Family Crisis Cash Assistance Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 4770 To amend the Social Security Act to provide for a Family Crisis Cash Assistance Program, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES SEPTEMBER 30 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 29), 2020 Mr. SCHATZ (for himself and Mr. MERKLEY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance A BILL To amend the Social Security Act to provide for a Family Crisis Cash Assistance Program, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Family Crisis Cash 4 Assistance Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FAMILY CRISIS CASH ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Social Security Act (42 7 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) is amended by inserting after title XII 8 the following new title: 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:09 Oct 21, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4770.IS S4770 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 4770 IS ‘‘TITLE XIII—FAMILY CRISIS 1 CASH ASSISTANCE PROGRAM 2 ‘‘TABLE OF CONTENTS OF TITLE ‘‘Sec. 1301. Family Crisis Cash Assistance Program. ‘‘Sec. 1302. Payments to States for family assistance. ‘‘Sec. 1303. Family crisis cash assistance payments. ‘‘Sec. 1304. State plans for family crisis cash assistance. ‘‘Sec. 1305. Requirements. ‘‘Sec. 1306. Failure of State to make cash assistance payments or comply with requirements. ‘‘Sec. 1307. Administration of title. ‘‘Sec. 1308. Definitions. ‘‘SEC. 1301. FAMILY CRISIS CASH ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 3 ‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this title is to pro- 4 vide funds to States for making family cash assistance 5 payments to vulnerable families during major natural dis- 6 asters or economic downturns. 7 ‘‘(b) APPROPRIATIONS.— 8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 9 appropriated for each fiscal year such sums as are 10 necessary to carry out the purposes of this title. The 11 sums made available under this subsection shall be 12 used— 13 ‘‘(A) for making payments under this title 14 to States which have submitted, and had ap- 15 proved by the Secretary, State plans for family 16 crisis cash assistance under section 1304; 17 ‘‘(B) for making cash assistance payments 18 on behalf of States to eligible households under 19 section 1303 pursuant to section 1306; 20 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:09 Oct 21, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4770.IS S4770 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 4770 IS ‘‘(C) to provide planning grants under sub- 1 section (c); 2 ‘‘(D) to provide technical assistance to 3 States under section 1304(e)(2); and 4 ‘‘(E) to pay for State and Federal costs at- 5 tributable to sharing data in accordance with 6 section 1304(c)(2). 7 ‘‘(2) STATE ENTITLEMENT.—This subsection 8 constitutes budget authority in advance of appro- 9 priations Acts and represents the obligation of the 10 Secretary to provide for the payment of amounts 11 provided under this title. 12 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION ON FUNDING FOR TECHNICAL 13 ASSISTANCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.— 14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The total amount ap- 15 propriated for a fiscal year under this sub- 16 section for purposes of providing technical as- 17 sistance to States under section 1304(e)(2) or 18 paying for the costs of States and Federal 19 agencies attributable to sharing data in accord- 20 ance with section 1304(c)(2) shall not exceed 21 the amount specified under subparagraph (B). 22 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—The amount specified 23 in this subparagraph is— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:09 Oct 21, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4770.IS S4770 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 4770 IS ‘‘(i) for each of fiscal years 2021 1 through 2023, $14,000,000,000; and 2 ‘‘(ii) for each fiscal year after fiscal 3 year 2024, an amount equal to the greater 4 of— 5 ‘‘(I) $4,500,000,000; and 6 ‘‘(II) 3 percent of the average 7 annual amount of all payments made 8 to States under section 1302(a) for 9 the 3-fiscal year period preceding such 10 fiscal year. 11 ‘‘(c) PLANNING GRANTS.— 12 ‘‘(1) INITIAL PLANNING GRANTS.— 13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 14 provide each State that submits an application 15 in fiscal year 2021 with a planning grant in the 16 amount determined for the State under sub- 17 paragraph (B) for the purpose of developing a 18 State plan for family crisis cash assistance 19 under section 1304. 20 ‘‘(B) GRANT AMOUNT.—The amount deter- 21 mined under this subparagraph with respect to 22 a State is the product of— 23 ‘‘(i) $10,000,000,000; and 24 ‘‘(ii) the quotient of— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:09 Oct 21, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4770.IS S4770 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 4770 IS ‘‘(I) the number of households in 1 the State with a household income 2 that is less than 200 percent of the 3 Federal poverty line (as defined in 4 section 673(2) of the Omnibus Budget 5 Reconciliation Act of 1981, including 6 any revision required by such section, 7 applicable to a family of the size in- 8 volved); and 9 ‘‘(II) the number of such house- 10 holds in all States. 11 ‘‘(2) GRANTS TO UPDATE FAMILY CRISIS CASH 12 ASSISTANCE PLANS.—For each fiscal year after fis- 13 cal year 2021, the Secretary may provide any State 14 that wishes to update the family crisis cash assist- 15 ance plan of the State under section 1304 with a 16 grant in an amount that shall not exceed 50 percent 17 of an amount determined for the State in the same 18 manner as the amount determined for the State 19 under paragraph (1)(B). 20 ‘‘(3) REPORTING.—Any State that receives a 21 planning grant under this subsection shall, not later 22 than 1 year after the State, submit a report (which 23 may be included in a report submitted under section 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:09 Oct 21, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4770.IS S4770 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 4770 IS 1305(d)) to the Secretary describing how the State 1 used such grant. 2 ‘‘(d) ADDITIONAL GRANT FOR COMMUNITY OUT- 3 REACH.—For any calendar quarter in which a State re- 4 ceives a payment under section 1302(a) for cash assist- 5 ance payments that the State is required to make for such 6 quarter under section 1303, such State shall be entitled 7 to an additional payment in an amount equal to 7 percent 8 of such payment under section 1302(a), provided that the 9 State spends not less than 10 percent of such additional 10 payment conducting outreach, which shall include inter- 11 net, television, radio, print, and other media advertisement 12 campaigns in all languages relevant to the targeted eligible 13 population and in manners that are accessible to people 14 with disabilities, to increase awareness of the cash assist- 15 ance program established under this title to populations 16 that the State determines are difficult to reach. A State 17 may conduct such outreach in coordination with commu- 18 nity nonprofit organizations in the State. 19 ‘‘(e) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall issue such 20 regulations as are necessary to carry out this title. 21 ‘‘SEC. 1302. PAYMENTS TO STATES FOR FAMILY ASSIST- 22 ANCE. 23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (c), for 24 each calendar quarter that a State has in effect a plan 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:09 Oct 21, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4770.IS S4770 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 4770 IS approved under section 1304, the Secretary shall pay to 1 the State an amount equal to 100 percent of the amount 2 of the cash assistance payments that the State is required 3 to make for months that occur during such quarter under 4 section 1303. 5 ‘‘(b) PAYMENTS FOR TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND 6 ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—In addition to amounts paid to 7 a State under subsection (a), the Secretary shall make 8 payments to the State (in such amounts as the Secretary 9 determines appropriate) to pay for administrative costs at- 10 tributable to developing and implementing the State plan 11 under this title. 12 ‘‘(c) TIMING AND MANNER OF PAYMENTS.— 13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Prior to the beginning of 14 each calendar quarter, the Secretary shall estimate 15 the amount to which a State will be entitled under 16 this title for such quarter, and shall pay to the 17 State, in such installments as the Secretary may de- 18 termine, the amount so estimated, reduced or in- 19 creased to the extent of any overpayment or under- 20 payment which the Secretary determines was made 21 under this section to the State for any prior quarter 22 and with respect to which adjustment has not al- 23 ready been made under this subsection. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:09 Oct 21, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4770.IS S4770 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 4770 IS ‘‘(2) SPECIAL PAYMENT.—If a State becomes 1 entitled to payments under this title for any month 2 during a calendar quarter for which the Secretary 3 estimated that the State would not be so entitled, 4 the Secretary shall, not later than 14 days after the 5 State becomes so entitled— 6 ‘‘(A) re-estimate the amount to which the 7 State will be entitled under this title for such 8 quarter; and 9 ‘‘(B) pay the amount so estimated (ad- 10 justed for overpayments and underpayments as 11 described in paragraph (1)) to the State. 12 ‘‘SEC. 1303. FAMILY CRISIS CASH ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS. 13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsections (b), (c), 14 and (d), for each month that is a family assistance month 15 with respect to a State with a plan approved under this 16 title (as determined under subsection (g)(1)), the State 17 shall make a cash assistance payment to each eligible 18 household that resides in an emergency assistance area (as 19 defined in subsection (g)(3)) in the State in an amount 20 equal to— 21 ‘‘(1) in the case of an eligible household that 22 consists of 1 individual, $2,000; 23 ‘‘(2) in the case of an eligible household that 24 consists of 2 individuals, $3,000; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:09 Oct 21, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4770.IS S4770 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 4770 IS ‘‘(3) in the case of an eligible household that 1 consists of 3 individuals, $3,500; and 2 ‘‘(4) in the case of an eligible household that 3 consists of 4 or more individuals, $4,000. 4 ‘‘(b) INFLATION INCREASE.—For each fiscal year 5 after fiscal year 2020, each amount specified in subsection 6 (a) and subsection (d)(2) shall be equal to— 7 ‘‘(1) the amount that applied under such sub- 8 section (as increased under this subsection, if appli- 9 cable) for the preceding fiscal year; increased by 10 ‘‘(2) the percentage increase (if any) in the 11 Consumer Price Index for all-urban consumers pub- 12 lished by the Department of Labor for the 12-month 13 period ending with the month before the first month 14 of the fiscal year involved. 15 ‘‘(c) PROPORTIONAL REDUCTION.—A State shall ad- 16 just on a pro rata basis the amounts paid to each eligible 17 household under subsection (a) for a month (as increased 18 under subsection (b) and, if applicable, reduced under sub- 19 section (d)) to the extent that amount determined for the 20 State and month under section 1302(c) is insufficient to 21 make full payments under such subsection to all eligible 22 households in the State. 23 ‘‘(d) PHASE-OUT.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:09 Oct 21, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4770.IS S4770 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 4770 IS ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 1 the amount payable to an eligible household under 2 subsection (a) for a month (as increased under sub- 3 section (b)) shall be reduced by a percentage equal 4 to the number of percentage points by which the in- 5 come of such household exceeds 200 percent of the 6 Federal poverty line (as defined in section 673(2) of 7 the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981, in- 8 cluding any revision required by such section, appli- 9 cable to a family of the size involved). 10 ‘‘(2) MINIMUM PAYMENT AMOUNT.—Subject to 11 subsection (b), the amount payable to an eligible 12 household under subsection (a) for a month shall not 13 be reduced pursuant to this subsection to an amount 14 that is less than $200. 15 ‘‘(e) TIMELINESS.—A State that receives a payment 16 under section 1302 for a month shall make the payments 17 described in subsection (a) not less than 14 days after the 18 receipt of such payment. 19 ‘‘(f) MANNER OF PAYMENT.—A State may use the 20 following methods to make cash assistance payments to 21 eligible households under this section: 22 ‘‘(1) Transferring amounts to an account held 23 by, or established for, an eligible household at— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:56 Oct 21, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4770.IS S4770 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 4770 IS ‘‘(A) a community development financial 1 institution (as defined in section 103 of the 2 Community Banking and Financial Institutions 3 Act of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 4701 note)); 4 ‘‘(B) a minority deposit institution; 5 ‘‘(C) a community development credit 6 union; or 7 ‘‘(D) another financial institution. 8 ‘‘(2) Providing an eligible household with a 9 debit or credit card to access payment amounts. 10 ‘‘(3) By making such payments through the 11 benefit transfer system of an existing cash benefit 12 program administered by the State, such as the sup- 13 plemental nutrition assistance program, a retirement 14 benefit program, a welfare program, a disability as- 15 sistance program, a housing assistance program, or 16 an unemployment assistance program. 17 ‘‘(4) Any other method determined appropriate 18 by the State and approved by the Secretary. 19 ‘‘(g) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 20 ‘‘(1) FAMILY ASSISTANCE MONTH.—The term 21 ‘family assistance month’ means, with respect to a 22 State, a month occurring during any period that— 23 ‘‘(A) begins with the most recent month 24 that is a trigger month for the State; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:09 Oct 21, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4770.IS S4770 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 4770 IS ‘‘(B) ends with the earlier of— 1 ‘‘(i) the 11th consecutive month fol- 2 lowing such trigger month that is not a 3 trigger month for the State; and 4 ‘‘(ii) the first month following such 5 trigger month that is— 6 ‘‘(I) if such trigger month is an 7 economic trigger month, an economic 8 recovery month; or 9 ‘‘(II) if such trigger month is a 10 natural disaster trigger month, a nat- 11 ural disaster recovery month. 12 ‘‘( [Text truncated for display. 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