Public Assistance

September 11, 2023

An adoptive mother challenged the termination of adoption-assistance benefits, claiming that a Division of Family and Children Services worker verbally confirmed to her that the adopted child would remain eligible... Read More

Party who waives right to food-stamp disqualification hearing cannot seek further relief from Judge

September 7, 2023

The food-stamp recipient in this case asked the Court to reduce the repayment amount she had previously agreed to in a “Waiver of Disqualification Hearing” agreement. The Judge dismissed this... Read More

DFCS must provide reasonable accommodations to disabled food-stamp recipient

Judge Walker

August 30, 2023

In this case, the termination of a food-stamp recipient’s benefits stemmed from his failure to verify requested information on his renewal application. However, this failure was due to the recipient’s... Read More

DFCS must give sufficient prior notice before food stamp benefits expire

Judge Teate

July 25, 2023

The Court reversed the Department of Family and Children Services’ (DFCS) decision to close a food stamp recipient’s case because there was no evidence that the agency provided sufficient prior... Read More

Superior court upholds OSAH Judge’s hearsay ruling in case involving EBT trafficking scheme

July 14, 2023

The Superior Court of Fulton County upheld an OSAH Judge’s decision to disqualify a food stamp participant from receiving benefits for 12 months. The participant was found to have engaged... Read More

Agency can recoup food stamps from the entire household based on a single member’s trafficking violation

Judge Teate

July 12, 2023

In this matter, an individual appealed the reduction of food stamp benefits for his household. The benefits had been reduced because the agency was recouping overpayments from the time the... Read More

TANF termination upheld due to failure to cooperate with child support enforcement

July 7, 2023

The Petitioner in this case had her TANF benefits terminated because she failed to cooperate with the child support eligibility and enforcement process, as is required. Upon complying and reapplying,... Read More

Senior SNAP’s extended certification period should not adversely impact eligibility calculations

June 26, 2023

This case concerned an individual’s eligibility for Senior SNAP benefits, which differ from ordinary SNAP (or food stamp) benefits in that the certification period is 36 months rather than 12.... Read More

Judge grants motion to exclude evidence from food stamp fraud case

June 12, 2023

Because the Court granted a food stamp recipient’s prehearing motion—which excluded from consideration the evidence collected through an alleged fraud operation’s transaction terminal—the investigator in this case had no independent... Read More

University student living at home denied food stamps because he did not meet exemption requirements

Judge Howells

March 28, 2023

A university student was denied food stamps because he did not meet any of the 11 exemptions that grant students eligibility for food stamp benefits. He also was not eligible... Read More

Court orders remand following multiple errors during food stamp review

Judge Walker

March 7, 2023

The Court remanded this case due to a series of errors the Division of Family & Children Services (DFCS) made during a food stamp eligibility review. The food stamp recipient... Read More

Food-stamp recipient failed to show that agency had to conduct interview for renewal application

February 27, 2023

In affirming the state agency’s calculation of food-stamp benefits, the Court rejected the recipient’s argument that a food-stamp renewal request required the agency to conduct an interview. The Court instead... Read More

Agency must continue to honor its contract to provide adoption assistance to child

February 13, 2023

This matter involved the denial of Title IV-E adoption assistance benefits for a child whose previous adoptive parent had passed away. The Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) denied... Read More

No exceptions provided for applicant’s untimely appeal of TANF denial

Judge Howells

January 17, 2023

The Court dismissed as untimely an appeal by an applicant who had been denied benefits under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. Although the applicant denied ever receiving... Read More

Partial adoption benefits restored due to family receiving untimely notice

September 26, 2022

The Court affirmed the decision to terminate a family’s adoption assistance benefits on the grounds that the adopted child had turned 18 and was no longer a full-time high school... Read More

TANF law does not require a specific deadline for parties to submit verification forms

September 15, 2022

In this case, a woman had been receiving benefits under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, commonly referred to as TANF. Her benefits were later terminated because she had... Read More

Husband’s foreign pension must be verified when determining applicant’s food-stamp eligibility

Judge Brown

March 11, 2022

The Court upheld the denial of food stamps for an applicant whose husband, a Swedish citizen, received a pension from another country. The Court concluded that food-stamp regulations and DFCS’s... Read More

Food stamp applicant presented sufficient evidence of recurring expenses for prescription drugs.

August 29, 2017

Two printouts from medical insurance provider evidencing that a food stamp applicant made two payments for prescription medication in separate months and that each refill was for a 30 days’... Read More

Petitioner did not receive earned income such as would disqualify him from Senior SNAP.