MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2024 Regular Session
To: Public Health and Welfare; Appropriations
By: Senator(s) Norwood, Simmons (13th), Brumfield, Butler, Jackson, Simmons (12th)
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 43-1-7, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE THE DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES TO ESTABLISH A SUPPLEMENTARY STATE FOOD STAMP PROGRAM FOR ELDERLY RECIPIENTS; TO PROVIDE THAT RECIPIENTS MUST BE AT LEAST 65 YEARS OLD; TO PROVIDE THAT RECIPIENTS MAY RECEIVE ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS PER MONTH; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 43-1-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
43-1-7. (1) The Department of Human Services may establish family resource centers to help families who are receiving or are eligible to receive assistance from government agencies to facilitate their access to services and resources that will lead to increased family independence.
(2) The department shall carry out an intense public information campaign to inform low-income workers, and especially public assistance recipients, of the availability of and application rules for the federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), in order to maximize the refund of federal income tax withheld from those persons. The information campaign shall include publishing and circulating bulletins or notices to recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits and other public assistance that publicize and explain the EITC and the criteria for family eligibility for the EITC. The department also shall carry out an intense information campaign to inform employers of the availability of and the criteria for eligibility for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC), which offers employers a credit against their federal tax liability for hiring people from certain target groups, including TANF recipients, and to inform employers of the availability of and the criteria for eligibility for the state income tax credit for employers who hire persons receiving TANF benefits as authorized under Section 27-7-22.1.
(3) The department shall establish and maintain a statewide incoming wide area telephone service hotline for the purpose of reporting suspected cases of welfare eligibility fraud, food stamp fraud and Medicaid fraud. The department is authorized, subject to the extent of appropriations available, to offer financial incentives to individuals for reporting such suspected cases of public assistance fraud.
(4) Any applicant for or recipient of TANF benefits or Food Stamps shall be required to agree that, as a condition of eligibility for those benefits, the person will cooperate with the department in determining paternity for the purposes of enforcing child support obligations. The department shall utilize methods and procedures provided for by state or federal law in determining paternity and enforcing child support obligations.
(5) The department shall establish and fund a supplementary state food stamp program for elderly recipients. Applicants must be at least sixty-five (65) years of age. Approved applicants for such food stamp program may receive One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) per month. The department shall promulgate rules and regulations to administer such program.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2024.