SB 1071
Initials AG/BG Page 1 Health & Human Services
ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Fifty-seventh Legislature
First Regular Session
Senate: RAGE DP 4-3-0-0 | 3rd Read 17-12-1-0
SB 1071: SNAP; TANF; public welfare; verification
Sponsor: Senator Kavanagh, LD 3
Committee on Health & Human Services
Overview
Outlines evaluation and verification requirements for the Arizona Department of Economic
Security (DES) to confirm eligibility for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
benefits.
History
SNAP is a federal program that provides food benefits to low-income families to supplement
their grocery budget and help a family afford nutritious food. To be eligible for SNAP benefits,
an applicant must meet specific age, household, employment and income requirements
(USDA).
Applicants may need to meet general work requirements to qualify for SNAP. Specifically,
for applicants between 16 and 59 years old requirements include: 1) registering for work; 2)
participating in SNAP Employment and Training or workfare, if assigned by DES; 3)
accepting a suitable job if offered; and 4) not voluntarily quitting a job or reducing work hours
below 30 hours a week without a good reason. To be exempt from these requirements, an
applicant must be: 1) already working at least 30 hours a week or earning wages at least
equal to the federal minimum wage multiplied by 30 hours; 2) meeting work requirements
for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families or the unemployment compensation
program; 3) taking care of a child under six years old or an incapacitated person; 4) unable
to work due to a physical or mental limitation; 5) participating regularly in an alcohol or drug
treatment program; or 6) studying in a school or training program at least part-time. An
applicant between 18 and 54 years old that can work and has no dependents may need to
meet the additional able-bodied adult without dependents work requirement in addition to
the general work requirements (USDA).
An electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card transaction means the use of a credit or debit card
service, automated teller machine or point-of-sale terminal or access to an online system for
the withdrawal of cash assistance provided or for the processing of a payment for
merchandise or a service from cash assistance provided (A.R.S. § 46-297).
Provisions
SNAP Eligibility Evaluations
1. Directs DES, to determine or evaluate SNAP eligibility, to:
a) enter into a data matching agreement with the Arizona Department of Revenue
(DOR) to identify households with lottery or gambling winnings of $3,000 or more;
b) treat the data obtained as verified on receipt, to the extent permissible under federal
law; and
☐ Prop 105 (45 votes) ☐ Prop 108 (40 votes) ☐ Emergency (40 votes) ☐ Fiscal Note SB 1071
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c) refer those households with lottery or gambling winnings that are equal to or greater
than the resource limit for elderly or disabled households as defined under federal law
to DES for further investigation if the DOR data cannot be verified on receipt. (Sec.
1)
2. Requires DES to review information provided by the Arizona Department of Health
Services (DHS) that identifies individuals who have had a change in circumstances that
may affect SNAP eligibility on at least a monthly basis. (Sec. 1)
3. Requires DES to review information provided by the Industrial Commission of Arizona
that identifies individuals who have had a change in circumstances that may affect SNAP
eligibility, including an individual’s change in unemployment benefits, employment
status or wages on a quarterly basis. (Sec. 1)
4. Directs DES to review its own information that identifies individuals who have had a
change in circumstances that may affect SNAP eligibility, including potential changes in
residency as identified by out-of-state EBT card transactions on a monthly basis. (Sec. 1)
5. Instructs DES to review information provided by the Arizona Department of Corrections,
Rehabilitation and Reentry that identifies individuals who have had a change in
circumstances that may affect SNAP eligibility on a monthly basis. (Sec. 1)
6. Requires DES to review information provided by DOR that identifies households that
have had a change in circumstances that may affect SNAP eligibility, including potential
changes in income, wages or residency as identified by tax records. (Sec. 1)
7. Requires DES, on at least a quarterly basis, to post on its own public website the following
aggregated amounts that were obtained from noncompliance and fraud investigations
related to SNAP, excluding confidential and personally identifiable information:
a) the number of SNAP cases that were investigated for intentional violations or fraud;
b) the number of SNAP cases that were referred to the Attorney General's Office for
prosecution;
c) the amount of improper payments and expenditures;
d) the amount of monies recovered;
e) the amount of monies spent for improper payments and ineligible recipients as a
percentage of cases that were investigated and reviewed; and
f) the amount of monies spent by EBT card transactions that occurred outside of
Arizona, categorized by state. (Sec. 1)
8. Directs DHS and DES, on at least a monthly basis, to review the following information
from federal sources to assess a recipient's continued eligibility for SNAP:
a) earned income information, death register information, incarceration records,
supplemental security income information, beneficiary records, earnings information
and pension information that is maintained by the United States (U.S.) Social
Security Administration;
b) income and employment information that is maintained by the National Directory of
New Hires database and child support enforcement data that is maintained by the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services;
c) payment and earnings information that is maintained by the U.S. Department of
Housing and Urban Development; and
d) national fleeing felon information that is maintained by the U.S. Federal Bureau of
Investigation. (Sec. 1) SB 1071
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9. Directs DES to review an individual's case that is enrolled in SNAP if DES receives
information that indicates a change in circumstances that may affect the individual's
SNAP eligibility. (Sec. 1)
EBT Card Transactions
10. Requires DES, on a monthly basis, to use the data from an EBT card to identify any
individual who has made purchases exclusively out-of-state over a 90-day period. (Sec. 2)
11. Directs DES to contact the individual who is identified within 30 days to determine
whether that individual resides in Arizona. (Sec. 2)
12. Instructs DES to remove the individual within 30 days after contact if the individual does
not reside in Arizona. (Sec. 2)
13. Requires DES to refer the individual to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the district where
the individual claims to reside within 15 days after the removal. (Sec. 2)
Miscellaneous
14. Defines terms. (Sec. 1)