Title 7 . Health and Social Services

Chapter 45 . Hearings

Section 545. Method of payment

7 AAC 45.545. Method of payment

(a) Only the division of the department that is responsible for administering the ATAP program under this chapter may authorize payment of ATAP benefits.

(b) Except as otherwise provided in this section, ATAP payments are made by state warrant mailed directly to the caretaker relative with whom the eligible dependent child is living using the address where the recipient customarily receives mail or by electronic transfer of funds to the caretaker relative's personal financial account or electronic benefit transfer (EBT) account with the state's financial EBT agent. In order to ensure proper delivery of the payment to an assistance unit, the department may issue the payment to

(1) a protective payee as provided for in this chapter;

(2) an individual at a different address, if requested in writing by the caretaker relative or the caretaker relative's authorized representative;

(3) the recipient, in care of a department office, if there has been a serious problem of theft or nondelivery of mail and there is no other individual available to receive the payment; or

(4) a second individual who is authorized to receive an ATAP payment, if requested in writing by the caretaker relative or the caretaker relative's authorized representative.

(c) An individual prohibited from serving as a protective payee under 7 AAC 45.590(e) may not serve as a voluntary payee under this section.

(d) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, an individual may not receive cash assistance concurrently from more than one department assistance program, or concurrently from more than one federal cash assistance program. A recipient may not receive benefits in the same month from more than one of the following cash programs: ATAP; SSI; or APA. A recipient may be a payee for more than one program as long as the recipient's needs are considered in only one program.

(e) The department will not

(1) issue payments in care of a creditor;

(2) forward a payment from one address to another;

(3) determine that delivery is to be made to any other person, or place restrictions upon its delivery, except as provided in this chapter; or

(4) place restrictions or conditions on how the payment is spent.

(f) ATAP warrants must be endorsed by the payee.

(g) ATAP payments are made on a monthly basis until the department finds that an assistance unit is no longer eligible or until the assistance unit requests an end to assistance. Except for corrective payments, a single payment for full payment for a month will be issued on or before the first day of each month.

(h) The department will proportionately reduce payments to all recipients if it determines that the money appropriated to finance ATAP payments is insufficient to cover the full amount of ATAP payments authorized by the department.

(i) The department will stop payment on an ATAP warrant that was not received by the recipient, stolen from or lost by a recipient, or destroyed after receipt by a recipient. The department will not

(1) reimburse any entity, including a recipient, a business, or a financial institution, that cashes a warrant for which the department has issued a stop payment order; or

(2) replace a recipient's benefits if the recipient cashed an ATAP payment warrant and the cash was lost or stolen.

History: Eff. 8/5/92, Register 123; am 10/1/97, Register 143; am 1/7/2005, Register 173

Authority: AS 47.05.010

AS 47.27.005