AB263: Bill Text

AB263,5 Section 5. 20.437 (2) (dz) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB263,6,2 20.437 (2) (dz) Temporary Assistance for Needy Families programs; maintenance of effort. The amounts in the schedule for administration and benefit payments under Wisconsin Works under ss. 49.141 to 49.161, the learnfare program under s. 49.26, and the work experience program for noncustodial parents under s. 49.36; for payments to local governments, organizations, tribal governing bodies, and Wisconsin Works agencies; for kinship care and long-term kinship care assistance as specified under s. 49.175 (1) (s); for aid payments and local administration with respect to any services or program specified under s. 49.175 (1); for reward payments under s. 49.846 (3); and for emergency assistance for families with needy children under s. 49.138. Payments may be made from this appropriation account for any contracts under s. 49.845 (4) and for any fraud investigation and error reduction activities under s. 49.197 (1m). Moneys appropriated under this paragraph may be used to match federal funds received under par. (md). Notwithstanding ss. 20.001 (3) (a) and 20.002 (1), the department may transfer funds between fiscal years under this paragraph. Notwithstanding ss. 20.001 (3) and 20.002 (1), the department of health services shall credit to this appropriation account funds for the purposes of this appropriation that the department transfers from the appropriation account under s. 20.435 (5) (bc). All funds allocated by the department but not encumbered by December 31 of each year lapse to the general fund on the next January 1 unless transferred to the next calendar year by the joint committee on finance.

AB263,6 Section 6 . 20.437 (2) (L) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB263,6,12 20.437 (2) (L) Public assistance overpayment recovery, fraud investigation, and error reduction. All moneys received as the state's share of the recovery of overpayments and incorrect payments under s. 49.191 (3) (c), 1997 stats., and s. 49.195, 1997 stats., for any contracts under s. 49.845 (4), for any activities under s. 49.197 (1m) to investigate fraud relating to the Aid to Families with Dependent Children program and the Wisconsin Works program, for any activities under s. 49.197 (3) to reduce payment errors in the Wisconsin Works program, for reward payments under s. 49.846 (3), and for costs associated with collection of public assistance overpayments.

AB263,7 Section 7 . 49.79 (11) of the statutes is created to read:

AB263,6,25 49.79 (11) Treatment of inactive accounts; expungement of unused benefits. (a) If, for a period of 6 months or longer, an individual or household that is receiving benefits under this section through an electronic benefit transfer system uses no benefits that have been posted to the individual's or household's benefit account, the department shall remove all benefits from the account electronically and store them offline. The benefits being stored offline shall be made available to the individual or household again within 48 hours after a request by the individual or a member of the household to restore the benefits or upon reapplication by the individual or household for benefits under this section, whichever is applicable. The department shall attempt to notify the individual or household before benefits are removed from the account under this paragraph and shall describe the steps that the individual or household must take to get the benefits returned to the account.

AB263,7,2 (b) The department shall expunge any benefits that have not been used after a period of one year, regardless of whether either of the following applies:

AB263,7,4 1. The benefits have been removed from an inactive benefit account under par. (a) and are being stored offline.

AB263,7,5 2. The benefits are still posted to an active account.

AB263,8 Section 8 . 49.793 (2) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB263,7,15 49.793 (2) (a) Except as provided in par. (b), a county, multicounty consortium, as defined in s. 49.78 (1) (br), or governing body of a federally recognized American Indian tribe may retain a portion of the full amount of an overpayment the state is authorized to retain under 7 USC 2025 that is recovered under sub. (1) due to the efforts of an employee or officer of the county, multicounty consortium, or tribe. The department shall promulgate a rule establishing the portion of the amount of the overpayment that the county, multicounty consortium, or governing body may retain. This paragraph does not apply to recovery of an overpayment that was made as a result of state, county, multicounty consortium, or tribal governing body error.

AB263,9 Section 9. 49.846 of the statutes is created to read:

AB263,7,19 49.846 Optional incentive program for counties and tribes that identify fraud in certain public assistance programs. (1) Definitions. In this section:

AB263,7,21 (a) “County or tribe" means a county having a population of less than 750,000 or a federally recognized American Indian tribe or band in this state.

AB263,7,22 (b) “Food stamp program" has the meaning given in s. 49.79 (1) (c).

AB263,7,23 (c) “Medical Assistance program" means the program under subch. IV.

AB263,7,24 (d) “Wisconsin Works" has the meaning given in s. 49.141 (1) (p).

AB263,8,8 (2) Department of health services; public assistance programs. (a) Medical Assistance program. The department of health services shall establish an optional incentive program, by rule, under which the department will provide a reward payment to a county or tribe if an employee or officer of the county or tribe identifies fraudulent activity in the Medical Assistance program. The department of health services may make reward payments under the optional incentive program from the appropriations under s. 20.435 (4) (bm), (L), (nn), and (pa). The department of health services shall establish the optional incentive program to include all of the following:

AB263,8,11 1. That a county or tribe shall choose to receive a reward payment in the amount determined under subd. 2. or to retain funds under s. 49.49 (5) or 49.497 (2) (a).

AB263,8,19 2. That the amount of a reward payment to a county or tribe under the program is equal to 20 percent of the amount that the department determines will be saved in the Medical Assistance program as the result of eliminating the identified fraudulent activity during the 12-month period after the fraudulent activity is eliminated. Notwithstanding ss. 49.49 (5) and 49.497 (2) (a), a county or tribe that receives a reward payment under this subdivision may not retain any funds that are incorrectly paid as the result of the identified fraudulent activity and recovered due to the efforts of an employee or officer of the county or tribe.

AB263,9,2 (b) Food stamp program. The department of health services shall establish an optional incentive program, by rule, under which the department will provide a reward payment to a county or tribe if an employee or officer of the county or tribe identifies fraudulent activity in the food stamp program. The department of health services may make reward payments under the optional incentive program from the appropriations under s. 20.435 (4) (bm), (L), (nn), and (pa). The department shall establish the optional incentive program to include all of the following:

AB263,9,4 1. That a county or tribe shall choose to receive a reward payment in the amount determined under subd. 2. or to retain funds under s. 49.793 (2) (a).

AB263,9,12 2. That the amount of a reward payment to a county or tribe under the program is equal to 20 percent of the amount that the department determines will be saved in the food stamp program as the result of eliminating the identified fraudulent activity during the 12-month period after the fraudulent activity is eliminated. Notwithstanding s. 49.793 (2) (a), a county or tribe that receives a reward payment under this subdivision may not retain any funds that are incorrectly paid as the result of the identified fraudulent activity and recovered due to the efforts of an employee or officer of the county or tribe.

AB263,9,19 (3) Wisconsin Works. The department of children and families shall establish an optional incentive program, by rule, under which the department will provide a reward payment to a county or tribe if an employee or officer of the county or tribe identifies fraudulent activity in Wisconsin Works. The department of children and families may make reward payments under the optional incentive program from the appropriation under s. 20.437 (2) (dz), (L), and (mc). The department of children and families shall establish the optional incentive program to include all of the following:

AB263,9,22 (a) That a county or tribe shall choose to receive a reward payment in the amount determined under par. (b), to receive a reward under the incentive program under s. 49.197 (2), or to retain funds under s. 49.195 (4).

AB263,9,25 (b) That the amount of a reward payment to a county or tribe under the program is equal to 20 percent of the amount that the department determines will be saved in Wisconsin Works as the result of eliminating the identified fraudulent activity during the 12-month period after the fraudulent activity is eliminated. Notwithstanding ss. 49.195 (4) and 49.197 (2), a county or tribe that receives a reward payment under this paragraph may not retain any funds that are incorrectly paid as the result of the identified fraudulent activity and recovered due to the efforts of an employee or officer of the county or tribe and may not receive a reward payment under s. 49.197 (2).

AB263,10,8 (4) Use of reward payment. A county or tribe may use a reward payment received under this section for any purpose.

AB263,10,16 (5) Waivers. (a) If the department of health services determines that it needs a waiver to allow reward payments under sub. (2) (a) to qualify as administrative costs for the Medical Assistance program or to allow a county and tribe to use any federal funds received under sub. (2) (a) for any purpose, the department shall request the waiver from the federal department of health and human services. If the federal department of health and human services disapproves the waiver request made under this paragraph, the department of health services may not implement the incentive program under sub. (2) (a).

AB263,10,24 (b) If the department of health services determines that it needs a waiver to allow reward payments under sub. (2) (b) to qualify as administrative costs involved in the operation of the food stamp program or to allow a county and tribe to use any federal funds received under sub. (2) (b) for any purpose, the department shall request the waiver from the U.S. department of agriculture. If the U.S. department of agriculture disapproves the waiver request made under this paragraph, the department of health services may not implement the incentive program under sub. (2) (b).

AB263,11,9 (c) If the department of children and families determines that it needs a waiver to allow reward payments under sub. (3) to qualify as state expenditures for purposes of determining whether the state is maintaining a certain level of historic support under the temporary assistance for needy families program under 42 USC 601 to 619 or to allow a county and tribe to use any federal funds received under sub. (3) for any purpose, the department shall request the waiver from the federal department of health and human services. If the federal department of health and human services disapproves the waiver request made under this paragraph, the department of children and families may not implement the incentive program under sub. (3).

AB263,10 Section 10 . Nonstatutory provisions.

AB263,11,11 (1) Waiver to limit number of FoodShare replacement cards.

AB263,11,12 (a) In this subsection:

AB263,11,13 1. “Department" means the department of health services.

AB263,11,16 2. “FoodShare recipient" means an individual or household that is receiving benefits under the federal food stamp program, as defined in section 49.79 (1) (c) of the statutes.

AB263,12,2 (b) No later than 6 months after the effective date of this paragraph, the department shall request a waiver from the U.S. department of agriculture to allow the department to limit the number of replacement benefit cards that it must issue in a 12-month period to a FoodShare recipient who reports that his or her electronic benefit card has been lost, stolen, damaged, or destroyed to 4 replacement cards. If the U.S. department of agriculture does not disapprove the waiver request, the department may limit the number of replacement benefit cards that it issues in a 12-month period to a FoodShare recipient to the number that is authorized under the waiver.

AB263,12,3 (End)