0001| HOUSE BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR | 0002| HOUSE BILL 1223 | 0003| 43rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 1997 | 0004| | 0005| | 0006| | 0007| | 0008| | 0009| | 0010| | 0011| AN ACT | 0012| RELATING TO WORK INCENTIVE DEDUCTIONS AND EARNED INCOME | 0013| DISREGARDS, INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNTS, MICRO BUSINESS | 0014| LOANS AND OTHER ENTREPRENEURSHIP OPPORTUNITIES; DECLARING AN | 0015| EMERGENCY. | 0016| | 0017| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO: | 0018| A new section of the Public Assistance Act is enacted to | 0019| read: | 0020| "[NEW MATERIAL] WORK INCENTIVE DEDUCTIONS AND EARNED | 0021| INCOME DISREGARDS.--The work incentive and earned income | 0022| disregards program shall include an outreach campaign to | 0023| encourage persons who are receiving cash assistance under the | 0024| temporary assistance for needy families program to seek gainful | 0025| employment or self-employment and to promote the state's policy | 0001| of requiring work for those in need of public assistance for | 0002| any person whose benefit group includes at least one dependent | 0003| child. The human services department shall deduct and | 0004| disregard the following earned income and expenses from the | 0005| person's countable income in determining need: | 0006| A. An amount, to be called the "work incentive | 0007| deduction", equal to the first thirty dollars ($30.00) of the | 0008| total of such earned income not otherwise disregarded under any | 0009| other clause in the temporary assistance for needy families | 0010| program plus one-third of the remainder thereof. | 0011| B. The work incentive deduction shall be allowed in | 0012| each month that the temporary assistance for needy families | 0013| benefit group has earned income that does not exceed one | 0014| hundred percent of the federal poverty level. | 0015| C. The work incentive deduction shall be applied to | 0016| the gross monthly income after the work-related expense | 0017| deduction and before the child-care deduction are subtracted. | 0018| D. The work-related expense deduction shall be | 0019| ninety dollars ($90.00) per month. | 0020| E. The child-care deduction shall not exceed normal | 0021| and customary community daycare costs and will be determined, | 0022| periodically, not to exceed three years, by public hearings | 0023| conducted by the human services department. | 0024| F. The work incentive deduction will be implemented | 0025| by retrospective budgeting. The income is counted against the | 0001| temporary assistance for needy families grant two months after | 0002| it is actually received or in the month after it is reported to | 0003| the human services department. | 0004| G. Persons in the benefit group claiming the work | 0005| incentive deduction shall be exempted from other temporary | 0006| assistance for needy families work activities and programs | 0007| instituted by the state for a period not exceeding twelve months, | 0008| but such exemption shall be renewed and continued annually upon | 0009| the filing of an employability plan with the human services | 0010| department." | 0011| Section 2. A new section of the Public Assistance Act is | 0012| enacted to read: | 0013| "[NEW MATERIAL] INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNTS.--The | 0014| individual development accounts program shall include an outreach | 0015| campaign to encourage interest for persons or groups to | 0016| participate in the program. The human services department shall | 0017| include with its state plan, and implement in a timely manner, all | 0018| provisions for individual development accounts, as permitted in | 0019| the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation | 0020| Act of 1996." | 0021| Section 3. A new section of the Public Assistance Act is | 0022| enacted to read: | 0023| "[NEW MATERIAL] MICRO BUSINESS LOANS AND OTHER | 0024| ENTREPRENEURSHIP OPPORTUNITIES.--The human services department | 0025| shall include within its state plan, and implement in a timely | 0001| manner, the creation of a micro business program and the | 0002| development of other entrepreneurship opportunities for persons on | 0003| temporary assistance for needy families. | 0004| A. The micro business loan program shall include an | 0005| outreach campaign to encourage interest for persons, or groups of | 0006| persons, who want to start their own small businesses, either | 0007| individually or collectively. Technical assistance to the | 0008| participating persons shall be provided by the program by the | 0009| involvement of private entities, such as revolving loan funds and | 0010| nonprofit corporations knowledgeable in the creation and | 0011| development of small business and business opportunities. | 0012| B. The micro business loan program shall provide loans | 0013| not to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each person and | 0014| twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) in the aggregate for a group of | 0015| persons served by the program, and the interest rate for such | 0016| loans shall not exceed the lowest rate of interest charged by any | 0017| other federal or state program. | 0018| C. Those persons in the benefit group participating in | 0019| such entrepreneurship opportunities shall be exempted from other | 0020| temporary assistance for needy families work activities and | 0021| programs instituted by the state for a period not exceeding twelve | 0022| months, but such exemption shall be renewed and continued annually | 0023| upon the filing of an employability plan with the human services | 0024| department. | 0025| D. Temporary assistance for needy families recipients | 0001| may accrue up to five thousand dollars ($5,000) in order to | 0002| initiate self-employment, such as hair styling, child care or | 0003| computer work small businesses, perhaps from their homes. Such | 0004| savings shall not be considered a resource or as income for | 0005| eligibility purposes, and such recipients performing these work | 0006| activities shall be exempted from other temporary assistance for | 0007| needy families work activities and programs instituted by the | 0008| state for a period not exceeding twelve months, but such exemption | 0009| shall be renewed and continued annually upon the filing of an | 0010| employability plan with the human services department." | 0011| Section 4. EMERGENCY.--It is necessary for the public | 0012| peace, health and safety that this act take effect immediately. | 0013|  |