2013 Indiana Code
TITLE 12. HUMAN SERVICES
ARTICLE 20. TOWNSHIP ASSISTANCE
CHAPTER 5.5. TOWNSHIP ASSISTANCE STANDARDS
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IC 12-20-5.5
Chapter 5.5. Township Assistance Standards
IC 12-20-5.5-1
Processing applications; nondiscrimination
Sec. 1. (a) The township trustee shall process all applications for
township assistance according to uniform written standards and
without consideration of the race, creed, nationality, or gender of the
applicant or any member of the applicant's household.
(b) The township's standards for the issuance of township
assistance and the processing of applications must be:
(1) governed by the requirements of this article;
(2) proposed by the township trustee, adopted by the township
board, and filed with the board of county commissioners;
(3) reviewed and updated annually to reflect changes in the cost
of basic necessities in the township and changes in the law;
(4) published in a single written document, including addenda
attached to the document; and
(5) posted in a place prominently visible to the public in all
offices of the township trustee where township assistance
applications are taken or processed.
As added by P.L.51-1996, SEC.20. Amended by P.L.73-2005,
SEC.24.
IC 12-20-5.5-2
Standards; content
Sec. 2. (a) Standards for the administration of township assistance
must contain the following:
(1) Criteria for determining township assistance eligibility.
(2) Minimum requirements of township trustee accessibility.
(3) Other information as needed, including the following:
(A) Township office locations, hours, and days of
availability.
(B) Initial eligibility criteria.
(C) Continuing eligibility criteria.
(D) Workfare requirements.
(E) Essential and nonessential assets.
(F) Available resources.
(G) Income exemptions.
(H) Application process.
(I) Countable income.
(J) Countable assets.
(K) Wasted resources.
(b) Standards for the administration of township assistance must
exclude a Holocaust victim's settlement payment received by an
eligible individual from countable assets and countable income.
As added by P.L.51-1996, SEC.20. Amended by P.L.128-1999,
SEC.25; P.L.73-2005, SEC.25.
IC 12-20-5.5-3
Adequate access ensured; telephone number; office
Sec. 3. (a) The township trustee shall ensure adequate access to
township assistance services, including a published telephone
number in the name of the township.
(b) A township assistance office, if separate from the township
trustee's residence, must be designated by a clearly visible sign that
lists the:
(1) township trustee's name;
(2) availability of township assistance; and
(3) township assistance office's telephone number.
The sign must conform to all local zoning and signage restrictions.
As added by P.L.51-1996, SEC.20. Amended by P.L.73-2005,
SEC.26.
IC 12-20-5.5-4
Scheduled hours of township trustee
Sec. 4. (a) This section does not apply to a township trustee who
has assisted less than fifty-one (51) households during each of the
two (2) years immediately preceding the date of the township
trustee's annual report under IC 12-20-28-3.
(b) To ensure minimum accessibility, a township trustee operating
a township assistance office in a township with a population of at
least ten thousand (10,000) shall provide scheduled office hours for
township assistance and staff each office with an individual qualified
to:
(1) determine eligibility; and
(2) issue relief sufficient to meet the township assistance needs
of the township.
(c) To meet the requirements of subsection (b), the township
trustee shall do the following:
(1) Provide township assistance office hours for at least
fourteen (14) hours per week.
(2) Provide that there is not more than one (1) weekday between
the days the township assistance office is open.
(3) Provide for after hours access to the township assistance
office by use of an answering machine or a service:
(A) capable of taking messages; and
(B) programmed to provide information about township
assistance office hours.
(4) Respond to a telephone inquiry for township assistance
services not more than twenty-four (24) hours, excluding
Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, after receiving the
inquiry.
(5) Post township assistance office hours and telephone
numbers at the entrance to each township assistance office.
As added by P.L.51-1996, SEC.20. Amended by P.L.73-2005,
SEC.27.
IC 12-20-5.5-5
Inclusion of standards governing provision of basic necessities
Sec. 5. The township's standards for the administration of
township assistance must include all applicable standards governing
the provision of basic necessities, including maximum amounts,
special conditions, or other limitations on eligibility, if any have been
established for one (1) or more basic necessities.
As added by P.L.51-1996, SEC.20. Amended by P.L.73-2005,
SEC.28.
IC 12-20-5.5-6
Income standards
Sec. 6. (a) A township trustee shall set income standards for the
township that provide for financial eligibility in an amount consistent
with reasonable costs of basic necessities in the trustee's particular
township.
(b) A township trustee may not consider a Holocaust victim's
settlement payment received by an eligible individual when setting
income standards under this section.
As added by P.L.51-1996, SEC.20. Amended by P.L.128-1999,
SEC.26.
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