9 Colo. Code Regs. § 2503-5-3.510
"Actual value" means the value of real property, as reported by the county assessor.
"Adequate" (related to notice) means a written notice sent to the client which details any determination of eligibility, as well as a change or discontinuation of grant payments and the reason for that change.
"Administrative disqualification hearing" (ADH) means a disqualification hearing against an individual accused of wrongfully obtaining or attempting to obtain assistance.
"Administrative error claim" means a grant payment was over-paid and a claim validated based on an error on the part of the county department of human services.
"Administrative Law Judge" (ALJ) means an Administrative Law Judge appointed pursuant to Section 24-30-1003, C.R.S.
"Adult Financial approved setting" means a facility with this specific designation by the State Department.
"Anticipated income" means income which can be anticipated with reasonable certainty concerning the amount and month in which it is to be received.
"Applicant" means any individual or family who individually or through a designated representative or someone acting responsibly for him or her has applied for benefits under the programs of public assistance administered or supervised by the State Department pursuant to Title 26, Article 2, C.R.S., as defined at Section 26-2-103(1), C.R.S.
"Application" means an initial or redetermination request on State approved forms (paper or electronic) for a grant payment and/or services.
"Approval" means assistance is authorized by the county department.
"Authorized representative" means someone acting reasonably for the client with the authority to make decisions on behalf of the client and who has taken responsibility for the case including but not limited to signing documents and speaking with county departments. The authorization must be in writing and signed by the client.
"Available" (related to funds or assets) means accessible or could be accessible, when the client has a legal interest in a sum (includes cash or equity value of a resource), and has the legal ability to make such sum available for support and maintenance.
"Bona fide loan" means a borrower receives money (from relatives, friends or others) which creates a loan if there is an understanding between the parties that the money borrowed is to be repaid and it is recognized as an enforceable contract under Colorado law. The transaction which creates a loan can be in the form of a written or verbal agreement if enforceable under Colorado law. Absent a negotiable instrument, a bona fide loan must still be convertible to cash in order to be considered a resource. The obligation to repay cannot be contingent on future income that might be received by the borrower. The written or verbal agreement must be in effect at the time of the transaction and there must be a reasonable plan for repayment.
"Cash surrender value" means the dollar value at which a resource could be sold or cashed in.
"Certification period" means the time period for which an Adult Financial client is approved to receive grant payments before a redetermination is required.
"Claim" means an overpayment of a grant payment that needs to be researched and validated by the county department.
"Clear and convincing" means evidence is stronger than "a preponderance of evidence" and is unmistakable and free from serious or substantial doubt.
"Client" means a current or past applicant or a current or past recipient of an Adult Financial grant payment.
"Client error claim" means a grant payment was over-paid and a claim was validated based on unintentional or willful withholding of information on the part of the client.
"Collateral contact" means a person outside the client's household (excluding sponsor(s) and landlord who also live in the home) who has first-hand knowledge of the client's circumstance and provides a verbal or written confirmation thereof. This confirmation may be made either in person, in writing, electronically submitted, or by telephone. Acceptable collateral contacts include but are not limited to: employers, landlords, social/migrant service agencies, and medical providers who can be expected to provide accurate third party verification. The name/title of the collateral contact as well as the information obtained must be documented in the statewide automated system.
"Countable income" means income considered available to the client, spouse of the client, or sponsor(s) of the client after the application of valid exemptions, disregards, and deductions.
"Countable resource" means resources considered available to the client, spouse of the client, or sponsor(s) of the client after the application of valid exemptions, disregards, and deductions.
"County department" means the county department of human/social services.
"Creditor" means a person or company, aside from the Colorado Department of Human Services, to whom money is owed.
"Date of entry" or "date of admission" means the date established by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), formerly known as the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), as the date the sponsored noncitizen was admitted for permanent residence.
"Denial" means that the client was not eligible for a grant payment upon application.
"Demonstrable evidence" means evidence that a Colorado Works case is closed due to refusal to comply with the Workforce program.
"Disabling condition" means a medical impairment which prevents an individual from engaging in work.
"Disaster assistance" means a cash payment to a client to cover needs and/or expenses related to a county, Governor, or federally declared disaster.
"Discontinuation" means that the client who is currently receiving a grant payment is no longer eligible and his or her grant payment will be stopped.
"Earned Income" means payment in cash or in-kind received by a client, spouse of a client, or sponsor(s) of the client for services performed as an employee or as a result of the client, spouse of the client, or sponsor(s) of the client being engaged in self-employment.
"Effective date of eligibility" means the first date a client is eligible for the public assistance program.
"Eligibility requirements" means State Department criteria used to determine client eligibility or ineligibility to receive assistance and/or services.
"Eligible client" means a client whose countable resources are below the resource limit, whose countable income is below the grant standard, and who meets all non-financial eligibility criteria.
"Encumbrance" means the valid and legal outstanding payments, loans, or liens on a given resource.
"Estate" means the property of the decedent, trust, or other person whose affairs are subject to the Colorado Probate Code, Title 15, Article 10, of the Colorado Revised Statutes, as originally constituted and as it exists from time to time during administration, as defined in Section 15-10-201(17), C.R.S.
"Equity value" means actual value less encumbrances.
"Exempt income" means any income that is not countable income for the purpose of eligibility.
"Exempt resource" means any property whose value is not a countable resource for the purpose of determining eligibility.
"Face value" means the value predominantly stamped or printed on the resource verification (insurance policy, bonds, stocks, etc.) which represents the future potential worth of the resource, but does not usually represent the true value of the item due to activities that can reduce or increase the value (loans, dividends, etc.).
"Facility" means the residence of a client where the intent is either to care for or provide treatment to the client. Facilities include general medical and surgical hospitals, nursing homes, regional centers, group and host homes, and mental health institutions. Facilities do not include penal institutions, such as Federal and State prisons or county, local, municipal jails, and community corrections residential programs.
"Fair Market Value" means the median resale market value of a resource.
"Federal Poverty Guidelines" also called Federal Poverty Level (FPL) means the income level for a household as set forth in the Federal Register 89 FR 4562 as of January 24, 2024. This rule does not contain any later amendments or editions. These guidelines are available for no cost at https://www.federalregister.gov/. These guidelines are also available for public inspection and copying at the Colorado Department of Human Services, Director of the Employment and Benefits Division, 1575 Sherman Street, Denver, Colorado, 80203, or at any State publications library during regular business hours.
"Fleeing felon" means a person fleeing to avoid prosecution or custody or confinement after conviction for a felony.
"Fraud" means any person who obtains or any person who willfully aids or abets another to obtain public assistance as defined in Title 26 of the C.R.S. to which the person is not entitled or in an amount greater than that to which the person is justly entitled or payment of any forfeited installment grants or benefits to which the person is not entitled or in a greater amount than that to which the person is entitled, by means of a willfully false statement or representation, or by impersonation, or by any other fraudulent device, as described in Section 26-1-127(1), C.R.S.
"Good cause" means circumstances beyond the control of the client. Good cause includes, but is not limited to, documented and verifiable medical emergencies or hospitalization, a client who has a disability or other medical condition(s) requiring additional time and/or assistance, a delayed appointment with the Social Security Administration beyond the client's control, or other good cause determined reasonable by the county department using the prudent person principle. The following circumstances do not constitute good cause: an excessive workload of a party or his or her representative or attorney; when a party obtains legal representation in an untimely manner; a party's failure to either receive or timely receive, a timely mailed initial decision, or other timely mailed correspondence from the Office of Administrative Courts and/or the Office of Appeals, or from the county department, when a party has failed to advise the Office of Administrative Courts, the county department, or the Office of Appeals of a change of address or failed to provide a correct address; or any other circumstance which was foreseeable or preventable.
"Grant payment" means the Adult Financial program payment and may also be referred to as the benefit.
"Grant standard" means the maximum Adult Financial grant payment that can be provided to a client based on each specific Adult Financial program.
"Health Care Policy and Financing" (HCPF) means the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing.
"Homeless" means a person with no permanent living arrangement, i.e., no regular nighttime or fixed place of residence. He or she is neither a member of a household nor a resident of an institution. This can mean someone who sleeps in a doorway; supervised shelter designed for temporary accommodations; a halfway house or similar facility that provides temporary residence; a place not designed for or ordinarily used as regular sleeping accommodations for human beings, such as parks, bus stations, etc.; or a person who stays with a succession of friends or relatives and has no permanent living arrangement.
"IM-14" means the Authorization for Reimbursement of Interim Assistance available at the county department or found within the statewide automated system.
"IM-19" means the Apportionment Notice available at the county department or found within the statewide automated system.
"Immediate family" means people with the following relationships to the client: spouse, minor and adult children, stepchildren, adopted children, parents, adoptive parents, and the spouses of those persons.
"Income" means any financial gain by means of money payment or in-kind payment.
"In-kind" means something of value received for the benefit of a client, spouse of a client, or sponsor(s) of a client and is considered either earned or unearned income. Examples of this are food or shelter that the client received for free or at fair market value or less.
"Intent" and/or "Intentionally" means a person's conscious objective is to cause the specific result, whether or not the result occurred, as described in Section 18-1-501(5), C.R.S.
"Intentional Program Violation" (IPV) occurs when an individual makes a false or misleading statement or fails to disclose by misrepresentation or concealment of facts, or acts in a way that is intended to mislead or conceal any eligibility factor on any application or other written and/or electronic communication for the purpose of establishing or maintaining eligibility to:
"Involuntary transfer" means the loss of a resource due to fraud, theft, financial exploitation, or legal action such as judgment, foreclosure, or tax sale, provided that the client can demonstrate that:
"Irregular" (related to income) means income which an individual cannot reasonably expect to receive on a monthly basis.
"Legal fiduciary" means a person or agency who holds the legal power to act on behalf of a client and is required to act in the best interest of the client.
"Liable individual" means a person financially responsible for an overpayment including the client, sponsor(s) of a client, a payee, parents of dependent children, and/or other persons determined to be financially liable by a court.
"Life Estate" means a legal estate planning procedure in which the client transfers real property to another individual but retains the right of occupancy and income from the property during the client's lifetime. The life estate's duration is limited to the life of the client. The client, during his or her life, retains the use and possession of the property, the rights to rents and profits, and the costs of maintaining the property. The client cannot sell or waste the property without the consent of the person(s) to whom the property was transferred.
"Local service delivery agency" means an agency operating on behalf of the county department or State Department to determine all or part of a client's eligibility for Adult Financial programs.
"Marriage" (for the purpose of these rules) means a marriage as defined in Section 14-2-104(1), C.R.S., a common law marriage as defined in Section 14-2-104(2), C.R.S., and a civil union, as defined in Section 14-15-103(1), C.R.S.
"Material fact" means information that has logical connection to the consequences and/or the decision being determined and the nature of the information or fact is such that a reasonable person under the circumstances would attach importance to it in determining his or her course of action.
"Medical provider" means a Colorado licensed physician, psychiatrist, licensed psychologist, licensed clinical social worker, licensed professional counselor, physician assistant, advanced practice nurse, or registered nurse. The physician may be a general practitioner or a specialist. A medical provider determining blindness shall be an ophthalmologist licensed in Colorado. A medical provider may be licensed in a bordering state when the nearest Colorado provider is more than one hour from the client's home and the provider in the bordering state is closer.
"Non-citizen" means any person who is not a citizen of the United States.
"Non-recipient spouse" means the client's spouse who is not receiving an Adult Financial grant payment.
"Ownership" means lawful title to, legal right of possession of, or legal interest in a property.
"Overpayment" means a grant payment was made in excess of the amount a client was eligible for.
"Periodic payments" means payments that are irregular or a one-time payment.
"Personal Needs Allowance" (PNA) means a payment to a client who is currently in a facility to cover additional hygiene costs not usually supplied by the provider.
"Personal property" means all items of ownership that are not considered real property.
"Potential income" means a benefit or payment to which the client, spouse of a client, or sponsor(s) of a client may be entitled and could secure, such as spousal support, annuities, pensions, retirement or disability benefits, veterans compensation and pensions, workers' compensation, Social Security retirement or disability benefits, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits, and unemployment compensation.
"Potential resource" means a resource to which the client, spouse of a client, or sponsor(s) of a client has the legal ability to acquire or reacquire rights of ownership, such as inheritances, real and personal property, and settlements.
"Preponderance of evidence" means that the evidence must preponderate over, or outweigh, evidence to the contrary.
"Prudent Person Principle" means that, based on experience and knowledge of the program, the county department exercises a degree of discretion, care, judiciousness, and circumspection, as would a reasonable person, in a given case.
"Qualified non-citizen" also called qualified alien means an individual who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who was lawfully admitted to the United States by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) as an actual or prospective permanent resident or whose physical presence is known and allowed by the USCIS. This definition of a qualified non-citizen is consistent with the definition of 'qualified alien' in 8 U.S.C. § 1641 and the language, including all notes, in 8 U.S.C. § 1101.
"Questionable" means the information provided is unclear or conflicting or the county has reason to believe the facts presented are contrary to the information provided by the client.
"Real property" means houses; land, including land rights such as oil, mineral and water rights; and outbuildings and other objects affixed to land.
"Received" (for the purpose of income and resources) means the date on which the income and/or resource is actually received or legally becomes available for use, whichever occurs first, whether reported timely by the client or not.
"Received" (as it applies to receipt of verification, documentary evidence, and reported changes in circumstances) means the date the verification, documentary evidence, and reported changes were received by the county department.
"Recovery" means the collection of a valid claim to repay grant payments to which a client was not entitled.
"Redetermination" means a case review/determination of necessary information and verifications to determine ongoing eligibility and may also be called renewal or recertification.
"Resources" means real and personal property held as of the first day of a calendar month or as of the date of application if not counted as income in the same month.
"Scheduled appointment" or "scheduled interview" means an appointment or interview set using a State prescribed or State approved appointment notice provided to the client.
"Shelter costs" means mortgage payments, property insurance (if required), home owner association dues, rent, gas, electricity, heating fuel, water, sewer, garbage collection service, and real property taxes. Telephone, internet and television provider services are not allowable shelter costs.
"Signature" means handwritten signatures, electronic signature techniques, recorded telephonic signatures, or documented gestured signatures. A valid handwritten signature includes a designation of an x.
"Sponsor" means any person(s) who executed an affidavit of support (USCIS form I-864 or I-864A (March 6, 2018)) or another form deemed legally binding by the Department of Homeland Security on behalf of a non-citizen as a condition of the non-citizen's date of entry or admission into the United States as a permanent resident. These forms are herein incorporated by reference. This rule does not contain any later amendments or editions. These forms are available at no cost from https://www.uscis.gov/forms. These forms are also available for public inspection and copying at the Colorado Department of Human Services, Director of the Employment and Benefits Division, 1575 Sherman Street, Denver, Colorado, 80203, or at any State publications library during regular business hours.
"SSI benefit standard" means the maximum monthly Federal amount for a SSI recipient as listed in Federal Regulations found at 20 CFR 416.405-415 (2019), which are herein incorporated by reference. This rule does not contain any later amendments or editions. These regulations are available for no cost at https://www.ecfr.gov/. These regulations are also available for public inspection and copying at the Colorado Department of Human Services, Director of the Employment and Benefits Division, 1575 Sherman Street, Denver, Colorado, 80203, or at any State publications library during regular business hours.
"State Department" or "the Department" means the Colorado Department of Human Services.
"Statewide automated system" means the electronic platform used to calculate public assistance program benefits and grant payments.
"Termination" means that the client who is currently receiving Adult Financial program grant payments is no longer eligible and his or her grant payments will be stopped.
"Timely notice" means the county shall generate a notice to the client at least eleven (11) calendar days prior to the initiation of any decrease, suspension, termination, or discontinuance in grant payments or services. This shall be sent to his or her last known address.
"Transfer Without Fair Consideration" (TWFC) means a property transaction in which the proceeds of the transfer, assignment, or sale are less than the actual value of the resource.
"Unearned income" means any income that is not earned through employment or self-employment. It includes money transfers, such as the transfer of money into one's checking account from that person's or another person's money account regardless of the type of account, including, but not limited to, savings account(s), retirement account(s), or any other type of money account.
"Unintentional" or "without intent" means an act, or something done or performed that was not voluntary or intended.
"Value (for liquid resources such as cash, savings/checking accounts, IRA accounts, etc.)" means the current redemption rate, less encumbrances.
"Value (for real and personal property)" means the actual value of the property less encumbrances.
"Verification" means confirming statements, application information, and other case information by obtaining written, audio, or other evidence or information that proves such fact or statement to be true.
"Verified upon receipt" means information that is provided directly from the primary source and is not questionable and no additional verification is required.
"Willful" means that a person is aware that his or her conduct is practically certain to cause the result as described in Section 18-1-501(6), C.R.S.
"Willful withholding of information" includes:
"Withdraw" or "Withdrawal" means an application is not processed because the client who submitted the application withdraws his or her request for assistance prior to eligibility determination, or requests his or her grant payment be discontinued.
9 CCR 2503-5-3.510