093_HB3023ham001

 










                                     LRB093 10034 DRJ 12962 a

 1                    AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 3023

 2        AMENDMENT NO.     .  Amend House Bill 3023  by  replacing
 3    everything after the enacting clause with the following:

 4        "Section  5.  The  Illinois Public Aid Code is amended by
 5    changing Sections 11-1 and 11-20.1 as follows:

 6        (305 ILCS 5/11-1) (from Ch. 23, par. 11-1)
 7        Sec.  11-1.  No  discrimination).   There  shall  be   no
 8    discrimination or denial of financial aid and social services
 9    on  account  of  the  race, religion, color, national origin,
10    sex,  marriage  status,  or  political  affiliation  of   any
11    applicant or recipient.
12        Participation   in   any  marriage  promotion  or  family
13    formation activity is voluntary. Non-participation shall  not
14    affect  any  person's eligibility for or receipt of financial
15    aid or social services in any program under this Code.
16        Where financial aid or social  services  are  granted  to
17    certain  classes of persons under a program for which federal
18    funds are available, nothing in this  Section  shall  require
19    granting of financial aid or social services to other persons
20    where  federal funds would not be available as to those other
21    persons.
22    (Source: P.A. 80-354.)
 
                            -2-      LRB093 10034 DRJ 12962 a
 1        (305 ILCS 5/11-20.1) (from Ch. 23, par. 11-20.1)
 2        Sec.  11-20.1.  Employment;  Rights  of   recipient   and
 3    obligations  of  Illinois  Department  when recipients become
 4    employed; Assistance  when  a  recipient  has  employment  or
 5    earned income or both.
 6        (a)  When   a  recipient  reports  employment  or  earned
 7    income, or both, or the Illinois Department otherwise  learns
 8    of  a  recipient's  employment or earned income, or both, the
 9    Illinois Department shall provide the recipient with:
10             (1)  An explanation of how the  earned  income  will
11        affect  the  recipient's  eligibility  for  a  grant, and
12        whether the recipient  must  engage  in  additional  work
13        activities   to   meet   the   recipient's  monthly  work
14        activities requirement and what types of  activities  may
15        be  approved for that purpose, and whether the employment
16        is sufficient to cause months of continued receipt  of  a
17        grant  not to be counted against the recipient's lifetime
18        eligibility limit.
19             (2)  An  explanation  of  the  Work  Pays  budgeting
20        process, and an explanation  of  how  the  first  month's
21        income  on  a  new  job  will  be  projected, and how the
22        recipient  should  report  the  new  job  to  avoid   the
23        Department overestimating the first month's income.
24             (3)  An  explanation  of  how the earned income will
25        affect  the  recipient's  eligibility  for  food  stamps,
26        whether the  recipient  will  continue  to  receive  food
27        stamps, and, if so, the amount of food stamps.
28             (4)  The   names   and   telephone  numbers  of  all
29        caseworkers to whom the recipient's  case  or  cases  are
30        assigned  or will be transferred, an explanation of which
31        type of case  each  worker  will  be  handling,  and  the
32        effective date of the transfer.
33             (5)  An     explanation     of    the    recipient's
34        responsibilities   to   report   income   and   household
 
                            -3-      LRB093 10034 DRJ 12962 a
 1        circumstances, the process by which  quarterly  reporting
 2        forms  are  sent  to  recipients,  where  and to whom the
 3        reports should be returned, the deadline by which reports
 4        must be returned, instructions on how  to  fill  out  the
 5        reports,  an  explanation of what the recipient should do
 6        if he or she does not receive the form, advice on how  to
 7        prove the report was returned by the recipient such as by
 8        keeping  a  copy,  and  an  explanation of the effects of
 9        failure to file reports.
10             (6)  If the recipient will  continue  to  receive  a
11        grant, an explanation of the recipient's new fiscal month
12        and a statement as to when the recipient will receive his
13        or her grant.
14             (7)  An   explanation  of  Kidcare,  Family  Assist,
15        Family Care,  and  the  12  month  extension  of  medical
16        assistance  that  is  available when a grant is cancelled
17        due to earned income.
18             (8)  An explanation of the  medical  assistance  the
19        person  may  be  eligible for when the 12 month extension
20        expires and how to request or apply for it.
21             (9)  An explanation of the availability of  a  child
22        care  subsidy  to  all  families  below  the  child  care
23        assistance  program's  income limit, how to apply for the
24        benefit through the Child Care Resource and  Referral  or
25        site-administered  child care program or both, the nature
26        of the child care program's  sliding  scale  co-payments,
27        the  availability  of  the 10% earned income disregard in
28        determining eligibility for child care assistance and the
29        amount of the parent co-payment, the  right  to  use  the
30        subsidy for either licensed or license exempt legal care,
31        and  the  availability  of  benefits  when  the parent is
32        engaged in an education and training program.
33             (10)  (Blank).
34             (11)  (Blank).
 
                            -4-      LRB093 10034 DRJ 12962 a
 1             (11a)  (Blank).
 2             (12)  (Blank).
 3             (13)  An explanation of the availability of  payment
 4        for  initial expenses of employment and how to request or
 5        apply for it.
 6             (14)  An explanation of the job retention  component
 7        and  how  to participate in it, and an explanation of the
 8        recipient's eligibility to receive supportive services to
 9        participate in  education  and  training  programs  while
10        working.
11             (15)  A  statement  of  the types of assistance that
12        will be provided to the person automatically or continued
13        and a statement of the types of assistance for which  the
14        person must apply or reapply.
15             (16)  If  the recipient will not continue to receive
16        a cash grant and the recipient has assigned  his  or  her
17        right  to  child  support  to the Illinois Department, an
18        explanation of  the  recipient's  right  to  continue  to
19        receive   child   support   enforcement   services,   the
20        recipient's  right to have all current support paid after
21        grant cancellation forwarded promptly to  the  recipient,
22        the  procedures by which child support will be forwarded,
23        and  the  procedures  by  which  the  recipient  will  be
24        informed of the  collection  and  distribution  of  child
25        support.
26             (17)  An explanation of the availability of payments
27        if  the  recipient  experiences  a decrease in or loss of
28        earned income during a calendar quarter as to  which  the
29        monthly  grant  was  previously  budgeted  based upon the
30        higher income.
31             (18)  If the recipient will not continue to  receive
32        a  cash  grant,  an  explanation  of  the  procedures for
33        reapplying for cash assistance if the person  experiences
34        a decrease in or loss of earned income.
 
                            -5-      LRB093 10034 DRJ 12962 a
 1             (19)  An explanation of the earned income tax credit
 2        and  the  procedures  by which it may be obtained and the
 3        rules for disregarding it in determining eligibility  for
 4        and the amount of assistance.
 5             (20)  An  explanation  of the education and training
 6        opportunities available to recipients.
 7             (b)  The information listed in subsection (a)  shall
 8    be provided to the recipient on an individual basis during an
 9    in-person  meeting  with  a  representative  of  the Illinois
10    Department.  The individual in-person meeting shall  be  held
11    at  a  time which does not conflict with the recipient's work
12    schedule within 30 days of  the  date  the  recipient  begins
13    working.   If  the  recipient informs the Illinois Department
14    that an in-person meeting would be inconvenient, the Illinois
15    Department may provide the information during a  home  visit,
16    by  telephone,  or  by  mail  within  30 days of the date the
17    recipient begins working, whichever the client prefers.
18        (c)  At  the  conclusion  of  the  meeting  described  in
19    subsection (b), the Illinois Department shall ensure that all
20    case transfers and calculations of benefits  necessitated  by
21    the  recipient's  employment or receipt of earned income have
22    been performed, that applications have been made or  provided
23    for  all benefits for which the person must apply or reapply,
24    and that the person has received payment for initial expenses
25    of employment.
26    (Source: P.A. 91-331, eff. 7-29-99.)

27        Section 99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect  upon
28    becoming law.".