Sec.17b-811a-4. Family referral, application and selection process

(a) Any family approaching the end of the twenty-one month time limit on TFA is scheduled to have an interview conducted under section 17b-112 (f) of the Connecticut General Statutes during month twenty for the purpose of being informed of services that may continue to be available to them. Any family in a six month extension of TFA after the twenty-one month time limit is scheduled to have an interview conducted under section 17b-112 (f) of the Connecticut General Statutes during month five for the aforementioned purpose.

(b) A transitionary rental assistance certification and referral form shall be issued to any family that is determined to be potentially eligible, or appears at the time of the interview conducted pursuant to section 17b-811a-4(a) of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies to be potentially eligible, for participation in the transi-tionary rental assistance program by way of meeting initial eligibility criteria. Other families leaving TFA may also apply for transitionary rental assistance. For any such family that appears eligible, the department shall assist the family in filling out an application form. This application form shall include, but not be limited to, information on family size and composition and the amount and sources of all current income for all family members who will reside in the dwelling unit which the family will occupy. The department or its agent shall obtain verification of the family's income prior to that family's receipt of transitionary rental assistance.

(c) The department or its agent shall accept an application for transitionary rental assistance from a family provided it is received by the department or it's agent no later than six months from the date the family has been discontinued from TFA.

(d) If an application for transitionary rental assistance from a family that appears to meet initial eligibility criteria is substantially completed, as determined by the department or its agent, the department or its agent shall accept the application and place the family in the pool for selection of transitionary rental assistance program participants.

(e) If an application for transitionary rental assistance is not substantially completed, the department or its agent shall notify the applicant in writing or telephonically of the information that is needed to complete the application. After such notification, the applicant shall respond to the department or its agent not later than twenty business days after the date on which the applicant was notified. If the applicant fails to respond, the department or its agent shall deem said application to have been withdrawn and the department or its agent shall notify the applicant in writing no later than five business days after said application has been deemed withdrawn. The applicant may request, in accordance with section 17b-811a-8 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies, that the department or its agent review its determination that an application has been withdrawn. The department or its agent shall not provide transitionary rental assistance payments before a family's application is completed.

(f) If the department or its agent denies an application for transitionary rental assistance, it shall notify the applicant in writing of the reasons for the denial no later than five business days after the denial. The applicant may request the department or its agent to review the denial in accordance with section 17b-811a-8 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies.

(g) The department or its agent shall, on a monthly basis and dependent on the amount of funds available and the number of referrals made, conduct a lottery to select a pre-determined number of families to participate in the program. Families not selected shall remain in the pool for a period not to exceed six months. Selected families shall be issued a transitionary rental assistance certificate. Such certificate allows a family to locate a dwelling unit and submit a request for tenancy approval to the department or its agent. Neither the department nor its agent shall approve tenancy for a family that is not in receipt of a valid certificate. The department or its agent shall not provide transitionary rental assistance unless tenancy has been approved in accordance with section 17b-811a-5 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies.

(h) A transitionary rental assistance certificate shall be valid for sixty calendar days. The first day of the sixty days shall begin on the calendar day following the day that the department or its agent issued the certificate. The department or its agent may extend the certificate's validity, in one or more increments, by up to sixty additional days. The department or its agent may extend the certificate's validity for more than one-hundred-twenty total days if it determines that good cause existed for the family's failure to locate a dwelling unit or submit a request for tenancy approval.

(i) No day shall count toward the sixty-day or subsequent limit if the department or its agent is in receipt of a submission by a certificate holder of a request for tenancy approval. If tenancy is not approved the department shall give the family prompt notice by mail or telephonically. The first calendar day following the day of department notification of its non-approval shall be the first day on which the sixty-day or subsequent limit shall resume.

(Adopted effective March 9, 2006)