Prohibits recovery of public assistance overpayments resulting from the action or inaction of the department of human services, to the extent that recovery does not conflict with requirements for the receipt of financial assistance from the federal government.

A BILL FOR AN ACT

SECTION 1. Section 346-44, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§346-44 Recovery of public assistance overpayments. (a)  All overpayments of public assistance funds, including but not limited to overissuances of financial assistance, food stamp bonuses under a food stamp plan, medicaid assistance, and incorrect vendor payments in behalf of a recipient, shall constitute a debt due and owing to the department by the recipient of such overpayments. In addition to the remedies elsewhere prescribed in this chapter for the recovery of assistance fraudulently obtained, recovery of all overpayments will be made to the extent allowable by federal regulations[.]; provided that the department shall waive recovery of overpayments that were solely the fault of the department, to the extent that the waiver does not conflict with requirements for the receipt of financial assistance from the federal government.

(b) The department shall [promulgate] adopt and enforce such rules [and regulations] consistent with subsection (a) as may be necessary to effect the maximum recovery of public assistance overpayments, including but not limited to the reduction of future public assistance grants. Departmental rules [and regulations] for the recovery of overpayments shall prescribe procedures for recourse to the civil courts when required, the filing of liens against the real property of overpaid recipients, and the filing of claims against the estate of a deceased recipient who has received overpayments which have not been recovered. Nothing in this section shall preclude the director of human services from promulgating procedures for waiving the recovery of overpayments in cases of bona fide hardship or where the costs of recovery would exceed the amount expected to be recovered."

SECTION 2. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 3. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.