(a) The earned income deduction is not allowed in determining the overpayment amount when a recipient fails to report earned income in a timely manner.

(b) When the worker believes a household received an overissuance of food benefits, the worker documents the circumstances causing the overpayment and calculates the overpayment claim.  The food benefit claim is considered established when the overpayment notice is dated and mailed to the client.  • 1

(c) The worker and supervisor establish overpayment claims classified as inadvertent household error and less than $500, and all agency error claims regardless of the amount. Notices sent to the client include:

• (1) the Notification of Food Benefit Overpayment notice;
• (2) page 1 of Form 08OP005E, Report of Food Benefit Overissuance; and
• (3) Form 08OP118E, Food Benefit Repayment Agreement.

(d) Calculated overpayments that are $500 and over that are not due to agency error are not established until reviewed by staff in the Family Support Services Division (FSSD) Benefit Integrity and Recovery Section staff.  In most instances after calculation, FSSD staff sends these overpayments to the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) to determine fraudulent intent prior to establishing the overpayment.  • 2