Work First 105A – WORK FIRST 24-month TIME LIMIT

II. STARTING THE 24-MONTH TIME CLOCK

Families are subject to the 24-month time limit on Work First benefits when they:

• Are receiving Work First Family Assistance with a payment type of 1, 2, or S (or services that meet the definition of assistance); and
• Have a work eligible adult with a work registration code of A, B, C, L, Q, or W; and
• Have a work eligible individual open and active in EPIS; and

NOTE: In some cases a work eligible individual may have been removed from the case in EIS due to noncooperation with Child Support and may be subject to the time limit but not active in EPIS.

• Are receiving supportive services or the county is attempting to work with the participant. (For months in which a participant did not complete any hours of participation, the county must have documentation of the county’s efforts to provide Employment Services in order for the months to count against the 24-month limit.)

No other type of family is subject to the 24-month time limit on Work First Family Assistance benefits; however, they are still subject to the 60-month lifetime limit. North Carolina began counting cases on the 24-month time clock effective August 1996. Do not count months a family received benefits prior to this date.

Begin counting the 24-month time limit on Work First benefits in the month following the date an individual is activated in EPIS. A system-generated notification letter (DSS- 5290) is sent to the family informing them about the 24-month time limit and identifying the month their 24-month time clock starts.

EXAMPLE: A work eligible individual began participating in Employment Services and was activated in EPIS in July. The family is notified automatically, and EIS begins tracking their 24-month time limit in August.

When appropriate, EIS also tracks the required 36-month break in Work First (following termination).

EIS indicates the number of months a family has been subject to the 24-month time limit. Complete an inquiry into the Eligibility Tracking (ET) screen in EIS to determine the status of a family's time clock.