§ 26-2-106 — Applications for public assistance

(1) Any individual wishing to
make application for any of the public assistance programs administered or
supervised by the state department under this article shall have the opportunity to
do so, and, except as otherwise provided in part 7 of this article, such public
assistance shall be furnished with reasonable promptness to each eligible
individual in accordance with rules of the state department. The county department
shall consider an application for public assistance to be for any category of public
assistance for which the applicant may be eligible.

(1.5) All applications for public assistance shall contain the citizenship of the
applicant, the number of years the applicant has resided in the United States, and, if
the applicant is an alien, the name and the social security number or federal tax
number of the person, or persons or organization, if any, who sponsored the
applicant's entry into the United States.

(2) The rules of the state department may provide for a simplified application
in order that public assistance may be furnished to eligible persons as soon as
possible and shall provide adequate safeguards and controls to ensure that only
eligible persons receive public assistance under this article.

(3) Applications and requests for public assistance under this article shall be
made to the county department of the county or the state designated agency,
where applicable, for the county in which the applicant is a resident. The state
department by its rules shall prescribe the form and procedure for applications or
requests for social services. The application for assistance payments shall be in
writing or reduced to writing in the manner and upon the form prescribed by the
state department, shall contain the name, age, and residence of the applicant, the
category or type of assistance payments sought, a statement of the amount of
property, both real and personal, in which the applicant has an interest and of all
income which he or she may have at the time of the filing of the application, and
such other information as may be required by rules of the state department, and
shall be verified by the signature of the applicant or his or her legally appointed
guardian. In addition, an applicant who is eighteen years of age or older shall be
required to supply a form of personal photographic identification either by
providing a valid Colorado driver's license or a valid identification card issued by the
department of revenue pursuant to section 42-2-302, C.R.S. The state department
may adopt rules that exempt applicants from the requirement of supplying a form
of personal photographic identification if such requirement causes an unreasonable
hardship or if such requirement is in conflict with federal law. The state department
shall also adopt rules that allow for assistance to be provided on an emergency
basis until the applicant is able to obtain or to qualify for a driver's license or
identification card; however, a county department is not required to recover
emergency assistance from an applicant who fails, upon recertification, to meet the
photographic identification requirement.

(4) (a) (Deleted by amendment, L. 97, p. 1230, � 16, effective July 1, 1997.)

(b) If the public assistance sought is aid to the needy disabled or aid to the
blind, the application shall be signed by the applicant and his natural guardian or
legally appointed guardian, if any.

(5) For the purpose of providing public assistance to persons not receiving
federal financial benefits pursuant to Title XVI of the social security act:

(a) No application for aid to the blind shall be approved until the applicant
has been examined by an ophthalmologist duly licensed to practice in this state and
actively engaged in the treatment of diseases of the human eye or by an
optometrist duly licensed to practice in this state. The examining ophthalmologist
or optometrist shall certify in writing upon forms prescribed by the state
department as to diagnosis, prognosis, and visual acuity of the applicant.

(b) Determination of blindness shall be made by the county department in
accordance with the provisions of section 26-2-103 (3) and state department rules
and regulations.

(c) The county department shall fix the fees to be paid for examination of
applicants for and reexamination of recipients of aid to the blind. Such fees shall be
allowed and paid to the vendor in the same manner as assistance payments under
the program for aid to the blind, pursuant to the rules and regulations of the state
department. Payments to such vendors shall be subject to reimbursement by the
state in the same manner as said assistance payments for aid to the blind.

(6) (a) An application for aid to the needy disabled must not be approved
until the applicant's medical condition has been certified by a physician licensed to
practice medicine in this state, a physician assistant licensed in this state, or an
advanced practice registered nurse licensed in this state. In addition to a physician,
an applicant may be examined by a physician assistant licensed in this state, an
advanced practice registered nurse, a registered nurse licensed in this state who is
functioning within the scope of the nurse's license and training, a licensed
psychologist, or any other licensed health-care personnel the state department
deems appropriate. The person who conducted the examination shall certify in
writing upon forms prescribed by the state department as to the diagnosis,
prognosis, and other relevant medical or mental factors relating to the applicant's
disability. An applicant who is disabled as a result of a primary diagnosis of an
alcohol use disorder or a substance use disorder related to controlled substances
must not be approved for aid to the needy disabled except as provided in section
26-2-111 (4)(e).

(b) Determination of the existence of total disability shall be made by the
county department after consideration of the factors under the provisions of
section 26-2-103 (14) and on the basis of the medical examination or from medical
and social data collected and verified by the county departments under the rules
and regulations of the state department.

(c) The county department shall fix the fees to be paid to competent medical
personnel for examination of applicants for and reexamination of recipients of aid
to the needy disabled and for special medical examinations when deemed
necessary by the state department pursuant to rules and regulations of the state
department. Such fees shall be allowed and paid to the medical vendor in the same
manner as assistance payments under the program for aid to the needy disabled,
pursuant to the rules and regulations of the state department. Payments to such
vendors shall be subject to reimbursement by the state in the same manner as said
assistance payments for aid to the needy disabled.

Legislative History

Source: L. 73: R&RE, p. 1180, � 2. C.R.S. 1963: � 119-3-6. L. 75: (6)(b) amended, p. 889, � 5, effective July 28. L. 77: (5) R&RE, p. 1343, � 2, effective May 26. L. 83: (5)(b), (5)(c), (6)(b), and (6)(c) amended, p. 1117, � 1, effective March 15. L. 88: (1.5) added, p. 1053, � 1, effective April 16. L. 91: (3) amended, p. 1897, � 8, effective July 1. L. 96: (6)(a) amended, p. 992, � 1, effective May 23. L. 97: (1) and (4)(a) amended, p. 1230, � 16, effective July 1. L. 98: (3) amended, p. 933, � 1, effective August 5. L. 99: (6)(a) amended, p. 97 � 1, effective March 24; (6)(a) amended, p. 626, � 28, effective August 4. L. 2001: (6)(a) amended, p. 185, � 17, effective August 8. L. 2006: (6)(b) amended, p. 1505, � 48, effective June 1. L. 2008: (6)(a) amended, p. 134, � 25, effective January 1, 2009. L. 2016: (6)(a) amended, (SB 16-158), ch. 204, p. 729, � 22, effective August 10. L. 2017: (6)(a) amended, (SB 17-242), ch. 263, p. 1332, � 217, effective May 25. L. 2018: (6)(a) amended, (HB 18-1196), ch. 82, p. 678, � 1, effective March 29.