Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB116 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R1521 KKR-F
2	2	By: Minjarez H.B. No. 116
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the eligibility of and receipt by certain relative
8	8	caretakers of dependent children of supplemental financial
9	9	assistance and the assignment of those relative caretakers as
10	10	protective payees for financial assistance payments; creating a
11	11	criminal offense.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. Section 31.0041, Human Resources Code, is
14	14	amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to
15	15	read as follows:
16	16	(a) To the extent funds are appropriated for this purpose,
17	17	the commission may provide supplemental financial assistance in
18	18	addition to the amount of financial assistance granted for the
19	19	support of a dependent child under Section 31.003 to a person who:
20	20	(1) is 25 [45] years of age or older;
21	21	(2) is the grandparent, aunt, uncle, sister, or
22	22	brother of the dependent child, as defined by Section 31.002, who
23	23	lives at the person's residence;
24	24	(3) is the primary caretaker of the dependent child;
25	25	(4) has a family income that is at or below 200 percent
26	26	of the federal poverty level; and
27	27	(5) subject to Subsection (a-1), does not have
28	28	resources that exceed the amount allowed for financial assistance
29	29	under this chapter.
30	30	(a-1) Notwithstanding Section 31.032(d)(2), in determining
31	31	whether a person is eligible for supplemental financial assistance
32	32	under this section, the commission shall exclude from the person's
33	33	available resources the fair market value of the ownership interest
34	34	of the applicant or a member of the applicant's household in a motor
35	35	vehicle.
36	36	SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 31, Human Resources Code,
37	37	is amended by adding Section 31.0042 to read as follows:
38	38	Sec. 31.0042. FRAUDULENT RECEIPT OF CERTAIN ASSISTANCE;
39	39	CRIMINAL OFFENSE; RECOUPMENT. (a) A person commits an offense if,
40	40	with intent to defraud or deceive the commission, the person
41	41	knowingly makes or causes to be made a false statement or
42	42	misrepresentation of a material fact that allows the person to be
43	43	eligible to receive supplemental financial assistance under
44	44	Section 31.0041.
45	45	(b) An offense under Subsection (a) is:
46	46	(1) a Class C misdemeanor if the person received no
47	47	supplemental financial assistance or received supplemental
48	48	financial assistance for less than 7 days;
49	49	(2) a Class B misdemeanor if the person received
50	50	supplemental financial assistance for 7 days or more but less than
51	51	31 days; or
52	52	(3) a Class A misdemeanor if the person received
53	53	supplemental financial assistance for 31 days or more but less than
54	54	91 days.
55	55	(c) If conduct that constitutes an offense under this
56	56	section also constitutes an offense under any other law, the actor
57	57	may be prosecuted under this section, the other law, or both.
58	58	(d) The appropriate county prosecuting attorney is
59	59	responsible for the prosecution of an offense under this section.
60	60	(e) The commission's office of inspector general may:
61	61	(1) investigate, as authorized by Section 531.102,
62	62	Government Code, potential fraud, waste, and abuse with respect to
63	63	supplemental financial assistance under Section 31.0041; and
64	64	(2) in the same manner as is provided by Section
65	65	531.120, Government Code, for the Medicaid program, recoup
66	66	financial assistance paid to a person who engaged in conduct
67	67	described by Subsection (a).
68	68	(f) The executive commissioner may adopt rules necessary to
69	69	determine whether fraudulent activity that violates Subsection (a)
70	70	has occurred.
71	71	SECTION 3. Section 31.0324, Human Resources Code, is
72	72	amended by amending Subsections (b) and (c) and adding Subsection
73	73	(d) to read as follows:
74	74	(b) The executive commissioner by rule shall develop and the
75	75	commission shall implement a process that provides for the
76	76	grandparent, aunt, uncle, sister, or brother of a child receiving
77	77	financial assistance under this chapter to serve as a protective
78	78	payee to:
79	79	(1) receive and use the assistance on behalf of the
80	80	child; and
81	81	(2) apply for financial assistance and be interviewed
82	82	instead of the child's parent at any subsequent review of
83	83	eligibility required by the commission.
84	84	(c) The commission shall limit the use of the process
85	85	established by Subsection (b) to situations in which the commission
86	86	determines the parent is not using the assistance for the child's
87	87	needs as required by Section 31.0355(a), and the executive
88	88	commissioner shall establish by rule the circumstances under which
89	89	the grandparent, aunt, uncle, sister, or brother may be removed as a
90	90	protective payee.
91	91	(d) To serve as a protective payee of a child receiving
92	92	financial assistance under this chapter, a person described by
93	93	Subsection (b) must be at least 25 years of age.
94	94	SECTION 4. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of
95	95	this section, the changes in law made by this Act apply to a person
96	96	receiving financial assistance under Chapter 31, Human Resources
97	97	Code, on or after the effective date of this Act, regardless of the
98	98	date on which eligibility for the financial assistance was
99	99	determined.
100	100	(b) Section 31.0041(a-1), Human Resources Code, as added by
101	101	this Act, applies only to a determination of eligibility of a person
102	102	for supplemental financial assistance under Section 31.0041, Human
103	103	Resources Code, as amended by this Act, that is made on or after the
104	104	effective date of this Act.
105	105	SECTION 5. If before implementing any provision of this Act
106	106	a state agency determines that a waiver or authorization from a
107	107	federal agency is necessary for implementation of that provision,
108	108	the agency affected by the provision shall request the waiver or
109	109	authorization and may delay implementing that provision until the
110	110	waiver or authorization is granted.
111	111	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.