Income Security Administrative Procedures

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18.02.04 – Discretionary power

The Band Council’s or Tribal Council’s discretionary power provides a financial solution in exceptional and very special cases.

 

Before an adult or family can receive benefits through the exercise of this power the councillor must determine the category of person involved and ensure that the necessary CONDITIONS have been met:

 

The adult is:

 

INELIGIBLE due to a status other than that of a student, namely:

 

  • a non resident of Quebec;
  • a minor not fully emancipated who is not a dependant;
  • a detainee, held in a detention centre or any other prison facility;
  • a member of a religious community that can cover the needs of its members;

 

OR

 

INELIGIBLE for a reason other than the status or eligible to reduced financial assistance due to an unavailable resource:

 

  • the adult or family is ELIGIBLE by virtue of its status but is NOT ENTITLED to benefits under section 27 of the Act or entitled only to reduced benefits because of resources which must be taken into account but are not available for subsistence purposes (e.g. excess value of non-excluded property, consideration of work income in a work stoppage due to a labour dispute, value of property transferred without consideration or squandered, waiver of right and so on);

 

          AND

 

  • without the last resort financial assistance benefits the adult or family would be in a situation that could ENDANGER THEIR HEALTH or SAFETY or lead to COMPLETE DESTITUTION;

OR

  • the adult who lives in a community in Quebec and whose application to the Income Security Program is refused by the community where he lives;

 

   AND

 

  • without the last resort financial assistance benefits the adult or family would be in a situation that could ENDANGER THEIR HEALTH or SAFETY or lead to COMPLETE DESTITUTION.

 

The discretionary decision to grant assistance. It is issued in WRITING and is NOT SUBJECT TO REVIEW or APPEAL before the Appeal Committee.

 

However, as of January 1, 2003, a claim or a credit note regarding the financial assistance following an agreement or a reimbursement arrangement may be subject to review or appeal before the Appeal Committee.

 

The initial decision regarding ineligibility for assistance and the finding of a deficit continue to be the responsibility of the CLE, which must inform the applicant of its decision, the latter being subject to review and appeal before the Appeal Committee.

 

Particular regarding status

 

Students and their families may not take advantage of the exercise of the discretionary power of the Band and/or Tribal Council. They must apply to the Minister of Education or to their educational institution and use the remedies open to them.

 

The RISK to HEALTH and the danger of COMPLETE DESTITUTION:

 

The RISK to HEALTH and the danger of COMPLETE DESTITUTION must be determined on a case‑by‑case basis.

 

An councillor may identify such cases at the reception or initial allocation stage and if the risk of complete destitution is apparent or foreseeable the councillor must inform the client he or she is ineligible and advise them to file the application and the documents required nevertheless, as well as those which will establish the risk of complete destitution. Such filing will accelerate processing of the case for the possible exercise of Band and/or Tribal Council.

 

The danger of being in a situation threatening to HEALTH must be confirmed by a MEDICAL CERTIFICATE.

 

The risk of COMPLETE DESTITUTION may be defined as a SERIOUS AND UNUSUAL SITUATION which prevents an individual from providing for his or her most immediate and urgent basic needs.

 

Additionally, for this situation to be so regarded it must have existed or be likely to exist for a fairly long period. Even a serious budgetary deficit for a given month does not in itself constitute a situation that could lead to complete destitution. However, a deficit that continues over an extended period may lead to such a situation.

 

The RISK OF COMPLETE DESTITUTION

 

The RISK OF COMPLETE DESTITUTION is apparent where:

 

  • The adult or family now has only so-called essential goods such as household furniture, work tools or instruments and an inexpensive automobile; if they were to give up these goods to meet their most basic needs the proceeds of sale of the goods would not solve the problem of destitution and their situation would worsen;

 

  • The adult or family has an income that will only satisfy one of the basic needs (such as food), while the other needs are not met (shelter, heating and electricity costs, and clothing);

 

  • Due to this situation, the adult or family is likely to be deprived of all its property as the result of seizure or other actions for recovery; this is so, for example, when after having used all available resources the applicant is no longer able to pay his or her rent and the lesser threatens to cancel the lease, or it is impossible for him or her to meet a mortgage payment on a residence and the lender threatens to exercise his remedies.

 

The risk of complete destitution thus assumes that opportunities for obtaining resources sufficient to meet basic needs have been exhausted or are non-existent. Consequently, it follows that the risk of COMPLETE DESTITUTION is INCONSISTENT with:

 

  • The possession of liquid assets by the person making an application;

 

  • having cash on hand or in the bank should not by itself preclude an adult or family from being considered at risk of complete destitution; the degree to which these assets will cover the essential needs of the adult or family, and for how long, must be considered taking into account the overall situation at the time and what can be expected in the short term;

 

  • The possession of luxury items and any capitalization (real estate or savings in the form of shares or bonds);

 

  • Possession of assets that could be converted into liquid assets in the short term or on which money could be borrowed;

 

  • Receiving income from any source, even sources not regarded as income within the meaning of the Framework Policy;

 

  • Ability to borrow to meet essential needs of the adult or family: in particular, the ability to obtain a mortgage loan must be considered when the person owns real estate in which he has an equity;

 

  • The fact that some members of the family are working or receive sufficient income to meet the family's basic needs.

 

Assistance granted under the discretionary power

 

Assistance granted under the Band and/or Tribal Council discretionary power, including special benefits, may in some cases, be reimbursable. In order to recover the amounts jointly and severally, the reimbursement arrangement will be concluded with the applicant and his or her spouse when the family counts two adults.

 

Financial assistance is reimbursable when it is granted to a single adult or a family in the following cases:

 

  • The assisted person is expecting an event likely to provide him or her with a certain amount of liquid assets. It is, for example, the case of an adult assisted while waiting for the sale of his or her property;

 

  • Exceptionally, when the Régie des rentes du Québec (RRQ) formally refuses to apply the special procedure of emergency cheque issuance provided for in the destitution clause of family allowances.

 

Financial assistance is also recoverable if:

 

  • The financial assistance was granted without right;

 

  • The recipient was also in a situation provided for under article 102 of the Act and the right was realized;  

 

  • The recipient was also in a situation provided for under article 101 of the Act and the conditions were met. 

 

Financial assistance may also be compensated in the following cases:

 

  • Effects of the application of section 44 of the Act and section 50 of the Regulation (dissipation, assignment);

 

  • The loss or the theft of liquid assets derived from the benefit paid for that month

 

  • The effect of a seizure of income;

 

  • When a person has lost his or her student status and is in destitution because living expenses of the loans and bursaries regime of the Ministère de l’éducation du Quebec were included on the basis of apportionment.

 

  • Assistance is granted to compensate for the effect of a seizure of income

 

 

Financial assistance must be reimbursed as soon as:

 

  • The conditions mentioned in the arrangement are realized. For instance, the person obtains liquid assets through the sale of property, up to the net profit realized, end of seizure, etc.;

 

  • The adult or the family ceases to be eligible to assistance under the discretionary power for another reason than that for which assistance was granted: change of status in the case of a student, relocation outside of Quebec.