04/10/1997 03:04 PM House HES

 HB 153 - ALIENS AND ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS                                     
                                                                               
 Number 0071                                                                   
                                                                               
 CHAIRMAN BUNDE announced the next item on the agenda was HB 153,              
 "An Act relating to the eligibility of aliens for state public                
 assistance and medical assistance programs affected by federal                
 welfare reform legislation; and providing for an effective date."             
                                                                               
 Number 0113                                                                   
                                                                               
 JAY LIVEY, Deputy Commissioner, Office of the Commissioner,                   
 Department of Health and Social Services, said this bill                      
 grandfathers in all of those legal aliens, who were in the country            
 as of August 22, 1996, into the Medicaid program, Adult Public                
 Assistance and Alaska Temporary Assistance Program (ATAP).  This is           
 the date when the federal welfare reform passed.  Congress put                
 restrictions on the programs for which legal aliens would be                  
 eligible.  This reform says that for food stamps and Supplemental             
 Security Income, which are federally funded programs, legal aliens            
 would no longer be eligible no matter when they entered the                   
 country.  Congress also said, for those programs which are half               
 state funded and half federal funded, that states have a choice.              
 A state can choose to grandfather in all of those aliens who are              
 covered as of August 22, 1996, and then choose to exclude aliens              
 who come in after August 22, 1996.                                            
                                                                               
 MR. LIVEY explained that the proposed legislation grandfathers in             
 those legal aliens, who arrived into the country before August 22,            
 1996, into those type of programs; Medicaid and ATAP.  He said the            
 other program grandfathered in is Adult Public Assistance (APA)               
 which is a general fund program.  Legal aliens arriving after                 
 August 22, 1996, would not be eligible for these programs for five            
 years.                                                                        
                                                                               
 Number 0315                                                                   
                                                                               
 MR. LIVEY stated that there is a fiscal note for each program.  For           
 APA and ATAP, some people are currently eligible because they are             
 in the program and arrived in the country before August 22, 1996.             
 The DHSS has provided negative fiscal notes for those programs                
 because, over time, that pool of people will slowly become smaller            
 as people leave the programs due to the general attrition of the              
 programs.  Those two programs have a negative fiscal note.  There             
 is a zero fiscal note for the Medicaid program because the state              
 has to affirmatively choose, through the Governor's legislation, to           
 continue the provision of eligibility.  If the Governor's bill                
 doesn't pass, then people are not eligible for Medicaid.                      
 Technically however, the Medicaid provision is not based on the               
 Governor's bill passing.  The fiscal note talks about a slight                
 savings if this bill doesn't pass.  If the bill passes, the savings           
 that accrue are not due to the bill passing and so the fiscal note            
 is zero.  The savings which accrue is a DHSS budget item.                     
                                                                               
 Number 0485                                                                   
                                                                               
 REPRESENTATIVE BRICE made a motion to move HB 153 with individual             
 recommendations and accompanying fiscal notes.  Hearing no                    
 objection, HB 153 was moved from the House Health, Education and              
 Social Services Standing Committee.