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SB-0892, As Passed Senate, December 1, 2005

SUBSTITUTE FOR

SENATE BILL NO. 892

(As amended, December 1, 2005)

<<A bill to amend 1939 PA 280, entitled

"The social welfare act,"

by amending sections 14i, 57e, and 57f (MCL 400.14i, 400.57e, and 400.57f), section 14i as amended by 2004 PA 571 and sections 57e and 57f

as amended by 2001 PA 280.>>

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

<<Sec. 14i. Section 57f(3)(c), (e), and (f) and section 57g(4), (5), (6), and (7) shall not apply after December 31, ~~2005~~ 2010.>>

Sec. 57e. (1) Each family receiving family independence

assistance shall execute a ~~social contract~~ family independence

plan outlining the responsibilities of members of the family

independence assistance group. The ~~social contract~~ family

independence plan shall be developed jointly by the ~~family~~

~~independence agency~~ department and the adult family members and

shall identify compliance goals that are to be met by members of

the family independence assistance group. The ~~social contract~~

family independence plan shall reflect the individual needs and

abilities of the particular family ~~, and~~ by outlining the goals,

responsibilities, expectations, and sanctions that the recipient

shall be under the contractual obligation to follow and meet and a

list of the family's current barriers to employment and self-

sufficiency. The family independence plan shall include at least

all of the following:

(a) The obligation of each adult and each child aged 16 or

older who is not attending elementary or secondary school full-time

to participate in work first unless exempt under section 57f.

(b) The obligation of each minor parent who has not completed

secondary school to attend school.

each adult to engage in employment, work first activities,

education or training, community service activities, or self-

improvement activities, as determined appropriate by the family

independence agency, up to 40 hours per week.

(d) The obligation to cooperate in the establishment of

paternity and the procurement of child support, if applicable.

(e) The obligation of a recipient who fails to comply with

compliance goals due to substance abuse to participate in substance

abuse treatment and submit to any periodic drug testing required by

the treatment program.

(f) Any other obligation the ~~family independence agency~~

department determines is necessary to enable the family to achieve

independence.

(2) The ~~family independence agency~~ department shall monitor

Senate Bill No. 892 as amended December 1, 2005

each family's compliance with the ~~social contract~~ family

independence plan. The department of labor and economic growth

shall monitor the family's compliance with the family independence

plan for all recipients who are referred to participate in the work

first program. Each time a recipient meets with a caseworker from

the department or the department of labor and economic growth, the

recipient shall review, sign, and date the family independence

plan, including when the recipient has an instance of noncompliance

or fails to meet an expectation of the family independence plan.

(3) If a recipient is unable to find employment or be placed

by the work first program into a job and therefore is not

fulfilling his or her obligation to participate in work first, that

recipient shall participate in training or counseling for not less

than 10 hours per week in any of the following areas considered

relevant and appropriate by the work first caseworker: marriage,

fatherhood, parenting, self-improvement, substance abuse, or

volunteer activities.

<<(4) The department shall study the impact and cost of increasing the amount of earned income that is disregarded in determining a program group member's income for continued family independence assistance financial eligibility. The department shall prepare and provide to the senate and house appropriations committees, the senate and house appropriations subcommittees on the department of human services, the senate and house fiscal agencies, and the senate and house policy staff, by April 1, 2006, a written report of the department's findings from the study.>>

Sec. 57f. (1) The ~~family independence agency~~ department

shall enter into an agreement with the department of ~~career~~

~~development~~ labor and economic growth in order to facilitate the

administration of work first. ~~The family independence agency shall~~

~~make information on the program available to the legislature.~~ The

department shall track all family independence program recipients

by social security number so that tracking information is traceable

for a recipient's lifetime. The department of labor and economic

growth shall track work first participants by social security

number and the recipient's job status for a period of not less than

1 year after job placement. This information shall be shared

between the department and the department of labor and economic

growth. Information tracked under this subsection shall be provided

to the legislature, standing committees, and appropriations

committees during the annual budget review. The department and the

department of labor and economic growth shall develop individual

program goals and measurable performance indicators to be reviewed

for success or failure annually. The annual success or failure

rates shall be reported to the legislature. One individual program

goal developed under this subsection shall be a state goal for the

percentage of the family independence program caseload involved in

employment activities to be developed jointly by the department and

the department of labor and economic growth. The state goal for the

percentage of the family independence program caseload involved in

employment activities developed under this subsection shall not be

less than 50% of the family independence program caseload. On a

quarterly basis, the department shall report to the appropriations

subcommittees on the department of human services in the senate and

house, the senate and house fiscal agencies, and the senate and

house policy staffs the current percentage of the family

independence program caseload involved in employment activities. If

the family independence program caseload percentage is below the

goal for more than 2 consecutive quarters, the department shall

develop a plan for increasing the family independence program

caseload percentage involved in employment-related activities. The

department shall deliver the plan during the following annual

budget presentations to the appropriations subcommittees on the

Senate Bill No. 892 as amended December 1, 2005

department of human services in the senate and house.

(2) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (3), every

member of a family independence assistance group shall be referred

to and shall participate in work first. The particular activities

in which the recipient is required or authorized to participate,

the number of hours of work required, and other details of work

first shall be developed by the department of ~~career development~~

labor and economic growth and the ~~family independence agency~~

department and shall be set forth in the recipient's ~~social~~

~~contract~~ family independence plan. If a recipient has cooperated

with work first, the recipient may enroll in a program approved by

the local workforce development board. Any and all training or

education with the exception of <<~~high school completion~~ an English

as a second language program, a fast track literacy program, high school completion,>> and GED

preparation must be occupationally relevant and in demand in the

labor market as determined by the local workforce development

board. ~~and may be no more than 2 years in duration. Participants~~

~~must make satisfactory progress while in training or education.~~ If

a recipient does not have a high school diploma or GED and is

unable to sustain employment, the recipient must enroll in <<1 or more

of the following:

(a) An English as a second language program.

(b) A fast track literacy program.

(d) A GED preparation course.>>

(3) The following individuals are exempt from participation in

work first:

(a) A child under the age of 16.

(b) A child aged 16 or older, or a minor parent, who is

attending elementary or secondary school full-time.

~~family independence agency may~~ department shall require a parent

Senate Bill No. 892 as amended December 1, 2005

exempted from participation in work first under this subdivision to

participate in family services, including, but not limited to,

marriage and fatherhood classes or counseling, instruction in

parenting, nutrition, and child development beginning 6 weeks after

the birth of his or her child until the child is 3 months old as

fulfillment of that parent's ~~social contract~~ family independence

plan obligation under section 57e(1)(c).

(d) An individual aged 65 or older.

(e) A recipient of supplemental security income.

(f) An individual who meets 1 or more of the following

criteria to the extent that the individual, based on medical

evidence and an assessment of need by the ~~family independence~~

~~agency~~ department, is severely restricted in his or her ability to

participate in employment or training activities:

(i) A recipient of social security disability, or medical

assistance due to disability or blindness.

(ii) An individual suffering from a physical or mental

impairment that meets federal supplemental security income

disability standards, except that no minimum duration is required.

(iii) The spouse of an individual described in subparagraph (i)

or (ii) who is the full-time caregiver of that individual.

(iv) A parent or caretaker of a child who is suffering from a

physical or mental impairment that meets the federal supplemental

security income disability standards, except that no minimum

duration is required.

(4) <<In addition to those individuals exempt under subsection

(3), the family independence agency may grant a temporary exemption

Senate Bill No. 892 as amended December 1, 2005

from participation in work first, not to exceed 90 days, to an 1

of the following:

(a) An individual who is unable to participate in work first due directly to the effects of domestic violence.

(b) An >>

individual who is suffering from a documented short-term mental or

physical illness, limitation, or disability that severely restricts

his or her ability to participate in employment or training

activities. An individual with a documented mental or physical

illness, limitation, or disability that does not severely restrict

his or her ability to participate in employment or training

activities shall be required to participate in work first at a

medically permissible level.>> The department shall not exempt an

individual from participation in work first if he or she has

received an initial determination from the social security

administration denying supplemental security income benefits. The

department may exempt an individual from participation in work

first if he or she has applied for supplemental security income

benefits but has not yet received an initial determination, only if

the individual is able to document a mental or physical illness,

limitation, or disability that results in inability to engage in

any substantial gainful activity and can be expected to result in

death or has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous

period of not less than 12 months.

(5) The work first caseworker, in his or her discretion, may

authorize either of the following:

(a) A recipient's request to enroll in education or training

and count up to 20 hours per week of that education or training

toward his or her 40-hour-per-week work requirement. The 20 hours

per week of education and training allowed in this subsection shall

be counted toward the 40-hour-per-week work requirement for not

longer than a cumulative total of 24 months in the recipient's

lifetime. The education or training course requirements and

responsibilities, including, but not limited to, attendance,

performance, and minimum grade point average, shall be outlined in

the recipient's family independence plan's expectations section.

(b) A recipient's exemption from work first work requirements

for a maximum of 6 months in the client's lifetime if the recipient

is able to demonstrate that there is a current demand for workers

with the education or training the recipient is seeking. The

education or training course requirements and responsibilities,

including, but not limited to, attendance, performance, and grade

point average, shall be outlined in the recipient's family

independence plan's expectations section. A recipient under this

subdivision shall meet with his or her work first caseworker not

less than 1 time every 45 days. If he or she is not in compliance

or meeting the expectations outlined in his or her family

independence plan, the recipient is prohibited from using education

or training toward his or her 40-hour-per-week work requirement.

(6) A recipient participating in education or training to meet

the 40-hour-per-week work requirement shall meet with his or her

work first caseworker not less than 1 time every 90 days. If the

recipient is not in compliance with or meeting the expectations

outlined in his or her family independence plan, the recipient is

prohibited from using education or training toward his or her 40-

hour-per-week work requirement.

(7) ~~(5)~~ An individual is not disabled for purposes of this

section if substance abuse is a contributing factor material to the