
support from a public benefit or private source and who have unexpectedly
become unemployed through no fault of their own or whose benefits
(e.g., through an available resource) have ceased through no fault
of their own.
An applicant's unmet need is the household's thirty-day need as established by § 11.6.6 of this title less the household income as calculated pursuant to § 11.6.7 of this title, provided such a calculation yields a positive number. If the household income is greater than the household's thirty-day need, the household does not have an unmet need.
Those obligations the municipal administrator places on applicants
for general assistance as directed and/or authorized by 22 M.R.S.A.
§ 4316-A to the extent such obligations ensure a continuing
potential eligibility for general assistance when complied with, result
in ineligibility when violated, and are not merely optional, discretionary,
or advisory. Work requirements include registering for work, looking
for work in good faith, accepting all suitable job offers, maintaining
employment, performing workfare, and participating in training, educational,
or rehabilitation programs that will assist the participant in securing
employment.
[1]
Editor's Note: Appendix I is included as an attachment
to this chapter.
