HB 186: "An Act relating to quarterly payments of a permanent fund dividend, and to a permanent fund dividend and eligibility for public assistance; and providing for an effective date."
00 HOUSE BILL NO. 186 01 "An Act relating to quarterly payments of a permanent fund dividend, and to a 02 permanent fund dividend and eligibility for public assistance; and providing for an 03 effective date." 04 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 05 * Section 1. AS 43.23.055 is amended to read: 06 Sec. 43.23.055. Duties of the department. The department shall 07 (1) [ANNUALLY] pay permanent fund dividends from the dividend 08 fund; 09 (2) subject to AS 43.23.011 and [PARAGRAPH] (8) of this section, 10 adopt regulations under AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act) that establish 11 procedures and time limits for claiming a permanent fund dividend; the department 12 shall determine the number of eligible applicants by October 1 of the year for which 13 the dividend is declared and, except as provided in AS 43.23.058, pay the dividends 14 by December 31 of that year;
01 (3) adopt regulations under AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act) 02 that establish procedures and time limits for an individual upon emancipation or upon 03 reaching majority to apply for permanent fund dividends not received during minority 04 because the parent, guardian, or other authorized representative did not apply on 05 behalf of the individual; 06 (4) assist residents of the state, particularly in rural areas, who because 07 of language, disability, or inaccessibility to public transportation need assistance to 08 establish eligibility and to apply for permanent fund dividends; 09 (5) use a list of individuals ineligible for a dividend under 10 AS 43.23.005(d) provided annually by the Department of Corrections and the 11 Department of Public Safety to determine the number and identity of those 12 individuals; 13 (6) adopt regulations that are necessary to implement AS 43.23.005(d); 14 (7) adopt regulations that establish procedures for the parent, guardian, 15 or other authorized representative of a disabled individual to apply for prior year 16 permanent fund dividends not received by the disabled individual because no 17 application was submitted on behalf of the individual; 18 (8) adopt regulations that establish procedures for an individual to 19 apply to have a dividend warrant reissued if it is returned to the department as 20 undeliverable or it is not paid within two years of the date of its issuance; however, the 21 department may not establish a time limit within which an application to have a 22 warrant reissued must be filed; 23 (9) provide any information, upon request, contained in permanent 24 fund dividend records to the child support services agency created in AS 25.27.010, or 25 the child support enforcement agency of another state, for child support purposes 26 authorized under law; if the information is contained in an electronic data base, the 27 department shall provide the requesting agency with either 28 (A) access to the data base; or 29 (B) a copy of the information in the data base and a statement 30 certifying its contents. 31 * Sec. 2. AS 43.23 is amended by adding a new section to read:
01 Sec. 43.23.058. Optional quarterly payments. An individual who is 02 applying for a current year dividend may elect on the permanent fund dividend 03 application to receive the dividend in four substantially equal payments by direct 04 deposit to an account of the individual. Quarterly payments under this section shall be 05 made by the department in October of the current dividend year and in January, April, 06 and July of the next dividend year. 07 * Sec. 3. AS 43.23.075 is amended to read: 08 Sec. 43.23.075. Eligibility for public assistance. (a) In determining the 09 eligibility of an individual under a public assistance program administered by the 10 Department of Health and Social Services in which eligibility for assistance is based 11 on financial need, the Department of Health and Social Services may not consider a 12 permanent fund dividend or dividend payment as income or resources received by 13 the recipient of public assistance or by a member of the recipient's household unless 14 required to do so by federal law or regulation. The Department of Health and Social 15 Services shall notify all recipients of public assistance of the effects of receiving a 16 permanent fund dividend and of the effects of receiving the dividend in a single 17 payment or in quarterly payments. 18 (b) An individual who is denied medical assistance under 42 U.S.C. 1396 - 19 1396p (Social Security Act, Title XIX) solely because of the receipt of a permanent 20 fund dividend or quarterly dividend payment by the individual or by a member of 21 the individual's household is eligible for state-funded medical assistance under 22 AS 47.25.120 - 47.25.300 (general relief assistance program). The individual is 23 entitled to receive, for a period not to exceed four months, the same level of medical 24 assistance as the individual would have received under 42 U.S.C. 1396 - 1396p (Social 25 Security Act, Title XIX) had there been no permanent fund dividend program. 26 During each fiscal year, the individual may receive benefits under this subsection 27 for only one four-month period that begins during that fiscal year. 28 (c) An individual who is denied assistance solely because permanent fund 29 dividends or quarterly dividend payments received by the individual or by a 30 member of the individual's household are counted as income or resources under 31 federal law or regulation is eligible for cash assistance under AS 47.25.120 -
01 47.25.300 (general relief assistance program). Notwithstanding the limit in 02 AS 47.25.130, the individual is entitled to receive, for a period not to exceed four 03 months, the same amount as the individual would have received under other public 04 assistance programs had there been no permanent fund dividend program. During 05 each fiscal year, the individual may receive benefits under this subsection for 06 only one four-month period that begins during that fiscal year. 07 * Sec. 4. This Act takes effect January 1, 2006.