Senate File 169 - Introduced



                                       SENATE FILE       
                                       BY  COMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES

                                       (SUCCESSOR TO SF 72)


    Passed Senate, Date               Passed House,  Date             
    Vote:  Ayes        Nays           Vote:  Ayes        Nays         
                 Approved                            

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act providing for county eligibility for state payment of
  2    certain mental health, mental retardation, and developmental
  3    disabilities services funding and providing effective and
  4    retroactive applicability dates.
  5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
  6 TLSB 1598SV 82
  7 jp/gg/14

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  SERVICES FUND TRANSFER == ALLOWED GROWTH
  1  2 PAYMENT.
  1  3    1.  For the purposes of this section, "services fund" means
  1  4 a county's mental health, mental retardation, and
  1  5 developmental disabilities services fund created under section
  1  6 331.424A.
  1  7    2.  If a county failed to levy the maximum dollar amount
  1  8 allowed for the county's services fund for the fiscal year
  1  9 beginning July 1, 2006, the county shall qualify for the per
  1 10 capita expenditure target pool allowed growth payment under
  1 11 section 426B.5, subsection 1, made in that fiscal year
  1 12 provided all of the following conditions are met:
  1 13    a.  The county has a population of more than 10,600 but
  1 14 less than 11,700, according to the 2005 population estimate
  1 15 issued by the federal government.
  1 16    b.  On the enactment date of this Act, the county has an
  1 17 unobligated or unencumbered balance in the undesignated
  1 18 portion of the general fund of the county under section
  1 19 331.427 in an amount at least equal to the difference between
  1 20 the actual dollar amount the county levied for the county's
  1 21 services fund for the fiscal year and the maximum dollar
  1 22 amount allowed to be levied for the county's services fund for
  1 23 the fiscal year.
  1 24    c.  The county makes a one=time permanent transfer from the
  1 25 general fund of the county to the county's services fund in
  1 26 the amount identified under paragraph "a".  The county is
  1 27 authorized to make the transfer described in this paragraph
  1 28 notwithstanding section 331.424A or any other provision of law
  1 29 to the contrary.
  1 30    d.  The county auditor certifies to the department of human
  1 31 services that the one=time permanent transfer from the general
  1 32 fund of the county has been made in the specified amount to
  1 33 the county's services fund and that the conditions of this
  1 34 subsection have been met.
  1 35    3.  Upon receiving the certification required under
  2  1 subsection 2, the county shall be deemed to have met the
  2  2 requirement under section 426B.5, subsection 1, paragraph "c",
  2  3 subparagraph (1), to be levying the maximum amount allowed for
  2  4 the county's services fund for the fiscal year beginning July
  2  5 1, 2006, and the department of human services shall authorize
  2  6 adjustment of the allowed growth payment to the county
  2  7 accordingly, subject to any other adjustments required under
  2  8 2005 Iowa Acts, chapter 179, section 1, as amended by 2006
  2  9 Iowa Acts, chapter 1184, section 73.
  2 10    Sec. 2.  STATE PAYMENT TO ELIGIBLE COUNTIES.
  2 11 Notwithstanding section 331.439, subsection 1, paragraph "a",
  2 12 a county that accurately reported the county's expenditures
  2 13 for mental health, mental retardation, and developmental
  2 14 disabilities services for the previous fiscal year on the
  2 15 forms prescribed by the department of human services, and the
  2 16 report was received after December 1, 2006, and on or before
  2 17 March 15, 2007, shall be eligible for state payment, as
  2 18 defined in section 331.438, in accordance with section 331.439
  2 19 and other law providing for the state payment in the fiscal
  2 20 year beginning July 1, 2006.
  2 21    Sec. 3.  EFFECTIVE DATE.  This Act, being deemed of
  2 22 immediate importance, takes effect upon enactment and applies
  2 23 retroactively to July 1, 2006.
  2 24                           EXPLANATION
  2 25    This bill provides for county eligibility for state payment
  2 26 of certain mental health, mental retardation, and
  2 27 developmental disabilities services (MH/MR/DD) allowed growth
  2 28 and property tax relief funding.
  2 29    One section of the bill addresses county eligibility for an
  2 30 allowed growth payment.  The eligibility provisions for a
  2 31 county to qualify for allowed growth payment from the per
  2 32 capita expenditure pool for a fiscal year requires a county to
  2 33 be levying for that year the maximum amount allowed for the
  2 34 county's MH/MR/DD services fund.  The bill provides a set of
  2 35 conditions that can be applied by a county that failed to meet
  3  1 the maximum levy requirement for fiscal year 2006=2007 in
  3  2 order to be deemed to have met the requirement for that fiscal
  3  3 year.
  3  4    The conditions require the county to have in the
  3  5 undesignated portion of the county general fund on the bill's
  3  6 enactment date an unexpended and unobligated amount at least
  3  7 equal to the difference between the dollar amount of the
  3  8 services fund maximum levy and the services fund actual levy
  3  9 for the fiscal year.  The county must permanently transfer
  3 10 that amount from the county's general fund to the county's
  3 11 services fund.  The county must have a population between
  3 12 10,600 and 11,700, according to the 2005 population estimate
  3 13 issued by the federal government.  Finally, the county auditor
  3 14 must certify to the department of human services that the
  3 15 transfer was made.
  3 16    Upon receiving the required certification, the county is
  3 17 deemed to have met the maximum levy requirement for funding
  3 18 from the per capita expenditure pool and the department is
  3 19 required to adjust the county's allowed growth payment
  3 20 accordingly.  Any other adjustments to the county's allowed
  3 21 growth payment required under session law enacted in 2005 and
  3 22 2006 remain applicable.  These requirements provide for
  3 23 withholding certain portions of a county's MH/MR/DD allowed
  3 24 growth payments depending upon the relative size of the
  3 25 county's services fund ending balance at the close of the
  3 26 preceding fiscal year.
  3 27    The other section of the bill provides for county
  3 28 eligibility for state payment of both MH/MR/DD property tax
  3 29 relief moneys and allowed growth funding.
  3 30    Under current law, in order to be eligible to receive the
  3 31 funding, a county must accurately report the county's
  3 32 expenditures for such services for the previous fiscal year on
  3 33 the forms prescribed by the department of human services by
  3 34 December 1.  The bill provides that a county is also eligible
  3 35 if the report was received after December 1, 2006, and on or
  4  1 before March 15, 2007.
  4  2    The bill takes effect upon enactment and is retroactively
  4  3 applicable to July 1, 2006.
  4  4 LSB 1598SV 82
  4  5 jp:rj/gg/14