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HomeMy WebLinkAbout27-15 - Res. Amending Res. 05-15 Veterans Advisory Board/Veterans' AssistanceRESOLUTION NO. A RESOLUTION AMENDING RESOLUTION NO. 05-15 VETERANS ADVISORY BOARD/VETERANS' ASSISTANCE WHEREAS, Mason County established a levy per RCW 73.08.080 for the purpose of creating the Veterans' Assistance Fund for the relief of honorably discharged veterans or for veterans discharged for physical reason with an honorable record; WHEREAS, RCW 73.08.035 authorizes the establishment of a Veterans' Advisory Board; WHEREAS, the Mason County Commissioners adopted Resolution No. 58-13 establishing the Veterans Advisory Board (VAB). The VAB will consist of eight members; two appointed members of each of the following Mason County National Veterans' Organizations: American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, 40 et 8 and two Mason County resident Veterans. Commanders of these organizations in Mason County will not be a member of the VAB, but will appoint the members from their organization to serve on the VAB for the purpose of overseeing the Mason County Veterans Funds. These members may be appointed or removed at the discretion of the Commanders. The first appointment of members shall be three members for a three-year term and four members for a two year term. Thereafter all terms will become two-year terms. Members of the VAB shall be appointed and notification shall be given to the Board of County Commissioners along with the annual report required by RCW 73.08.040 during the month of October. The Board of County Commissioners reserves the right to disallow VAB members for cause. WHEREAS, RCW 73.08.010 provides for the relief of indigent and suffering veterans and their families or the families of those deceased veterans, who need assistance and on September 7, 2004 the Board of Mason County Commissioners set the limit of cash award from the Mason County Veterans' Assistance Fund to eligible veterans at $600 dollars to be spent on specific types of relief as noted in #2; WHEREAS, the VAB recommended the Mason County Commissioners increase the amount to be awarded to eligible veterans to $800 and the catastrophic award to $300 and after holding a hearing, the Commissioners established these new limits on February 10, 2015; WHEREAS, after their annual review, the VAB recommended several changes to the Operating Policy; 21 5 NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of Mason County Commissioners that: J:\Veterans\VAB\Resolution amending policy June 2015 final.docx Resolution No. Page 2of3 2T15 1. The Veterans' Assistance Fund may be disbursed to indigent veterans and their families or the families of those deceased in the amounts not to exceed eight hundred ($800.00) per applicant per calendar year. 2 Approval of the eight hundred ($800.00) dollar assistance shall be granted for only past due rent, mortgage, or utilities: a. Utilities include electric, water, firewood, wastewater (sewer), natural gas and/or propane. b. Necessity Items (Attachment R in Operating Policy) (Not to include tobacco and alcoholic beverages). c. Obtain State ID card (one time only). d. Reinstate driver's license (one time only). 3. Veteran Assistance funds shall not duplicate other available assistance for the purposes stated in #2 4. If any Veterans' Assistance Committee determines an applicant is in need of assistance due to any event, catastrophic illness or other significant change in circumstance which comes into being unexpectedly and is beyond the applicant's management or control, the Committee may request in writing that the Board of Mason County Commissioners consider approval of an amount not to exceed three hundred ($300.00) dollars per applicant in any calendar year. 5. All requests for funding shall be approved by the Veterans' Service Officer and the Board of Mason County Commissioners. 6. RCW 41.04.005 and other provisions of RCW Title 73 shall govern eligibility assistance to veterans and/or families. 7. The County defines "indigent and suffering" to mean the current poverty level as defined by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, for a period of time: previous 90 days or average of previous year. 8. As per RCW 73.08.070, the County shall assist indigent veterans with burial or cremation costs of ($300.00) minimum or up to six hundred ($600.00) dollars. This is in addition to prior eight hundred ($800.00) dollar limitation above in #2. 9 If any applicant knowingly and or unknowingly defrauds or provides false or misleading information, or misuses funds, the applicant will be barred from receiving any further assistance. J:\Veterans\VAB\Resolution amending policy June 2015 final.docx Resolution No. Page 3of3 1 -/ 1 5 Effective this 2nd day of June 2015. ATTEST: J. Ximanzor, Clerk &,the)3oard APPROVED AS TO FORM: Tim Whitehead, Chief DPA Auditor American Legion Veterans of Foreign Wars Nw 40 et 8 BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS MASON COUNTY, WASHINGTON 21 Randy Neatherlin, Chair r tom__ Tim Sheldon, Commissioner Terri Jeffreys , o missioner J:\Veterans\VAB\Resolution amending policy June 2015 final.docx it This Veterans' Assistance Manual has been amended and approved by the Mason County Veterans' Advisory Board during their regularly scheduled meeting on April8, 2015. Adopted by the Mason County Commission on this 2nd day of June, 2015 ATTEST: Clerik of the Board BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS MASON COUNTY, WASHINGTON /*el Rands it( A1/4/ atherlin, Chair Tim Sheldon, Commissioner Terri Jeffreys,krnnissioner 5 C Et4! 11. Orga zationali Pot!c es LE. flnai ci .E PoCffc es H I. Poilcy Establishing Board EV. Eki thtUUty PoFEc es V. Referral to Other Services PoHc ss VC. Appeal and Resolution Pollcc es %RE. Apprucation Pro►ceckeres VE L , n Processing of Packet Procedures U . Records, Ries, Forms, and Reports v. Attachments (Mt11) P-AGE(S) 3 3e41 4=5 5 a 53 8042 Page 2of8 rganizatiortai Policies a.All RCW's (Revised Code of the State of Washington) within Chapter 73.08 RCW VETERANS' RELIEF, with other RCW's and Mason County RESOLUTION NO. 05-15 will be used and referred to throughout this policy. Eb.The purpose of the Mason County Veterans' Assistance Advisory Fund is to provide relief as set forth in RCW 73.08.010 (Att.J)to indigent and suffering veterans, their families and the families of deceased indigent veterans c.Any honorably discharged veterans or veterans with a General Discharge under honorable conditions or a General Discharge with other then honorable conditions (Administrative Discharge),as outlined in RCW 41.04.005 (Att.e) and RCW 41.04.007 (Att.P), and meeting the criteria in I-b may apply. el.These policies and procedures are subject to review annually by the VAB 1.) If a revision is made, it is so noted and a narrative of revision is put in VAB minutes 2.) If no revisions are made, the date of review is noted, and put in VAB minutes 3.) All revisions are subject to review by Post Commanders and MCC. c. The VAB will met the second Wednesday of each month at 10:00am at the Memorial Hall at 2nd and Franklin St., in Shelton, WA 1. A quorum must be met to conduct any business that may come before the board g. If a quorum is not met, the Chair may contact other members via phone/text messaging or by e-mail h. Upon reaching a member, and member agrees to be part of the meeting, thus creating a quorum, the Chair must remain in contact with the member throughout the meeting EL Financial Policies a) The funds for creating a Veterans' Assistance Fund (VAF) RCW 73.08.080(1) (Att.M), is generated from a tax levied by the Mason County Commissioners (MCC), use of the fund isgoverned by same RCW (Att.M) b) On February 10, 2015 the MCC in Resolution No. 05-15 (Att.Q) amended the limit of cash awarded to eligible veterans at eight hundred ($800.00) dollars to be spent on specific types of relief as outlined in c) Approval of the eight hundred ($800.00) dollars for assistance shall be granted only for the following: 1) Past Due Rent or Mortgage 2) Past Due Utilities i.)Electric ii.) Water iii.) Natural Gas iv. Wastewater (sewer) 3) Miscellaneous Items i.) Necessity items (refer to list - Attachment R) a.) Single $15 0 b.) Married $200 c.) +$50 per dependent ii.) Needed Fire Wood or Propane 4.) Other Items i.Obtain state ID card (one time only). ii.Reinstate driver's license (one time only). Page 3 of 8 d. Exclusions will include, but not limited to alcohol, tobacco, and Lottery tickets. e.Purchases in excess of the amount written on the check is the responsibility of the applicant f.No cash back will be given to the applicant if purchases are less than the amount written on the check g.All requests for assistance will be approved by the Veterans Service Officer(VSO), with final approval by the MCC h.If it is determined an applicant is in need of assistance due to any event, catastrophic illness or other significant change in circumstance which comes in to being unexpectedly and is beyond the applicants' management or control, the VSO may request in writing that MCC consider approval of an amount not to exceed three hundred fifty ($300.00) dollars per applicant in any calendar year i.The intent of the VAF is not to replace assistance from any other agency, and assistance is granted on a "Case by Case" basis only j. The VAF is not intended to provide continuing assistance on a routine basis :..The VAF shall not duplicate other available assistance for the purposes as noted in 114 W W . Policy Establishing Board a.RCW 73.08.035 (Att.k) states each county must establish a Veterans' Advisory Board (VAB), the board shall advise MCC on the needs of local indigent veterans, the resources available to local indigent veterans, and programs that could benefit the needs of local indigent veterans and their families b.The VAB is comprised of veterans from the community "at large", and representatives from nationally recognized veterans organizations within Mason County. Per said RCW (ATT.K), no fewer than a majority of the board members shall be members from a nationally recognized veterans' service organization and only veterans are to serve on the board. Service on the board is voluntary. c.Mason County Resolution NO. 58-13 (Att.Q) allows for appointment of two members residing in Mason County from each Nationally Recognized Veterans' Service Organizations to be appointed to the Veterans' Advisory Board (VAB), and one member" at large" d.The VAB will consist of an eight member board; members are appointed as follows: 1.) American Legion(2 members) 2.) Veterans of Foreign Wars(2 members) 3.) 40 et 8(2 members) 4.) Two Mason County resident veterans (at Large) e.Commanders of these organizations will not be members of the VAB f.Commanders will appoint the members from their organization to serve on the VAB for the purpose of overseeing the VAF g.These members may be appointed or removed at the discretion of their Commander h.The first appointment of members shall be three (3) members for a three (3) year term, and four (4) members for a two (2) year term i.Therafter all terms will be two (2) year terms j.The MCC reserves the right to disallow VAB appointee for cause Page 4 of 8 EV. EEigibility Policies a.RCW 73.08.005 (Att.!) and other provisions in RCW Title 73 (Att.H) shall govern eligibility assistance to indigent and suffering veterans and/or families [.The county defines "indigent and suffering" to mean the current poverty level as defined by the United States Department of Health and Human Services(HHS)(Att.G) c.Farnily members entitled to apply for assistance shall be defined as spouse or domestic partner, surviving spouse, surviving domestic partner, and dependent children of a living or deceased veteran. cl.Applicants must be a resident of the Mason County for at least ninety (90) days. e. Applicant must present proof of residency and income f. An applicant may use hotel/motel receipts as proof of residence, provided that; a. All recipts show a minimum of a 90 day stay within Mason County b. The 90 day stay must be continuous c. All recipts must be in the applicant's name d. All receipts must be original (no copies) g. Under the federally -established poverty guidelines, the gross income of the veteran and all members of the household must be at or below150% of the poverty guidelines established by the HHS(Att.G) h.Veterans making above the 150% and who do not have an emergency financial situation will not be eligible for assistance i.An applicant may have a source of income above the aforementioned 150% and still be considered indigent on an emergency basis j.Lack of funds because of bad financial management of an adequate source of income does not make the applicant indigent V. Referral to Other Services a.As per RCW 73.08.070 (Att.L) the county shall assist indigent veterans with burial or cremation costs of three hundred ($300.00) dollars minimum or up to six hundred ($600.00) dollars b.The burial assistance is in addition to prior eight hundred ($800.00) dollars limitation as outlined in 1I-f c.in an effort to maximize dollars and provide for as many as possible applicants, and when appropriate, the veteran may be referred by the VSO to other veteran services, and to other community resources for services VI Appeal and Resolution Policy a. If an applicant has for any reason falsely filed a claim, or has misused monies from the Veterans ' Assistance Fund, the following will apply: 1. A letter is given to the applicant, from the County, denying further use of the fund, until the false claim is resolved 2. A copy of that letter will be sent to the Veterans' Service office to be placed in the offending applicant' file 3. The applicant's file will then be "Red Flagged" and denied further use unitl the problem is resolved b. To resolve the claim, the applicant can clear their name by: 1. If applicant feels this is unjustified, they may appeal in writing of the Veterans' Advisory Board within 15 days of notification 2. The appeal will be reviewed by the VAB at the next regular scheduled meeting and a decision will be made no later than the next regular scheduled meeting Page 5of8 3. Approval or Disapproval required a "Super Majority" vote by the entire VAB 4. The applicant may file an appeal, in writing, with the Mason County Cominisioners. A decision in regard to the appeal may take up to 30 days. c. The applicant may repay any and all monies that have come in to question, and may not have access to these funds for one year after payment d. If the applicant elects not to do VI. b. or c. there will be a two year probationary wait period. After the wait period is complete, the applicant must "in writing" request to receive these funds once more, a deision will be forthcoming. e. If it is found that the applicant has done this two times, they will be permanently denied from using this fund VEIN Application Procedures a.Upon arriving at the VSO office the applicant will be asked to sign -in b.The applicant is then screened for their assistance needs, residence, income, and their eligibility, an "Assistance Fund Application (AFA) (Att. D), and a "Rental/Mortgage Verification (Att.C) form must be filled out as part of the application process. c.If the applicant does not have all needed information or documentation, they will be given form Veterans' Assistance Fund Documents Checklist" (Att. B) to help gather the needed information and return form to VSO cd.If an applicant cannot show proof of service, a "Standard Form 180" (Att.E) will be given to them to be filled out and sent in, they can go to the VA at American Lake to get proof of service eIf two or more appliants are sharing the same physical residency, then all income is considered as one f. Only one application may be used for any single physical residency g. If an applicant has a "Sub -Lease Agreement". The VII-g will apply h. When an applicant has requested assistance for past due rent or mortgage payment, 11-f-1 and has gone through the screening process. The VSO will call the landlord to inform them that the veteran has applied for assistance, and that a letter of "Recommendation for Payment" (Att.A) will be forthcoming i. The applicant will then be given a form "Rental/Mortgage Verification" (Aff.c) to be given to the landlord. This form must be filled out by the landlord or lien holder, notarized and sent back or taken to the VSO's office. The VSO will then verify all information on the form J. Shared Dwelling 1) In the case of a veteran sharing a dwelling with another person who is not a family member as defined in Operating policy item IV-c, the rental amount will be prorated by the number of people living in the dwelling 2) In the case of a veteran sharing a dwelling with another person who is not a family member as defined in Operating Policy item IV-c, the utility expenses will be prorated by the numbr of people living in the dwelling 3) In the case of a veteran sharing a dwelling with another person who is not a family member as defined in Operating policy item IV-c, the firewood/propane expenses will be prorated by the number of people living in the dwelling k.When an applicant has requested assistance for past due utilities (electric, water or natural gas) 114-2, and has gone through the screening process. The applicant must have a "Past Due" pink slip(s) stating that service will be discontinued. 1. Some utilities companies, i.e. Shelton Utilities, do include garbage within the water bill, in this situation where the bill is "combined", the whole bill is paid in. The VSO will call the utilities company to verify the correct amount to be paid, and Page 6 of 8 inform them that the veteran has applied for assistance and that a letter of "Recommendation for Payment" (Att.A) will be forthcoming n. When an applicant requests assistance for firewood or propane, and has gone through the screening process, the VSO will call a vendor to confirm prices and amount needed. The VSO will then inform the vendor that the veteran has applied for assistance and that a letter of "Recommendation for Payment" (Att.A) will be forthcoming, VII-j-3 also applies o. The VSO will then fill out a "Purchase Order" (Att.F) to be sent with "Assistance Fund Application" (AFA) (Att.D) for approval from MCC p. When an applicant request miscellaneous items or other items and has gone through the screening process, the VSO will, to the best of their ability, determine the need of the applicant q. The VSO will fill out the "Assistance Fund Application (AFA) (Att. D), determine the amount, the vendor, and have the applicant sign the application with a full understanding of the request r. Necessity items check(s) are issued in fifty dollar increments. The applicant will be given an itemized list of authorized items that may be purchased (Att.R) s.After all needed information and documentation is gathered from the applicant and outside sources, the AFA is then completely filled out and the packet is complete t.It is the VSO's responsibility to ensure all information in the packet is correct and verified u.When the packet is sent on to MCC it will have a copy of "Recommendation for Payment" as a cover sheet(Att.A) or "Assistance Fund Application (Att. D) v.The VSO reserves the right to refuse service to disorderly or abusive individuals. Service will be refused to individuals under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs. Applicants who are disorderly or abusive to Mason County employees or volunteers will be not be provided assistance and will be asked to leave the building VEIL Processing of Packet Procedures a.Once the packet is received at the MCC office, it is date stamped, and reviewed to ensure all information is correct, and all supporting documentation is there b.The MCC office adds a cover sheet along with a list of checks to be issued, and then it is presented to the MCC for approval c.Applications submitted on Monday will be forwarded the same day to the MCC for processing. On Tuesday of the following week they will be reviewed by the MCC. If approved, the checks will be issued the following day, Wednesday (9 days after the applications were completed) d.Applications submitted on Wednesday will be forwarded the next Monday to MCC for processing. On Tuesday of the following week they will be reviewed by the MCC. If approved, the vouchers (checks) will be issued the following day, Wednesday (15 days after the applications were completed) e.Applicants who pick up his/or her check(s), must have proper picture ID, and must sign for checks) Checks are sent out by mail on Thursday (.Checks that are issued will be stamped with , "No Cash Back", "No Alcohol or Tobacco" h.Some delays may result if the MCC do not meet on Tuesday or if legal holidays fall within the period i.A weekly list of "Approval of Expenditures" is sent to the VSO office each week from the MCC office IXr Records, Files, Forms and Reports a.It will be the responsibility of the VAB Chair, acting in concert with the VSO's to establish and maintain a record of each applicant requesting and /or receiving Page 7of8 assistance from the VAF b.The VSO will provide forms and reports of attendants, decisions, and record -keeping foi' clientele,e.g., forms for vendors, initial applications, and VAB decisions c.Each October, the \TAB, acting in concert with the VSO's shall produce an annual report for' the MCC, containing the following information: 1) The number of requests for assistance received during the calendar year 2) The number- of requests for assistance for which assistance was given 3) The number of requests for assistance for which assistance was not provided and a narrative description of the reasons assistance was not provided 4) The total dollar value of assistance provided on a monthly basis 5) A narrative description of non -monetary assistance provided by the VAB 6) Meeting minutes as an attachment 7) A copy of appeals as an attachment a.If any section of these policies or procedures is determined to be in conflict with federal, state. or county laws, ordinances or directives then said section will be void and the aforementioned laws, ordinances or directives shall prevail K a Attachments (AtL) t. Recommendation For Payment [3p 5 & S veteran's Assistance Documents Checklist (S&S form) C. Rental/Mortgage Verification D. Assistance Fund Application (A A) E. Request Pertaining to Military Records (Standard Form 180) F. Mason County Veterans Service OfficeaPurchase Order G. Income Guidelines for Mason County (EMS) H. Chapter 73.08 RCW Veterans' Relief I. RCIAl 7 3.08.005-Definitions J. RCW 7 3.08.010-Provides Relief for indigent veterans Edo RCW 73.08.035-Establishment of veterans' Advisory Board (VAR) L. RCW 73.08.070-Burial of Indigent Deceased Veterans M. RCW 73.08.080-Tax Levy Authorized -(1)Establishment of veterans' Assistance Fund (VAF) N. RCW 73.08.90-Public Assistance Eligibility 0. RCW 41.04.005-„veteran" Defined for Certain Purposes P. RCW 41.04.007-"veteran" Defined for Certain Purposes Q. Mason County Resolution No. 05-15 R. VAF Necessity Itemized List Page 8 of 8