WSR 15-11-065 PROPOSED RULES DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL AND HEALTH SERVICES (Economic Services Administration) [Filed May 19, 2015, 8:24 a.m.]
Original Notice.
Preproposal statement of inquiry was filed as WSR 15-06-036.
Title of Rule and Other Identifying Information: The department is proposing to amend WAC 388-408-0040 How does living in an institution affect my eligibility for Basic Food?, 388-474-0012 What is a state supplemental payment and who can get it?, and 388-460-0010 Do I have an authorized representative for Basic Food if I live in a treatment center or group home?
Hearing Location(s): Office Building 2, DSHS Headquarters, 1115 Washington, Olympia, WA 98504 (public parking at 11th and Jefferson. A map is available at http://www1.dshs.wa.gov/msa/rpau/RPAU-OB-2directions.html), on June 23, 2015, at 10:00 a.m.
Date of Intended Adoption: Not earlier than June 24, 2015.
Submit Written Comments to: DSHS Rules Coordinator, P.O. Box 45850, Olympia, WA 98504, e-mail DSHSRPAURulesCoordinator@dshs.wa.gov, fax (360) 664-6185, by 5:00 p.m., June 23, 2015.
Assistance for Persons with Disabilities: Contact Jeff Kildahl, DSHS rules consultant, by June 9, 2015, phone (360) 664-6092 or TTY (360) 664-6178, e-mail KildaJA@dshs.wa.gov.
Purpose of the Proposal and Its Anticipated Effects, Including Any Changes in Existing Rules: The department is proposing to amend rules to update information and change references to the division of developmental disabilities (DDD) to the developmental disabilities administration (DDA), the new name as of 2013 for this administration of the department of social and health services (DSHS).
Reasons Supporting Proposal: DSHS underwent reorganization in 2013. This reorganization created the DDA. The community services division is coordinating this rule change with key staff in the DDA to make sure rule changes are consistent with that administration's regulations and state law.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 74.04.500, 74.04.510, and 74.08A.120.
Rule is not necessitated by federal law, federal or state court decision.
Name of Proponent: DSHS, governmental.
Name of Agency Personnel Responsible for Drafting, Implementation, and Enforcement: Ezra Paskus, 712 Pear Street S.E., Olympia, WA 98504, (360) 725-4611.
No small business economic impact statement has been prepared under chapter 19.85 RCW. The proposed rules do not have an economic impact on small businesses or nonprofits.
A cost-benefit analysis is not required under RCW 34.05.328. These amendments are exempt as allowed under RCW 34.05.328 (5)(b)(vii) which states in part, "This section does not apply to … rules of the department of social and health services relating only to client medical or financial eligibility and rules concerning liability for care of dependents."
May 15, 2015
Katherine I. Vasquez
Rules Coordinator
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 14-21-119, filed 10/17/14, effective 11/17/14)
WAC 388-408-0040 How does living in an institution affect my eligibility for Basic Food?
(1) For Basic Food, an "institution" means a place where people live that provides residents more than half of three meals daily as a part of their normal services.
(2) Most residents of institutions are not eligible for Basic Food.
(3) If you live in one of the following institutions, you may be eligible for Basic Food even if the institution provides the majority of your meals:
(a) Federally subsidized housing for the elderly;
(b) Qualified drug and alcohol treatment centers when an employee of the treatment center is the authorized representative as described under WAC 388-460-0010;
(c) Qualified ((DDD)) developmental disabilities administration (DDA) group homes for persons with disabilities;
(d) A shelter for battered women and children when the resident left the home that included the abuser; or
(e) Nonprofit shelters for the homeless.
(4) A qualified ((DDD)) DDA group home is a nonprofit residential facility that:
(a) Houses sixteen or fewer persons with disabilities as defined under WAC 388-400-0040(((6))) (9); and
(b) Is certified by ((the division of developmental disabilities (DDD))) DDA.
(5) A qualified drug and alcohol treatment center is a residential facility that:
(a) Is authorized as a retailer by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service or operated by a private nonprofit organization; and
(b) Meets the division of behavioral health and recovery (DBHR) chemical dependency residential licensing and certification rules in WAC 388-877B-0200.
(6) The qualified drug and alcohol treatment center described in subsection (5) in this section must be:
(a) Receiving funds under part B of Title XIX of the Public Health Service Act;
(b) Eligible to receive funds under part B of Title XIX of the Public Health Service Act, but does not receive these funds; or
(c) Operating to further the purposes of part B of the Public Health Service Act to provide treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicts or alcoholics.
(7) Elderly or disabled individuals and their spouses may use Basic Food benefits to buy meals from the following meal providers if FNS has approved them to accept Basic Food benefits:
(a) Communal dining facility; or
(b) Nonprofit meal delivery service.
(8) If you are homeless, you may use your Basic Food benefits to buy prepared meals from nonprofit organizations the department has certified as meal providers for the homeless.
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 03-22-038, filed 10/28/03, effective 12/1/03)
WAC 388-460-0010 Do I have an authorized representative for Basic Food if I live in a treatment center or group home?
(1) If you live in a qualified ((DDD)) developmental disabilities administration (DDA) group home under WAC 388-408-0040, you may choose to apply for Basic Food benefits:
(a) On your own behalf;
(b) Through an authorized representative of your choice; or
(c) Through the ((DDD)) DDA group home acting as your authorized representative.
(2) If you live in a qualified drug and alcohol treatment center under WAC 388-408-0040, you must have an employee of the facility as your authorized representative for Basic Food.
(3) The person acting as authorized representative for residents in a qualified drug and alcohol treatment facility or qualified ((DDD)) DDA group home must:
(a) Be aware of the resident's circumstances;
(b) Notify the department of any changes in income, resources or circumstances within ten days of the change;
(c) Use the resident's Basic Food benefits for meals served to the resident; and
(d) Keep enough benefits in the facility's account to transfer one-half of a client's monthly allotment to the client's own account. If the client leaves the facility on or before the fifteenth of the month, the facility must return one half of the client's Basic Food allotment for that month.
(4) When a facility assigns an employee as the authorized representative for residents, the facility accepts responsibility for:
(a) Any misrepresentation or intentional program violation; and
(b) Liability for Basic Food benefits held at the facility on behalf of the resident.
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 05-07-031, filed 3/9/05, effective 4/9/05)
WAC 388-474-0012 What is a state supplemental payment and who can get it?
(1) The state supplemental payment (SSP) is a state-funded cash assistance program for certain clients who the Social Security Administration determines are eligible for supplemental security income (SSI).
(2) You can get an SSP if:
(a) You are a grandfathered SSI recipient under WAC 388-474-0001;
(b) You are an individual with an ineligible spouse under WAC 388-474-0001;
(c) You receive SSI because you are age sixty-five or older under WAC 388-474-0001;
(d) You receive SSI because you are blind under WAC 388-474-0001;
(e) You are determined eligible for SSP by the ((division of)) developmental disabilities administration; or
(f) You are eligible for and receive SSI as a foster child receiving specific services through children's administration behavior rehabilitation services (BRS) for part or all of a month, and not eligible for foster care reimbursement under Title IV-E of the Social Security Act.
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