The department shall establish a policy regarding the implementation of family investment agreements which limits the period of eligibility for the family investment program based upon the requirements of a family's plan for self-sufficiency. The policy shall require a family's plan to be specified in a family investment agreement between the family and the department. The department shall adopt rules to administer the policy. The components of the policy shall include but are not limited to all of the following:
1. Participation--exemptions. A parent living in a home with a child for whom an application for family investment program assistance has been made or for whom the assistance is provided, and all other individual members of the family whose needs are included in the assistance shall be subject to a family investment agreement unless any of the following conditions exists:
a. The individual is completely unable to participate in any agreement option due to disability.
b. The individual is less than sixteen years of age and is not a parent.
c. The individual is sixteen through eighteen years of age, is not a parent, and is attending elementary or secondary school, or the equivalent level of vocational or technical school, on a full-time basis.
d. The individual is not a United States citizen and is not a qualified alien as defined in 8 U.S.C. § 1641.
2. Agreement options. A family investment agreement shall require an individual to participate in one or more of the options enumerated in this subsection. An individual's level of participation in one or more of the options shall be equivalent to the level of commitment required for full-time employment or shall be significant so as to move the individual's level of participation toward that level. The department shall adopt rules for each option defining requirements and establishing assistance provisions for child care, transportation, and other support services. The options shall include but are not limited to all of the following:
a. Full-time or part-time employment.
b. Active job search.
c. Participation in the JOBS program.
d. Participation in other education or training programming.
e. Participation in a family development and self-sufficiency grant program under section 217.12 or other family development program.
f. Work experience placement.
g. Unpaid community service. Community service shall be authorized in any nonprofit association which has been determined under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code to be exempt from taxation or in any government agency. Upon request, the department shall provide a listing of potential community service placements to an individual. However, an individual shall locate the individual's own placement and perform the number of hours required by the agreement. The individual shall file a monthly report with the department which is signed by the director of the community service placement verifying the community service hours performed by the individual during that month. The department shall develop a form for this purpose.
h. Any other arrangement which would strengthen the individual's ability to be a better parent, including but not limited to participation in a parenting education program. Parental leave from employment shall be authorized for a parent of a child who is less than three months of age. An opportunity to participate in a parental education program shall also be authorized for such a parent. An individual who is not a parent who is nineteen years of age or younger or a parent of a child who is less than three months of age shall simultaneously participate in at least one other option enumerated in this subsection.
i. Participation in a safety plan to address or prevent family or domestic violence. The safety plan may include a temporary waiver period from required participation in the JOBS program or other employment-related activities, as appropriate for the situation of the applicant or participant. All applicants and participants shall be informed regarding the existence of this option. Participation in this option shall be subject to review in accordance with administrative rule.
3. Limited benefit plan. If a participant fails to comply with the provisions of the participant's family investment agreement during the period of the agreement, the limited benefit plan provisions of section 239B.9 shall apply.
4. Completion of agreement.
a. Upon the completion of the terms of the agreement, family investment program assistance to a participant family covered by the agreement shall cease or be reduced in accordance with rules.
b. However, if the period in which a participant family is without cash assistance is one month or less and the participant family has not become exempt from JOBS program participation at the time the participant family reapplies for cash assistance, the participant family's family investment agreement shall be reinstated at the time the participant family reapplies. The reinstated agreement may be revised to accommodate changed circumstances present at the time of reapplication.
c. The department shall adopt rules to administer this subsection and to determine when a family is eligible to reenter the family investment program.
5. Contracts. The department may contract with the department of workforce development, department of economic development, or any other entity to provide services relating to a family investment agreement.
6. Confidential information disclosure. The department may disclose confidential information described in section 217.30, subsection 1, to other state agencies or to any other entity which is not subject to the provisions of chapter 17A and is providing services to a participant family who is subject to a family investment agreement, if necessary in order for the participant family to receive the services. The department shall adopt rules establishing standards for disclosure of confidential information if disclosure is necessary in order for a participant to receive services.
97 Acts, ch 41, §9, 34; 98 Acts, ch 1218, §52; 99 Acts, ch 192, §33; 2000 Acts, ch 1088, §3
Referred to in § 239B.1, 239B.2, 239B.9, 239B.18
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