1Amending the act of June 13, 1967 (P.L.31, No.21), entitled "An
2act to consolidate, editorially revise, and codify the public
3welfare laws of the Commonwealth," in public assistance,
4further providing for definitions, for false statements,
5investigations and penalty and for reporting fraud; and
6providing for lost access device reporting by department.

7The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
8hereby enacts as follows:

9Section 1. Section 402 of the act of June 13, 1967 (P.L.31,
10No.21), known as the Public Welfare Code, is amended by adding a
11definition to read:

12Section 402. Definitions.--As used in this article, unless
13the content clearly indicates otherwise:

14"Access device." The Pennsylvania ACCESS Card or electronic
15benefit transfer card.

16* * *

17Section 2. Section 432.5(c) of the act, amended May 16, 1996
18(P.L.175, No.35), is amended and the section is amended by
19adding a subsection to read:

1Section 432.5. Resources.--* * *

2(c) Other property in excess of two hundred fifty dollars
3($250) for a single person applying for or receiving assistance
4and other property in excess of one thousand dollars ($1,000)
5for assistance groups with more than one person shall be
6considered an available resource. The following items shall not
7be considered an available resource, unless such consideration
8is required under Federal law or regulations:

9(1) Wedding and engagement rings, family heirlooms, clothing
10and children's toys.

11(2) Household furnishings, personal effects and other items
12used to provide, equip, and maintain a household for the
13applicant and recipient.

14(3) Equipment and material which are necessary to implement
15employment, rehabilitation, or self care plan for the applicant
16or recipient.

17(4) One motor vehicle with a fair market value, according to 
18a standard guide resource available to the automobile industry 
19and consumers that determines the value of new and used 
20automobiles, of less than thirty five thousand dollars ($35,000)
21per assistance group.

22(5) Retroactive assistance payments received as a result of
23a prehearing conference or a fair hearing decision.

24* * *

25(g) For purposes of determining eligibility for assistance,
26cash lottery winnings shall be considered a resource in the
27month received. Individual lottery winnings of six hundred
28dollars ($600) or more shall be considered income on a prorated
29basis over a twelve-month period following receipt of such
30winnings.

1Section 3. Section 432.23(a) of the act, added June 30, 2011
2(P.L.89, No.22), is amended to read:

3Section 432.23. Verification System.--(a) The department
4shall establish a computerized income eligibility verification
5system to verify eligibility, eliminate duplication of
6assistance and deter fraud: Provided, however, that the
7department, in good faith, attempts to obtain the cooperation by
8Federal authorities or other states, or both; and further
9provided, that the data be accessible by the department. Subject
10to section 432.19, prior to authorizing assistance under section
11432.2(b) or continuing assistance under section 432.2(c), the
12department shall match the social security number of each
13applicant and recipient with the following:

14(1) Unearned income information maintained by the Internal
15Revenue Service.

16(2) Employer quarterly reports of income and unemployment
17insurance benefit payment information maintained by the State
18Wage Information Collection Agency.

19(3) Earned income information maintained by the Social
20Security Administration.

21(4) Immigration status information maintained by the
22Citizenship and Immigration Services.

23(5) Death register information maintained by the Social
24Security Administration.

25(6) Prisoner information maintained by the Social Security
26Administration.

27(7) Public housing and section 8 payment information
28maintained by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

29(8) National fleeing felon information maintained by the
30Federal Bureau of Investigation.

1(9) Wage reporting and similar information maintained by
2states contiguous to this Commonwealth.

3(10) Beneficiary Data Exchange (BENDEX) Title H database
4maintained by the Social Security Administration.

5(11) Beneficiary Earnings Exchange Report (BEER) database
6maintained by the Social Security Administration.

7(12) State New Hire database maintained by the Commonwealth.

8(13) National New Hire database maintained by the Federal
9Government.

10(14) State Data Exchange (SDX) database maintained by the
11Social Security Administration.

12(15) Veterans Benefits and Veterans Medical (PARIS)
13maintained by the Department of Veterans Affairs with
14coordination through the Department of Health and Human
15Services.

16(16) Child care subsidy payments maintained by the
17Commonwealth.

18(17) Low-Income Energy Assistance Program Reporting Utility
19Expenses maintained by the Commonwealth.

20(18) The database of all persons who currently hold a
21license, permit or certificate from a Commonwealth agency the
22cost of which exceeds one thousand dollars ($1,000).

23(19) A database which is new, substantially similar to or a
24successor of a database set forth in this subsection.

25(20) Lottery winners database maintained by the Pennsylvania
26Lottery.

27* * *

28Section 4. Section 481(b) of the act, amended May 16, 1996
29(P.L.175, No.35), is amended to read:

30Section 481. False Statements; Investigations; Penalty.--* *

1*

2(b) Any person violating subsection (a) commits the grade of
3crime determined from the following schedule:

4Amount of Assistance 5or Food Stamps		Degree of Crime
6[$3,000 or more		Felony of the third degree
7$1,500 to $2,999		Misdemeanor of the first degree
8$1,000 to $1,499		Misdemeanor of the second degree
9$ 999 and under, or 10an attempt to commit 11any act prohibited in 12subsection (a)		Misdemeanor of the third degree]
13$1,000 or more		Felony of the third degree
14$999 and under, or an 15attempt to commit any 16act prohibited in 17subsection (a)		Misdemeanor of the first degree

18[Pursuant to 42 Pa.C.S. § 1515(a)(7) (relating to
19jurisdiction and venue), jurisdiction over cases graded a
20misdemeanor of the third degree under this section shall be
21vested in district justices.]

22* * *

23Section 5. The act is amended by adding a section to read:

24Section 485. Lost Access Device Reporting by Department.--
25The department shall notify the Office of Inspector General of
26the name of any recipient who has requested replacement of a
27lost access device more than twice in a calendar year.

28Section 6. This act shall take effect in 60 days.