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This topic contains information on the following subjects:
Incentives are rewards earned by states based upon their CSE program’s performance, which is measured in the following categories:
Unreimbursed Public Assistance (URPA/URPF) is the amount of Public Assistance that has been paid during the entire time that assistance was received MINUS the amount that has been collected and used to reimburse the State for that assistance. ACTS tracks the amount of URPA and URPF in separate subaccounts. The “URPA” subaccount is used for TANF cases and is associated with the client’s MPI number. The URPA balance is important in determining when the client or the State receives collections that are distributed to Public Assistance current support and arrearage subaccounts. The “URPF” subaccount is used for IV-E cases and is associated with the child’s MPI number.
The examples that follow show how URPA is calculated and how it is used to determine who receives the funds that are paid toward the current support and arrearage obligations. The same principles apply when URPF is calculated.
The client's URPA balance is calculated using this formula:
URPA = (Previous URPA Balance + Current Month's Grant) - (Amount Collected for Current Support + Amount Collected for Arrearages)
EXAMPLE 1 –
A TANF client is receiving a $250 monthly grant. The NCP in the case is ordered to pay $200/month toward current support (CSUP). The case has no arrearages.
1st Month: The NCP pays his/her $200 obligation.
Previous URPA Balance = $0
Current Month's Grant = $250
Amount Collected for CSUP = $200
Amount Collected for Arrearages= $0
URPA = ($0 + $250) - ($200 + $0); therefore, URPA = $50 at the end of the first month. The State receives the $200 that was collected from the NCP to reimburse the grant money that the client received.
2nd Month: The NCP pays $175 towards obligation.
Previous URPA Balance = $50
Current Month's Grant = $250
Amount Collected for CSUP = $175
Amount collected for Arrearages = $0
URPA = ($50 + $250) - ($175 + $0); therefore, URPA = $125 at the end of the second month. The State receives the entire $175 that was collected to reimburse the grant. The NCP owes $25 in arrearages to the State.
3rd Month: The NCP pays $200 towards obligation.
Previous URPA Balance = $125
Current Month's Grant = $250
Amount Collected for CSUP = $200
Amount Collected for Arrearages= $0
URPA = ($125 + $250) - ($200 + $0); therefore, URPA = $175 at the end of the third month. The State receives the entire $200 that was collected to reimburse the grant. The NCP still owes $25 in arrearages to the State.
4th Month: The NCP pays $225 towards obligation.
Previous URPA Balance = $175
Current Month's Grant = $250
Amount Collected for CSUP = $200
Amount Collected for Arrearages = $25
URPA = ($175 + $250) - ($200 + $25); therefore, URPA = $200 at the end of the fourth month. The State receives the entire $225 that was collected to reimburse the grant. The NCP owes $0 in arrearages in the State.
NOTE: When the monthly grant amount is GREATER THAN the amount of the ordered obligation, the client's URPA balance always increases, and any payments made by the NCP go to the State. Under DRA, if an arrearage subaccount exists with a frequency amount due that is payable to the client, ACTS applies the payment amount that exceeds the CSUP amount to that arrearage subaccount instead of to the State. If no arrears frequency due exists or it has been satisfied, ACTS distributes any excess funds accroding to the pre-defined distribution hierarchy, regardless of the URPA balance.
In the preceding example, the case has no NPA arrearages and no arrears frequency due, but it does have an URPA balance and an AFDC arrearage subaccount. Since no arrearage subaccount exists with a higher priority, the payment amount that exceeds the amount of CSUP is payable to the State.
EXAMPLE 2 –
A PA client, who was previously an NPA client, is receiving a $250 monthly grant. The NCP is ordered to pay $250/month for CSUP. When the client went on Public Assistance, she had a $500 unadjudicated NPA arrearage balance.
Under PRWORA, the NPAAU balance would have been converted to an unadjudicated PA arrearage balance that was payable to the State.
Under DRA, the assignment of support rights to the State is limited to the amount of support that accrues during the period that a family receives assistance. Any NPA arrearages that are owed to a client remain NPA arrearages and payable to the client, regardless of the URPA balance.
1st Month: The NCP pays $200 towards obligation.
Previous URPA Balance = $0
Current Month's Grant = $250
Amount Collected for CSUP = $200
Amount Collected for Arrearages = $0
URPA = ($0 + $250) - ($200 + $0); therefore, URPA = $50 at the end of the first month. The State receives the $200 that was collected to reimburse the grant.
Under PRWORA, the NCP's unadjudicated PA arrearage balance would have increased to $550.
Under DRA, the NCP's unadjudicated NPA arrearage subaccount remains the same, and ACTS creates an unadjudicated PA arrearage subaccount with a $50 balance.
2nd Month: The NCP pays $225 towards obligation.
Previous URPA Balance = $50
Current Month's Grant = $250
Amount Collected for CSUP = $225
Amount Collected for Arrearages = $0
URPA = ($50 + $250) - ($225 + $0); therefore, URPA = $75 at the end of the second month. The State receives the $225 that was collected to reimburse the grant.
Under PRWORA, the NCP's AFDCU subaccount balance would have increased to $575.
Under DRA, the NCP's unadjudicated NPA arrearage balance remains $500, and the unadjudicated PA arrearage balance increases to $75.
3rd Month: The NCP pays $200 towards obligation.
Previous URPA Balance = $75
Current Month's Grant = $250
Amount Collected for CSUP = $200
Amount Collected for Arrearages = $0
URPA = ($75 + $250) - ($200 + $0); therefore, URPA = $125 at the end of the third month. The State receives the $200 that was collected to reimburse the grant.
Under PRWORA, the NCP's unadjudicated AFDC arrearage balance would have increased to $625.
Under DRA, the NCP's unadjudicated NPA arrearage balance remains $500, and the unadjudicated PA arrearage balance increases to $125.
4th Month: The NCP pays $300 towards obligation.
Previous URPA Balance = $125
Current Month's Grant = $250
Amount Collected for CSUP = $250
Amount Collected for Arrearages= $50
URPA = ($125 + $250) - ($250 + $0); therefore, URPA = $125 at the end of the fourth month.
Under PRWORA, the State would have received the entire $300 that was collected to reimburse the current and past grant, and the NCP's unadjudicated AFDC arrearage balance and URPA balance would have been reduced to $575.
Under DRA, the State receives $250 for the current month's grant amount and CSUP. The remaining funds are paid to the next subaccount in the distribution hierarchy, which is the unadjudicated NPA arrearage. This balance decreases to $450, and the unadjudicated AFDC balance remains $125.
5th Month: The NCP pays $750 towards obligation.
Previous URPA Balance = $125
Current Month's Grant = $250
Amount Collected for CSUP = $250
Amount Collected for Arrearages = $200
URPA = ($125 + $250) - ($250 + $0); therefore, URPA = $125 at the end of the fifth month.
Under PRWORA, the State would have received $375; $250 for the current grant and $125 for the past grants that make up part of the arrearage balance. The NCP’s unadjudicated AFDC arrearage balance would have decreased to $0. The client would have received $125 of the arrearage payment because the URPA balance would have been $0.
Under DRA, the State receives $250 for the current month’s grant and CSUP. The remaining funds are distributed first to the NCP's subaccount balance with the next highest priority (unadjudicated NPA),
which reduces its balance to $0. The client receives $500. ACTS distributes the remaining funds to the NCP's subaccount balance with the next highest priority (unadjudicated AFDC), which reduces its balance to $75. The State receives $50, and the URPA balance is reduced to $75.
Once the URPA balance is $0.00, the payee for support changes from the State to the client. The State cannot keep more money than it has disbursed as grant to the client. See Distribution – PRWORA, Distribution – DRA, or the Current Rules of Distribution.
Effective October 1, 2000, URPA balances are split equally among cases when the client has multiple open cases.
NOTE: If the client has multiple cases and a case closes after the system has distributed the URPA balance, the system WILL NOT redistribute the URPA balance among the open cases. Local CSE caseworkers SHOULD NOT request an adjustment or attempt to redistribute URPA to open cases.
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For questions or clarification on any of the policy contained in these manuals, please contact your local county office. |
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