FACT 66 (Approved Waivers in Response to COVID-19- Extending Certification Periods and Adjusting Interim Report Requirements)
Food Assistance Change Transmittal No. 66
March 24, 2020
TO: All Food Assistance Manual Holders
FROM: Kimberly Hall, Director Ohio Department of Job and Family Services
SUBJECT: Approved Waivers in Response to COVID-19- Extending Certification Periods and Adjusting Interim Report Requirements

Background: On March 9, 2020 Governor Mike DeWine declared a state of emergency for the entire state of Ohio (Executive Order 2020-01D) to protect the well-being of the citizens of Ohio from COVID-19.  In order to protect the lives, safety and health of Ohio’s citizens, various orders have been issued from the Governor and the Ohio Department of Health to limit social interaction. These orders include: prohibiting mass gatherings (100 or more people in a single room); closing schools; prohibiting visitors in hospitals and jails; closing restaurants and bars; encouraging businesses to allow employees to work from home as well as asking parents to keep children out of day care settings. In addition to the state-declared state of emergency, on March 13, 2020, President Trump declared a national state of emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (Public Law 116-127) became law on March 18, 2020 and provided states the ability to seek waivers to expand flexibility of programs to ease administrative burden of issuing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits while under a state of emergency.

As part of this effort, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) submitted waiver requests to the United States Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Services (FNS), including extending certification periods and suspending the interim reporting requirements. FNS approved these waivers with prescribed alternative procedures.

New Procedure: Effective immediately, the following changes apply:

Extending Certification Periods:

All assistance groups scheduled to expire in March 2020, who have not already been recertified for April 1, 2020, will have their certification periods extended through September 2020. 

  • If the recertification process has not been completed in Ohio Benefits as of the date ODJFS runs the batch process, and benefits are set to expire, the proposed expiration of benefits will be rescinded and the assistance group will be notified that their certification date will be extended. No further recertification actions will be required by the household or county agency until September 2020.
  • If an assistance group has completed the recertification process in March 2020 and benefits have been approved beginning in April, the certification period will remain and will not be extended to September 2020.

All assistance groups scheduled to expire in April 2020 will have their certification periods extended through October 2020. 

  • Assistance groups will be notified that their certification date will be extended and they do not have to reapply and participate in the interview until October 2020.

All assistance groups scheduled to expire in May 2020 will have their certification periods extended through November 2020. 

  • ODJFS will notice assistance groups that their certification date will be extended.

Extending Interim Report Due Date:

For assistance groups that have an interim report due in March 2020 but fail to return it or it is returned but is not processed in Ohio Benefit as of the date ODJFS runs the batch process, their cases will remain open and a new interim report due date will be established after May 2020. 

  • Assistance groups who returned their interim report in March (and it was processed in Ohio Benefits) will not be required to complete a second interim report after May; their interim report requirement has been met.

Assistance groups with interim reports due in April or May 2020 will have their due dates extended after May 2020. 

  • Interim reports will not be sent to assistance groups during these months.

ODJFS will notify the affected assistance groups of the new interim reporting due date.