W. Va. ex rel. K.M. v. W. Va. Dep't of Health and Human Resources

No. 30494 (W. Va. Ct. App. Dec. 11, 2002) ; Clearinghouse Number: 55054

Description

West Virginia Ordered to Accord TANF Recipients Due Process Before Terminating Assistance Limited to Five Years

Abstract

The West Virginia Supreme Court held that respondent West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources’ procedures in terminating Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients’ benefits after five years violated due process. Petitioner TANF recipients challenged the constitutionality of the time limit. The court rejected petitioners’ argument that a pretermination hearing was required before cash assistance ended. Although the court found that government had a moral and legal responsibility to provide for the poor, it rejected petitioners’ argument that the termination of cash assistance after five years violated the state constitution since TANF payments were only one aspect of a multifaceted support system for the poor. However, the court held that respondent’s system for granting extensions beyond the five-year limit did not adequately protect recipients’ due process rights. The court found that the appeal process for contesting a denial of an extension was flawed because the fair-hearing examiner had no authority to overturn the decision of the extension committee. Five months before reaching their time limits, recipients may apply for an extension of assistance payments for one to six months. If the application is denied, the recipient may request a reconsideration and then a hearing. However, under state rules, the fair-hearing decision may not overturn that of the extension committee unless the committee’s decision was based on inaccurate information. The court found, under this scheme, no true right of appeal within the agency. The court held that petitioners demonstrated that the procedures at the fair-hearing level violated due process and that no remedy other than mandamus was adequate to correct their problem. The court directed respondent to modify the fair-hearing process to grant the fair-hearing examiner authority to reverse or remand the extension committee’s decision.

Additional Information

Attorney Information
Docket Date
2002-12-11 00:00:00+00:00

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