SB116 Alabama 2014 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Arthur Orr Senator

Republican

Co-Sponsors

Clay ScofieldTrip PittmanBill HoltzclawGerald H. AllenScott BeasonBryan Taylor

Session

Regular Session 2014

Title

Public assistance benefits, purchase of alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, and lottery tickets with, prohibited, use of benefit funds in certain establishments prohibited, penalties for violations, Human Resources Department required to perform monthly matches to determine eligibility regarding incarceration or whether recipient is deceased

Description

This bill would prohibit a recipient of public assistance benefits from using the benefits to purchase any alcoholic beverage, tobacco product, or lottery ticket and would provide penalties for violations, including the suspension of benefits.

This bill would prohibit a person or a business entity from knowingly accepting public assistance benefits held on electronic benefit transfer cards for the purchase of any alcoholic beverage or tobacco product and would include civil fines and other penalties for violations.

This bill would prohibit a recipient of public assistance benefits from withdrawing or using public assistance benefits in a retail establishment that primarily sells alcoholic beverages, a casino, a tattoo or body piercing facility, a facility providing psychic services, or an establishment that provides adult-oriented entertainment in which performers disrobe or perform in an unclothed state and provides penalties for violations, including the suspension of benefits.

This bill would allow a parent of a minor child who is permanently disqualified from receiving public assistance benefits to designate a third party to receive the benefits for the benefit of the minor child.

This bill would create the Public Assistance Integrity Fund for the deposit of all civil fines collected pursuant to the act for use by the Department of Human Resources and the Attorney General for costs associated with the prevention of misuse of public assistance benefits, including, but not limited to, administration, oversight, training, and enforcement related activities.

This bill would require the Department of Human Resources to consult with providers of automatic teller machine (ATM) services to consider the implementation of a program or method of blocking access to cash benefits from Electronic Benefits Transfer cards issued by the department at automatic teller machines located in such establishments and to initiate a program if feasible.

This bill would also require the department to perform monthly incarceration matches to assist in determining eligibility based on incarceration and to perform a monthly match using the United States Social Security Death Index Database to determine if a recipient of public assistance benefits is deceased.

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Subjects

Public Assistance