Proposed welfare regulations would benefit families

Thursday, Sept. 7, 2000 | 11:20 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- New regulations being proposed by the state Welfare Division would let welfare recipients keep money overpaid in error and raise the rates paid for their children's day care.

Currently, if a family on welfare receives too much money because of an error by a division employee, the agency seeks reimbursement. Under the new regulation, the division will not pursue the money.

The division plans to raise rates the state will pay child-care providers for children of employed welfare recipients, those who have recently gone off welfare and those who are in danger of needing state help.

Division Director Mike Willden said today during a public hearing that the new regulations would probably be adopted at a Sept. 21 session.

Allowing welfare recipients to keep money overpaid by the state will cost the state about $100,000 a year, Willden said.

But the agency does not plan to not waive its right to collect where there is an obvious system error. Willden gave an example of a family that was due one check for $500 in a month but received three or four checks for that amount. The state would expect to get the extra checks back, he said.

"The client should have reasonably known the benefit received was a mistake, and the overpayment will be pursued," he said.

Jon Sasser, an attorney for Washoe Legal Services, asked the division to broaden the regulation further. He wants the agency to waive recovery if the client made a mistake that was not the result of intentional misrepresentation. He said the agency should be able to waive the reimbursement in the case of an extreme hardship.

He estimates that occurs in only about 5 percent of cases. Willden said he would consider that suggestion in the final regulation.

Sasser complimented the agency for the regulation, noting the current policy has been unfair for too long.

The child-care rates for state-subsidized care will go up Oct. 1 as part of a regular biennial review of rates. The raise is expected to cost the state, which pays $30 million a year for the subsidies, an additional $1.3 million a year.

A group care home in Clark County licensed for seven to 12 children now receives a state payment of $100 a week for an infant or toddler up to 36 months old. The new payment schedule calls for $110 a week. The rate for caring for school-aged children above 5 years old would go from $75 to $90.