General SNAP Work Requirements

(A) Mandatory Requirements. Nonexempt household members between 16 and 59 years of age must: (1) Register for work at application and every 12 months after initial registration; (2) Provide information to the Department regarding employment status or job availability when requested; (3) Report to an employer when the Department has made a referral and the work meets the suitablity requirements as provided in 106 CMR 362.330(A)(3); (4) Accept a legitimate offer of suitable employment as described at 106 CMR 362.330(A)(3); and (5) Not voluntarily, and without good cause, quit a job of 30 or more hours a week or reduce work hours hours to less than 30 hours a week in accordance with Voluntary Quit provisions found at 106 CMR 362.340. (B) Voluntary SNAP Employment and Training Participation. If a slot is available, SNAP recipients may volunteer to participate in a SNAP Employment and Training Program (SNAP E&T) component that is approved by the Department and is consistent with the Department's federally approved Employment and Training Plan. Volunteer SNAP E&T participants are expected to: (1) Complete the SNAP E&T enrollment form; (2) Attend a SNAP E&T interview; (3) Begin participating through the E&T vendor; (4) Provide verification of participation if requested on a form approved by the Department; (5) Participate in all E&T component activities; (6) Take part in vendor-assisted job search activities; and (7) Accept and maintain an offer of employment as described by at 106 CMR 362.330(A)(3). Voluntary participants in an employment and training component will not be disqualified for failure to comply with employment and training requirements. (C) Exemptions from General SNAP Work Requirements. The individuals listed in 106 CMR 362.310(C)(1) through (10) are exempt from the general SNAP work requirements found at 106 CMR 362.310(A). If verification is necessary for a particular exemption, it is noted under that exemption. (1) Age. A person younger than 16 years old or a person 60 years of age or older is exempt. A child who has his or her 16th birthday within a certification period shall fulfill the work registration requirement at the next scheduled recertification, unless the child qualifies for another exemption. (2) Persons Physically or Mentally Unfit for Employment. Persons who are physically or mentally unfit for employment due to disability or illness, either permanently or temporarily, are exempt. If the disability or illness is not obvious, appropriate verification of physical or mental unfitness must be provided. Verification includes, but is not limited to: (a) receipt of temporary or permanent disability benefits from a government or private source; (b) a written, dated and signed statement from a competent medical authority stating that the person is physically or mentally unfit for employment; (c) participation in a Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission program or other Massachusetts-approved vocational rehabilitation program; and (d) proof that the individual is temporarily ill and that the illness is serious enough to temporarily prevent employment. Persons claiming temporary unfitness for employment due to illness will be required to meet work requirements once they become physically or mentally fit. (3) TAFDC/EAEDC Work Program Participants. A TAFDC or EAEDC client subject to and complying with the relevant program's work requirement is exempt. (4) Unemployment Compensation Applicants and Recipients. Unemployment Compensation applicants or recipients subject to and participating in a comparable unemployment compensation work program are exempt. If the exemption claimed is questionable, the Department is responsible for verifying the exemption with the office of the State employment services agency. (5) Caretakers. A parent or other household member responsible for the care of a dependent child under six or an incapacitated person is exempt. If the child has his or her sixth birthday within a certification period, the caregiver of the child shall fulfill the work requirements at the next scheduled recertification, unless the caregiver qualifies for another exemption. If a parent and another member of the household both claim to be responsible for the care of the same dependent child or incapacitated household member, the actual responsibility shall be determined by discussion with the applicant or client. (6) Students. Persons enrolled at least half-time in any recognized school, including high school, a training program or institution of higher education who have met the conditions provided in 106 CMR 362.400 and 362.410 are exempt. Enrollment must be verified at application and recertification. Persons enrolled less than half-time or who experience a break in their enrollment status due to graduation, expulsion or suspension, or who drop out or otherwise do not intend to return to school do not qualify for this exemption. (7) Addicts and Alcoholics. A regular participant, either on a resident or nonresident basis, in a drug addiction or alcohol treatment and rehabilitation program is exempt. Participation, if questionable, may be verified through the organization or institution operating the program. (8) Employed Persons. Persons employed or self-employed are exempt if working a minimum of 30 hours weekly or receiving weekly earnings equal to or greater than the federal minimum wage multiplied by 30 hours. The guidelines for determining a client's eligibility for this exemption are as follows: (a) Verification of earned income must establish that the amount of income is consistent with a 30-hour work week; (b) If the income of the employed individual does not meet the preceding test but he or she still claims to be employed, the client shall be required to supply documentary evidence of the existence of an employee-employer relationship and that the number of hours worked is equivalent to 30 hours a week; (c) If a self-employed person's income does not meet the test in 106 CMR 362.310(C)(8)(a), he or she must establish that the income received from the self-employment activity is sufficient to be considered gainful employment and that the amount of work claimed justifies a determination that the self-employment activity is a full-time job for the purpose of this exemption; and (d) Persons engaged in hobbies or any other activity that cannot, because of the minimal amount of monies received from such activity, be considered gainful employment are not exempt. (9) Teens. A person 16 or 17 years of age who is: (a) not a head of household; (b) attending school on at least a half-time basis; or (c) enrolled in an employment and training program on at least a half-time basis, is exempt. An exempt teen who turns 18 years of age within a certification period must fulfill the work registration requirement at the next scheduled recertification unless he or she qualifies for another exemption. (10) Pregnant Women. A woman in her second or third trimester of pregnancy is exempt. (D) Work Registration Requirement. Nonexempt household members must complete and sign the work registration section on a form prescribed by the Department. A copy of the form is retained in the case record. Refusal to work-register without good cause will result in disqualification in accordance with 106 CMR 367.800: Disqualification Penalties. A person who loses his or her exemption status due to changes in circumstances that he or she is required to report as a condition of SNAP certification must register for work when the change is reported. Those persons who lose their exemption due to a change in circumstances that is not subject to the reporting requirements must register for work at their household's next recertification.