CalWORKs reduced our benefits to $75 after redetermination + charging us $200 overpayment we can't afford
I'm so frustrated with CalWORKs right now. We just finished our annual redetermination last month and they said our household income is suddenly 'too high' for full benefits. They slashed us down to only $75 a month in Cash Aid! We're a family of 4 (me, partner, 2 kids - one's only 8 months old) and we're barely making ends meet as it is. To make matters worse, they're saying they OVERPAID us for the past 3 months and now we owe them $200 back. Where am I supposed to get this money from?? They didn't even explain how the overpayment happened - just sent a Notice of Action saying we owe them. The worker didn't seem to care that we spend at least $120/month on diapers alone, plus formula and all the other baby expenses. None of that counts as a 'deduction' in their calculations. Has anyone else had their benefits cut drastically after redetermination? Is there any way to appeal this or get the overpayment waived? We literally cannot afford to pay them back right now.
18 comments
Join the conversation
Zane Gray
The same thing happened to me about 6 months ago. They cut me down to like $95 and then said I owed almost $350!! I tried calling them like 8 times to figur out why but kept getting disconnected. So frustrating. Did they send you the detailed calculation sheet thing that shows how they decided your income was too high? Sometimes they count income wrong or dont apply all the deductions.
0 coins
Aileen Rodriguez
•No, they just sent the standard NOA with the new benefit amount and separate overpayment notice. No detailed calculation. I'm going to request that. Did you end up having to pay back your overpayment?
0 coins
Maggie Martinez
I'm sorry you're dealing with this. I'd recommend several steps: 1. Request an Itemized Notice of Action that shows EXACTLY how they calculated your income and benefits. They are required to provide this. 2. File for a Fair Hearing immediately - you only have 90 days from the date on your NOA. This will at least pause any collection efforts for the overpayment while your case is reviewed. 3. Ask specifically about the Special Needs Diaper Supplement. CalWORKs has a supplement of $30 per month for children under 3 who need diapers. It's not much, but it helps. 4. For the overpayment, you can request a hardship waiver if repaying would cause your family significant financial difficulty (which it sounds like it would). Did they count all income deductions properly? They should deduct $550 for housing costs plus certain childcare expenses and the earned income disregard if anyone is working.
0 coins
Aileen Rodriguez
•Thank you so much for this detailed info! I had no idea about the diaper supplement - my worker never mentioned it even though I specifically told her about our diaper costs. I'll definitely request that itemized NOA and file for a hearing. Our rent is $1,800 so we should be getting the full housing deduction. My partner works part-time and I work 15 hrs/week, so we should be getting the earned income disregard too. How do I request the hardship waiver for the overpayment? Is there a specific form?
0 coins
Alejandro Castro
they always do this!!! the system is designed to trick u into reporting something wrong so they can cut benefits and charge overpayments. i bet if u look at what income they used its probably counting something twice or their adding up wrong. happened to me 3 TIMES where they counted my boyfriends income twice or didnt apply the income disregard thing correctly. my advice: FILE FOR HEARING RIGHT AWAY!! dont wait. and demand a supervisor review. sometimes the county will fix it before the hearing happens if u make enough noise about it.
0 coins
Monique Byrd
•THIS! I used to work for the county (not anymore thank god) and the number of calculation errors that happen is shocking. The income disregard is frequently applied incorrectly, especially for families with both earned and unearned income. Definitely request a detailed breakdown and point out any errors right away.
0 coins
Jackie Martinez
I spent HOURS trying to get through to someone at CalWORKs about an overpayment issue last year - constant busy signals, disconnects after waiting 40+ minutes, promised callbacks that never happened. Finally I found this service called Claimyr that got me through to a real person in about 10 minutes. You might want to check them out at claimyr.com - they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/jzISHxCPLwE Once I finally got to actually talk to someone, I found out they had calculated my income wrong and had to fix it. The overpayment was reduced from $450 to only $75. Definitely worth fighting.
0 coins
Zane Gray
•omg thank u for sharing this!! i get so much anxiety from calling them because i know ill wait forever just to get disconnected. definitely gonna try this next time
0 coins
Lia Quinn
Some advice on the overpayment - even if you can't get it waived completely, you can ask for a reduced monthly repayment plan. When I had a $600 overpayment last year, they initially wanted to take 10% of my grant each month, but I requested a hardship reduction and got it down to only $10 per month. For the diaper supplement that someone mentioned, you need to complete form CW 2209 - "CalWORKs Special Needs Request". The program allows $30/month for children in the AU who are under 36 months.
0 coins
Aileen Rodriguez
•Thank you for the form number! My worker literally never mentioned this even when I was talking about diaper costs. I'm starting to think they don't want us to know about all the benefits we're eligible for.
0 coins
Haley Stokes
its so weird how they can say ur income is 2 high but then still give u $75... like if were over income why give anything? the whole system makes no sense. my benefits keep changing every few months and i never know why or what income they used. im scared to even ask questions cuz what if they realize they made a mistake and take away wat little i still get
0 coins
Maggie Martinez
•That's actually a common misunderstanding. CalWORKs uses a gradual phase-out system. As your income increases, your grant amount decreases incrementally until you reach the cutoff point. The $75 minimum grant can apply when your income is in that transition zone - too high for full benefits but not high enough to make you completely ineligible. And please don't be afraid to ask questions! Even if they discover a mistake, they can't take action without proper notice, and you always have appeal rights.
0 coins
Monique Byrd
Regarding the overpayment - ask specifically for an Administrative Error waiver if you reported all your income correctly and on time. If the overpayment happened because of the county's mistake (not yours), they can waive it entirely. Also, on your next SAR7 or recertification, make sure you're claiming all possible deductions: - Housing costs (rent/utilities) up to $550 - Dependent care costs if you're working or in school - Child support payments if applicable - Medical expenses over $35 for elderly/disabled household members For a family of 4 with an infant, your income limit should be higher than they might be calculating. Definitely ask for that detailed NOA.
0 coins
Aileen Rodriguez
•We definitely reported everything correctly and on time! I keep all our paystubs and report any changes right away. I think they just calculated something wrong. I had no idea there's a specific type of waiver for administrative errors - the worker just made it sound like we HAD to pay it back no matter what. Thanks for this info!
0 coins
Zane Gray
did u try calling ur worker? i kno its impossible to get thru sometimes but if u keep calling right when they open sometimes u can catch them. or go in person if u can. they always treat u better face to face than on the phone i swear
0 coins
Aileen Rodriguez
•I've tried calling multiple times but our county office is ALWAYS busy. I'm going to try going in person next week. The office is pretty far from us but at this point it's worth the bus fare if I can get this fixed.
0 coins
Alejandro Castro
anyone know if they can garnish wages for calworks overpayments??? im so worried they're gonna start taking $ from my paychecks for an overpayment from 2 yrs ago that i never paid
0 coins
Lia Quinn
•Yes, they can eventually refer unpaid CalWORKs overpayments to the Franchise Tax Board for collection, which can lead to wage garnishment or tax refund intercepts. But they have to send multiple notices first, and there's a process. If you're worried about an old overpayment, call and try to set up even a small payment plan ($5-10/month) to show good faith - that usually prevents them from taking more aggressive collection action.
0 coins