HF 2613

as introduced - 79th Legislature (1995 - 1996) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to crime; imposing a 30-day minimum 
  1.3             incarceration penalty on minors who unlawfully possess 
  1.4             pistols; limiting public assistance benefits to 
  1.5             individuals convicted of felonies; increasing 
  1.6             sentences for persons who commit felonies for the 
  1.7             benefit of a criminal gang; repealing the statutory 
  1.8             definition of criminal gang; expanding the obstruction 
  1.9             of justice crime to include persons who flee on foot 
  1.10            from a peace officer; seeking federal waivers; 
  1.11            providing funding for gang resistance education 
  1.12            training; appropriating money; amending Minnesota 
  1.13            Statutes 1994, sections 256.9354, by adding a 
  1.14            subdivision; 256D.05, by adding a subdivision; 
  1.15            260.185, subdivision 1a; 609.229, subdivision 3; 
  1.16            609.50, subdivision 1; and 624.713, subdivision 2; 
  1.17            Minnesota Statutes 1995 Supplement, section 256D.03, 
  1.18            subdivision 3; repealing Minnesota Statutes 1994, 
  1.19            section 609.229, subdivision 1.  
  1.20  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.21     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 256.9354, is 
  1.22  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.23     Subd. 8.  [CONVICTED FELONS; INELIGIBLE.] No person who has 
  1.24  been convicted of a felony-level offense or who is the parent of 
  1.25  a minor child who is living in the parent's household who has 
  1.26  been convicted of unlawful possession of a pistol under section 
  1.27  624.713 is eligible for MinnesotaCare for a period of one year 
  1.28  beginning from the date of conviction for the offense or the 
  1.29  date of release from incarceration, whichever is later. 
  1.30     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1995 Supplement, section 
  1.31  256D.03, subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  1.32     Subd. 3.  [GENERAL ASSISTANCE MEDICAL CARE; ELIGIBILITY.] 
  2.1   (a) General assistance medical care may be paid for any person 
  2.3   who is not eligible for medical assistance under chapter 256B, 
  2.4   including eligibility for medical assistance based on a 
  2.5   spenddown of excess income according to section 256B.056, 
  2.6   subdivision 5, and: 
  2.7      (1) who is receiving assistance under section 256D.05 or 
  2.8   256D.051, or who is having a payment made on the person's behalf 
  2.9   under sections 256I.01 to 256I.06; or 
  2.10     (2)(i) who is a resident of Minnesota; and whose equity in 
  2.11  assets is not in excess of $1,000 per assistance unit.  No asset 
  2.12  test shall be applied to children and their parents living in 
  2.13  the same household.  Exempt assets, the reduction of excess 
  2.14  assets, and the waiver of excess assets must conform to the 
  2.15  medical assistance program in chapter 256B, with the following 
  2.16  exception:  the maximum amount of undistributed funds in a trust 
  2.17  that could be distributed to or on behalf of the beneficiary by 
  2.18  the trustee, assuming the full exercise of the trustee's 
  2.19  discretion under the terms of the trust, must be applied toward 
  2.20  the asset maximum; and 
  2.21     (ii) who has countable income not in excess of the 
  2.22  assistance standards established in section 256B.056, 
  2.23  subdivision 4, or whose excess income is spent down pursuant to 
  2.24  section 256B.056, subdivision 5, using a six-month budget 
  2.25  period, except that a one-month budget period must be used for 
  2.26  recipients residing in a long-term care facility.  The method 
  2.27  for calculating earned income disregards and deductions for a 
  2.28  person who resides with a dependent child under age 21 shall be 
  2.29  as specified in section 256.74, subdivision 1.  However, if a 
  2.30  disregard of $30 and one-third of the remainder described in 
  2.31  section 256.74, subdivision 1, clause (4), has been applied to 
  2.32  the wage earner's income, the disregard shall not be applied 
  2.33  again until the wage earner's income has not been considered in 
  2.34  an eligibility determination for general assistance, general 
  2.35  assistance medical care, medical assistance, or aid to families 
  2.36  with dependent children for 12 consecutive months.  The earned 
  2.37  income and work expense deductions for a person who does not 
  3.1   reside with a dependent child under age 21 shall be the same as 
  3.2   the method used to determine eligibility for a person under 
  3.3   section 256D.06, subdivision 1, except the disregard of the 
  3.4   first $50 of earned income is not allowed; or 
  3.5      (3) who would be eligible for medical assistance except 
  3.6   that the person resides in a facility that is determined by the 
  3.7   commissioner or the federal health care financing administration 
  3.8   to be an institution for mental diseases. 
  3.9      (b) Eligibility is available for the month of application, 
  3.10  and for three months prior to application if the person was 
  3.11  eligible in those prior months.  A redetermination of 
  3.12  eligibility must occur every 12 months. 
  3.13     (c) General assistance medical care is not available for a 
  3.14  person in a correctional facility unless the person is detained 
  3.15  by law for less than one year in a county correctional or 
  3.16  detention facility as a person accused or convicted of a crime, 
  3.17  or admitted as an inpatient to a hospital on a criminal hold 
  3.18  order, and the person is a recipient of general assistance 
  3.19  medical care at the time the person is detained by law or 
  3.20  admitted on a criminal hold order and as long as the person 
  3.21  continues to meet other eligibility requirements of this 
  3.22  subdivision.  
  3.23     (d) General assistance medical care is not available for 
  3.24  applicants or recipients who do not cooperate with the county 
  3.25  agency to meet the requirements of medical assistance. 
  3.26     (e) In determining the amount of assets of an individual, 
  3.27  there shall be included any asset or interest in an asset, 
  3.28  including an asset excluded under paragraph (a), that was given 
  3.29  away, sold, or disposed of for less than fair market value 
  3.30  within the 60 months preceding application for general 
  3.31  assistance medical care or during the period of eligibility.  
  3.32  Any transfer described in this paragraph shall be presumed to 
  3.33  have been for the purpose of establishing eligibility for 
  3.34  general assistance medical care, unless the individual furnishes 
  3.35  convincing evidence to establish that the transaction was 
  3.36  exclusively for another purpose.  For purposes of this 
  4.1   paragraph, the value of the asset or interest shall be the fair 
  4.2   market value at the time it was given away, sold, or disposed 
  4.3   of, less the amount of compensation received.  For any 
  4.4   uncompensated transfer, the number of months of ineligibility, 
  4.5   including partial months, shall be calculated by dividing the 
  4.6   uncompensated transfer amount by the average monthly per person 
  4.7   payment made by the medical assistance program to skilled 
  4.8   nursing facilities for the previous calendar year.  The 
  4.9   individual shall remain ineligible until this fixed period has 
  4.10  expired.  The period of ineligibility may exceed 30 months, and 
  4.11  a reapplication for benefits after 30 months from the date of 
  4.12  the transfer shall not result in eligibility unless and until 
  4.13  the period of ineligibility has expired.  The period of 
  4.14  ineligibility begins in the month the transfer was reported to 
  4.15  the county agency, or if the transfer was not reported, the 
  4.16  month in which the county agency discovered the transfer, 
  4.17  whichever comes first.  For applicants, the period of 
  4.18  ineligibility begins on the date of the first approved 
  4.19  application. 
  4.20     (f)(1) Beginning October 1, 1993, an undocumented alien or 
  4.21  a nonimmigrant is ineligible for general assistance medical care 
  4.22  other than emergency services.  For purposes of this 
  4.23  subdivision, a nonimmigrant is an individual in one or more of 
  4.24  the classes listed in United States Code, title 8, section 
  4.25  1101(a)(15), and an undocumented alien is an individual who 
  4.26  resides in the United States without the approval or 
  4.27  acquiescence of the Immigration and Naturalization Service. 
  4.28     (2) This subdivision does not apply to a child under age 
  4.29  18, to a Cuban or Haitian entrant as defined in Public Law 
  4.30  Number 96-422, section 501(e)(1) or (2)(a), or to an alien who 
  4.31  is aged, blind, or disabled as defined in United States Code, 
  4.32  title 42, section 1382c(a)(1). 
  4.33     (3) For purposes of paragraph (f), "emergency services" has 
  4.34  the meaning given in Code of Federal Regulations, title 42, 
  4.35  section 440.255(b)(1), except that it also means services 
  4.36  rendered because of suspected or actual pesticide poisoning. 
  5.1      (g) No person who has been convicted of a felony-level 
  5.2   offense or who is the parent of a minor child who is living in 
  5.3   the parent's household who has been convicted of unlawful 
  5.4   possession of a pistol under section 624.713 is eligible for 
  5.5   general assistance medical care for a period of one year 
  5.6   beginning from the date of conviction for the offense or the 
  5.7   date of release from incarceration, whichever is later. 
  5.8      Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 256D.05, is 
  5.9   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  5.10     Subd. 9.  [CONVICTED FELONS INELIGIBLE.] No person who has 
  5.11  been convicted of a felony-level offense or who is the parent of 
  5.12  a minor child who is living in the parent's household who has 
  5.13  been convicted of unlawful possession of a pistol under section 
  5.14  624.713 is eligible for general assistance for a period of one 
  5.15  year beginning from the date of conviction for the offense or 
  5.16  the date of release from incarceration, whichever is later. 
  5.17     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 260.185, 
  5.18  subdivision 1a, is amended to read: 
  5.19     Subd. 1a.  [POSSESSION OF FIREARM OR DANGEROUS WEAPON.] (a) 
  5.20  If the child is petitioned and found delinquent by the court, 
  5.21  and the court also finds that the child was in possession of a 
  5.22  firearm at the time of the offense, in addition to any other 
  5.23  disposition the court shall order that the firearm be 
  5.24  immediately seized and shall order that the child be required to 
  5.25  serve at least 100 hours of community work service unless the 
  5.26  child is placed in a residential treatment program or a juvenile 
  5.27  correctional facility.  
  5.28     (b) If the child is petitioned and found delinquent by the 
  5.29  court, and the court finds that the child was in possession of a 
  5.30  dangerous weapon in a school zone, as defined in section 152.01, 
  5.31  subdivision 14a, clauses (1) and (3), at the time of the 
  5.32  offense, the court also shall order that the child's driver's 
  5.33  license be canceled or driving privileges denied until the 
  5.34  child's 18th birthday.  The court shall send a copy of its order 
  5.35  to the commissioner of public safety and, upon receipt of the 
  5.36  order, the commissioner is authorized to cancel the child's 
  6.1   driver's license or deny the child's driving privileges without 
  6.2   a hearing. 
  6.3      (c) If the child is petitioned and found delinquent by the 
  6.4   court for illegally possessing a pistol in violation of section 
  6.5   624.713, the court shall order that the child be committed to 
  6.6   the custody of a county home school or the commissioner of 
  6.7   corrections and incarcerated for not less than 30 days. 
  6.8      Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 609.229, 
  6.9   subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  6.10     Subd. 3.  [PENALTY.] (a) If the crime committed in 
  6.11  violation of subdivision 2 is a felony, the statutory maximum 
  6.12  for the crime is three years longer than the statutory 
  6.13  maximum court shall sentence the defendant to an executed prison 
  6.14  sentence equal to at least twice the length of the presumptive 
  6.15  sentence under the sentencing guidelines for the underlying 
  6.16  crime. 
  6.17     (b) If the crime committed in violation of subdivision 2 is 
  6.18  a misdemeanor, the person is guilty of a gross misdemeanor. 
  6.19     (c) If the crime committed in violation of subdivision 2 is 
  6.20  a gross misdemeanor, the person is guilty of a felony and may be 
  6.21  sentenced to imprisonment for not more than one year and a day 
  6.22  or to payment of a fine of not more than $5,000, or both. 
  6.23     Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 609.50, 
  6.24  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  6.25     Subdivision 1.  [CRIME.] Whoever intentionally does any of 
  6.26  the following may be sentenced as provided in subdivision 2: 
  6.27     (1) obstructs, hinders, or prevents the lawful execution of 
  6.28  any legal process, civil or criminal, or apprehension of another 
  6.29  on a charge or conviction of a criminal offense; 
  6.30     (2) obstructs, resists, or interferes with a peace officer 
  6.31  while the officer is engaged in the performance of official 
  6.32  duties; 
  6.33     (3) under circumstances other than those described in 
  6.34  section 609.487: 
  6.35     (i) flees or attempts to flee a peace officer who is 
  6.36  engaged in the performance of official duties; 
  7.1      (ii) whom the person knows or reasonably should know is a 
  7.2   peace officer; or 
  7.3      (iii) after having been told or signaled by the peace 
  7.4   officer to stop or remain; 
  7.5      (4) interferes with or obstructs the prevention or 
  7.6   extinguishing of a fire, or disobeys the lawful order of a 
  7.7   firefighter present at the fire; or 
  7.8      (4) (5) by force or threat of force endeavors to obstruct 
  7.9   any employee of the department of revenue while the employee is 
  7.10  lawfully engaged in the performance of official duties for the 
  7.11  purpose of deterring or interfering with the performance of 
  7.12  those duties.  
  7.13     Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 624.713, 
  7.14  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  7.15     Subd. 2.  [PENALTIES.] A person named in subdivision 1, 
  7.16  clause (a) or (b), who possesses a pistol or semiautomatic 
  7.17  military-style assault weapon is guilty of a felony.  A person 
  7.18  named in any other clause of subdivision 1 who possesses a 
  7.19  pistol or semiautomatic military-style assault weapon is guilty 
  7.20  of a gross misdemeanor.  Any minor convicted of unlawfully 
  7.21  possessing a pistol under this section who receives a stayed 
  7.22  sentence must be sentenced to at least 30 days' imprisonment in 
  7.23  a local correctional facility as a condition of probation. 
  7.24     Sec. 8.  [DENIAL OF WELFARE BENEFITS; CONVICTED FELONS.] 
  7.25     The commissioner of human services shall request waivers as 
  7.26  necessary of the requirements of the aid to families with 
  7.27  dependent children (AFDC) program, the medical assistance (MA) 
  7.28  program, and the food stamp program to permit a 20 percent 
  7.29  reduction in benefits to persons convicted of a felony-level 
  7.30  offense for a period of one year beginning from the date of 
  7.31  conviction or the date of release from incarceration, whichever 
  7.32  is later.  
  7.33     Sec. 9.  [WAIVER REQUEST AUTHORIZED; UNLAWFUL POSSESSION OF 
  7.34  A PISTOL.] 
  7.35     The commissioner of human services shall request waivers as 
  7.36  necessary of the requirements of the program aid to families 
  8.1   with dependent children (AFDC), the medical assistance (MA) 
  8.2   programs, and the food stamp program to permit a 20 percent 
  8.3   reduction in benefits to the household when a minor child in the 
  8.4   household is convicted of unlawful possession of a pistol under 
  8.5   Minnesota Statutes, section 624.713. 
  8.6      Sec. 10.  [GANG RESISTANCE EDUCATION TRAINING; PILOT 
  8.7   PROGRAM.] 
  8.8      Subdivision 1.  [TRAINING PROGRAM.] The bureau of criminal 
  8.9   apprehension shall develop a pilot program to train peace 
  8.10  officers to teach the gang resistance education training (GREAT) 
  8.11  curriculum in middle schools.  The training program must be 
  8.12  approved by the commissioner of public safety. 
  8.13     Subd. 2.  [GRANTS.] Law enforcement agencies and school 
  8.14  districts may apply to the commissioner of public safety for 
  8.15  grants to enable peace officers to undergo the training 
  8.16  described in subdivision 1.  Grants may be used to cover the 
  8.17  cost of the training as well as reimbursement for actual, 
  8.18  reasonable travel and living expenses incurred in connection 
  8.19  with the training.  The commissioner shall administer the 
  8.20  program, shall promote it throughout the state, and is 
  8.21  authorized to receive money from public and private sources for 
  8.22  use in carrying it out. 
  8.23     Subd. 3.  [REPORTS.] The commissioner may require grant 
  8.24  recipients to account to the commissioner at reasonable time 
  8.25  intervals regarding the use of grants and the training and 
  8.26  programs provided. 
  8.27     Subd. 4.  [EVALUATION.] The commissioners of public safety 
  8.28  and children, families, and learning shall evaluate the success 
  8.29  of the gang resistance education training pilot program and 
  8.30  report conclusions and recommendations to the chairs of the 
  8.31  house judiciary and education committees and the senate crime 
  8.32  prevention and education committees by February 1, 1997. 
  8.33     Sec. 11.  [SUBMISSION OF WAIVER REQUEST.] 
  8.34     The federal waiver requests authorized by sections 11 and 
  8.35  12 shall be submitted by the commissioner of human services 
  8.36  either:  (1) as part of the federal waiver package authorized by 
  9.1   Laws 1995, chapter 178, article 2, section 46; or (2) as a 
  9.2   separate submission, whichever will permit the waiver request to 
  9.3   be received by the secretary in the most timely fashion.  The 
  9.4   waivers shall become effective on the first day of the first 
  9.5   month after receipt of federal approval. 
  9.6      Sec. 12.  [IMPLEMENTATION IF WAIVER NOT REQUIRED.] 
  9.7      If the federal laws are changed so that waivers are not 
  9.8   required to implement sections 11 and 12, the commissioner of 
  9.9   human services shall implement the provisions of these sections 
  9.10  no later than 90 days after the federal actions take effect. 
  9.11     Sec. 13.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  9.12     $40,000 is appropriated from the general fund to the 
  9.13  commissioner of public safety for the fiscal year ending June 
  9.14  30, 1997, to be used to fund the gang resistance education pilot 
  9.15  program. 
  9.16     Sec. 14.  [REPEALER.] 
  9.17     Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 609.229, subdivision 1, is 
  9.18  repealed. 
  9.19     Sec. 15.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  9.20     Sections 1 to 14 are effective July 1, 1996, and apply to 
  9.21  crimes committed and acts committed on or after that date.