CalWORKs

There are many possible problems with welfare-to-work plans and rules. The county might take your benefits away (sanction you) for breaking a rule. The county might not give you supportive services such as transportation or child care that you need. The county might say that you must do work activity even though your ability to work is limited because of a disability or some other good reason. The county might tell you you cannot do what you want for welfare-to-work, such as telling you that you cannot go to school.

The county should give you a written notice telling you what the county is doing about your welfare-to-work. If you think the county is wrong, you can appeal and have your case heard by an independent hearing officer. You have 90 days from the date of the written notice to appeal your case. If you have a very good reason for appealing late, you can appeal up to 180 days after the date of the written notice. If the county does not give you a written notice but takes some action you disagree with, you can still appeal.  If your notice does not meet legal requirements, such as not giving a reason or not being in your primary language, you can appeal even after that.

Once you appeal, there will be a hearing scheduled for you to explain why you disagree with the county’s action and for a hearing officer to decide if the county is right or wrong. If the hearing officer decides you are right, the hearing officer can order the county to fix the problem.

If you are sanctioned, you can fix your sanction by signing a “cure plan.”  The cure plan is for you to do what the county said you did not do.  After you do that, you will get your benefits back.   You can get services to help you do your cure plan.