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Chapter 256J

Section 256J.08

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256J.08 DEFINITIONS.
    Subdivision 1. Scope of definitions. The terms used in this chapter have the following
meanings unless otherwise provided for by text.
    Subd. 2. Absent parent. "Absent parent" means a minor child's parent who does not live in
the same home as the child.
    Subd. 3. Agency error. "Agency error" means an error that results in an overpayment or
underpayment to an assistance unit and is not caused by an applicant's or participant's failure to
provide adequate, correct, or timely information about income, property, household composition,
or other circumstances.
    Subd. 4. Appeal. "Appeal" means a written statement from an applicant or participant
who requests a hearing under section 256J.31.
    Subd. 5. Applicant. "Applicant" means a person who has submitted to a county agency an
application and whose application has not been acted upon, denied, or voluntarily withdrawn.
    Subd. 6. Application. "Application" means the submission by or on behalf of a family to
a county agency of a completed, signed, and dated form, prescribed by the commissioner, that
indicates the desire to receive assistance.
    Subd. 7. Assistance unit or MFIP assistance unit. "Assistance unit" or "MFIP assistance
unit" means a group of mandatory or optional people receiving or applying for MFIP benefits
together.
    Subd. 8. Authorized representative. "Authorized representative" means a person who is
authorized, in writing, by an applicant or participant to act on the applicant's or participant's behalf
in matters involving the application for assistance or participation in MFIP.
    Subd. 9. Basic needs. "Basic needs" means the minimum personal requirements of
subsistence and is restricted to food, clothing, shelter, utilities, and other items for which the loss,
or lack of basic needs, is determined by the county agency to pose a direct, immediate threat to
the physical health or safety of the applicant or participant.
    Subd. 10. Budget month. "Budget month" means the calendar month which the county
agency uses to determine the income or circumstances of an assistance unit to calculate the
amount of the assistance payment in the payment month.
    Subd. 11. Caregiver. "Caregiver" means a minor child's natural or adoptive parent or parents
and stepparent who live in the home with the minor child. For purposes of determining eligibility
for this program, caregiver also means any of the following individuals, if adults, who live with
and provide care and support to a minor child when the minor child's natural or adoptive parent or
parents or stepparents do not reside in the same home: legal custodian or guardian, grandfather,
grandmother, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, stepbrother, stepsister, uncle, aunt, first
cousin or first cousin once removed, nephew, niece, person of preceding generation as denoted by
prefixes of "great," "great-great," or "great-great-great," or a spouse of any person named in the
above groups even after the marriage ends by death or divorce.
    Subd. 11a. Child only case. "Child only case" means a case that would be part of the child
only TANF program under section 256J.88.
    Subd. 12. Client error. "Client error" means an error that results in an overpayment or
underpayment and is due to an applicant's or participant's failure to provide adequate, correct, or
timely information concerning income, property, household composition, or other circumstances.
    Subd. 13. Commissioner. "Commissioner" means the commissioner of human services or
the commissioner's designated representative.
    Subd. 14. Corrective payment. "Corrective payment" means an assistance payment that is
made to correct an underpayment.
    Subd. 15. Countable income. "Countable income" means earned and unearned income that
is not excluded under section 256J.21, subdivision 2, or disregarded under section 256J.21,
subdivision 3
.
    Subd. 16. Counted earnings. "Counted earnings" means the earned income that remains
after applicable disregards under section 256J.21, subdivision 4, have been subtracted from
gross earned income.
    Subd. 17. County agency. "County agency" means the agency designated by the county
board to implement financial assistance for current programs and for MFIP and the agency
responsible for enforcement of child support collection, and a county or multicounty agency that
is authorized under sections 393.01, subdivision 7, and 393.07, subdivision 2, to administer MFIP.
    Subd. 18. County board. "County board" means a board of commissioners, a local services
agency as defined in chapter 393, a board established under the Joint Powers Act, section 471.59,
or a human services board under chapter 402.
    Subd. 19. County of financial responsibility. "County of financial responsibility" means
the county that has financial responsibility for providing public assistance as specified in chapter
256G.
    Subd. 20. County of residence. "County of residence" means the county where the caregiver
has established a home.
    Subd. 21. Date of application. "Date of application" means the date on which the county
agency receives an applicant's signed application.
    Subd. 22. Deem. "Deem" means to treat all or part of the income of an individual who is not
in the assistance unit, but who is financially responsible for members of the assistance unit, as if it
were income available to the assistance unit.
    Subd. 23. Department. "Department" means the Minnesota Department of Human Services.
    Subd. 24. Disregard. "Disregard" means earned income that is not counted when
determining initial eligibility or ongoing eligibility and calculating the amount of the assistance
payment for participants. The commissioner shall determine the amount of the disregard
according to section 256J.24, subdivision 10.
    Subd. 24a. Disqualified. "Disqualified" means being ineligible to receive MFIP due to
noncooperation with program requirements. Except for persons whose disqualification is based on
fraud, a disqualified person can take action to correct the reason for ineligibility.
    Subd. 24b. Diversionary work program or DWP. "Diversionary work program" or "DWP"
has the meaning given in section 256J.95.
    Subd. 25. Documentation. "Documentation" means a written statement or record that
substantiates or validates an assertion made by a person or an action taken by a person, agency,
or entity.
    Subd. 26. Earned income. "Earned income" means cash or in-kind income earned through
the receipt of wages, salary, commissions, profit from employment activities, net profit from
self-employment activities, payments made by an employer for regularly accrued vacation or sick
leave, and any other profit from activity earned through effort or labor. The income must be
in return for, or as a result of, legal activity.
    Subd. 27. Earned income tax credit. "Earned income tax credit" means the payment which
can be obtained by a qualified person from an employer or from the Internal Revenue Service as
provided by section 290.0671 and United States Code, title 26, subtitle A, chapter 1, subchapter
A, part 4, subpart C, section 32.
    Subd. 28.[Repealed, 1Sp2003 c 14 art 1 s 107]
    Subd. 28a. Encumbrance. "Encumbrance" means a legal claim against real or personal
property that is payable upon the sale of that property.
    Subd. 28b. Employable. "Employable" means a person is capable of performing existing
positions in the local labor market, regardless of the current availability of openings for those
positions.
    Subd. 29. Equity value. "Equity value" means the amount of equity in real or personal
property owned by a person and is determined by subtracting any outstanding encumbrances
from the fair market value.
    Subd. 30. Excluded time. "Excluded time" has the meaning given in section 256G.02.
    Subd. 31. Expedited issuance of the food stamp portion. "Expedited issuance of the food
stamp portion" means the issuance of the food stamp portion to eligible assistance units on the
day of application as provided in section 393.07, subdivision 10a.
    Subd. 32. Fair hearing or hearing. "Fair hearing" or "hearing" means the evidentiary
hearing conducted by the department appeals referee to resolve disputes as specified in section
256J.40, or if not applicable, section 256.045.
    Subd. 33. Fair market value. "Fair market value" means the price that an item of a
particular make, model, size, material, or condition would sell for on the open market in the
particular geographic area.
    Subd. 34. Family. "Family" includes:
(1) the following individuals who live together: a minor child or a group of minor children
related to each other as siblings, half siblings, stepsiblings, or adoptive siblings, together with
their natural, adoptive parents, stepparents, or caregiver as defined in subdivision 11; and
(2) a pregnant woman with no other children.
    Subd. 34a. Family violence. (a) "Family violence" means the following, if committed
against a family or household member by a family or household member:
(1) physical harm, bodily injury, or assault;
(2) the infliction of fear of imminent physical harm, bodily injury, or assault; or
(3) terroristic threats, within the meaning of section 609.713, subdivision 1; criminal sexual
conduct, within the meaning of section 609.342, 609.343, 609.344, 609.345, or 609.3451; or
interference with an emergency call within the meaning of section 609.78, subdivision 2.
(b) For the purposes of family violence, "family or household member" means:
(1) spouses and former spouses;
(2) parents and children;
(3) persons related by blood;
(4) persons who are residing together or who have resided together in the past;
(5) persons who have a child in common regardless of whether they have been married
or have lived together at any time;
(6) a man and woman if the woman is pregnant and the man is alleged to be the father,
regardless of whether they have been married or have lived together at anytime; and
(7) persons involved in a current or past significant romantic or sexual relationship.
    Subd. 34b. Family violence waiver. "Family violence waiver" means a waiver of the
60-month time limit for victims of family violence who meet the criteria in section 256J.545 and
are complying with an employment plan in section 256J.521, subdivision 3.
    Subd. 35. Family wage level. "Family wage level" means 110 percent of the transitional
standard as specified in section 256J.24, subdivision 7.
    Subd. 36. Federal Insurance Contribution Act or FICA. "Federal Insurance Contribution
Act" or "FICA" means the federal law under United States Code, title 26, subtitle C, chapter 21,
subchapter A, sections 3101 to 3126, that requires withholding or direct payment from earned
income.
    Subd. 37. Financial case record. "Financial case record" means an assistance unit's financial
eligibility file.
    Subd. 38. Full-time student. "Full-time student" means a person who is enrolled in a graded
or ungraded primary, intermediate, secondary, GED preparatory, trade, technical, vocational, or
postsecondary school, and who meets the school's standard for full-time attendance.
    Subd. 39. General educational development or GED. "General educational development"
or "GED" means the general educational development certification issued by the commissioner of
education as an equivalent to a secondary school diploma under Minnesota Rules, part 3500.3100,
subpart 4.
    Subd. 40. Gross earned income. "Gross earned income" means earned income from
employment before mandatory and voluntary payroll deductions. Gross earned income includes
salaries, wages, tips, gratuities, commissions, incentive payments from work or training programs,
payments made by an employer for regularly accrued vacation or sick leave, and profits from
other activity earned by an individual's effort or labor. Gross earned income includes uniform
and meal allowances if federal income tax is deducted from the allowance. Gross earned income
includes flexible work benefits received from an employer if the employee has the option of
receiving the benefit or benefits in cash. For self-employment, gross earned income is the
nonexcluded income minus expenses for the business.
    Subd. 41. Gross income. "Gross income" is the sum of gross earned income and unearned
income.
    Subd. 42. Gross receipts. "Gross receipts" means the money received by a business before
the expenses of the business are deducted.
    Subd. 43. Half-time student. "Half-time student" means a person who is enrolled in a graded
or ungraded primary, intermediate, secondary, GED preparatory, trade, technical, vocational, or
postsecondary school, and who meets the school's standard of half-time attendance.
    Subd. 44. Home. "Home" means the primary place of residence used by a person as the base
for day-to-day living and does not include locations used as mail drops.
    Subd. 45. Homestead. "Homestead" means the home that is owned by, and is the usual
residence of, the assistance unit together with the surrounding property which is not separated
from the home by intervening property owned by others. Public rights-of-way, such as roads
which run through the surrounding property and separate it from the home, do not affect the
exemption of the property. Homestead includes an asset that is not real property that the assistance
unit uses as a home, such as a vehicle.
    Subd. 46. Household. "Household" means a group of persons who live together.
    Subd. 47. Income. "Income" means cash or in-kind benefit, whether earned or unearned,
received by or available to an applicant or participant that is not an asset under section 256J.20.
    Subd. 48. Initial eligibility. "Initial eligibility" means the determination of eligibility for
an MFIP applicant.
    Subd. 49. In-kind income. "In-kind income" means income, benefits, or payments which
are provided in a form other than money or liquid assets, including the forms of goods, produce,
services, privileges, or payments made on behalf of an applicant or participant by a third party.
    Subd. 50. Inquiry. "Inquiry" means a communication to a county agency through mail,
telephone, or in person, by which a person or authorized representative requests information
about public assistance. The county agency shall also treat as an inquiry any communication in
which a person requesting assistance offers information about the person's family circumstances
that indicates that eligibility for public assistance may exist.
    Subd. 50a.[Repealed, 1Sp2001 c 9 art 10 s 67]
    Subd. 51. Legally available. "Legally available" means a person's right under the law to
secure, possess, dispose of, or control income or property.
    Subd. 51a. Legal custodian. "Legal custodian" means any person who is under a legal
obligation to provide care for a minor and who is in fact providing care for a minor. For an Indian
child, "custodian" means any Indian person who has legal custody of an Indian child under tribal
law or custom, under state law, or to whom temporary physical care, custody, and control has
been transferred by the parent of the child, as provided in section 260.755, subdivision 10.
    Subd. 51b. Learning disabled. "Learning disabled," for purposes of an extension to the
60-month time limit under section 256J.425, subdivision 3, clause (3), means the person has a
disorder in one or more of the psychological processes involved in perceiving, understanding,
or using concepts through verbal language or nonverbal means. Learning disabled does not
include learning problems that are primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor disabilities;
developmental disability; emotional disturbance; or due to environmental, cultural, or economic
disadvantage.
    Subd. 52. Low-income home energy assistance program or LIHEAP. "Low-income
home energy assistance program" or "LIHEAP" means the program authorized under United
States Code, title 42, chapter 94, subchapter II, sections 8621 to 8629, and administered by the
Minnesota Department of Commerce.
    Subd. 53. Lump sum. "Lump sum" means nonrecurring income that is not excluded in
section 256J.21.
    Subd. 54. Medical assistance. "Medical assistance" means the program established under
chapter 256B and Title XIX of the Social Security Act.
    Subd. 55. MFIP household report form. "MFIP household report form" means a form
prescribed by the commissioner that a participant uses to report information to a county agency
about changes in income and other circumstances.
    Subd. 55a. MFIP standard of need. "MFIP standard of need" means the appropriate
standard used to determine MFIP benefit payments for the MFIP unit and applies to:
(1) the transitional standard, sections 256J.08, subdivision 85, and 256J.24, subdivision 5; and
(2) the shared household standard, section 256J.24, subdivision 9.
    Subd. 56. Migrant worker. "Migrant worker" means a person who travels away from home
on a regular basis, usually with a group of other laborers, to seek employment in an agriculturally
related activity.
    Subd. 57. Minnesota family investment program or MFIP. "Minnesota family investment
program" or "MFIP" means the assistance program authorized in this chapter and chapter 256K.
    Subd. 58. Minnesota supplemental aid or MSA. "Minnesota supplemental aid" or "MSA"
means the program established under sections 256D.33 to 256D.54.
    Subd. 59. Minor caregiver. "Minor caregiver" means a person who:
(1) is under the age of 18;
(2) has never been married or otherwise legally emancipated; and
(3) is either the natural parent of a minor child living in the same household or is eligible for
assistance paid to a pregnant woman.
    Subd. 60. Minor child. "Minor child" means a child who is living in the same home of a
parent or other caregiver, is not the parent of a child in the home, and is either less than 18 years
of age or is under the age of 19 years and is a full-time student in a secondary school or pursuing a
full-time secondary level course of vocational or technical training designed to fit students for
gainful employment.
    Subd. 61. Monthly income test. "Monthly income test" means the test used to determine
ongoing eligibility and the assistance payment amount according to section 256J.21.
    Subd. 61a. Noncustodial parent. "Noncustodial parent" means a minor child's parent who
does not live in the same home as the child.
    Subd. 62. Nonrecurring income. "Nonrecurring income" means a form of income which is
received:
(1) only one time or is not of a continuous nature; or
(2) in a prospective payment month but is no longer received in the corresponding
retrospective payment month.
    Subd. 63. Overpayment. "Overpayment" means the portion of an assistance payment issued
by the county agency that is greater than the amount for which the assistance unit is eligible.
    Subd. 64. Parent. "Parent" means a child's biological or adoptive parent who is legally
obligated to support that child.
    Subd. 65. Participant. (a) "Participant" includes any of the following:
    (1) a person who is currently receiving cash assistance or the food portion available through
MFIP;
    (2) a person who withdraws a cash or food assistance payment by electronic transfer or
receives and cashes an MFIP assistance check or food coupons and is subsequently determined
to be ineligible for assistance for that period of time is a participant, regardless whether that
assistance is repaid;
    (3) the caregiver relative and the minor child whose needs are included in the assistance
payment;
    (4) a person in an assistance unit who does not receive a cash and food assistance payment
because the case has been suspended from MFIP;
    (5) a person who receives cash payments under the diversionary work program under section
256J.95 is a participant; and
    (6) a person who receives cash payments under family stabilization services under section
256J.575.
    (b) "Participant" does not include a person who fails to withdraw or access electronically
any portion of the person's cash and food assistance payment by the end of the payment month,
who makes a written request for closure before the first of a payment month and repays cash and
food assistance electronically issued for that payment month within that payment month, or who
returns any uncashed assistance check and food coupons and withdraws from the program.
    Subd. 65a. Participation requirements of TANF. "Participation requirements of TANF"
means activities and hourly requirements allowed under title IV-A of the federal Social Security
Act.
    Subd. 66. Payee. "Payee" means a person to whom an assistance payment is made payable.
    Subd. 67. Payment month. "Payment month" means the calendar month for which the
assistance payment is paid.
    Subd. 67a. Person trained in domestic violence. "Person trained in domestic violence"
means an individual who works for an organization that is designated by the Minnesota Center
for Crime Victims Services as providing services to victims of domestic violence, or a county
staff person who has received similar specialized training, and includes any other person or
organization designated by a qualifying organization under this section.
    Subd. 68. Personal property. "Personal property" means an item of value that is not real
property, including the value of a contract for deed held by a seller, assets held in trust on behalf
of members of an assistance unit, value of a prepaid burial, savings account, value of stocks
and bonds, and value of retirement accounts.
    Subd. 69. Probable fraud. "Probable fraud" means the level of evidence that, if proven as
fact, would establish that assistance has been wrongfully obtained.
    Subd. 70.[Repealed, 1Sp2003 c 14 art 1 s 107]
    Subd. 71. Prospective budgeting. "Prospective budgeting" means a method of determining
the amount of the assistance payment in which the budget month and payment month are the same.
    Subd. 72. Protective payee. "Protective payee" means a person other than the caregiver of an
assistance unit who receives the monthly assistance payment on behalf of an assistance unit and is
responsible to provide for the basic needs of the assistance unit to the extent of that payment.
    Subd. 73. Qualified noncitizen. "Qualified noncitizen" means a person:
(1) who was lawfully admitted for permanent residence according to United States Code,
title 8;
(2) who was admitted to the United States as a refugee according to United States Code,
title 8; section 1157;
(3) whose deportation is being withheld according to United States Code, title 8, sections
1231(b)(3), 1253(h), and 1641(b)(5);
(4) who was paroled for a period of at least one year according to United States Code,
title 8, section 1182(d)(5);
(5) who was granted conditional entry according to United State Code, title 8, section
1153(a)(7);
(6) who is a Cuban or Haitian entrant as defined in section 501(e) of the Refugee Education
Assistance Act of 1980, United States Code, title 8, section 1641(b)(7);
(7) who was granted asylum according to United States Code, title 8, section 1158;
(8) who is a battered noncitizen according to United States Code, title 8, section 1641(c); or
(9) who is a parent or child of a battered noncitizen according to United States Code, title 8,
section 1641(c).
    Subd. 73a. Qualified professional. (a) For physical illness, injury, or incapacity, a "qualified
professional" means a licensed physician, a physician's assistant, a nurse practitioner, or a
licensed chiropractor.
(b) For developmental disability and intelligence testing, a "qualified professional"
means an individual qualified by training and experience to administer the tests necessary
to make determinations, such as tests of intellectual functioning, assessments of adaptive
behavior, adaptive skills, and developmental functioning. These professionals include licensed
psychologists, certified school psychologists, or certified psychometrists working under the
supervision of a licensed psychologist.
(c) For learning disabilities, a "qualified professional" means a licensed psychologist or
school psychologist with experience determining learning disabilities.
(d) For mental health, a "qualified professional" means a licensed physician or a qualified
mental health professional. A "qualified mental health professional" means:
(1) for children, in psychiatric nursing, a registered nurse who is licensed under sections
148.171 to 148.285, and who is certified as a clinical specialist in child and adolescent psychiatric
or mental health nursing by a national nurse certification organization or who has a master's
degree in nursing or one of the behavioral sciences or related fields from an accredited college or
university or its equivalent, with at least 4,000 hours of post-master's supervised experience in the
delivery of clinical services in the treatment of mental illness;
(2) for adults, in psychiatric nursing, a registered nurse who is licensed under sections
148.171 to 148.285, and who is certified as a clinical specialist in adult psychiatric and mental
health nursing by a national nurse certification organization or who has a master's degree in
nursing or one of the behavioral sciences or related fields from an accredited college or university
or its equivalent, with at least 4,000 hours of post-master's supervised experience in the delivery
of clinical services in the treatment of mental illness;
(3) in clinical social work, a person licensed as an independent clinical social worker under
chapter 148D, or a person with a master's degree in social work from an accredited college or
university, with at least 4,000 hours of post-master's supervised experience in the delivery of
clinical services in the treatment of mental illness;
(4) in psychology, an individual licensed by the Board of Psychology under sections 148.88
to 148.98, who has stated to the Board of Psychology competencies in the diagnosis and treatment
of mental illness;
(5) in psychiatry, a physician licensed under chapter 147 and certified by the American Board
of Psychiatry and Neurology or eligible for board certification in psychiatry; and
(6) in marriage and family therapy, the mental health professional must be a marriage
and family therapist licensed under sections 148B.29 to 148B.39, with at least two years of
post-master's supervised experience in the delivery of clinical services in the treatment of mental
illness.
    Subd. 74. Real property. "Real property" means land and all buildings, structures, and
improvements, or other fixtures on the land, belonging or appertaining to the land, and all mines,
minerals, fossils, and trees on or under the land.
    Subd. 75. Reasonable compensation. "Reasonable compensation" means the value received
in exchange for property transferred to another owner that is consistent with fair market value and
equals or exceeds the seller's equity in the property, reduced by costs incurred in the sale.
    Subd. 76. Recertification. "Recertification" means the periodic review of eligibility factors
to determine an assistance unit's continued eligibility.
    Subd. 77. Recoupment. "Recoupment" means the action of the county agency to reduce a
family's monthly assistance payment to recover overpayments caused by client or agency error
and overpayments received while an appeal is pending.
    Subd. 78. Recovery. "Recovery" means actions taken by a county agency to reclaim the
value of overpayments through voluntary repayment, recoupment from the assistance payment,
court action, revenue recapture, or federal tax refund offset program (FTROP).
    Subd. 79. Recurring income. "Recurring income" means a form of income which is:
(1) received periodically, and may be received irregularly when receipt can be anticipated
even though the date of receipt cannot be predicted; and
(2) from the same source or of the same type that is received and budgeted in a prospective
month and is received in one or both of the first two retrospective months.
    Subd. 80. Unemployment benefits. "Unemployment benefits" means the insurance benefit
paid to an unemployed worker under sections 268.03 to 268.23.
    Subd. 81. Retrospective budgeting. "Retrospective budgeting" means a method of
determining the amount of the assistance payment in which the payment month is the second
month after the budget month.
    Subd. 82. Sanction. "Sanction" means the reduction of a family's assistance payment by
a specified percentage of the MFIP standard of need because: a nonexempt participant fails to
comply with the requirements of sections 256J.515 to 256J.57; a parental caregiver fails without
good cause to cooperate with the child support enforcement requirements; or a participant fails to
comply with other requirements of this chapter.
    Subd. 82a. Shared household standard. "Shared household standard" means the basic
standard used when the household includes an unrelated member. The standard also applies to a
member disqualified under section 256J.425. The cash portion of the shared household standard is
equal to 90 percent of the cash portion of the transitional standard. The cash portion of the shared
household standard plus the food portion equals the full shared household standard.
    Subd. 82b. Shelter costs. "Shelter costs" means rent, manufactured home lot rental costs,
or monthly principal, interest, insurance premiums, and property taxes due for mortgages or
contracts for deed.
    Subd. 83. Significant change. "Significant change" means a decline in gross income of the
amount of the disregard as defined in subdivision 24 or more from the income used to determine
the grant for the current month.
    Subd. 84. Supplemental Security Income or SSI. "Supplemental Security Income" or "SSI"
means the program authorized under title XVI of the Social Security Act.
    Subd. 84a. SSI recipient. "SSI recipient" means a person who receives at least $1 in SSI
benefits, or who is not receiving an SSI benefit due to recoupment or a one-month suspension
by the Social Security Administration due to excess income.
    Subd. 85. Transitional standard. "Transitional standard" means the basic standard for a
family without earned income and is a combination of the cash portion and food portion as
specified in section 256J.24, subdivision 5.
    Subd. 86. Unearned income. "Unearned income" means income received by a person
that does not meet the definition of earned income. Unearned income includes income from a
contract for deed, interest, dividends, unemployment benefits, disability insurance payments,
veterans benefits, pension payments, return on capital investment, insurance payments or
settlements, severance payments, child support and maintenance payments, and payments for
illness or disability whether the premium payments are made in whole or in part by an employer
or participant.
    Subd. 86a. Unrelated member. "Unrelated member" means an individual in the household
who does not meet the definition of an eligible caregiver.
    Subd. 87. Vendor. "Vendor" means a provider of goods or services.
    Subd. 88. Vendor payment. "Vendor payment" means a payment authorized by a county
agency to a vendor.
    Subd. 89. Verification. "Verification" means the process a county agency uses to establish
the accuracy or completeness of information from an applicant, participant, third party, or other
source as that information relates to program eligibility or an assistance payment.
    Subd. 90. Severe forms of trafficking in persons. "Severe forms of trafficking in persons"
means: (1) sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion,
or in which the person induced to perform the act has not attained 18 years of age; or (2) the
recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services
through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purposes of subjection to involuntary servitude,
peonage, debt bondage, or slavery.
History: 1986 c 444; 1997 c 85 art 1 s 4; 1998 c 398 art 5 s 55; 1998 c 407 art 6 s 20-34;
1999 c 107 s 66; 1999 c 139 art 4 s 2; 1999 c 245 art 6 s 6-13; 2000 c 343 s 4; 2000 c 488 art
10 s 7; 1Sp2001 c 9 art 10 s 6,7,66; 2002 c 379 art 1 s 113; 2003 c 130 s 12; 1Sp2003 c 14
art 1 s 11-24; 2004 c 206 s 37; 2004 c 288 art 4 s 29,30; 2005 c 56 s 1; 2005 c 147 art 1 s
68; 2007 c 147 art 2 s 26

Official Publication of the State of Minnesota
Revisor of Statutes