1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to human services; providing support for individuals who are shelter 
1.3 	needy; appropriating money;amending Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 
1.4 	256D.44, subdivisions 2, 5.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 256D.44, subdivision 2, is amended to 
1.7 	read:
1.8 		Subd. 2.Standard of assistance for persons eligible for medical assistance 
1.9 	waivers or at risk of placement in a group residential housing facility. The state 
1.10 	standard of assistance for a person who: (1) is eligible for a medical assistance home and 
1.11 	community-based services waiver or a person who; (2) has been determined by the local 
1.12 	agency to meet the plan requirements for placement in a group residential housing facility 
1.13 	under section 256I.04, subdivision 1a,; or (3) is eligible for a shelter needy payment 
1.14 	under subdivision 5, paragraph (f), is the standard established in subdivision 3, paragraph 
1.15 	(a) or (b).

1.16 	Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 256D.44, subdivision 5, is amended to read:
1.17 		Subd. 5.Special needs. In addition to the state standards of assistance established in 
1.18 	subdivisions 1 to 4, payments are allowed for the following special needs of recipients of 
1.19 	Minnesota supplemental aid who are not residents of a nursing home, a regional treatment 
1.20 	center, or a group residential housing facility.
1.21 	(a) The county agency shall pay a monthly allowance for medically prescribed 
1.22 	diets if the cost of those additional dietary needs cannot be met through some other 
1.23 	maintenance benefit. The need for special diets or dietary items must be prescribed by 
2.1 	a licensed physician. Costs for special diets shall be determined as percentages of the 
2.2 	allotment for a one-person household under the thrifty food plan as defined by the United 
2.3 	States Department of Agriculture. The types of diets and the percentages of the thrifty 
2.4 	food plan that are covered are as follows:
2.5 	(1) high protein diet, at least 80 grams daily, 25 percent of thrifty food plan;
2.6 	(2) controlled protein diet, 40 to 60 grams and requires special products, 100 percent 
2.7 	of thrifty food plan;
2.8 	(3) controlled protein diet, less than 40 grams and requires special products, 125 
2.9 	percent of thrifty food plan;
2.10 	(4) low cholesterol diet, 25 percent of thrifty food plan;
2.11 	(5) high residue diet, 20 percent of thrifty food plan;
2.12 	(6) pregnancy and lactation diet, 35 percent of thrifty food plan;
2.13 	(7) gluten-free diet, 25 percent of thrifty food plan;
2.14 	(8) lactose-free diet, 25 percent of thrifty food plan;
2.15 	(9) antidumping diet, 15 percent of thrifty food plan;
2.16 	(10) hypoglycemic diet, 15 percent of thrifty food plan; or
2.17 	(11) ketogenic diet, 25 percent of thrifty food plan.
2.18 	(b) Payment for nonrecurring special needs must be allowed for necessary home 
2.19 	repairs or necessary repairs or replacement of household furniture and appliances using 
2.20 	the payment standard of the AFDC program in effect on July 16, 1996, for these expenses, 
2.21 	as long as other funding sources are not available.
2.22 	(c) A fee for guardian or conservator service is allowed at a reasonable rate 
2.23 	negotiated by the county or approved by the court. This rate shall not exceed five percent 
2.24 	of the assistance unit's gross monthly income up to a maximum of $100 per month. If the 
2.25 	guardian or conservator is a member of the county agency staff, no fee is allowed.
2.26 	(d) The county agency shall continue to pay a monthly allowance of $68 for 
2.27 	restaurant meals for a person who was receiving a restaurant meal allowance on June 1, 
2.28 	1990, and who eats two or more meals in a restaurant daily. The allowance must continue 
2.29 	until the person has not received Minnesota supplemental aid for one full calendar month 
2.30 	or until the person's living arrangement changes and the person no longer meets the criteria 
2.31 	for the restaurant meal allowance, whichever occurs first.
2.32 	(e) A fee of ten percent of the recipient's gross income or $25, whichever is less, 
2.33 	is allowed for representative payee services provided by an agency that meets the 
2.34 	requirements under SSI regulations to charge a fee for representative payee services. This 
2.35 	special need is available to all recipients of Minnesota supplemental aid regardless of 
2.36 	their living arrangement.
3.1 	(f) Notwithstanding the language in this subdivision, an amount equal to the 
3.2 	maximum allotment authorized by the federal Food Stamp Program for a single individual 
3.3 	which is in effect on the first day of January July of the previous each year will be added to 
3.4 	the standards of assistance established in subdivisions 1 to 4 for individuals adults under 
3.5 	the age of 65 who qualify as shelter needy and are: (1) relocating from an institution, or 
3.6 	an adult mental health residential treatment program under section 256B.0622, and who 
3.7 	are shelter needy; (2) self-directed supports option participants defined under section 
3.8 	256B.0657; or (3) home and community-based waiver recipients living in their own 
3.9 	rented, leased, or owned apartment or home not owned, operated, or controlled by a 
3.10 	provider of service not related by blood or marriage. Notwithstanding subdivision 3, 
3.11 	paragraph (c), an individual eligible for the shelter needy benefit under this paragraph is 
3.12 	considered a household of one. An eligible individual who receives this benefit prior to 
3.13 	age 65 may continue to receive the benefit after the age of 65.
3.14 	(g)(1) Persons eligible for shelter needy funding under paragraph (f), who are not 
3.15 	receiving medial assistance home and community-based waiver services, are eligible for 
3.16 	a state-funded transitional supports allowance under section 256B.49, subdivision 16, 
3.17 	paragraph (e), to establish their own residence not owned, operated, or controlled by a 
3.18 	provider of service not related by blood or marriage.
3.19 	(2) "Shelter needy" means that the assistance unit incurs monthly shelter costs that 
3.20 	exceed 40 percent of the assistance unit's gross income before the application of this 
3.21 	special needs standard. "Gross income" for the purposes of this section is the applicant's or 
3.22 	recipient's income as defined in section 256D.35, subdivision 10, or the standard specified 
3.23 	in subdivision 3, paragraph (a) or (b), whichever is greater. A recipient of a federal or 
3.24 	state housing subsidy, that limits shelter costs to a percentage of gross income, shall not be 
3.25 	considered shelter needy for purposes of this paragraph.

3.26 	Sec. 3. APPROPRIATION.
 3.27 	$....... is appropriated in fiscal year 2009 from the general fund to the commissioner 
3.28 	of human services for the purposes of sections 1 and 2.