2021 -- H 6255

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LC002697

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2021

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO HUMAN SERVICES -- THE RHODE ISLAND WORKS PROGRAM

     Introduced By: Representatives Vella-Wilkinson, Ruggiero, Noret, and Solomon

     Date Introduced: April 22, 2021

     Referred To: House Finance

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Sections 40-5.2-8, 40-5.2-10, 40-5.2-20 and 40-5.2-33 of the General Laws

in Chapter 40-5.2 entitled "The Rhode Island Works Program" are hereby amended to read as

follows:

     40-5.2-8. Definitions.

     As used in this chapter, the following terms having the meanings set forth herein, unless

the context in which such terms are used clearly indicates to the contrary:

     (1) "Applicant" means a person who has filed a written application for assistance for

herself/himself and her/his dependent child(ren). An applicant may be a parent or non-parent

caretaker relative.

     (2) "Assistance" means cash and any other benefits provided pursuant to this chapter.

     (3) "Assistance unit" means the assistance-filing unit consisting of the group of persons,

including the dependent child(ren), living together in a single household who must be included in

the application for assistance and in the assistance payment if eligibility is established. An

assistance unit may be the same as a family.

     (4) "Benefits" shall mean assistance received pursuant to this chapter.

     (5) "Community service programs" means structured programs and activities in which cash

assistance recipients perform work for the direct benefit of the community under the auspices of

public or nonprofit organizations. Community service programs are designed to improve the

employability of recipients not otherwise able to obtain paid employment.

     (6) "Department" means the department of human services.

     (7) "Dependent child" means an individual, other than an individual with respect to whom

foster care maintenance payments are made, who is: (A) Under the age of eighteen (18); or (B)

Under the age of nineteen (19) and a full-time student in a secondary school (or in the equivalent

level of vocational or educational training), if before he or she attains age nineteen (19), he or she

may reasonably be expected to complete the program of the secondary school (or such training).

     (8) "Director" means the director of the department of human services.

     (9) "Earned income" means income in cash or the equivalent received by a person through

the receipt of wages, salary, commissions, or profit from activities in which the person is self-

employed or as an employee and before any deductions for taxes.

     (10) "Earned income tax credit" means the credit against federal personal income tax

liability under § 32 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. § 32, or any successor section,

the advanced payment of the earned income tax credit to an employee under § 3507 of the code, 26

U.S.C. § 3507 [repealed], or any successor section and any refund received as a result of the earned

income tax credit, as well as any refundable state earned income tax credit.

     (11) "Education directly related to employment" means education, in the case of a

participant who has not received a high school diploma or a certificate of high school equivalency,

related to a specific occupation, job, or job offer.

     (12) "Family" means: (A) A pregnant woman from and including the seventh month of her

pregnancy; or (B) A child and the following eligible persons living in the same household as the

child: (C) Each biological, adoptive or stepparent of the child, or in the absence of a parent, any

adult relative who is responsible, in fact, for the care of such child; and (D) The child's minor

siblings (whether of the whole or half blood); provided, however, that the term "family" shall not

include any person receiving benefits under Title XVI of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1381

et seq. A family may be the same as the assistance unit.

     (13) "Gross earnings" means earnings from employment and self-employment further

described in the department of human services rules and regulations.

     (14) "Individual employment plan" means a written, individualized plan for employment

developed jointly by the applicant and the department of human services that specifies the steps the

participant shall take toward long-term economic independence developed in accordance with §

40-5.2-10(e). A participant must comply with the terms of the individual employment plan as a

condition of eligibility in accordance with § 40-5.2-10(e).

     (15) "Job search and job readiness" means the mandatory act of seeking or obtaining

employment by the participant, or the preparation to seek or obtain employment.

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     In accord with federal requirements, job search activities must be supervised by the

department of labor and training and must be reported to the department of human services in

accordance with TANF work verification requirements.

     Except in the context of rehabilitation employment plans, and special services provided by

the department of children, youth and families, job-search and job-readiness activities are limited

to four (4) consecutive weeks, or for a total of six (6) weeks in a twelve-month (12) period, with

limited exceptions as defined by the department. The department of human services, in consultation

with the department of labor and training, shall extend job-search, and job-readiness assistance for

up to twelve (12) weeks in a fiscal year if a state has an unemployment rate at least fifty percent

(50%) greater than the United States unemployment rate if the state meets the definition of a "needy

state" under the contingency fund provisions of federal law.

     Preparation to seek employment, or job readiness, may include, but may not be limited to,

the participant obtaining life-skills training, homelessness services, domestic violence services,

special services for families provided by the department of children youth and families, substance

abuse treatment, mental health treatment, or rehabilitation activities as appropriate for those who

are otherwise employable. The services, treatment, or therapy must be determined to be necessary

and certified by a qualified medical or mental health professional. Intensive work-readiness

services may include work-based literacy, numeracy, hands-on training, work experience, and case-

management services. Nothing in this section shall be interpreted to mean that the department of

labor and training shall be the sole provider of job-readiness activities described herein.

     (16) "Job skills training directly related to employment" means training or education for

job skills required by an employer to provide an individual with the ability to obtain employment

or to advance or adapt to the changing demands of the workplace. Job skills training directly related

to employment must be supervised on an ongoing basis.

     (17) "Minor parent" means a parent under the age of eighteen (18). A minor parent may be

an applicant or recipient with his or her dependent child(ren) in his/her own case or a member of

an assistance unit with his or her dependent child(ren) in a case established by the minor parent's

parent.

     (18) "Net income" means the total gross income of the assistance unit less allowable

disregards and deductions as described in § 40-5.2-10(g).

     (19) "On-the-job-training" means training in the public or private sector that is given to a

paid employee while he or she is engaged in productive work and that provides knowledge and

skills essential to the full and adequate performance of the job. On-the-job training must be

supervised by an employer, work-site sponsor, or other designee of the department of human

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services on an ongoing basis.

     (20) "Participant" means a person who has been found eligible for assistance in accordance

with this chapter and who must comply with all requirements of this chapter, and has entered into

an individual employment plan. A participant may be a parent or non-parent caretaker relative

included in the cash assistance payment.

     (21) "Recipient" means a person who has been found eligible and receives cash assistance

in accordance with this chapter.

     (22) "Relative" means a parent, stepparent, grandparent, great grandparent, great-great

grandparent, aunt, great-aunt, great-great aunt, uncle, great-uncle, great-great uncle, sister, brother,

stepbrother, stepsister, half-brother, half-sister, first cousin, first cousin once removed, niece, great-

niece, great-great niece, nephew, great-nephew, or great-great nephew.

     (23) "Resident" means a person who maintains residence by his or her continuous physical

presence in the state.

     (24) "Self-employment income" means the total profit from a business enterprise, farming,

etc., resulting from a comparison of the gross receipts with the business expenses, i.e., expenses

directly related to producing the goods or services and without which the goods or services could

not be produced. However, items such as depreciation, personal business and entertainment

expenses, and personal transportation are not considered business expenses for the purposes of

determining eligibility for cash assistance in accordance with this chapter.

     (25) "State" means the state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.

     (26) "Subsidized employment" means employment in the private or public sectors for

which the employer receives a subsidy from TANF or other public funds to offset some or all of

the wages and costs of employing a recipient. It includes work in which all or a portion of the wages

paid to the recipient are provided to the employer either as a reimbursement for the extra costs of

training or as an incentive to hire the recipient, including, but not limited to, grant diversion.

     (27) "Subsidized housing" means housing for a family whose rent is restricted to a

percentage of its income.

     (28) "Unsubsidized employment" means full- or part-time employment in the public or

private sector that is not subsidized by TANF or any other public program.

     (29) "Vocational educational training" means organized educational programs, not to

exceed twelve (12) months with respect to any participant, that are directly related to the preparation

of participants for employment in current or emerging occupations. Vocational educational training

must be supervised.

     (30) "Work activities" mean the specific work requirements that must be defined in the

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individual employment plan and must be complied with by the participant as a condition of

eligibility for the receipt of cash assistance for single and two-family (2) households outlined in §

40-5.2-12 of this chapter.

     (31) "Work experience" means a work activity that provides a participant with an

opportunity to acquire the general skills, training, knowledge, and work habits necessary to obtain

employment. The purpose of work experience is to improve the employability of those who cannot

find unsubsidized employment. An employer, work site sponsor, and/or other appropriate designee

of the department must supervise this activity.

     (32) "Work supplementation," also known as "grant diversion," means the use of all or a

portion of a participant's cash assistance grant and food stamp grant as a wage supplement to an

employer. The supplement shall be limited to a maximum period of twelve (12) months. An

employer must agree to continue the employment of the participant as part of the regular work

force, beyond the supplement period, if the participant demonstrates satisfactory performance.

     40-5.2-10. Necessary requirements and conditions.

     The following requirements and conditions shall be necessary to establish eligibility for

the program.

     (a) Citizenship, alienage, and residency requirements.

     (1) A person shall be a resident of the state of Rhode Island.

     (2) Effective October 1, 2008, a person shall be a United States citizen, or shall meet the

alienage requirements established in § 402(b) of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity

Reconciliation Act of 1996, PRWORA, Pub. L. No. 104-193 and as that section may hereafter be

amended [8 U.S.C. § 1612]; a person who is not a United States citizen and does not meet the

alienage requirements established in PRWORA, as amended, is not eligible for cash assistance in

accordance with this chapter.

     (b) The family/assistance unit must meet any other requirements established by the

department of human services by rules and regulations adopted pursuant to the administrative

procedures act, as necessary to promote the purpose and goals of this chapter.

     (c) Receipt of cash assistance is conditional upon compliance with all program

requirements.

     (d) All individuals domiciled in this state shall be exempt from the application of

subdivision 115(d)(1)(A) of Pub. L. No. 104-193, the Personal Responsibility and Work

Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, PRWORA [21 U.S.C. § 862a], which makes any

individual ineligible for certain state and federal assistance if that individual has been convicted

under federal or state law of any offense that is classified as a felony by the law of the jurisdiction

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and that has as an element the possession, use, or distribution of a controlled substance as defined

in § 102(6) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. § 802(6)).

     (e) Individual employment plan as a condition of eligibility.

     (1) Following receipt of an application, the department of human services shall assess the

financial conditions of the family, including the non-parent caretaker relative who is applying for

cash assistance for himself or herself as well as for the minor child(ren), in the context of an

eligibility determination. If a parent or non-parent caretaker relative is unemployed or under-

employed, the department shall conduct an initial assessment, taking into account: (A) The physical

capacity, skills, education, work experience, health, safety, family responsibilities, and place of

residence of the individual; and (B) The child care and supportive services required by the applicant

to avail himself or herself of employment opportunities and/or work-readiness programs.

     (2) On the basis of this assessment, the department of human services and the department

of labor and training, as appropriate, in consultation with the applicant, shall develop an individual

employment plan for the family that requires the individual to participate in the intensive

employment services. Intensive employment services shall be defined as the work requirement

activities in § 40-5.2-12(g) and (i).

     (3) The director, or his or her designee, may assign a case manager to an

applicant/participant, as appropriate.

     (4) The department of labor and training and the department of human services in

conjunction with the participant shall develop a revised, individual employment plan that shall

identify employment objectives, taking into consideration factors above, and shall include a

strategy for immediate employment and for preparing for, finding, and retaining employment

consistent, to the extent practicable, with the individual's career objectives.

     (5) The individual employment plan must include the provision for the participant to

engage in work requirements as outlined in § 40-5.2-12.

     (6)(i) The participant shall attend and participate immediately in intensive assessment and

employment services as the first step in the individual employment plan, unless temporarily exempt

from this requirement in accordance with this chapter. Intensive assessment and employment

services shall be defined as the work requirement activities in § 40-5.2-12(g) and (i).

     (ii) Parents under age twenty (20) without a high school diploma or general equivalency

diploma (GED) shall be referred to special teen-parent programs that will provide intensive services

designed to assist teen parents to complete high school education or GED, and to continue approved

work plan activities in accord with Rhode Island works program requirements.

     (7) The applicant shall become a participant in accordance with this chapter at the time the

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individual employment plan is signed and entered into.

     (8) Applicants and participants of the Rhode Island works program shall agree to comply

with the terms of the individual employment plan, and shall cooperate fully with the steps

established in the individual employment plan, including the work requirements.

     (9) The department of human services has the authority under the chapter to require

attendance by the applicant/participant, either at the department of human services or at the

department of labor and training, at appointments deemed necessary for the purpose of having the

applicant enter into and become eligible for assistance through the Rhode Island works program.

The appointments include, but are not limited to, the initial interview, orientation, and assessment;

job readiness; and job search. Attendance is required as a condition of eligibility for cash assistance

in accordance with rules and regulations established by the department.

     (10) As a condition of eligibility for assistance pursuant to this chapter, the

applicant/participant shall be obligated to keep appointments; attend orientation meetings at the

department of human services and/or the Rhode Island department of labor and training; participate

in any initial assessments or appraisals; and comply with all the terms of the individual employment

plan in accordance with department of human services rules and regulations.

     (11) A participant, including a parent or non-parent caretaker relative included in the cash

assistance payment, shall not voluntarily quit a job or refuse a job unless there is good cause as

defined in this chapter or the department's rules and regulations.

     (12) A participant who voluntarily quits or refuses a job without good cause, as defined in

§ 40-5.2-12(l), while receiving cash assistance in accordance with this chapter, shall be sanctioned

in accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the department.

     (f) Resources.

     (1) The family or assistance unit's countable resources shall be less than the allowable

resource limit established by the department in accordance with this chapter.

     (2) No family or assistance unit shall be eligible for assistance payments if the combined

value of its available resources (reduced by any obligations or debts with respect to such resources)

exceeds one thousand dollars ($1,000).

     (3) For purposes of this subsection, the following shall not be counted as resources of the

family/assistance unit in the determination of eligibility for the works program:

     (i) The home owned and occupied by a child, parent, relative, or other individual;

     (ii) Real property owned by a husband and wife as tenants by the entirety, if the property

is not the home of the family and if the spouse of the applicant refuses to sell his or her interest in

the property;

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     (iii) Real property that the family is making a good-faith effort to dispose of, however, any

cash assistance payable to the family for any such period shall be conditioned upon such disposal

of the real property within six (6) months of the date of application and any payments of assistance

for that period shall (at the time of disposal) be considered overpayments to the extent that they

would not have occurred at the beginning of the period for which the payments were made. All

overpayments are debts subject to recovery in accordance with the provisions of the chapter;

     (iv) Income-producing property other than real estate including, but not limited to,

equipment such as farm tools, carpenter's tools, and vehicles used in the production of goods or

services that the department determines are necessary for the family to earn a living;

     (v) One vehicle for each adult household member, but not to exceed two (2) vehicles per

household, and in addition, a vehicle used primarily for income-producing purposes such as, but

not limited to, a taxi, truck, or fishing boat; a vehicle used as a family's home; a vehicle that annually

produces income consistent with its fair market value, even if only used on a seasonal basis; a

vehicle necessary to transport a family member with a disability where the vehicle is specially

equipped to meet the specific needs of the person with a disability or if the vehicle is a special type

of vehicle that makes it possible to transport the person with a disability;

     (vi) Household furnishings and appliances, clothing, personal effects, and keepsakes of

limited value;

     (vii) Burial plots (one for each child, relative, and other individual in the assistance unit)

and funeral arrangements;

     (viii) For the month of receipt and the following month, any refund of federal income taxes

made to the family by reason of § 32 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. § 32 (relating

to earned income tax credit), and any payment made to the family by an employer under § 3507 of

the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. § 3507 [repealed] (relating to advance payment of

such earned income credit);

     (ix) The resources of any family member receiving supplementary security income

assistance under the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 301 et seq.

     (x) Any veteran’s disability pension benefits received as a result of any physical or mental

disability sustained by the veteran while in the military service.

     (g) Income.

     (1) Except as otherwise provided for herein, in determining eligibility for and the amount

of cash assistance to which a family is entitled under this chapter, the income of a family includes

all of the money, goods, and services received or actually available to any member of the family.

     (2) In determining the eligibility for and the amount of cash assistance to which a

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family/assistance unit is entitled under this chapter, income in any month shall not include the first

one hundred seventy dollars ($170) of gross earnings plus fifty percent (50%) of the gross earnings

of the family in excess of one hundred seventy dollars ($170) earned during the month.

     (3) The income of a family shall not include:

     (i) The first fifty dollars ($50.00) in child support received in any month from each

noncustodial parent of a child plus any arrearages in child support (to the extent of the first fifty

dollars ($50.00) per month multiplied by the number of months in which the support has been in

arrears) that are paid in any month by a noncustodial parent of a child;

     (ii) Earned income of any child;

     (iii) Income received by a family member who is receiving Supplemental Security Income

(SSI) assistance under Title XVI of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1381 et seq.;

     (iv) The value of assistance provided by state or federal government or private agencies to

meet nutritional needs, including: value of USDA-donated foods; value of supplemental food

assistance received under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966, as amended, and the special food service

program for children under Title VII, nutrition program for the elderly, of the Older Americans Act

of 1965 as amended, and the value of food stamps;

     (v) Value of certain assistance provided to undergraduate students, including any grant or

loan for an undergraduate student for educational purposes made or insured under any loan program

administered by the United States Commissioner of Education (or the Rhode Island council on

postsecondary education or the Rhode Island division of higher education assistance);

     (vi) Foster care payments;

     (vii) Home energy assistance funded by state or federal government or by a nonprofit

organization;

     (viii) Payments for supportive services or reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses made

to foster grandparents, senior health aides, or senior companions and to persons serving in SCORE

and ACE and any other program under Title II and Title III of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act

of 1973, 42 U.S.C. § 5000 et seq.;

     (ix) Payments to volunteers under AmeriCorps VISTA as defined in the department's rules

and regulations;

     (x) Certain payments to native Americans; payments distributed per capita to, or held in

trust for, members of any Indian Tribe under P.L. 92-254, 25 U.S.C. § 1261 et seq., P.L. 93-134,

25 U.S.C. § 1401 et seq., or P.L. 94-540; receipts distributed to members of certain Indian tribes

which are referred to in § 5 of P.L. 94-114, 25 U.S.C. § 459d, that became effective October 17,

1975;

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     (xi) Refund from the federal and state earned income tax credit;

     (xii) The value of any state, local, or federal government rent or housing subsidy, provided

that this exclusion shall not limit the reduction in benefits provided for in the payment standard

section of this chapter.

     (xiii) The earned income from any adult family member who gains employment while an

active RI Works household member. Such income is excluded for the first six (6) months of

employment in which the income is earned, or until the household’s total gross income exceeds

one hundred eighty-five percent (185%) of the federal poverty level, unless the household reaches

its forty-eight (48) month limit first.

     (xiv) Any veteran’s disability pension benefits received as a result of any physical or

mental disability sustained by the veteran while in the military service.

     (4) The receipt of a lump sum of income shall affect participants for cash assistance in

accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the department.

     (h) Time limit on the receipt of cash assistance.

     (1) On or after January 1, 2020, no cash assistance shall be provided, pursuant to this

chapter, to a family or assistance unit that includes an adult member who has received cash

assistance for a total of forty-eight (48) months (whether or not consecutive), to include any time

receiving any type of cash assistance in any other state or territory of the United States of America

as defined herein. Provided further, in no circumstances other than provided for in subsection (h)(3)

with respect to certain minor children, shall cash assistance be provided pursuant to this chapter to

a family or assistance unit that includes an adult member who has received cash assistance for a

total of a lifetime limit of forty-eight (48) months.

     (2) Cash benefits received by a minor dependent child shall not be counted toward their

lifetime time limit for receiving benefits under this chapter should that minor child apply for cash

benefits as an adult.

     (3) Certain minor children not subject to time limit. This section regarding the lifetime time

limit for the receipt of cash assistance shall not apply only in the instances of a minor child(ren)

living with a parent who receives SSI benefits and a minor child(ren) living with a responsible,

adult non-parent caretaker relative who is not in the cash assistance payment.

     (4) Receipt of family cash assistance in any other state or territory of the United States of

America shall be determined by the department of human services and shall include family cash

assistance funded in whole or in part by Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds

[Title IV-A of the federal Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 601 et seq.] and/or family cash assistance

provided under a program similar to the Rhode Island families work and opportunity program or

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the federal TANF program.

     (5)(i) The department of human services shall mail a notice to each assistance unit when

the assistance unit has six (6) months of cash assistance remaining and each month thereafter until

the time limit has expired. The notice must be developed by the department of human services and

must contain information about the lifetime time limit; the number of months the participant has

remaining; the hardship extension policy; the availability of a post-employment-and-closure bonus;

and any other information pertinent to a family or an assistance unit nearing the forty-eight-month

(48) lifetime time limit.

     (ii) For applicants who have less than six (6) months remaining in the forty-eight-month

(48) lifetime time limit because the family or assistance unit previously received cash assistance in

Rhode Island or in another state, the department shall notify the applicant of the number of months

remaining when the application is approved and begin the process required in subsection (h)(5)(i).

     (6) If a cash assistance recipient family was closed pursuant to Rhode Island's Temporary

Assistance for Needy Families Program (federal TANF described in Title IV-A of the federal Social

Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 601 et seq.), formerly entitled the Rhode Island family independence

program, more specifically under § 40-5.1-9(2)(c) [repealed], due to sanction because of failure to

comply with the cash assistance program requirements; and that recipient family received forty-

eight (48) months of cash benefits in accordance with the family independence program, then that

recipient family is not able to receive further cash assistance for his/her family, under this chapter,

except under hardship exceptions.

     (7) The months of state or federally funded cash assistance received by a recipient family

since May 1, 1997, under Rhode Island's Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program

(federal TANF described in Title IV-A of the federal Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 601 et seq.),

formerly entitled the Rhode Island family independence program, shall be countable toward the

time-limited cash assistance described in this chapter.

     (i) Time limit on the receipt of cash assistance.

     (1) No cash assistance shall be provided, pursuant to this chapter, to a family assistance

unit in which an adult member has received cash assistance for a total of sixty (60) months (whether

or not consecutive) to include any time receiving any type of cash assistance in any other state or

territory of the United States as defined herein effective August 1, 2008. Provided further, that no

cash assistance shall be provided to a family in which an adult member has received assistance for

twenty-four (24) consecutive months unless the adult member has a rehabilitation employment plan

as provided in § 40-5.2-12(g)(5).

     (2) Effective August 1, 2008, no cash assistance shall be provided pursuant to this chapter

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to a family in which a child has received cash assistance for a total of sixty (60) months (whether

or not consecutive) if the parent is ineligible for assistance under this chapter pursuant to

subdivision 40-5.2(a)(2) to include any time they received any type of cash assistance in any other

state or territory of the United States as defined herein.

     (j) Hardship exceptions.

     (1) The department may extend an assistance unit's or family's cash assistance beyond the

time limit, by reason of hardship; provided, however, that the number of families to be exempted

by the department with respect to their time limit under this subsection shall not exceed twenty

percent (20%) of the average monthly number of families to which assistance is provided for under

this chapter in a fiscal year; provided, however, that to the extent now or hereafter permitted by

federal law, any waiver granted under § 40-5.2-34, for domestic violence, shall not be counted in

determining the twenty percent (20%) maximum under this section.

     (2) Parents who receive extensions to the time limit due to hardship must have and comply

with employment plans designed to remove or ameliorate the conditions that warranted the

extension.

     (k) Parents under eighteen (18) years of age.

     (1) A family consisting of a parent who is under the age of eighteen (18), and who has

never been married, and who has a child; or a family consisting of a woman under the age of

eighteen (18) who is at least six (6) months pregnant, shall be eligible for cash assistance only if

the family resides in the home of an adult parent, legal guardian, or other adult relative. The

assistance shall be provided to the adult parent, legal guardian, or other adult relative on behalf of

the individual and child unless otherwise authorized by the department.

     (2) This subsection shall not apply if the minor parent or pregnant minor has no parent,

legal guardian, or other adult relative who is living and/or whose whereabouts are unknown; or the

department determines that the physical or emotional health or safety of the minor parent, or his or

her child, or the pregnant minor, would be jeopardized if he or she was required to live in the same

residence as his or her parent, legal guardian, or other adult relative (refusal of a parent, legal

guardian, or other adult relative to allow the minor parent or his or her child, or a pregnant minor,

to live in his or her home shall constitute a presumption that the health or safety would be so

jeopardized); or the minor parent or pregnant minor has lived apart from his or her own parent or

legal guardian for a period of at least one year before either the birth of any child to a minor parent

or the onset of the pregnant minor's pregnancy; or there is good cause, under departmental

regulations, for waiving the subsection; and the individual resides in a supervised supportive-living

arrangement to the extent available.

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     (3) For purposes of this section, "supervised supportive-living arrangement" means an

arrangement that requires minor parents to enroll and make satisfactory progress in a program

leading to a high school diploma or a general education development certificate, and requires minor

parents to participate in the adolescent parenting program designated by the department, to the

extent the program is available; and provides rules and regulations that ensure regular adult

supervision.

     (l) Assignment and cooperation. As a condition of eligibility for cash and medical

assistance under this chapter, each adult member, parent, or caretaker relative of the

family/assistance unit must:

     (1) Assign to the state any rights to support for children within the family from any person

that the family member has at the time the assignment is executed or may have while receiving

assistance under this chapter;

     (2) Consent to and cooperate with the state in establishing the paternity and in establishing

and/or enforcing child support and medical support orders for all children in the family or assistance

unit in accordance with title 15, as amended, unless the parent or caretaker relative is found to have

good cause for refusing to comply with the requirements of this subsection.

     (3) Absent good cause, as defined by the department of human services through the

rulemaking process, for refusing to comply with the requirements of subsections (l)(1) and (2), cash

assistance to the family shall be reduced by twenty-five percent (25%) until the adult member of

the family who has refused to comply with the requirements of this subsection consents to and

cooperates with the state in accordance with the requirements of this subsection.

     (4) As a condition of eligibility for cash and medical assistance under this chapter, each

adult member, parent, or caretaker relative of the family/assistance unit must consent to and

cooperate with the state in identifying and providing information to assist the state in pursuing any

third party who may be liable to pay for care and services under Title XIX of the Social Security

Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1396 et seq.

     40-5.2-20. Childcare assistance -- Families or assistance units eligible.

     (a) The department shall provide appropriate child care to every participant who is eligible

for cash assistance and who requires child care in order to meet the work requirements in

accordance with this chapter.

     (b) Low-income child care. The department shall provide child care to all other working

families with incomes at or below one hundred eighty percent (180%) of the federal poverty level

if, and to the extent, these other families require child care in order to work at paid employment as

defined in the department's rules and regulations. Beginning October 1, 2013, the department shall

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also provide child care to families with incomes below one hundred eighty percent (180%) of the

federal poverty level if, and to the extent, these families require child care to participate on a short-

term basis, as defined in the department's rules and regulations, in training, apprenticeship,

internship, on-the-job training, work experience, work immersion, or other job-readiness/job-

attachment program sponsored or funded by the human resource investment council (governor's

workforce board) or state agencies that are part of the coordinated program system pursuant to §

42-102-11. Effective from January 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022, the department shall also provide

child care assistance to families with income below one hundred eighty percent (180%) of the

federal poverty level when such assistance is necessary for a member of these families to enroll or

maintain enrollment in a Rhode Island public institution of higher education provided that

eligibility to receive funding is capped when expenditures reach two hundred thousand dollars

($200,000) for this provision.

     (c) No family/assistance unit shall be eligible for childcare assistance under this chapter if

the combined value of its liquid resources exceeds one million dollars ($1,000,000), which

corresponds to the amount permitted by the federal government under the state plan and set forth

in the administrative rulemaking process by the department. Liquid resources are defined as any

interest(s) in property in the form of cash or other financial instruments or accounts that are readily

convertible to cash or cash equivalents. These include, but are not limited to: cash, bank, credit

union, or other financial institution savings, checking, and money market accounts; certificates of

deposit or other time deposits; stocks; bonds; mutual funds; and other similar financial instruments

or accounts. These do not include educational savings accounts, plans, or programs; retirement

accounts, plans, or programs; or accounts held jointly with another adult, not including a spouse.

The department is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations to determine the ownership and

source of the funds in the joint account.

     (d) As a condition of eligibility for childcare assistance under this chapter, the parent or

caretaker relative of the family must consent to, and must cooperate with, the department in

establishing paternity, and in establishing and/or enforcing child support and medical support

orders for any children in the family receiving appropriate child care under this section in

accordance with the applicable sections of title 15 of the state's general laws, as amended, unless

the parent or caretaker relative is found to have good cause for refusing to comply with the

requirements of this subsection.

     (e) For purposes of this section, "appropriate child care" means child care, including infant,

toddler, pre-school, nursery school, and school-age, that is provided by a person or organization

qualified, approved, and authorized to provide the care by the state agency or agencies designated

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to make the determinations in accordance with the provisions set forth herein.

     (f)(1) Families with incomes below one hundred percent (100%) of the applicable federal

poverty level guidelines shall be provided with free child care. Families with incomes greater than

one hundred percent (100%) and less than one hundred eighty percent (180%) of the applicable

federal poverty guideline shall be required to pay for some portion of the child care they receive,

according to a sliding-fee scale adopted by the department in the department's rules.

     (2) Families who are receiving childcare assistance and who become ineligible for

childcare assistance as a result of their incomes exceeding one hundred eighty percent (180%) of

the applicable federal poverty guidelines shall continue to be eligible for childcare assistance until

their incomes exceed two hundred twenty-five percent (225%) of the applicable federal poverty

guidelines. To be eligible, the families must continue to pay for some portion of the child care they

receive, as indicated in a sliding-fee scale adopted in the department's rules and in accordance with

all other eligibility standards.

     (g) In determining the type of child care to be provided to a family, the department shall

take into account the cost of available childcare options; the suitability of the type of care available

for the child; and the parent's preference as to the type of child care.

     (h) For purposes of this section, "income" for families receiving cash assistance under §

40-5.2-11 means gross, earned income and unearned income, subject to the income exclusions in

§§ 40-5.2-10(g)(2) and 40-5.2-10(g)(3), and income for other families shall mean gross, earned and

unearned income as determined by departmental regulations.

     (i) The caseload estimating conference established by chapter 17 of title 35 shall forecast

the expenditures for child care in accordance with the provisions of § 35-17-1.

     (j) In determining eligibility for childcare assistance for children of members of reserve

components called to active duty during a time of conflict, the department shall freeze the family

composition and the family income of the reserve component member as it was in the month prior

to the month of leaving for active duty. This shall continue until the individual is officially

discharged from active duty.

     40-5.2-33. School-age children.

     Subject to general assembly appropriation, one One month each year, each dependent

school-age child as defined by the department of human services child who lives in a family

receiving cash assistance under this chapter in that month shall be given a supplementary payment

of no less than one hundred dollars ($100) for the purchase of clothing in accordance with Title IV-

A of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 601 et seq.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO HUMAN SERVICES -- THE RHODE ISLAND WORKS PROGRAM

***

     This act would, as it relates to the RI Works program, amend the definition of dependent

child, exclude veteran’s disability pension benefits received as a result of any physical or mental

disability sustained by the veteran while in the military service from determination of family

resources or income when determining eligibility for the RI Works program, exclude the first six

(6) months of income from an adult family member as a consideration unless it raises to a level

exceeding one hundred eighty-five percent (185%) of the poverty level, and would extend child

care assistance for qualifying families.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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