Amendment ASA1-AB140

LRBs0060/2

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2015 - 2016 LEGISLATURE

ASSEMBLY SUBSTITUTE AMENDMENT 1, TO ASSEMBLY BILL 140

December 9, 2015 - Offered by Representative VanderMeer.

AB140-ASA1,1,1 An Act relating to: a plan for implementing a statement of public benefits.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

Under current law, the Department of Health Services (DHS) and the Department of Children and Families (DCF) administer a number of programs that are commonly known as public assistance programs. Examples include Wisconsin Works; Medical Assistance; FoodShare; the programs that provide state supplemental payments to persons receiving federal supplemental security income; and the disease aids program that provides assistance in paying the costs of medical treatment for eligible persons with cystic fibrosis, hemophilia, or chronic renal disease. Also under current law, the Department of Workforce Development (DWD) administers the Unemployment Insurance (UI) program, under which eligible individuals who become unemployed or who experience a reduction in work hours may receive UI benefits.

This substitute amendment directs the Department of Administration (DOA), with the assistance of DHS, DCF, and DWD, to prepare a comprehensive plan for the development, implementation, and administration of a system that: 1) identifies every individual or family in this state who receives any benefits, defined in the substitute amendment as public assistance benefits and UI benefits; 2) tabulates the total amount of benefits received in a year by each such individual or family; 3) generates a detailed statement showing the types and monetary value of all benefits received by the individual or family in a year; and 4) provides, by March 31, the detailed statement for the preceding year to each individual or family who received benefits. The comprehensive plan must include the costs for implementing and administering the system, a timeline for beginning operation of the system, and the public assistance benefits that may feasibly be included on the detailed statement based on legal constraints and technical constraints related to placing a monetary value on the benefits. The comprehensive plan must be completed by no later than six months after the date on which this substitute amendment becomes law, and submitted to the Joint Committee on Finance, for information purposes only, by one month later. DOA must submit to the chairpersons of the appropriate standing committees proposed legislation to implement the comprehensive plan.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB140-ASA1,1 Section 1. Nonstatutory provisions.

AB140-ASA1,2,2 (1) Plan for statement of benefits.

AB140-ASA1,2,3 (a) In this subsection:

AB140-ASA1,2,5 1. "Benefits" means public assistance benefits and unemployment insurance benefits.

AB140-ASA1,2,6 2. "Family" has the meaning given in section 49.472 (1) (am) of the statutes.

AB140-ASA1,2,9 3. "Public assistance benefits" means services, benefits, payments, or other assistance provided under a program administered by the department of health services or the department of children and families under chapter 49 of the statutes.

AB140-ASA1,2,11 4. "Unemployment insurance benefits" means any compensation paid under chapter 108 of the statutes.

AB140-ASA1,2,16 (b) No later than the first day of the 7th month beginning after the effective date of this paragraph .... [LRB inserts date], the department of administration shall, with the assistance of the departments of health services, children and families, and workforce development, prepare a comprehensive plan for the development, implementation, and administration of a system that does all of the following:

AB140-ASA1,3,2 1. Identifies each individual or family in this state that receives any benefits during a year.

AB140-ASA1,3,4 2. Tabulates the total amount of benefits received by each such individual or family during the year.

AB140-ASA1,3,8 3. Generates a detailed written financial statement for each such individual or family showing each type of benefit received by the individual or family during the year, the monetary value of each type of benefit received, and the total monetary value of all benefits received.

AB140-ASA1,3,12 4. Annually, no later than March 31 of the year following the year in which the benefits were received, provides each individual or family with the statement under subdivision 3. showing the benefits received by that individual or family in the preceding year.

AB140-ASA1,3,17 (c) The departments of administration, health services, children and families, and workforce development shall determine and include in the comprehensive plan the total cost for implementation of the system, the cost for continued administration of the system, appropriate confidentiality safeguards, and a timeline for beginning operation of such a system.

AB140-ASA1,3,23 (d) Notwithstanding the definitions of benefits and public assistance benefits under paragraph (a), the department of health services and the department of children and families shall determine, and the plan shall specify, which public assistance benefits may feasibly be included in the statements under paragraph (b) 3., taking into consideration any legal constraints and any technical constraints related to determining the financial value of a public assistance benefit.

AB140-ASA1,4,4 (e) No later than the first day of the 8th month beginning after the effective date of this paragraph .... [LRB inserts date], the department of administration shall, for information purposes only, submit the plan to the joint committee on finance. To implement the plan, the department of administration shall submit proposed legislation to the chairpersons of the appropriate standing committees of the legislature, as designated by the presiding officer of each house.

AB140-ASA1,4,5 (End)