House of Representatives

SB 1037

board of dental examiners; fees

(now: Arizona works program)

Sponsors: Senators Gerard and Guenther,

Representative Binder

W/D	Committee on Health
DPA S/E	Committee on Appropriations
DPA S/E	Caucus and COW
DPA	Third Read
X	As Transmitted to the Governor

SB 1037 narrows the scope of the Arizona Works program to include only the functions of case management and support services associated with JOBS.

History

The Arizona Works Pilot Program was created through Laws 1997, Ch. 300 and Laws 1998, Ch. 211 to determine the cost effectiveness of privatizing public assistance administration. The program privatizes Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) by operating intake, eligibility and employment training through a private contractor. The contractor and site for the pilot program were determined by the Arizona Agency Procurement Board (Board), which was statutorily charged with creating Arizona Works and continuing to oversee the pilot program. The Arizona Works pilot project was originally implemented on April 1, 1999 in Eastern Maricopa County, and the contractor chosen to administer the program was MAXIMUS, Inc.

At its inception, Arizona Works was intended to be a two-phase pilot, the first phase taking place in an urban area and the second in a rural area. Although the second phase was to be implemented by April 1, 2001, the Board made the final site decision in December 2001 and the second phase has yet to be implemented.

Arizona Works currently serves 13 percent of the households in Arizona that receive benefits under TANF and is scheduled to end on December 31, 2002.

Provisions

General

· Exempts from the family cap a child born while the custodial parent was receiving or within ten months of the parent receiving benefits through Arizona works.

· Exempts from the federal 60 month-lifetime limitation a person receiving benefits through Arizona works.

Arizona Works

· Narrows the scope of the Arizona Works program from a TANF program to JOBS case management and support services on October 1, 2002. Repeals all other duties that are not included in the new scope of the program, along with the Arizona Works Agency Procurement Board, on September 30, 2002.

· Allows the Department of Economic Security (DES) to take over the duties of the Board.

· Removes the option of statewide expansion for the original Arizona Works program.

· Removes the duty of determining caseload eligibility from the contractor and returns the responsibility to DES. The private contractor will retain the responsibility for eligibility determinations in the TANF Related Child Care Program.

· Requires the private contractor to employ JOBS case management, employment services and related child care and support services.

· Removes caseload savings as a measure for determining incentives to the private contractor.

· Deletes the requirement for the private contractor to use incentives to enhance client services.

· Eliminates levels of employment in the Arizona Works program and flat cash grants associated with the levels.

· Removes language relating to the establishment of performance based incentives for the private contractor.

· Removes the requirement for JLBC to determine the amount of savings attributable to caseload reduction under the private contractor.

· Removes the requirement for the Auditor General to conduct an annual audit of the Arizona Works program.

· Stipulates that the private contractor and DES must renegotiate the contract within 90 days of any federal changes that impact the program.

· Adds a financial penalty for the private contractor for non-compliance with record-keeping requirements.

· Requires all persons qualified for Empower Redesign to automatically be referred to the Arizona Works Program, unless exempt.

· Strikes current language regarding excused absences from work activities and replaces it with the requirement for a participant of the Arizona Works program to establish good cause to excuse an absence from work activities. The job counselor shall determine if good cause is established.

· Requires DES to take over all duties of the Board.

· Requires DES and the private contractor to negotiate and modify the contract to reflect the changes made by this bill.

· Makes changes to the Arizona Works program effective September 30, 2002.

· Requires the final report on Arizona Works to be submitted by December 31, 2002.

· Repeals the Arizona Works program on January 1, 2004.

· Makes technical and conforming changes.

JOBS

· Requires DES to contract with providers to provide privatization throughout Arizona of the JOBS program. DES:

- Must begin to prepare a request for proposals (RFP) on October 1, 2002.

- Must issue the RFP by January 1, 2003 and at least once every five years thereafter.

- May begin to contract with qualified providers on July 1, 2003.

· Requires providers to begin operating the program by January 1, 2004.

· Requires providers to demonstrate the ability to perform JOBS case management, provide quality service and be responsive to the needs of recipients.

· Allows providers to operate in more than one part of Arizona and states that the specific area a provider will operate in must be designated in the contract.

· Requires the contract to include provisions to hold the contractor accountable for performance and allows DES to impose penalties for failure to perform to the contract standards.

· States that in areas where no qualified providers have submitted proposals, DES must continue to provide JOBS services. Allows DES to negotiate with any successful bidders to expand or contract service areas to cover any gaps or duplication of services.

· Prohibits contract payments for JOBS services from exceeding the total level of funding to DES for JOBS services.

· Requires DES to retain sufficient funds to ensure efficient operation of JOBS and compliance with contract terms.

· Provides DES employees who are displaced by the privatization of JOBS with priority consideration for employment with private providers.

· Adds TANF child care eligibility determination to the list of case management services.

· Adds employment related support services to the list of employment services.

· Makes technical and conforming changes.

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45th Legislature

Second Regular Session 3 May 29, 2002

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