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Wisconsin Department of Children and Families Wisconsin Works (W-2) Manual |
W-2 policy requires FEPs to conduct ongoing informal assessments, which includes the need to discuss with the participant any underlying causes of nonparticipation to identify any barriers that might exist and take steps to address those barriers. (See 11.1.1 and Chapter 5) In addition to working with participants to identify potential barriers, if a participant’s payment is going to be reduced by 20% or more, the W-2 agency must:
1. Provide written notice to the W-2 participant of the proposed 20% or more payment reduction and of the reasons for the proposed payment reduction; and
2. Allow the participant reasonable time to rectify the deficiency, failure or other behavior to avoid the proposed W-2 payment reduction. To rectify means that the participant is given one last opportunity to present good cause for nonparticipation or to present late documentation of completed assigned activities.
CWW automatically generates the Notice of Potential W-2 Payment Reduction (letter NWSN) either at the beginning (W-2 delayed payment) or the end of the month (W-2 pulldown) when final W-2 monthly payment amounts are determined.
CWW populates the letter with information that the FEP enters in participation tracking in WWP: the missed activities, the hours missed and the dates the activities were missed. The letter informs the participant to contact the worker as soon as he or she receives the letter to explain why the activities were missed. If the participant is claiming good cause, the FEP determines whether the reason for the missed hours meets any of the good cause reasons and whether to require written verification of good cause (called “proof of good cause” in the letter).
If the participant is submitting late documentation of completed assigned activities, the documentation must be for the dates that the activity was assigned on the Employability Plan.
Because the participant may have to provide written verification, the letter includes the date by which the verification must be provided, if required by the FEP. The participant is given 7 working days to provide written verification of good cause. The next working day after the mailing date of the letter is day 1. For example, if the mailing date of the letter is Tuesday, September 18, 2018, the date by which the individual needs to provide written verification is Wednesday, September 27, 2018. The verification due date cannot be extended from 7 working days to 30 days. (See 11.2.4) The date provided on NWSN is the final date any verification can be received.
History: Release 21-07; Release 20-03; Release 20-01; Release 18-04; Release 11-06; Release 11-04; Release 09-03.