House Bill 3563
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida House of Representatives - 1998 HB 3563
By Representatives Rodriguez-Chomat, Barreiro and Dockery
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the Legal Immigrant's
3 Temporary Income Bridge Program; amending s.
4 10, ch. 97-259, Laws of Florida; providing that
5 unused program funds for the current fiscal
6 year may be used for food stamps for legal
7 immigrants who are in the naturalization and
8 citizenship process or in the process of
9 seeking an exemption thereto and who are
10 children, disabled persons, or persons 65 years
11 of age or older; specifying that such
12 assistance shall be provided on the basis of
13 demonstrated need; providing an appropriation;
14 providing an effective date.
15
16 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
17
18 Section 1. Section 10 of chapter 97-259, Laws of
19 Florida, is amended to read:
20 Section 10. Notwithstanding the proviso language
21 following Specific Appropriation 1499A of the 1997-1998
22 General Appropriations Act, the funds provided in this
23 specific appropriation are provided to establish and implement
24 a Legal Immigrant's Temporary Income Bridge Program. The
25 program shall be administered by the Department of Children
26 and Family Services. Except as otherwise provided in
27 subsection (3), the program will provide temporary income
28 assistance to legal immigrants who will lose their benefits
29 while they are awaiting completion of the citizenship process;
30 or the granting of an exemption thereto. All relevant state
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Florida House of Representatives - 1998 HB 3563
552-149A-98
1 agencies are instructed to cooperate with the Department of
2 Children and Family Services to implement this program.
3 (1) The program shall be designed to provide temporary
4 income assistance to legal immigrants, 65 years of age or
5 older, who were residents of the State of Florida prior to
6 February 1, 1997; who, after August 1, 1997, under the Federal
7 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation
8 Act of 1996, have become ineligible for federal benefits,
9 specifically Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and/or food
10 stamp benefits; who will be screened to verify that there
11 exists no other sustainable means of support or assistance to
12 make up for these lost benefits; and who can demonstrate that
13 they are engaged in the process of becoming United States
14 citizens or are seeking an exemption thereto. The total amount
15 of temporary income assistance provided to an individual shall
16 not exceed the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and/or food
17 stamp stamps benefits for which they have become ineligible.
18 The department shall give priority to dually eligible persons,
19 disabled persons, and persons who as a direct result of losing
20 their federal benefits may lose their housing, including
21 long-term-care facilities.
22 (2) The Department of Children and Family Services'
23 total administrative charges for this program shall not exceed
24 1 percent of the funds provided. Total administrative charges
25 for contracted service providers for this program shall not
26 exceed 3 percent of the funds provided in each service
27 contract.
28 (3) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
29 section to the contrary, if the United States Congress acts to
30 extend the implementation date of portions of the Federal
31 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation
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Florida House of Representatives - 1998 HB 3563
552-149A-98
1 Act of 1996 which apply to noncitizens in order to allow
2 states to prepare for said Act, or appropriates funds to
3 provide temporary assistance that would otherwise be provided
4 by the state under this act, then no funds provided in this
5 specific appropriation may will be expended to provide food
6 stamps for legal immigrants who are in the naturalization and
7 citizenship process or in the process of seeking an exemption
8 thereto and who are children, disabled persons, or persons 65
9 years of age or older. The total amount of assistance provided
10 to an individual under this subsection shall be determined by
11 the department on the basis of demonstrated need.
12 Section 2. An amount equal to the amount of funds
13 unexpended in fiscal year 1997-1998 from Specific
14 Appropriations 1499A and 1499B of the 1997-1998 General
15 Appropriations Act is hereby appropriated from the General
16 Revenue Fund to the Department of Children and Family Services
17 for fiscal year 1998-1999 for the purposes of section 1 of
18 this act.
19 Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a
20 law.
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23 HOUSE SUMMARY
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Provides that unused funds of the Legal Immigrant's
25 Temporary Income Bridge Program for the 1997-1998 fiscal
year may be used for food stamps for legal immigrants who
26 are in the naturalization and citizenship process or in
the process of seeking an exemption thereto and who are
27 children, disabled persons, or persons 65 years of age or
older, and specifies that such assistance shall be
28 provided on the basis of demonstrated need. Provides an
appropriation for purposes of the program for fiscal year
29 1998-1999.
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