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| Montana Administrative Register Notice 37-523 | No. 20 10/28/2010 | |
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BEFORE THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES OF THE STATE OF
TO: All Concerned Persons 1. On November 18, 2010, at 1:30 p.m., the Department of Public Health and Human Services will hold a public hearing in the auditorium of the Department of Public Health and 2. The Department of Public Health and Human Services will make reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities who wish to participate in this rulemaking process or need an alternative accessible format of this notice. If you require an accommodation, contact Department of Public Health and Human Services no later than 5:00 p.m. on November 9, 2010, to advise us of the nature of the accommodation that you need. Please contact Rhonda Lesofski, Department of Public Health and Human Services, Office of Legal Affairs, 3. The rules as proposed to be amended provide as follows, new matter underlined, deleted matter interlined: 37.78.102 TANF: FEDERAL REGULATIONS ADOPTED BY REFERENCE (1) remains the same. (2) The "Montana TANF Cash Assistance Manual" dated AUTH: 53-4-212, MCA 37.78.420 TANF: ASSISTANCE STANDARDS; TABLES; METHODS OF COMPUTING AMOUNT OF MONTHLY BENEFIT PAYMENT (1) through (3)(b) remain the same. (4) The GMI standards, NMI standards, and benefits standards are as follows: (a) Gross monthly income standards are compared with the assistance unit's gross monthly income as defined in ARM 37.78.406.
(b) Net monthly income standards are used to compute gross monthly income standards (GMI).
(c) Benefit standards are compared with the assistance unit's countable income as defined in ARM 37.78.406.
(d) through (5) remain the same. AUTH: 53-4-212, MCA IMP: 53-4-211, 53-4-241, 53-4-601, MCA 4. The Department of Public Health and Human Services (department) is proposing amendment to ARM 37.78.102 and 37.78.420 pertaining to Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). ARM 37.78.102 ARM 37.78.102 currently adopts and incorporates by reference the TANF policy manual effective January 1, 2010. The department proposes to make some revisions to this manual that will take effect on October 1, 2010. The proposed amendments to ARM 37.78.102 are necessary to incorporate into the Administrative Rules of Montana the revised versions of the policy manual and to permit all interested parties to comment on the department's policies and to offer suggested changes. It is estimated that changes to the TANF manual could affect approximately 9,363 TANF recipients. Manuals and draft manual material are available for review in each local Office of Public Assistance and on the department's web site at www.dphhs.mt.gov.
ARM 37.78.420 ARM 37.79.420 has also been updated to reflect the decrease in the TANF eligibility standards from 30 percent of the 2009 federal poverty guidelines to 30 percent of the 2006 federal poverty guidelines. This decrease was approved in the 2009 Legislative Session under House Bill 645 and is a result of funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The department estimates this could impact a monthly average of at most, 267 cases being ineligible for TANF cash assistance with an average monthly fiscal savings of $134,568 based on the payment standard of $504 for a family of three. Following is a brief overview of the TANF manual material with substantive changes related to the above rule changes: TANF 001 - Monthly Income Standards This manual provision has been updated to reflect the decrease in the TANF eligibility standards from 30 percent of the 2009 Federal Poverty Guidelines to 30 percent of the 2006 Federal Poverty Guidelines. This decrease was approved in the 2009 Legislative Session under House Bill 645 and is a result of funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The department estimates this could impact a monthly average of at most, 267 cases being ineligible for TANF cash assistance with an average monthly fiscal savings of $134,568 based on the payment standard of $504 for a family of three. 5. The department intends to apply these rules retroactively to October 1, 2010. A retroactive application of the proposed rules does not result in a negative impact to any affected party. 6. Concerned persons may submit their data, views, or arguments either orally or in writing at the hearing. Written data, views, or arguments may also be submitted to: Rhonda Lesofski, Department of Public Health and Human Services, Office of Legal Affairs, P.O. Box 4210, Helena, Montana, 59604-4210; fax (406) 444-9744; or e-mail dphhslegal@mt.gov, and must be received no later than 5:00 p.m., November 26, 2010. 7. The Office of Legal Affairs, Department of Public Health and Human Services, has been designated to preside over and conduct this hearing. 8. The department maintains a list of interested persons who wish to receive notices of rulemaking actions proposed by this agency. Persons who wish to have their name added to the list shall make a written request that includes the name, e-mail, and mailing address of the person to receive notices and specifies for which program the person wishes to receive notices. Notices will be sent by e-mail unless a mailing preference is noted in the request. Such written request may be mailed or delivered to the contact person in 6 above or may be made by completing a request form at any rules hearing held by the department. 9. An electronic copy of this proposal notice is available through the Secretary of State's web site at http://sos.mt.gov/ARM/Register. The Secretary of State strives to make the electronic copy of the notice conform to the official version of the notice, as printed in the Montana Administrative Register, but advises all concerned persons that in the event of a discrepancy between the official printed text of the notice and the electronic version of the notice, only the official printed text will be considered. In addition, although the Secretary of State works to keep its web site accessible at all times, concerned persons should be aware that the web site may be unavailable during some periods, due to system maintenance or technical problems. 10. The bill sponsor contact requirements of 2-4-302, MCA, do not apply.
/s/ Francis X. Clinch /s/ Hank Rule Reviewer Anna Whiting Sorrell, Director Public Health and Human Services Certified to the Secretary of State October 18, 2010.
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A directory of state agencies is available online at http://www.mt.gov/govt/agencylisting.asp.
For questions about the organization of the ARM or this web site, contact sosarm@mt.gov.
