PM 23-02-02: SNAP Overpayment

WAG 23-02-02

SNAP overpayments happen when there are unreported changes in:

  • new or increased wages
  • new or increased unearned income
  • who lives in the home
  • new or increased assets
  • Mid-Point Reporting units, when the client fails to report when gross income goes over the Gross Income Standard.

Overpayments may also happen when the SNAP unit was not eligible at intake, where something was incorrectly reported, or where agency action is not taken.

There is not an overpayment:

  • If an Mid-Point Reporting unit, during its approval period, fails to report a change of income that is less than the unit's Gross Income Standard.
  • For any month that there was not enough time to send a 10-day notice on the change.
  • For cases not in Mid-Point Reporting status, when gross monthly earned income changes by less than New Manual Text$125, or unearned income changes by less than revised manual text$125.
  • For any SNAP unit that has one of the following unreported changes:
    • allowable medical expenses; or
    • rent or utilities changed and the SNAP unit has not moved; or
    • decrease in day care costs.

NOTE: These changes are not overpayments because the SNAP unit does not have to report the change.

  • When an ineligible noncitizen received benefits as an eligible noncitizen while waiting for proof of citizenship/BCIS status from the SAVE secondary system.
  • For failing to get a signature on a form.
  • For incorrectly completing an authorization form that did not affect the SNAP amount.
  • When the wrong Family Community Resource Center issued SNAP to a case.

There are 3 types of SNAP overpayments:

  • Intentional Program Violation (IPV),
  • Agency Error (AE), or
  • Inadvertent Household Error (IHE).

DHS acts to get repayment for all 3 types of errors. The method used to recover the overpayment depends on the type of error