Perry v. State, Department of Children & Family Services

215 So. 3d 452, 16 La.App. 3 Cir. 857, 2017 WL 914459, 2017 La. App. LEXIS 383
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMarch 8, 2017
Docket16-857
StatusPublished

This text of 215 So. 3d 452 (Perry v. State, Department of Children & Family Services) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Perry v. State, Department of Children & Family Services, 215 So. 3d 452, 16 La.App. 3 Cir. 857, 2017 WL 914459, 2017 La. App. LEXIS 383 (La. Ct. App. 2017).

Opinion

GREMILLION, Judge.

l,The plaintiff, Yvette Perry, appeals the trial court’s judgment terminating her Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.2 For the following reasons, we affirm.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Perry’s SNAP benefits were terminated by the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) for three months because she failed to reactivate her Helping Individuals Reach Employment (HIRE) account online. Following a hearing, the administrative law judge (ALJ) found that Perry failed to comply with DCFS’s work registration requirements by June 15, 2015, and affirmed DCFS’s closure of her SNAP ease. Perry petitioned for judicial review in January 2016. Following a May 2016 hearing, the trial court affirmed the ALJ’s decision. Perry now appeals.

ASSIGMENTS OF ERROR

Perry argues the trial court:

1. erred as a matter of law in failing to apply the provisions of La.R.S. 49:964(G)(1) regarding DCFS failure to timely serve adverse notice in compliance to federal regulations,
2. erred as a matter of law because the untimely fair hearing was over ninety (90) days late and failed to conform to federal regulations.
3. erred in [jfailing to address issues of due process violations and
4. erred by failing to reverse the administrative law judge’s decision on the grounds that the decision was arbitrary and an unwarranted exercise of discretion.
5. erred by failing to reinstate SNAP benefits and award damages for civil rights violations.

^DISCUSSION

When reviewing an administrative final decision, the district court functions as an appellate court and reviews the administrative decisions according to La.R.S. 49:964, which regulates the review of administrative procedure. Louisiana Revised Statutes 49:964(G) provides that the dis[454]*454trict court may reverse or modify the administrative agency’s findings only if the appellant’s rights:

have been prejudiced because the administrative findings, inferences, conclusions, or decisions are:
(1) In violation of constitutional or statutory provisions;
(2) In excess of the statutory authority of the agency;
(3) Made upon unlawful procedure;
(4) Affected by other error of law;
(5) Arbitrary or capricious or characterized by abuse of discretion or clearly unwarranted exercise of discretion; or
(6) Not supported and sustainable by a preponderance of evidence as determined by the reviewing court. In the application of this rule, the court shall make its own determination and conclusions of fact by a preponderance of evidence based upon its own evaluation of the record reviewed in its entirety upon judicial review. In the application of the rule, where the agency has the opportunity to judge the credibility of witnesses by first-hand observation of demeanor on the witness stand and the reviewing court does not, due regard shall be given to the agency’s determination of credibility issues.

Thus, the district court determines if substantial rights of the appellant have been prejudiced in one of the above described ways. The ALJ’s findings of fact are due deference by the trial court. CHL Enters., LLC v. State, Dep’t of Revenue, 09-487 (La.App. 3 Cir. 11/4/09), 23 So.3d 1000, writ denied, 09-2613 (La. 2/12/10), 27 So.3d 848. We review the district court’s findings of fact using the manifest error standard of review. Id, Thus, if reasonable support in the record ^exists for the findings, we will not reverse the trial court’s ruling unless it is clearly wrong. Id.; Stobart v. State, through DOTD, 617 So.2d 880 (La.1993).

The ALJ found that DCFS proved by a preponderance of the evidence that its closure of Perry’s SNAP case was proper. The ALJ made the following findings of fact:

Yvette P. Perry submitted a redeter-mination application for SNAP benefits April 12, 2015. Ms. Perry was interviewed April 22, 2015, classified as a mandatory work eligible participant and required to register for work with LWC. The Department sent Ms. Perry a Client Contact Letter April 23, 2015, requesting additional verification. A SNAP 4RW Notice was mailed to Ms. Perry May 18, 2015, advising her to complete her work registration with LWC by May 29, 2015.
On June 1, 2015, the Department’s analyst checked the LWC HIRE screen which showed Ms. Perry last exited her HIRE account December 26, 2008. Ms. Perry’s SNAP case was placed in Active Closure status and adverse notice was mailed to her June 2, 2015. The adverse notice advised Ms. Perry that the sanction would be removed if she reactivated her HIRE account by June 15, 2015. The Department’s analyst checked the LWC HIRE screen June 15th and 16th; the LWC HIRE screens continued to show Ms. Perry last exited her HIRE account December 26, 2008. Ms. Perry did not comply by the June 15th deadline and her SNAP case closed. Ms. Perry activated her HIRE account June 19, 2015.

(Footnotes omitted).

The district court adopted the findings of the ALJ and further stated:

Perry was given proper notice to register with the Louisiana Workforce Commission (LWC) and create or reacti[455]*455vate a HIRE account by May 31, 2015. No proof was presented that Yvette P. Perry registered with LWC to reactive[ate] her HIRE account timely. Her account was not reactivated until June 19, 2015.

The following testimony was adduced at the November 2015 telephone hearing before the AL J.

Sharita Thibodeaux, DCFS worker, testified that Perry, as a single, unemployed, and not disabled person, was required to reactivate her HIRE account) 4 online via the Louisiana Workforce Commission (LWC) website. Thibodeaux said that she explained the registration requirement to Perry at the time of her April 22, 2015 redetermination interview to continue her benefits. Thibodeaux further said that an “18-C Notice” (client contact letter) was mailed to Perry on April 23, 2015, which indicated that, by May 31, 2015, she needed to create a HIRE account or reactivate it by conducting a job search; otherwise her case would be sanctioned, and she would not receive her benefits for three months. Another document entitled a “SNAP 4RW” (Work Registration Requirement), was mailed to Perry on May 18, 2015, giving detailed information on how to login to the LWC website and create or reactivate a HIRE account. It further set forth the penalty of termination of benefits for three months if Perry failed to register by May 29, 2015.

Thibodeaux testified that she checked the LWC website on June 1, 2015, noting that Perry’s last login to the website was December 26, 2008. Thibodeaux then discussed various forms used by DCFS, which were submitted into evidence. DCFS placed her case in active closure status and a “13-A Notice” (notice of adverse action) was created on June 1, 2015, and mailed June 2, 2015, according to Thi-bodeaux. This notice gave Perry another chance to activate her account by June 15, 2015, simply by searching for a job on the website and calling DCFS to let them know she had completed this action.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Stobart v. State Through DOTD
617 So. 2d 880 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1993)
CHL Enterprises, LLC v. State, Department of Revenue
23 So. 3d 1000 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2009)
Grasser Contracting Co. v. City of New Orleans
118 So. 841 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1927)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
215 So. 3d 452, 16 La.App. 3 Cir. 857, 2017 WL 914459, 2017 La. App. LEXIS 383, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/perry-v-state-department-of-children-family-services-lactapp-2017.