1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to human services; requesting federal waivers 
  1.3             for welfare programs; modifying the eligibility 
  1.4             requirements for the MinnesotaCare, general 
  1.5             assistance, and general assistance medical care 
  1.6             programs; amending Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 
  1.7             256.9354, by adding a subdivision; 256D.05, by adding 
  1.8             a subdivision; Minnesota Statutes 1995 Supplement, 
  1.9             section 256D.03, subdivision 3; proposing coding for 
  1.10            new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapters 256 and 256D. 
  1.11  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.12     Section 1.  [256.7395] [JOBS OPPORTUNITY PROGRAM.] 
  1.13     Subdivision 1.  [WAIVER REQUEST AUTHORIZED.] The 
  1.14  commissioner of human services shall request a waiver of the 
  1.15  requirements of the program of aid to families with dependent 
  1.16  children in order to establish a JOBS opportunity program for 
  1.17  AFDC recipients in the seven-county metropolitan area, in 
  1.18  accordance with the requirements of this section. 
  1.19     Subd. 2.  [STATE AGENCY PLAN.] The commissioner of human 
  1.20  services, in collaboration with the commissioner of economic 
  1.21  security and the commissioner of trade and economic development, 
  1.22  shall design a JOBS opportunity program for the purpose of 
  1.23  moving AFDC clients into the workforce.  The commissioners shall 
  1.24  complete the project planning no later than October 30, 1996. 
  1.25     Subd. 3.  [ELIGIBLE PARTICIPANTS.] Caretakers in AFDC 
  1.26  households in the seven-county metropolitan area, who have been 
  1.27  on assistance for at least six months and who are not enrolled 
  1.28  in the Minnesota family investment plan, shall be eligible to 
  2.1   participate in the JOBS opportunity program.  Participants shall 
  2.2   be chosen on a random basis from among eligible applicants and 
  2.3   shall be required to participate, unless exempt from 
  2.4   registration under section 256.736, subdivision 3. 
  2.5      Subd. 4.  [PROGRAM DESIGN.] The commissioners of human 
  2.6   services and economic security shall collaborate with the social 
  2.7   service agencies in the designated metropolitan counties to 
  2.8   design employment and training services, and to develop 
  2.9   employment slots with public and private employers, for AFDC 
  2.10  recipients placed through the JOBS opportunity program.  The 
  2.11  commissioners of economic security and human services shall 
  2.12  contract with employers to deliver wage subsidies on behalf of 
  2.13  AFDC recipients.  The maximum monthly subsidy for any employer 
  2.14  recipient shall be the amount of assistance for which the 
  2.15  employee's household would otherwise be eligible under sections 
  2.16  256.72 to 256.879.  The wage to be paid to the recipient for the 
  2.17  minimum number of hours calculated under this subdivision shall 
  2.18  be the large employer minimum wage plus $2 per hour additional 
  2.19  to be paid by the employer.  For any hours worked above the 
  2.20  minimum number of hours, the employer shall not be required to 
  2.21  pay more than the minimum wage established by law.  Recipients 
  2.22  must work a minimum number of hours, which shall be the AFDC 
  2.23  grant amount divided by the large employer minimum wage under 
  2.24  section 177.24, subdivision 1, paragraph (a), clause (1). 
  2.25     Subd. 5.  [BENEFITS.] Clients participating in the JOBS 
  2.26  opportunity program shall continue to be eligible for medical 
  2.27  assistance and child care, including transitional child care and 
  2.28  medical assistance, in the same manner as other AFDC 
  2.29  recipients.  Participants shall not be considered employees for 
  2.30  purposes of unemployment compensation, workers' compensation, 
  2.31  retirement, or civil service status.  Claims for workers' 
  2.32  compensation shall be handled as provided in section 256.737. 
  2.33     Subd. 6.  [TIME LIMIT ON ELIGIBILITY.] Individuals selected 
  2.34  for the JOBS opportunity program may participate for a maximum 
  2.35  number of months which shall be twice the number of months that 
  2.36  the household has been on AFDC, but in no event more than 24 
  3.1   months. 
  3.2      Subd. 7.  [SANCTIONS.] Caretakers who refuse an offer of 
  3.3   employment, or are fired from a JOBS opportunity employment slot 
  3.4   for cause, shall be sanctioned as provided under section 
  3.5   256.736, subdivision 4. 
  3.6      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 256.9354, is 
  3.7   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  3.8      Subd. 8.  [CONVICTED FELONS; INELIGIBLE.] No person 
  3.9   convicted of a felony-level offense is eligible for 
  3.10  MinnesotaCare for a period of one year beginning from the date 
  3.11  of conviction or the date of release from incarceration, 
  3.12  whichever is later. 
  3.13     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1995 Supplement, section 
  3.14  256D.03, subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  3.15     Subd. 3.  [GENERAL ASSISTANCE MEDICAL CARE; ELIGIBILITY.] 
  3.16  (a) General assistance medical care may be paid for any person 
  3.17  who is not eligible for medical assistance under chapter 256B, 
  3.18  including eligibility for medical assistance based on a 
  3.19  spenddown of excess income according to section 256B.056, 
  3.20  subdivision 5, and: 
  3.21     (1) who is receiving assistance under section 256D.05 or 
  3.22  256D.051, or who is having a payment made on the person's behalf 
  3.23  under sections 256I.01 to 256I.06; or 
  3.24     (2)(i) who is a resident of Minnesota; and whose equity in 
  3.25  assets is not in excess of $1,000 per assistance unit.  No asset 
  3.26  test shall be applied to children and their parents living in 
  3.27  the same household.  Exempt assets, the reduction of excess 
  3.28  assets, and the waiver of excess assets must conform to the 
  3.29  medical assistance program in chapter 256B, with the following 
  3.30  exception:  the maximum amount of undistributed funds in a trust 
  3.31  that could be distributed to or on behalf of the beneficiary by 
  3.32  the trustee, assuming the full exercise of the trustee's 
  3.33  discretion under the terms of the trust, must be applied toward 
  3.34  the asset maximum; and 
  3.35     (ii) who has countable income not in excess of the 
  3.36  assistance standards established in section 256B.056, 
  4.1   subdivision 4, or whose excess income is spent down pursuant to 
  4.2   section 256B.056, subdivision 5, using a six-month budget 
  4.3   period, except that a one-month budget period must be used for 
  4.4   recipients residing in a long-term care facility.  The method 
  4.5   for calculating earned income disregards and deductions for a 
  4.6   person who resides with a dependent child under age 21 shall be 
  4.7   as specified in section 256.74, subdivision 1.  However, if a 
  4.8   disregard of $30 and one-third of the remainder described in 
  4.9   section 256.74, subdivision 1, clause (4), has been applied to 
  4.10  the wage earner's income, the disregard shall not be applied 
  4.11  again until the wage earner's income has not been considered in 
  4.12  an eligibility determination for general assistance, general 
  4.13  assistance medical care, medical assistance, or aid to families 
  4.14  with dependent children for 12 consecutive months.  The earned 
  4.15  income and work expense deductions for a person who does not 
  4.16  reside with a dependent child under age 21 shall be the same as 
  4.17  the method used to determine eligibility for a person under 
  4.18  section 256D.06, subdivision 1, except the disregard of the 
  4.19  first $50 of earned income is not allowed; or 
  4.20     (3) who would be eligible for medical assistance except 
  4.21  that the person resides in a facility that is determined by the 
  4.22  commissioner or the federal health care financing administration 
  4.23  to be an institution for mental diseases. 
  4.24     (b) Eligibility is available for the month of application, 
  4.25  and for three months prior to application if the person was 
  4.26  eligible in those prior months.  A redetermination of 
  4.27  eligibility must occur every 12 months. 
  4.28     (c) General assistance medical care is not available for a 
  4.29  person in a correctional facility unless the person is detained 
  4.30  by law for less than one year in a county correctional or 
  4.31  detention facility as a person accused or convicted of a crime, 
  4.32  or admitted as an inpatient to a hospital on a criminal hold 
  4.33  order, and the person is a recipient of general assistance 
  4.34  medical care at the time the person is detained by law or 
  4.35  admitted on a criminal hold order and as long as the person 
  4.36  continues to meet other eligibility requirements of this 
  5.1   subdivision.  
  5.2      (d) General assistance medical care is not available for 
  5.3   applicants or recipients who do not cooperate with the county 
  5.4   agency to meet the requirements of medical assistance. 
  5.5      (e) In determining the amount of assets of an individual, 
  5.6   there shall be included any asset or interest in an asset, 
  5.7   including an asset excluded under paragraph (a), that was given 
  5.8   away, sold, or disposed of for less than fair market value 
  5.9   within the 60 months preceding application for general 
  5.10  assistance medical care or during the period of eligibility.  
  5.11  Any transfer described in this paragraph shall be presumed to 
  5.12  have been for the purpose of establishing eligibility for 
  5.13  general assistance medical care, unless the individual furnishes 
  5.14  convincing evidence to establish that the transaction was 
  5.15  exclusively for another purpose.  For purposes of this 
  5.16  paragraph, the value of the asset or interest shall be the fair 
  5.17  market value at the time it was given away, sold, or disposed 
  5.18  of, less the amount of compensation received.  For any 
  5.19  uncompensated transfer, the number of months of ineligibility, 
  5.20  including partial months, shall be calculated by dividing the 
  5.21  uncompensated transfer amount by the average monthly per person 
  5.22  payment made by the medical assistance program to skilled 
  5.23  nursing facilities for the previous calendar year.  The 
  5.24  individual shall remain ineligible until this fixed period has 
  5.25  expired.  The period of ineligibility may exceed 30 months, and 
  5.26  a reapplication for benefits after 30 months from the date of 
  5.27  the transfer shall not result in eligibility unless and until 
  5.28  the period of ineligibility has expired.  The period of 
  5.29  ineligibility begins in the month the transfer was reported to 
  5.30  the county agency, or if the transfer was not reported, the 
  5.31  month in which the county agency discovered the transfer, 
  5.32  whichever comes first.  For applicants, the period of 
  5.33  ineligibility begins on the date of the first approved 
  5.34  application. 
  5.35     (f)(1) Beginning October 1, 1993, an undocumented alien or 
  5.36  a nonimmigrant is ineligible for general assistance medical care 
  6.1   other than emergency services.  For purposes of this 
  6.2   subdivision, a nonimmigrant is an individual in one or more of 
  6.3   the classes listed in United States Code, title 8, section 
  6.4   1101(a)(15), and an undocumented alien is an individual who 
  6.5   resides in the United States without the approval or 
  6.6   acquiescence of the Immigration and Naturalization Service. 
  6.7      (2) This subdivision does not apply to a child under age 
  6.8   18, to a Cuban or Haitian entrant as defined in Public Law 
  6.9   Number 96-422, section 501(e)(1) or (2)(a), or to an alien who 
  6.10  is aged, blind, or disabled as defined in United States Code, 
  6.11  title 42, section 1382c(a)(1). 
  6.12     (3) For purposes of paragraph (f), "emergency services" has 
  6.13  the meaning given in Code of Federal Regulations, title 42, 
  6.14  section 440.255(b)(1), except that it also means services 
  6.15  rendered because of suspected or actual pesticide poisoning. 
  6.16     (g) No person convicted of a felony-level offense is 
  6.17  eligible for general assistance medical care for a period of one 
  6.18  year beginning from the date of conviction or the date of 
  6.19  release from incarceration, whichever is later. 
  6.20     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 256D.05, is 
  6.21  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  6.22     Subd. 9.  [CONVICTED FELONS INELIGIBLE.] No person 
  6.23  convicted of a felony-level offense is eligible for general 
  6.24  assistance for a period of one year beginning from the date of 
  6.25  conviction or the date of release from incarceration, whichever 
  6.26  is later. 
  6.27     Sec. 5.  [MANDATORY ASSESSMENT AND SCHOOL ATTENDANCE FOR 
  6.28  CERTAIN RECIPIENTS.] 
  6.29     Recipients of general assistance who are under 21 years of 
  6.30  age shall comply with the assessment and school attendance 
  6.31  requirements in Minnesota Statutes, section 256.736, subdivision 
  6.32  3b. 
  6.33     Sec. 6.  [256D.066] [CONDITIONS FOR GENERAL ASSISTANCE 
  6.34  ELIGIBILITY.] 
  6.35     Notwithstanding other provisions of sections 256D.01 to 
  6.36  256D.21, otherwise eligible applicants without children must 
  7.1   have resided in this state for at least 60 consecutive days 
  7.2   before applying for general assistance benefits.  This 
  7.3   requirement does not apply if the person resides in this state 
  7.4   and meets any of the following conditions: 
  7.5      (1) the person was born in this state; 
  7.6      (2) the person has, in the past, resided in this state for 
  7.7   at least 365 consecutive days; 
  7.8      (3) the person came to this state to join a close relative 
  7.9   who has resided in this state for at least 180 days before the 
  7.10  arrival of the person.  For purposes of this section, "close 
  7.11  relative" means the person's parent, grandparent, brother, 
  7.12  sister, spouse, or child; or 
  7.13     (4) the person came to this state to accept a bona fide 
  7.14  offer of employment and the person was eligible to accept the 
  7.15  employment. 
  7.16     A county agency may waive this requirement in cases of 
  7.17  medical emergency or where unusual misfortune or hardship would 
  7.18  result from the denial of assistance.  All waivers under this 
  7.19  section shall be reported to the commissioner in 30 days. 
  7.20     Sec. 7.  [TIME LIMIT ON AFDC BENEFITS.] 
  7.21     Subdivision 1.  [WAIVER REQUEST AUTHORIZED.] The 
  7.22  commissioner of human services shall seek a statewide waiver of 
  7.23  the requirements of the program of aid to families with 
  7.24  dependent children, in order to limit the time that an AFDC 
  7.25  household can continue to receive assistance.  
  7.26     Subd. 2.  [TIME LIMIT OF 24 MONTHS IMPLEMENTATION.] The 
  7.27  waiver authorized by this section shall become effective on the 
  7.28  first day of the first month after receipt of federal approval.  
  7.29  All families receiving AFDC benefits on that date may continue 
  7.30  to receive benefits for no more than 24 additional consecutive 
  7.31  months.  All households that become eligible on or after that 
  7.32  date may receive benefits for no more than 24 months out of a 
  7.33  48-month period.  Households who lose eligibility for benefits 
  7.34  because of the time limits imposed under this waiver are 
  7.35  eligible to apply after 36 months have elapsed since losing 
  7.36  eligibility due to the time limits for an additional 24 months 
  8.1   of benefits out of another 48-month period.  
  8.2      After receiving federal approval for the waiver, and after 
  8.3   its implementation under subdivision 3, the commissioner of 
  8.4   finance, with the assistance of the commissioner of human 
  8.5   services, must estimate the savings resulting from 
  8.6   implementation of the waiver request by January 1, 1999, and by 
  8.7   each January 1 thereafter, and must transfer this amount to an 
  8.8   account in the general fund to be known as the "welfare 
  8.9   dependency education account."  Money in this account shall not 
  8.10  cancel and shall be appropriated by the legislature for 
  8.11  education purposes. 
  8.12     Subd. 3.  [CONTINUED ELIGIBILITY FOR MEDICAL 
  8.13  ASSISTANCE.] Subject to federal approval and contingent on 
  8.14  federal financial participation, recipients that lose AFDC 
  8.15  eligibility due to the time limits imposed under this section, 
  8.16  but who otherwise would be eligible for medical assistance, must 
  8.17  be provided continuing categorical eligibility for medical 
  8.18  assistance during the 36-month period.  The 36-month period 
  8.19  begins to run on the first day of the month subsequent to the 
  8.20  month in which the household loses benefits due to the time 
  8.21  limit. 
  8.22     Subd. 4.  [CONTINUED ELIGIBILITY FOR CHILD CARE 
  8.23  ASSISTANCE.] As part of this waiver request, the commissioner 
  8.24  shall seek federal approval to provide 12 months of child care 
  8.25  assistance with federal financial participation to families 
  8.26  otherwise eligible for AFDC who lose benefits because of the 
  8.27  time limits imposed by this section.  The 12-month period begins 
  8.28  to run on the first day of the first month subsequent to the 
  8.29  month in which the household loses benefits due to the time 
  8.30  limit.  If the waiver request authorized by this section is not 
  8.31  granted, the commissioner shall seek legislation to make 
  8.32  families who lose AFDC eligibility because of the time limits a 
  8.33  priority under Minnesota Statutes, section 256H.03. 
  8.34     Subd. 5.  [CONTINUED ELIGIBILITY FOR EMPLOYMENT AND 
  8.35  TRAINING SERVICES.] As part of the waiver request authorized by 
  8.36  this section, the commissioner shall seek federal approval and 
  9.1   federal financial participation to provide 12 months of 
  9.2   employment and training services to families who lose benefits 
  9.3   because of the time limits imposed by this section.  The 
  9.4   12-month period begins to run on the first day of the first 
  9.5   month subsequent to the month in which the household loses 
  9.6   benefits due to the time limit.  
  9.7      Subd. 6.  [EXTENSION OF BENEFITS BEYOND 24 MONTHS.] The 
  9.8   waiver request must provide for an extension of the eligibility 
  9.9   period beyond 24 months for families who meet certain 
  9.10  conditions.  In each month after the 24 month time limit expires 
  9.11  that each person in the assistance household meets at least one 
  9.12  of the following conditions, the household may receive AFDC 
  9.13  benefit payments: 
  9.14     (1) the person receives a supplemental security income 
  9.15  payment; 
  9.16     (2) the person is the head of the household, is not a 
  9.17  legally responsible relative of a dependent child in the 
  9.18  household, and is not included in determining the amount of the 
  9.19  household's benefit; 
  9.20     (3) the person is under 18 years of age; 
  9.21     (4) the person is incapacitated or is needed in the home to 
  9.22  care for another member of the household who is incapacitated; 
  9.23     (5) the person is needed in the home to care for a child 
  9.24  who is under the age of three; and 
  9.25     (6) the county agency determines, under rules adopted by 
  9.26  the commissioner, that unusual circumstances exist that warrant 
  9.27  an additional month of benefit payments and an extension of the 
  9.28  benefit period. 
  9.29     Subd. 7.  [COORDINATION WITH OTHER PROGRAMS.] (a) Families 
  9.30  who lose eligibility for AFDC because of the time limits are not 
  9.31  eligible for assistance under Minnesota Statutes, section 
  9.32  256D.05, subdivision 1, paragraph (a), clause (15), during their 
  9.33  period of ineligibility for AFDC because of the time limits. 
  9.34     (b) In setting up the waiver, the commissioner shall exempt 
  9.35  families participating in the Minnesota family investment plan 
  9.36  under Minnesota Statutes, sections 256.031 to 256.0361 who are 
 10.1   headed by a single parent and are in the first 24 months of 
 10.2   their transitional status under Minnesota Statutes, section 
 10.3   256.035. 
 10.4      (c) The commissioner shall coordinate the design and 
 10.5   implementation of the waiver with operation of the STRIDE 
 10.6   program under Minnesota Statutes, section 256.736. 
 10.7      Sec. 8.  [AFDC BONUSES FOR BIRTH CONTROL.] 
 10.8      Subdivision 1.  [WAIVER REQUEST AUTHORIZED.] The 
 10.9   commissioner of human services shall request a waiver of the 
 10.10  requirements of the program of aid to families with dependent 
 10.11  children in order to permit an AFDC recipient to receive a 20 
 10.12  percent monthly increase in the grant amount for each month that 
 10.13  the recipient uses a form of birth control that does not rely on 
 10.14  the discretionary actions of the recipient in order to be an 
 10.15  effective means of preventing pregnancy. 
 10.16     Subd. 2.  [BONUSES FOR CERTAIN BIRTH CONTROL METHODS; 
 10.17  IMPLEMENTATION.] In order for an AFDC recipient to be eligible 
 10.18  for the bonus under this section, the recipient must provide the 
 10.19  county caseworker with documentation from the recipient's health 
 10.20  care provider that the recipient is using a form of birth 
 10.21  control that either (1) is permanent, or (2) is temporary but is 
 10.22  longer-acting than monthly and does not rely on discretionary 
 10.23  actions of the recipient in order to be effective in preventing 
 10.24  pregnancy.  The recipient shall receive a bonus in the month 
 10.25  following the month that the required documentation is 
 10.26  provided.  If the recipient uses a form of birth control which 
 10.27  is effective over a period of several months, the recipient need 
 10.28  provide documentation only once in order to receive the bonus 
 10.29  for the same number of months as the method of birth control is 
 10.30  in effect. 
 10.31     Sec. 9.  [DENIAL OF WELFARE BENEFITS; CONVICTED FELONS.] 
 10.32     The commissioner of human services shall request waivers as 
 10.33  necessary for the requirements of the aid to families with 
 10.34  dependent children program, the medical assistance (MA) program, 
 10.35  the food stamps program, and all federal housing assistance 
 10.36  programs to permit the denial of benefits to persons convicted 
 11.1   of a felony-level offense for a period of one year beginning 
 11.2   from the date of conviction or the date of release from 
 11.3   incarceration, whichever is later.  
 11.4      Sec. 10.  [WAIVER REQUEST AUTHORIZED; UNLAWFUL POSSESSION 
 11.5   OF A PISTOL.] 
 11.6      The commissioner of human services shall request a waiver 
 11.7   of the requirements of the program aid to families with 
 11.8   dependent children to permit a 20 percent reduction in the grant 
 11.9   to an AFDC household when a minor child in the household is 
 11.10  convicted of unlawful possession of a pistol under Minnesota 
 11.11  Statutes, section 724.713. 
 11.12     Sec. 11.  [SUBMISSION OF WAIVER REQUEST.] 
 11.13     The federal waiver requests authorized by sections 1 and 6 
 11.14  to 9 shall be submitted by the commissioner of human services 
 11.15  either:  (1) as part of the federal waiver package authorized by 
 11.16  Laws 1995, chapter 178, article 2, section 46; or (2) as a 
 11.17  separate submission, whichever will permit the waiver request to 
 11.18  be received by the secretary in the most timely fashion.  The 
 11.19  waivers shall become effective on the first day of the first 
 11.20  month after receipt of federal approval. 
 11.21     Sec. 12.  [IMPLEMENTATION IF WAIVER NOT REQUIRED.] 
 11.22     If the federal laws are changed so that waivers are not 
 11.23  required to implement sections 1 and 6 to 9, the commissioner of 
 11.24  human services shall implement the provisions of these sections 
 11.25  no later than 90 days after the federal actions take effect.