5101:1-3-03 Ohio works first: residence and living arrangement requirement.

 

 

 

5101:1-3-03                 Ohio  works  first  (OWF):  residence  and  living  arrangement requirement.

 

 

 

(A)  Residence requirement

 

(1)   Residence in the state is a requirement for OWF. Residence is established by a person who is living in Ohio voluntarily with the intention of making his home in Ohio. Residence may also be established by a person who is living in Ohio, is not receiving assistance from another state, and entered Ohio with a job commitment or seeking employment in Ohio, whether or not currently employed. A child is a resident of the state in which the parent, legal guardian, custodian or specified relative caring for the child is a resident.

 

(2)   Absence from the state for more than thirty days constitutes evidence of intent to establish residence elsewhere, unless a written statement has been submitted to indicate intent to return to Ohio. The written statement must be retained in the case record. The county department of human services shall consider such written statement as acceptable proof of intent to return to Ohio if the statement includes the reason for the absence and the expected date of return. A statement is not considered acceptable proof of intent to return to Ohio when the applicant/recipient contradicts the statement by giving up Ohio living arrangements, applying for public assistance in another state, or securing long-term housing arrangements in another state.

 

(3)   An individual who resides in a county home, city infirmary, jail, or other public institution is not eligible to participate in OWF. Rule 5101:1-23-10 of the Administrative Code addresses individuals under house arrest.

 

(B)  Living arrangement requirement

 

(1)   To be eligible for OWF, a child's home must be with a parent, specified relative, custodian or legal guardian.

 

(2)   For purposes of eligibility for OWF, a parent is an individual who has the legal duty to support the child. A legal parent includes the following individuals as long as their parental rights are not legally terminated:

 

(a)   The biological mother and father of the child.

 

(b)    Any person who is adjudged by a court of competent jurisdiction or a local CSEA to be the parent of the child and under legal duty to support the child.

 

 

 

 

(c)   An individual who has legally adopted the child. Adoption severs the legal relationship between parent and child, but it does not sever the biological relationship.

(d)    An individual who has an acknowledgment of paternity affidavit filed with the division of child support that has become final  and enforceable.

(3)     Specified  relatives  are  limited  to  those  individuals  as  set  forth  in  section

5107.02 of the Revised Code.

(4)    Legal guardians and custodians are defined in section 5107.02 of the Revised Code.

(5)    Legal custody is generally not a factor in determining eligibility for OWF. Although another individual or agency may hold legal custody of a child, a parent, specified relative, custodian or legal guardian may receive benefits for the minor child(ren) who physically resides with that individual, even if the child(ren) is temporarily absent, as set forth in rule 5101:1-3-04 of the Administrative Code.

(6)   Marriage is not an eligibility factor for OWF. In Ohio, a legal marriage may be ceremonial or one which meets the requirements of Chapter 3101. of the Revised Code or which meets the requirements of a valid common-law marriage. Effective October 10, 1991, common-law marriages were prohibited in the state of Ohio.

(7)     In accordance with section 5107.24 of the Revised Code, unmarried minor parents, unmarried pregnant minors, or the child of an unmarried  minor parent must reside in a place of residence maintained by a parent, legal guardian, custodian or specified relative of the pregnant minor or  minor parent as the parent's, guardian's, custodian's or specified relative's own home to be eligible to participate in OWF. An unmarried pregnant minor, unmarried minor parent, or child of an unmarried minor parent exempt from the requirement to live with a parent, specified relative, custodian or legal guardian, must reside in an adult-supervised living arrangement to be eligible to participate in OWF. The CDHSCDJFS shall be responsible for either directly assisting the unmarried minor parent in locating an acceptable adult-supervised living arrangement or entering into an agreement with another agency (e.g., PCSA) to serve as their designee.

Effective:                                12/01/2002

R.C. 119.032 review dates:    09/13/2002 and 12/01/2007

CERTIFIED ELECTRONICALLY

Certification

11/18/2002

Date

Promulgated Under:   119.03

Statutory Authority:   5107.05

Rule Amplifies:           5107.02, 5107.05, 5107.10

Prior Effective Dates: 3/1/67, 8/1/75, 12/28/79,

5/1/82, 6/1/82, 6/1/83,

10/1/83, 8/1/86 (Emer.),

10/3/86, 4/1/90, 4/1/92,

9/1/92, 5/1/95, 10/1/96 (Emer.), 12/15/96, 10/1/97 (Emer.), 12/30/97, 5/1/98, 1/1/99, 10/1/99