AN ACT Relating to
public assistance reform; amending RCW 74.25.010, 74.25.020, 26.23.035,
50.63.010, 50.63.020, 50.63.030, 50.63.040, 50.63.060, 50.63.090, 74.12.350,
and 69.80.900; adding new sections to chapter 74.12 RCW; adding a new section
to chapter 70.190 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 74.25 RCW; adding a new
section to chapter 74.20A RCW; adding new sections to chapter 74.20 RCW; adding
a new section to chapter 43.70 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 74.04 RCW;
adding a new section to chapter 69.80 RCW; adding a new chapter to Title 74
RCW; creating new sections; recodifying RCW 50.63.010, 50.63.020, 50.63.030,
50.63.040, 50.63.050, 50.63.060, 50.63.070, 50.63.080, and 50.63.090; repealing
RCW 74.12.360 and 69.80.030; and providing an effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF
WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec.
1. The legislature finds
that lengthy stays on welfare, lack of access to vocational education and
training, the inadequate emphasis on employment by the social welfare system,
and teen pregnancy are obstacles to achieving economic independence.
Therefore, the legislature intends that:
(1) Income and
employment assistance programs emphasize the temporary nature of welfare and
set goals of responsibility, work, and independence;
(2) State institutions
take an active role in preventing pregnancy in young teens;
(3) Family planning
assistance be readily available to welfare recipients;
(4) Support enforcement
be more effective and the level of responsibility of noncustodial parents be
significantly increased; and
(5) Job search, job
skills training, and vocational education resources are to be used in the most
cost-effective manner possible.
PART I. EMPHASIZING WORK AND FAMILY PLANNING IN
PUBLIC ASSISTANCE
NEW SECTION. Sec.
2. A new section is added
to chapter 74.12 RCW to read as follows:
The department shall
train financial services and social work staff who provide direct service to
recipients of aid to families with dependent children to:
(1) Effectively
communicate the transitional nature of aid to families with dependent children
and the expectation that recipients will enter employment;
(2) Actively refer
clients to the job opportunities and basic skills program;
(3) Provide social
services needed to overcome obstacles to employability; and
(4) Provide family
planning information and assistance, including alternatives to abortion, which
shall be conducted in consultation with the department of health.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
3. A new section is added
to chapter 74.12 RCW to read as follows:
At time of application
or reassessment under this chapter the department shall offer or contract for
family planning information and assistance, including alternatives to abortion,
and any other available locally based teen pregnancy prevention programs, to
prospective and current recipients of aid to families with dependent children.
PART II. TEEN PREGNANCY
PREVENTION
NEW SECTION. Sec.
4. For the 1994-95 school
year, the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall administer a
program that provides grants to school districts for media campaigns promoting
sexual abstinence and addressing the importance of delaying sexual activity,
pregnancy, and childbearing until individuals are ready to nurture and support
their children. The messages shall be distributed in the school and community
where produced. Grants to the school districts shall be for projects that are
substantially designed and produced by students. The grants shall require a
local private sector match equal to the state grant, which may include in-kind
contribution of technical or other assistance from consultants or firms
involved in public relations, advertising, broadcasting, and graphics or video
production or other related fields. For purposes of evaluating the impact of
the campaigns, applicants shall estimate student pregnancy and birth rates over
the prior three to five years.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
5. A new section is added
to chapter 70.190 RCW to read as follows:
The community network's
plan may include funding for a student designed media and community campaign
promoting sexual abstinence and addressing the importance of delaying sexual
activity and pregnancy or male parenting until individuals are ready to nurture
and support their children. Under the campaign, which shall be substantially
designed and produced by students, the same messages shall be distributed in
schools, through the media, and in the community where the campaign is
targeted. The campaign shall require local private sector matching funds equal
to state funds. Local private sector funds may include in-kind contributions
of technical or other assistance from consultants or firms involved in public
relations, advertising, broadcasting, and graphics or video production or other
related fields. The campaign shall be evaluated using the outcomes required of
community networks under this chapter, in particular reductions in the number
or rate of teen pregnancies and teen male parentage over a three to five year period.
PART III. REFOCUSING JOBS
Sec. 6. RCW 74.25.010 and 1991 c
126 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:
The legislature
establishes as state policy the goal of economic self-sufficiency for
employable recipients of public assistance, through employment, training, and
education. In furtherance of this policy, the legislature intends to comply
with the requirements of the federal social security act, as amended, by
creating a job opportunities and basic skills training program for applicants
and recipients of aid to families with dependent children. The purpose of this
program is to provide recipients of aid to families with dependent children the
opportunity to obtain ((a full range of necessary)) appropriate
education, training, skills, and supportive services, including child care,
consistent with their needs, that will help them enter or reenter gainful
employment, thereby avoiding long-term welfare dependence and achieving
economic self-sufficiency. The program shall be operated by the department of
social and health services in conformance with federal law and consistent with
the following legislative findings:
(1) The legislature
finds that the well-being of children depends not only on meeting their
material needs, but also on the ability of parents to become economically
self-sufficient. The job opportunities and basic skills training program is
specifically directed at increasing the labor force participation and
household earnings of aid to families with dependent children recipients,
through the removal of barriers preventing them from achieving
self-sufficiency. These barriers include, but are not limited to, the lack of recent
work experience, supportive services such as affordable and reliable child
care, adequate transportation, appropriate counseling, and necessary
job-related tools, equipment, books, clothing, and supplies, the absence of
basic literacy skills, the lack of educational attainment sufficient to meet
labor market demands for career employees, and the nonavailability of useful
labor market assessments.
(2) The legislature
also recognizes that aid to families with dependent children recipients must be
acknowledged as active participants in self-sufficiency planning under the
program. The legislature finds that the department of social and health
services should communicate concepts of the importance of work and how
performance and effort directly affect future career and educational
opportunities and economic well-being, as well as personal empowerment,
self-motivation, and self-esteem to program participants. The legislature
further recognizes that informed choice is consistent with individual
responsibility, and that parents should be given a range of options for
available child care while participating in the program.
(3) The legislature
finds that current work experience is one of the most important factors
influencing an individual's ability to work toward financial stability and an
adequate standard of living in the long term, and that work experience should
be the most important component of the program.
(4) The
legislature finds that education, including, but not limited to, literacy, high
school equivalency, vocational, secondary, and postsecondary, is one of the
most important tools an individual needs to achieve full independence, and that
this should be an important component of the program.
(((4))) (5)
The legislature further finds that the objectives of this program are to assure
that aid to families with dependent children recipients gain experience in
the labor force and thereby enhance their long-term ability to achieve
financial stability and an adequate standard of living at wages that will meet
family needs.
Sec. 7. RCW 74.25.020 and 1993 c
312 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) The department of
social and health services is authorized to contract with public and private
employment and training agencies and other public service entities to provide
services prescribed or allowed under the federal social security act, as
amended, to carry out the purposes of the jobs training program. In
contracting for job placement, job search, and other job opportunities and
basic skills services, the department is encouraged to structure payments to
the contractor on a performance basis. The department of social and health
services has sole authority and responsibility to carry out the job
opportunities and basic skills training program. No contracting entity shall
have the authority to review, change, or disapprove any administrative
decision, or otherwise substitute its judgment for that of the department of
social and health services as to the application of policies and rules adopted
by the department of social and health services. The department shall
maximize the federal matching funds available for the job opportunities and
basic skills program by aggressively seeking private and public funds as match
for federal funds.
(2) To the extent
feasible under federal law, the department of social and health services and
all entities contracting with it shall ((give first priority of service to
individuals volunteering for program participation)) require nonexempt
parents to actively participate in the JOBS program, with an emphasis on job
readiness activities and vocational education. Social services shall be
offered to participants in accordance with federal law. The department shall
adopt appropriate sanctions to ensure compliance with the requirement and
policies of this chapter.
(3) To the extent
feasible under federal law, the department of social and health services and
all entities contracting with it shall ensure that long-term recipients of aid
to families with dependent children or those who are potentially long-term
recipients as identified in federal job opportunities and basic skills (JOBS)
target populations shall receive first priority for JOBS services. Federal
JOBS targets are: (a) Applicants for assistance who have received such aid for
thirty-six of the preceding sixty months; (b) recipients who have received assistance
for thirty-six of the preceding sixty months; (c) custodial parents under the
age of twenty-four who have not completed high school or its equivalent; (d)
custodial parents under the age of twenty-four with little or no recent work
experience; and (e) members of families in which the youngest child is within
two years of being ineligible for assistance because of age.
(4) The department
shall prioritize JOBS service delivery according to the categories within the
existing federal target groups as follows: (a) Custodial parents under the age
of twenty-four with little or no recent work experience; (b) custodial parents
under the age of twenty-four who have not completed high school or its
equivalent may be required to do so; (c) recipients who have received
assistance for thirty-six of the preceding sixty months; and (d) at least one
parent in an aid to families with dependent children-employable household shall
be required to participate in one of the following JOBS components for a
minimum of sixteen hours per week: (i) Community work experience; (ii) work
experience; (iii) on-the-job training; (iv) work supplementation; (v) those
under the age of twenty-four who have not completed high school or its
equivalent may be required to do so.
(5) The department
shall develop a realistic schedule for the phase-in of recipient participation
in the JOBS program based on the availability of state, federal, and other
relevant funding.
(6) All job search,
skills training, and postsecondary education shall be oriented towards local
labor force needs as determined by the department in consultation with the
local private industry council and the employment security department.
Education and skills training shall emphasize basic, secondary, and vocational
education. Aid to families with dependent children grants shall be provided to
individuals attending a four-year college or university only if it can be
demonstrated that it provides the fastest and most efficient path to employment
for a particular recipient. Aid to families with dependent children recipients
are prohibited from undertaking a postsecondary course of study oriented
primarily towards liberal arts.
(7) Job search
assistance, whether provided by the department or an entity contracting with
the department, shall include job development services. The services shall be
provided by persons responsible for identifying existing and potential job
openings and for developing relationships with existing and potential area
employers.
(((3))) (8)
The department of social and health services shall adopt rules under chapter
34.05 RCW establishing criteria constituting circumstances of good cause for an
individual failing or refusing to participate in an assigned program component,
or failing or refusing to accept or retain employment. These criteria shall
include, but not be limited to, the following circumstances: (a) If the
individual is a parent or other relative personally providing care for a child
under age ((six years, and the employment would require the individual to
work more than twenty hours per week)) three; (b) if child care, or
day care for an incapacitated individual living in the same home as a dependent
child, is necessary for an individual to participate or continue participation
in the program or accept employment, and such care is not available, and the
department of social and health services fails to provide such care; (c) the
employment would result in the family of the participant experiencing a net
loss of cash income; (d) if the individual is engaged in at least fifteen
hours per week of unsubsidized employment; or (((d))) (e)
circumstances that are beyond the control of the individual's household, either
on a short-term or on an ongoing basis.
(((4))) (9)
The department of social and health services shall adopt rules under chapter
34.05 RCW as necessary to effectuate the intent and purpose of this chapter.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
8. A new section is added
to chapter 74.25 RCW to read as follows:
Recipients of aid to
families with dependent children who are not participating in an education or
work training program may volunteer to work in a licensed child care facility,
or other willing volunteer work site. Licensed child care facilities
participating in this effort shall provide care for the recipient's children
and provide for the development of positive child care skills.
PART IV. ELIGIBILITY AND BENEFIT PAYMENT
REVISIONS
NEW SECTION. Sec.
9. A new section is added
to chapter 74.12 RCW to read as follows:
The legislature
recognizes that long-term recipients of aid to families with dependent children
may require a period of several years to attain economic self-sufficiency. To
provide incentives for long-term recipients to leave public assistance and accept
paid employment, the legislature finds that less punitive and onerous sanctions
than those required by the federal government are appropriate. The legislature
finds that a ten percent reduction in grants for long-term recipients that may
be replaced through earned income is a more positive approach than sanctions
required by the federal government for long-term recipients who fail to comply
with requirements of the job opportunities and basic skills program. A
long-term recipient shall not be subject to two simultaneous sanctions for
failure to comply with the participation requirements of the job opportunities
and basic skills program and for exceeding the length of stay provisions of
this section.
(1) After forty-eight
monthly benefit payments in a sixty-month period, and after each additional
twelve monthly benefit payments, the aid to families with dependent children
monthly benefit payment shall be reduced by ten percent of the payment
standard, except that after forty-eight monthly payments in a sixty-month
period, full monthly benefit payments may be made if:
(a) The person is
incapacitated or is needed in the home to care for a member of the household
who is incapacitated;
(b) The person is
needed in the home to care for a child who is under three years of age;
(c) There are no adults
in the assistance unit;
(d) The person is
cooperating in the development and implementation of an employability plan
while receiving aid to families with dependent children and no present
full-time, part-time, or unpaid work experience job is offered; or
(e) During a month in
which a grant reduction would be imposed under this section, the person is
participating in an unpaid work experience program.
(2) For purposes of
determining the amount of the food stamp benefit for recipients subject to
benefit reductions provided for in subsection (1) of this section, countable
income from the aid to families with dependent children program shall be set at
the payment standard.
(3) For purposes of
determining monthly benefit payments for two-parent aid to families with
dependent children households, the length of stay criterion will be applied to
the parent with the longer history of public assistance receipt.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
10. A new section is added
to chapter 74.12 RCW to read as follows:
For purposes of
determining the amount of monthly benefit payment to recipients of aid to
families with dependent children who are subject to benefit reductions due to
length of stay, all countable nonexempt earned income shall be subtracted from
an amount equal to the payment standard.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
11. A new section is added
to chapter 74.12 RCW to read as follows:
The department shall
amend the state plan to eliminate the one hundred hour work rule for recipients
of aid to families with dependent children-employable.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
12. A new section is added
to chapter 74.12 RCW to read as follows:
The revisions to the
aid to families with dependent children program and job opportunities and basic
skills training program shall be implemented by the department of social and
health services on a state-wide basis.
PART V. CHILD SUPPORT
NEW SECTION. Sec.
13. The department of social
and health services shall make a substantial effort to determine the identity
of the noncustodial parent through consistent implementation of RCW 70.58.080.
By December 1, 1994, the department of social and health services shall report
to the fiscal committees of the legislature on the method for validating claims
of good cause for refusing to establish paternity, the methods used in other
states, and the national average rate of claims of good cause for refusing to
establish paternity compared to the Washington state rate of claims of good
cause for refusing to establish paternity, the reasons for differences in the
rates, and steps that may be taken to reduce these differences.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
14. A new section is added
to chapter 74.20A RCW to read as follows:
(1) In each case within
the jurisdiction of the office of support enforcement in which a child support
obligation has been established, the secretary shall issue a letter, by mail,
to the parent responsible for payment of the support obligation. The letter
shall notify the parent that the fact and amount of the child support
obligation will be reported to consumer reporting agencies, as defined in RCW 19.182.010,
operating in the state of Washington.
(2) Within thirty days
following the date that a notice described in subsection (1) of this section is
mailed, the secretary shall report the fact and amount of the child support
obligation to consumer reporting agencies, as defined in RCW 19.182.010,
operating in the state of Washington. Any modification in the amount of a
child support obligation for which a report has been made under this section,
shall be reported to consumer reporting agencies, as defined in RCW 19.182.010,
operating in the state of Washington.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
15. A new section is added
to chapter 74.20 RCW to read as follows:
(1) The office of
support enforcement shall contract with private collection agencies to pursue
collection of arrearages that might otherwise consume a disproportionate share
of the office's collection efforts. Those cases considered to consume a
disproportionate share of the offices collection efforts shall include those
cases owing more than fifteen hundred dollars, cases where no payment has been
received in the last six months towards any debt owed to the department, or
cases where the last known address was outside of the state of Washington. In
determining appropriate contract provisions, the department shall consult with
other state support enforcement agencies which have successfully contracted
with private collection agencies to the extent allowed by federal regulations.
(2) The department
shall solicit proposals and shall select collection agencies that have
computerized location and asset information service capabilities.
(3) The department
shall monitor each case that it refers to a collection agency.
(4) The department
shall evaluate the effectiveness of entering into contracts for services under
this section.
(5) The department
shall report to the fiscal committees of the legislature on the results of its
analysis under subsections (3) and (4) of this section.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
16. A new section is added
to chapter 74.20 RCW to read as follows:
The office of support
enforcement shall, as a matter of policy, use all available remedies for the
enforcement of support obligations where the obligor is a self-employed
individual. The office of support enforcement shall not discriminate in favor
of certain obligors based upon employment status.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
17. The legislature finds
that the reliable receipt of child support payments by custodial parents is
essential to maintaining economic self-sufficiency. It is the intent of the
legislature to ensure that child support payments received by custodial parents
when such support is owed are retained by those parents regardless of future
claims made against such payments.
Sec. 18. RCW 26.23.035 and 1991 c
367 s 38 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) The department of
social and health services shall adopt rules for the distribution of support
money collected by the office of support enforcement. These rules shall:
(a) Comply with 42
U.S.C. Sec. 657;
(b) Direct the office
of support enforcement to distribute support money within eight days of
receipt, unless one of the following circumstances, or similar circumstances
specified in the rules, prevents prompt distribution:
(i) The location of the
custodial parent is unknown;
(ii) The support debt
is in litigation;
(iii) The office of
support enforcement cannot identify the responsible parent or the custodian;
(c) Provide for
proportionate distribution of support payments if the responsible parent owes a
support obligation or a support debt for two or more Title IV-D cases; and
(d) Authorize the
distribution of support money, except money collected under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 664,
to satisfy a support debt owed to the IV-D custodian before the debt owed to
the state when the custodian stops receiving a public assistance grant.
(2) The office of
support enforcement may distribute support payments to the payee under the
support order or to another person who has lawful physical custody of the child
or custody with the payee's consent. The payee may file an application for an
adjudicative proceeding to challenge distribution to such other person. Prior
to distributing support payments to any person other than the payee, the
registry shall:
(a) Obtain a written
statement from the child's physical custodian, under penalty of perjury, that
the custodian has lawful custody of the child or custody with the payee's
consent;
(b) Mail to the
responsible parent and to the payee at the payee's last known address a copy of
the physical custodian's statement and a notice which states that support payments
will be sent to the physical custodian; and
(c) File a copy of the
notice with the clerk of the court that entered the original support order.
(3) If the Washington
state support registry distributes a support payment to a person in error, the
registry may obtain restitution by means of a set-off against future payments
received on behalf of the person receiving the erroneous payment, or may act
according to RCW 74.20A.270 as deemed appropriate. Any set-off against future
support payments shall be limited to amounts collected on the support debt and
ten percent of amounts collected as current support.
(4) If the
Washington state support registry distributes a support payment to a payee
under a support order or to another person who has lawful physical custody of
the child or custody with the payee's consent, and the negotiable instrument
received for such payment from the payer under a child support order is
returned for nonsufficient funds, the registry shall obtain restitution from
the payer under the child support order.
(5) If the
Washington state support registry distributes funds collected under 42 U.S.C.
Sec. 664 to a payee under a support order or to another person who has lawful
physical custody of the child or custody with the payee's consent, and another
person filing a joint return with the payer owing past due support under a
child support order takes appropriate action to secure a share of the refund
from which the withholding has been made, the registry shall obtain restitution
from the payer under the child support order.
PART VI. EMPLOYMENT PARTNERSHIP
PROGRAM
Sec. 19. RCW 50.63.010 and 1986 c
172 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
The legislature finds
that the restructuring in the Washington economy has created rising public
assistance caseloads and declining real wages for Washington workers. There is
a profound need to develop partnership programs between the private and public
sectors to create new jobs with adequate salaries and promotional opportunities
for chronically unemployed and underemployed citizens of the state. Most
public assistance recipients want to become financially independent through
paid employment. A voluntary program which utilizes public wage subsidies
and employer matching salaries has provided a beneficial financial incentive
allowing public assistance recipients transition to permanent full-time
employment.
Sec. 20. RCW 50.63.020 and 1986 c
172 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
The employment
partnership program is created to develop a series of geographically
distributed model projects to provide permanent full-time employment for
low-income and unemployed persons. The program shall be ((a cooperative
effort between the employment security department and)) administered by
the department of social and health services. The department shall contract
for the program through local public or private nonprofit organizations.
The goals of the program are as follows:
(1) To reduce
inefficiencies in administration and provide model coordination of agencies
with responsibilities for employment and human service delivery to unemployed
persons;
(2) To create voluntary
financial incentives to simultaneously reduce unemployment and welfare
caseloads; ((and))
(3) To provide other
state and federal support services to the client population to enable economic
independence;
(4) To improve
partnerships between the public and private sectors designed to move recipients
of public assistance into productive employment; and
(5) To provide
employers with information on federal targeted jobs tax credit and other state
and federal tax incentives for participation in the program.
Sec. 21. RCW 50.63.030 and 1986 c
172 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:
The ((commissioner
of employment security and the)) secretary of the department of social and
health services shall establish pilot projects that enable grants to be used as
a wage subsidy. The department of social and health services ((is
designated as the lead agency for the purpose of complying)) shall
comply with applicable federal statutes and regulations((. The
department)), and shall seek any waivers from the federal government
necessary to operate the employment partnership program. The projects shall be
available on an individual case-by-case basis or subject to the limitations
outlined in RCW 50.63.050 (as recodified by this act) for the start-up
or reopening of a plant under worker ownership. The projects shall be subject
to the following criteria:
(1) It shall be a
voluntary program and no person may have any sanction applied for failure to
participate.
(2) Employment
positions established by this chapter shall not be created as the result of,
nor result in, any of the following:
(a) Displacement of
current employees, including overtime currently worked by these employees;
(b) The filling of
positions that would otherwise be promotional opportunities for current
employees;
(c) The filling of a
position, before compliance with applicable personnel procedures or provisions
of collective bargaining agreements;
(d) The filling of a
position created by termination, layoff, or reduction in workforce;
(e) The filling of a
work assignment customarily performed by a worker in a job classification
within a recognized collective bargaining unit in that specific work site, or
the filling of a work assignment in any bargaining unit in which funded
positions are vacant or in which regular employees are on layoff;
(f) A strike, lockout,
or other bona fide labor dispute, or violation of any existing collective
bargaining agreement between employees and employers;
(g) Decertification of
any collective bargaining unit.
(3) Wages shall be paid
at the usual and customary rate of comparable jobs and may include a
training wage if permitted by applicable federal statutes and regulations;
(4) A recoupment
process shall recover state supplemented wages from an employer when a job does
not last six months following the subsidization period for reasons other than
the employee voluntarily quitting or being fired for good cause as determined by
the ((commissioner of employment security)) local employment
partnership council under rules prescribed by the ((commissioner
pursuant to chapter 50.20 RCW)) secretary;
(5) Job placements
shall have promotional opportunities or reasonable opportunities for wage
increases;
(6) Other necessary
support services such as training, day care, medical insurance, and
transportation shall be provided to the extent possible;
(7) Employers shall
provide monetary matching funds of at least fifty percent of total wages;
(8) Wages paid to
participants shall be a minimum of five dollars an hour; and
(9) The projects shall
target the ((hardest-to-employ)) populations in the priority and for
the purposes set forth in RCW 74.25.020, to the extent that necessary
support services are available.
Sec. 22. RCW 50.63.040 and 1986 c
172 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:
An employer, before
becoming eligible to fill a position under the employment partnership program,
shall certify to the ((department of employment security)) local
employment partnership council that the employment, offer of employment, or
work activity complies with the following conditions:
(1) The conditions of
work are reasonable and not in violation of applicable federal, state, or local
safety and health standards;
(2) The assignments are
not in any way related to political, electoral, or partisan activities;
(3) The employer shall
provide industrial insurance coverage as required by Title 51 RCW;
(4) The employer shall
provide unemployment compensation coverage as required by Title 50 RCW;
(5) The employment
partnership program participants hired following the completion of the program
shall be provided benefits equal to those provided to other employees including
social security coverage, sick leave, the opportunity to join a collective
bargaining unit, and medical benefits.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
23. A local employment
partnership council shall be established in each pilot project area to assist
the department of social and health services in the administration of this
chapter and to allow local flexibility in dealing with the particular needs of
each pilot project area. Each council shall be primarily responsible for
recruiting and encouraging participation of employment providers in the project
site. Each council shall be composed of nine members who shall be appointed by
the county legislative authority of the county in which the pilot project
operates. Councilmembers shall be residents of or employers in the pilot
project area in which they are appointed and shall serve three-year terms. The
council shall have two members who are current or former recipients of the aid
to families with dependent children program or food stamp program, two members
who represent labor, and five members who represent the local business
community. In addition, one person representing the local community service
office of the department of social and health services, one person representing
a community action agency or other nonprofit service provider, and one person
from a local city or county government shall serve as nonvoting members.
Sec. 24. RCW 50.63.060 and 1986 c
172 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:
Participants shall be
considered recipients of aid to families with dependent children and remain
eligible for medicaid benefits even if the participant does not receive a
residual grant. Work supplementation participants shall be eligible for (1)
the thirty-dollar plus one-third of earned income exclusion from income, (2)
the work related expense disregard, and (3) ((the)) any applicable
child care expense disregard deemed available to recipient of aid in computing
his or her grant under this chapter, unless prohibited by federal law.
Sec. 25. RCW 50.63.090 and 1986 c
172 s 9 are each amended to read as follows:
The department of
social and health services shall seek any federal funds available for
implementation of this chapter, including, but not limited to, funds available
under Title IV of the federal social security act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 601 et seq.)
for the ((work incentive demonstration program, and the employment search
program)) job opportunities and basic skills program.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
26. RCW 50.63.010, 50.63.020,
50.63.030, 50.63.040, 50.63.050, 50.63.060, 50.63.070, 50.63.080, and 50.63.090
are each recodified as a new chapter in Title 74 RCW.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
27. The department of social
and health services shall report to the appropriate committees of the house of
representatives and senate on the implementation of this employment partnership
program for recipients of aid to families with dependent children by October 1,
1995.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
28. Section 23 of this act
shall be codified in the new chapter created by section 26 of this act.
PART VII. IMMUNIZATION
NEW SECTION. Sec.
29. A new section is added
to chapter 43.70 RCW to read as follows:
(1) The department, in
conjunction with local health jurisdictions, shall require each local health
jurisdiction to submit an immunization assessment and enhancement proposal,
consistent with the standards established in the public health improvement
plan, to provide immunization protection to the children of the state to
further reduce vaccine-preventable diseases.
(2) These plans shall
include, but not be limited to:
(a) A description of
the population groups in the jurisdiction that are in the greatest need of
immunizations;
(b) A description of
strategies to use outreach, volunteer, and other local educational resources to
enhance immunization rates; and
(c) A description of
the capacity required to accomplish the enhancement proposal.
(3) This section shall
be implemented consistent with available funding.
(4) The secretary shall
report through the public health improvement plan to the health care and fiscal
committees of the legislature on the status of the program and progress made
toward increasing immunization rates in population groups of greatest need.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
30. The legislative budget
committee shall conduct a program performance audit of the department of
health's immunization program and report its findings to the legislature by no
later than October 31, 1994. The program performance audit shall include (1)
an analysis of the distribution and utilization of vaccines by local health
departments and private physicians, (2) an identification of destroyed and
unused amounts of vaccine, and (3) an evaluation of the department of health's
program to increase the rate of vaccination of children two years old and
under. The department of health shall allocate $40,000 or so much thereof as
may be necessary from its 1993-95 general fund -- state appropriation to the
legislative budget committee for the purposes of the program performance audit
required by this section.
PART VIII. CHILD'S RESOURCES
Sec. 31. RCW 74.12.350 and 1979 c
141 s 354 are each amended to read as follows:
The department of
social and health services is hereby authorized to promulgate rules and
regulations in conformity with the provisions of Public Law 87-543 to allow all
or any portion of a dependent child's earned or other income to be set aside
for the identifiable future needs of the dependent child which will make
possible the realization of the child's maximum potential as an independent and
useful citizen.
The transfer into,
or accumulation of, a child's income or resources in an irrevocable trust account
is hereby allowed. The amount allowable is four thousand dollars. The
department will provide income assistance recipients with clear and simple
information on how to set up educational accounts, including how to assure that
the accounts comply with federal law by being adequately earmarked for future
educational use, and are irrevocable.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
32. RCW 74.12.360 and 1993 c
312 s 10 are each repealed.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
33. A new section is added
to chapter 74.12 RCW to read as follows:
(1) The department
shall determine, after consideration of all relevant factors and in
consultation with the applicant, the most appropriate living situation for
applicants under eighteen years of age, unmarried, and either pregnant or
having a dependent child in the applicant's care. Appropriate living
situations shall include a place of residence maintained by the applicant's
parent, legal guardian, or other adult relative as their own home, or other
appropriate supportive living arrangement supervised by an adult where feasible
and consistent with federal regulations under 45 C.F.R. chapter II, section
233.107.
(2) An applicant under
eighteen years of age who is either pregnant or has a dependent child and is
not living in a situation described in subsection (1) of this section shall be
presumed to be unable to manage adequately the funds paid on behalf of the
dependent child and, unless the teenage custodial parent demonstrates
otherwise, shall be subject to the protective payee requirements provided for
under RCW 74.12.250 and 74.08.280.
(3) The department
shall consider any statements or opinions by either parent of the teen
recipient as to an appropriate living situation for the teen, whether in the
parental home or other situation. If the parents of the teen head of household
applicant for assistance request, they shall be entitled to a hearing in
juvenile court regarding the fitness and suitability of their home as the top
priority choice for the pregnant or parenting teen applicant for assistance.
The parents shall have
the opportunity to make a showing, based on the preponderance of the evidence,
that the parental home is the most appropriate living situation.
(4) In cases in which
the head of household is under eighteen years of age, unmarried, unemployed,
and requests information on adoption, the department shall, as part of the
determination of the appropriate living situation, provide information about
adoption including referral to community-based organizations for counseling.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
34. A new section is added
to chapter 74.04 RCW to read as follows:
(1) The department
shall determine, after consideration of all relevant factors and in consultation
with the applicant, the most appropriate living situation for applicants under
eighteen years of age, unmarried, and pregnant who are eligible for general
assistance as defined in RCW 74.04.005 (6)(a)(ii)(A). Appropriate living
situations shall include a place of residence maintained by the applicant's
parent, legal guardian, or other adult relative as their own home, or other
appropriate supportive living arrangement supervised by an adult where feasible
and consistent with federal regulations under 45 C.F.R. chapter II, section
233.107.
(2) An applicant under
eighteen years of age who is pregnant and is not living in a situation
described in subsection (1) of this section shall be presumed to be unable to
manage adequately the funds paid on behalf of the dependent child and, unless
the teenage custodial parent demonstrates otherwise, shall be subject to the
protective payee requirements provided for under RCW 74.12.250 and 74.08.280.
(3) The department
shall consider any statements or opinions by either parent of the teen
recipient as to an appropriate living situation for the teen, whether in the
parental home or other situation. If the parents of the teen head of household
applicant for assistance request, they shall be entitled to a hearing in
juvenile court regarding the fitness and suitability of their home as the top
priority choice for the pregnant or parenting teen applicant for assistance.
The parents shall have
the opportunity to make a showing, based on the preponderance of the evidence,
that the parental home is the most appropriate living situation.
(4) In cases in which
the head of household is under eighteen years of age, unmarried, unemployed,
and requests information on adoption, the department shall, as part of the
determination of the appropriate living situation, provide information about
adoption including referral to community-based organizations for counseling.
PART IX. MISCELLANEOUS
NEW SECTION. Sec.
35. A new section is added
to chapter 74.12 RCW to read as follows:
The department shall
actively develop mechanisms for the income assistance program, the medical
assistance program, and the community services administration to facilitate the
enrollment in the federal supplemental security income program of disabled
persons currently part of assistance units receiving aid to families with
dependent children benefits.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
36. A new section is added
to chapter 69.80 RCW to read as follows:
(1) This section may be
cited as the "Good Samaritan Food Donation Act."
(2) As used in this
section:
(a) "Apparently
fit grocery product" means a grocery product that meets all quality and
labeling standards imposed by federal, state, and local laws and regulations
even though the product may not be readily marketable due to appearance, age,
freshness, grade, size, surplus, or other conditions.
(b) "Apparently
wholesome food" means food that meets all quality and labeling standards
imposed by federal, state, and local laws and regulations even though the food
may not be readily marketable due to appearance, age, freshness, grade, size,
surplus, or other conditions.
(c) "Donate"
means to give without requiring anything of monetary value from the recipient,
except that the term shall include giving by a nonprofit organization to
another nonprofit organization, notwithstanding that the donor organization has
charged a nominal fee to the donee organization, if the ultimate recipient or
user is not required to give anything of monetary value.
(d) "Food"
means a raw, cooked, processed, or prepared edible substance, ice, beverage, or
ingredient used or intended for use in whole or in part for human consumption.
(e) "Gleaner"
means a person who harvests for free distribution to the needy, or for donation
to a nonprofit organization for ultimate distribution to the needy, an
agricultural crop that has been donated by the owner.
(f) "Grocery
product" means a nonfood grocery product, including a disposable paper or
plastic product, household cleaning product, laundry detergent, cleaning
product, or miscellaneous household item.
(g) "Gross
negligence" means voluntary and conscious conduct by a person with
knowledge, at the time of the conduct, that the conduct is likely to be harmful
to the health or well-being of another person.
(h) "Intentional
misconduct" means conduct by a person with knowledge, at the time of the
conduct, that the conduct is harmful to the health or well-being of another
person.
(i) "Nonprofit
organization" means an incorporated or unincorporated entity that:
(i) Is operating for
religious, charitable, or educational purposes; and
(ii) Does not provide
net earnings to, or operate in any other manner that inures to the benefit of,
any officer, employee, or shareholder of the entity.
(j) "Person"
means an individual, corporation, partnership, organization, association, or
governmental entity, including a retail grocer, wholesaler, hotel, motel,
manufacturer, restaurant, caterer, farmer, and nonprofit food distributor or
hospital. In the case of a corporation, partnership, organization,
association, or governmental entity, the term includes an officer, director,
partner, deacon, trustee, councilmember, or other elected or appointed
individual responsible for the governance of the entity.
(3) A person or gleaner
is not subject to civil or criminal liability arising from the nature, age,
packaging, or condition of apparently wholesome food or an apparently fit
grocery product that the person or gleaner donates in good faith to a nonprofit
organization for ultimate distribution to needy individuals, except that this
subsection does not apply to an injury to or death of an ultimate user or
recipient of the food or grocery product that results from an act or omission
of the donor constituting gross negligence or intentional misconduct.
(4) A person who allows
the collection or gleaning of donations on property owned or occupied by the
person by gleaners, or paid or unpaid representatives of a nonprofit
organization, for ultimate distribution to needy individuals is not subject to
civil or criminal liability that arises due to the injury or death of the
gleaner or representative, except that this subsection does not apply to an
injury or death that results from an act or omission of the person constituting
gross negligence or intentional misconduct.
(5) If some or all of
the donated food and grocery products do not meet all quality and labeling
standards imposed by federal, state, and local laws and regulations, the person
or gleaner who donates the food and grocery products is not subject to civil or
criminal liability in accordance with this section if the nonprofit
organization that receives the donated food or grocery products:
(a) Is informed by the
donor of the distressed or defective condition of the donated food or grocery
products;
(b) Agrees to
recondition the donated food or grocery products to comply with all the quality
and labeling standards prior to distribution; and
(c) Is knowledgeable of
the standards to properly recondition the donated food or grocery product.
(6) This section may
not be construed to create liability.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
37. RCW 69.80.030 and 1983 c
241 s 3 are each repealed.
Sec. 38. RCW 69.80.900 and 1983 c
241 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:
Nothing in this chapter
may be construed to create any liability of, or penalty against a donor or
distributing organization except as provided in ((RCW 69.80.030)) section
36 of this act.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
39. A new section is added
to chapter 74.12 RCW to read as follows:
By October 1, 1994, the
department shall request the governor to seek congressional action on any
federal legislation that may be necessary to implement any sections of chapter
. . ., Laws of 1994 (this act). By October 1, 1994, the department
shall request the governor to seek federal agency action on any federal
regulation that may require a federal waiver.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
40. If any provision of this
act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the
remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other persons or
circumstances is not affected.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
41. If any part of this act
is found to be in conflict with federal requirements that are a prescribed
condition to the allocation of federal funds to the state, the conflicting part
of this act is inoperative solely to the extent of the conflict and with
respect to the agencies directly affected, and this finding does not affect the
operation of the remainder of this act in its application to the agencies
concerned. The rules under this act shall meet federal requirements that are a
necessary condition to the receipt of federal funds by the state.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
42. Section 7 of this act
shall take effect July 1, 1995.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 43. Part headings as used in
this act constitute no part of the law.
