Welf. & Inst. Code, § 11275.05

(a) Whenever a former recipient of aid applies for aid before the expiration of one year from the effective date of discontinuance, the county shall examine the existing case file to determine if the necessary verification is in the possession of the county if any of the following criteria is present:

(1) The applicant does not have easy access to the verification.

(2) There is a cost associated with obtaining the verification.

(3) The time needed to obtain the verification would delay the application.

(b) The county shall not be required to examine the existing case file if it would be unreasonable to expect the file to contain the needed verification because the circumstance for which the verification is needed did not exist during the period the applicant previously received aid.

(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (a), whenever a former recipient of aid applies for aid within the calendar month following the effective date of a discontinuance, a county shall not require the former recipient to furnish any documentation previously provided to the county unless the documentation is absent from the existing file and the documentation affects eligibility or the amount of aid.

(d) The retrieval and examination of the file shall be conducted in a timely manner to ensure the prompt determination of eligibility for aid.

(e) At the time an applicant described in subdivisions (a) and (c) is requested to obtain and submit to the county verification of eligibility, the county shall inform the applicant, in writing, of the requirements of this section.