| |
| |
|
|
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
|
relating to the operation and efficiency of the eligibility |
|
|
determination process for supplemental nutrition assistance |
|
|
program benefits. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Chapter 33, Human Resources Code, is amended by |
|
|
designating Sections 33.0005 through 33.028 as Subchapter A and |
|
|
adding a subchapter heading to read as follows: |
|
|
SUBCHAPTER A. NUTRITIONAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS IN GENERAL |
|
|
SECTION 2. Chapter 33, Human Resources Code, is amended by |
|
|
adding Subchapter B to read as follows: |
|
|
SUBCHAPTER B. SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM: |
|
|
ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION PROCESS EFFICIENCY |
|
|
Sec. 33.051. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter: |
|
|
(1) "Commission" means the Health and Human Services |
|
|
Commission. |
|
|
(2) "Eligibility determination office" means an |
|
|
office operating under the direction of the commission at which |
|
|
supplemental nutrition assistance program applications are |
|
|
processed. |
|
|
(3) "Supplemental nutrition assistance program" means |
|
|
the nutritional assistance program formerly referred to as the food |
|
|
stamp program. |
|
|
Sec. 33.052. APPLICATION ASSISTANCE. The commission shall |
|
|
develop procedures applicable to local eligibility determination |
|
|
offices to ensure that: |
|
|
(1) the offices provide clear guidance on program |
|
|
eligibility requirements and establish mechanisms, including |
|
|
Internet and e-mail mechanisms, by which supplemental nutrition |
|
|
assistance applicants and prospective applicants can obtain |
|
|
answers to basic program-related questions; |
|
|
(2) information is provided to each applicant by |
|
|
e-mail, by telephone, or through the mail, as appropriate, about |
|
|
information the applicant is required to submit for purposes of the |
|
|
eligibility determination process; and |
|
|
(3) office personnel support the eligibility |
|
|
determination process by contacting an applicant in advance of an |
|
|
applicant's scheduled interview to ensure the applicant |
|
|
understands the documentation that must be presented at the |
|
|
interview. |
|
|
Sec. 33.053. USE OF TECHNOLOGY TO PROMOTE EFFICIENCY AND |
|
|
FRAUD DETECTION. (a) The commission shall consider the |
|
|
feasibility of using readily available document scanning |
|
|
technology to reduce storage and maintenance costs and potential |
|
|
loss of data by creating electronic case files for supplemental |
|
|
nutrition assistance cases instead of maintaining physical files |
|
|
for those cases. The commission shall use that technology if |
|
|
determined feasible. |
|
|
(b) The commission shall implement, if feasible, a risk |
|
|
scoring program for supplemental nutrition assistance applications |
|
|
to streamline the eligibility determination process, reduce |
|
|
errors, and strengthen fraud detection. A risk scoring program |
|
|
implemented by the commission must be capable of ranking |
|
|
applications based on complexity so that: |
|
|
(1) more experienced eligibility determination staff |
|
|
members can be used to process more difficult cases and cases with |
|
|
fraud characteristics; and |
|
|
(2) applications ranked as low-risk on fraud |
|
|
characteristics can be processed more expeditiously. |
|
|
Sec. 33.054. WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT. The commission shall |
|
|
improve its management of supplemental nutrition assistance |
|
|
eligibility determination staff by: |
|
|
(1) establishing clear performance expectations that |
|
|
can serve as the basis for performance assessments; |
|
|
(2) planning for anticipated staffing needs; |
|
|
(3) revising policies regarding overtime and accrual |
|
|
of compensatory time to ensure that eligibility determination staff |
|
|
members have access to supervisors as necessary; |
|
|
(4) assessing the effectiveness of training provided |
|
|
to new eligibility determination staff members; and |
|
|
(5) ensuring that the compensation scale is sufficient |
|
|
to recruit qualified staff members and retain experienced staff |
|
|
members. |
|
|
Sec. 33.055. SYSTEM MANAGEMENT INFORMATION. (a) The |
|
|
commission, in conjunction with state, regional, and local |
|
|
eligibility determination offices, shall identify eligibility |
|
|
determination system performance indicators with respect to which |
|
|
data should periodically be collected. The commission shall |
|
|
implement a process for collecting data on the identified |
|
|
performance indicators. |
|
|
(b) The commission shall maintain programming, |
|
|
distribution, and management reports generated by the System for |
|
|
Application, Verification, Eligibility, Referral, and Reporting |
|
|
(SAVERR). In addition, the commission shall ensure that |
|
|
eligibility determination offices generate periodic reports |
|
|
regarding the number of pending supplemental nutrition assistance |
|
|
applications and the number of those applications that have not |
|
|
been processed within applicable timeliness standards. |
|
|
(c) The commission shall use data collected under |
|
|
Subsection (a) and the reports described by Subsection (b) to |
|
|
develop and assess strategies for: |
|
|
(1) streamlining the supplemental nutrition |
|
|
assistance eligibility determination process; |
|
|
(2) improving timeliness of eligibility |
|
|
determinations; and |
|
|
(3) accommodating increases in applications received. |
|
|
SECTION 3. To the extent available for this purpose, the |
|
|
Health and Human Services Commission shall use supplemental federal |
|
|
funding provided for the administration of the supplemental |
|
|
nutrition assistance program to implement Subchapter B, Chapter 33, |
|
|
Human Resources Code, as added by this Act. |
|
|
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011. |