23.8045.01000
Sixty-eighth
Legislative Assembly HOUSE BILL NO. 1046
of North Dakota
Introduced by
Human Services Committee
(At the request of the Department of Health and Human Services)
1 A BILL for an Act to amend and reenact section 50-01.1-01, subsection 3 of section 50-01.1-02,
2 and sections 50-01.1-03, 50-01.1-04, 50-01.1-06, 50-01.1-08, 50-35-01, 50-35-04, and
3 50-35-05 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to direct and indirect costs, billing
4 practices, and payments to human service zones, human service zones agreements and plans,
5 creation of human service zones, human service zone directors, and indirect cost plan.
6 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF NORTH DAKOTA:
7 SECTION 1. AMENDMENT. Section 50-01.1-01 of the North Dakota Century Code is
8 amended and reenacted as follows:
9 50-01.1-01. Definitions.
10 As used in this chapter, unless the context or subject matter otherwise requires:
11 1. "Department" means the department of health and human services.
12 2. "Direct costs" means costs that are charged directly to the human service zone human
13 services fund. Direct costs are costs related directly to human service zone team
14 members or human service zone services, including compensation, fringe benefits,
15 and operating costs that are approved by the department and not identified by the
16 department as an indirect cost.
17 3. "Host county" means the county within the human service zone in which the human
18 service zone administrative office is located and in which the human service zone
19 team members are employed.
20 4. "Human service zone" means a county or consolidated group of counties
21 administering human services within a designated area in accordance with an
22 agreement or plan approved by the department.
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1 5. "Human service zone director" means a human service zone team member who
2 oversees the human service zone's operation and budget and serves as presiding
3 officer of the human service zone board.
4 6. "Human service zone team member" means a county employee who is responsible for
5 administering or delivering human services under the direction of the human service
6 zone director.
7 7. "Human services" means:
8 a. A service or assistance provided to an individual or an individual's family in need
9 of services or assistance, including child welfare services, locally administered
10 economic assistance programs, medical service programs, and aging service
11 programs, to assist the individual or the individual's family in achieving and
12 maintaining basic self-sufficiency, including physical health, mental health,
13 education, welfare, food and nutrition, and housing.
14 b. A service or assistance provided, administered, or supervised by the department
15 in accordance with chapter 50-06.
16 c. Licensing duties as administered or supervised by the department or delegated
17 by the department to a human service zone.
18 8. "Indirect costs" means salaries, benefits, and operating costs incurred in providing
19 those goods and services to support human services that are generally available for
20 the common benefit of multiple county agencies which are not identified by the
21 department as a direct cost. Indirect costs include legal representation; facilities and
22 related costs, such as utilities and, maintenance, remodeling, construction, and
23 improvement costs; administrative support including payroll, accounting, banking, and
24 coordination; information technology support and equipment; and miscellaneous
25 goods and services, such as transportation, supplies, insurance coverage, phone, and
26 mail services. Indirect costs may not include non-space and non-facility costs and
27 expenses that are exclusively attributable to the human service zones.
28 9. "Locally administered economic assistance programs" means those primary economic
29 assistance programs that need to be accessible to all citizens of the state through a
30 human service zone office and include:
31 a. Temporary assistance for needy families;
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1 b. Employment and training programs;
2 c. Child care assistance programs;
3 d. Medical assistance, including early periodic screening, diagnosis, and treatment;
4 e. Supplemental nutrition assistance programs, including employment and training
5 programs;
6 f. Refugee assistance programs;
7 g. Basic care services;
8 h. Energy assistance programs; and
9 i. Information and referral.
10 SECTION 2. AMENDMENT. Subsection 3 of section 50-01.1-02 of the North Dakota
11 Century Code is amended and reenacted as follows:
12 3. Counties shall identify other counties with which to enter a human service zone
13 agreement, and together the board of county commissioners shall file with the
14 department a written agreement to create a human service zone no later than
15 December 1, 2019. The agreement must identify the proposed counties of the human
16 service zone, host county, identify the human service zone board members, proposed
17 effective date, and agree to seek approval from the department regarding hiring or
18 dismissal of county social services or human service zone employees. The
19 department shall review and approve all agreements in accordance with section
20 50-01.1-03. The department may modify the agreements as specified in section
21 50-01.1-03 or if some of the counties are not included in a human service zone. If
22 counties do not submit an agreement, the department shall create the human service
23 zone. The board of county commissioners shall submit a plan as prescribed in section
24 50-01.1-04 by June 1, 2020. The department shall approve the plan in accordance
25 with section 50-01.1-04 by January 1, 2021within six months of receiving the plan. The
26 board of county commissioners shall provide quarterly updates as requested by the
27 department to the department after the agreement is approved until the plan is
28 submitted as requested. If counties do not submit an agreement or plan or if the
29 agreement or plan is rescinded or terminated, the department shall create the human
30 service zone. The department shall establish the date the approved agreement or plan
31 takes effect.
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1 SECTION 3. AMENDMENT. Section 50-01.1-03 of the North Dakota Century Code is
2 amended and reenacted as follows:
3 50-01.1-03. Manner of determination.
4 1. In determining whether the creation of a human service zone should be approved or
5 established, the department shall refer to, among other pertinent factors, the following:
6 a. Whether the affected county agencies are able to supply an adequate level and
7 quality of human, social, and economic assistance services.
8 b. The number and qualifications of staff personnel serving the affected county
9 agencies.
10 c. The ratio of the number of cases handled by the affected county agencies to the
11 number of their staff personnel.
12 d. The geographical area and population served by the affected county agencies.
13 e. The distance of recipients from the affected county agencies.
14 f. The benefits that would be realized from the creation of the human service zone
15 in terms of lower costs, increased availability of services, new services, and
16 improvement of services.
17 g. The amount of current and future access points for individuals to apply for and
18 receive services within a human service zone.
19 h. The existing pattern of the counties trade area and any regional pattern
20 established by the department.
21 i. Whether the county has a population exceeding sixty thousand individuals
22 according to the 2010 United States census to operate as a single human service
23 zone and whether it is in the best interest of the neighboring counties.
24 j. The maximum number of human service zones created may not exceed
25 nineteen.
26 k. Whether the human service zone director can adequately supervise the activities
27 and operations of the human service zone.
28 l. Whether the human service zone board is constituted of individuals that
29 represent the population of the human service zone.
30 m. Budget impact.
31 n. Other good cause.
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1 2. The department has final approval of a human service zone. The department may
2 establish or modify a human service zone based on the criteria set forth in
3 subsection 1. All human service zones must be initially approved or established by
4 January 1, 2020, and may be rescinded, terminated, or modified thereafter by the
5 department or approved by the department through a process developed by the
6 department and in accordance with section 50-01.1-02.
7 SECTION 4. AMENDMENT. Section 50-01.1-04 of the North Dakota Century Code is
8 amended and reenacted as follows:
9 50-01.1-04. Plan - Financing - Human service zone board.
10 1. A plan for the creation of a human service zone must describe the method of operation
11 of the human service zone office, its administration, its location and the location of any
12 ancillary offices, the disbursements from public funds, and the accountability for funds
13 and manner of reporting receipts and disbursements. The plan must provide for the
14 distribution of property owned by each of the county agencies affected by the
15 consolidation and for the method of resolution of any disagreement between the
16 boards of county commissioners involved in the human service zone or between the
17 governing board and one or more boards of county commissioners. The plan must
18 also require the participating counties to participate in the indirect cost allocation plan.
19 The plan, once approved, may be continued for a definite term or until rescinded,
20 terminated, or modified by the department or approved by the department through a
21 process developed by the department and in accordance with section 50-01.1-02.
22 2. The human service zone director shall prepare a proposed budget for the human
23 service zone at the time and in the manner as requested by the department and shall
24 submit the department-approved proposed budget to the board of county
25 commissioners of each county in the human service zone for review. The board of
26 county commissioners may not take any action to amend or modify the amount
27 approved by the department. The board of county commissioners may make
28 recommendations to the human service zone director and the department to amend or
29 modify the amount proposed or budgeted. The amount budgeted must be sufficient to
30 defray the anticipated expenses of administration and the delivery of human services.
31 Within ten days following review of the proposed budget by the boards of county
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1 commissioners, the human service zone director shall certify the budget to the
2 respective county auditors of the counties in the district. Each board of county
3 commissioners also shall budget and approve amounts sufficient to defray that
4 county's anticipated indirect costs of the human service zone. Indirect costs of the
5 human service zone may not become direct costs without written approval of the
6 department. Counties may not direct bill human service zones or the department as
7 counties will receive reimbursement of costs through the indirect cost plan and any
8 other expense incurred by the human service zone must be incurred through the
9 human service zone's approved budget. The amounts budgeted, reviewed, and
10 approved by the several boards of county commissioners or the department, or both
11 must be periodically deposited with the treasurer of the host county in which the
12 human service zone office is located and must be placed in a special human service
13 zone human services fund. Indirect cost payments received by the human service
14 zone are not required to be deposited in the special human service zone human
15 services fund. The human service zone's income must be deposited into the human
16 service zone human services fund by the treasurer of the host county. The human
17 service zone board shall establish procedures for the review and approval of all claims
18 against the human service zone human services fund. The human service zone
19 director or designee shall approve or ratify all claims against the human service zone
20 human services fund. The county treasurer of the host county, shall pay approved or
21 ratified claims from the human service zone human services fund. Unexpended
22 human service zone human services funds remaining at the end of a fiscal year may
23 be carried over to the next fiscal year pursuant to section 50-35-05. The department
24 may recalculate and adjust each human service zone's payment based on pertinent
25 factors, which include actual expenditures over the prior or current payment period,
26 current costs, offered services, need, income, performance of duties directed or
27 assigned and supervised by the department, and caseload.
28 SECTION 5. AMENDMENT. Section 50-01.1-06 of the North Dakota Century Code is
29 amended and reenacted as follows:
30 50-01.1-06. Human service zone directors.
31 Human service zone directors:
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1 1. Must be employees of the human service zone and located within the human service
2 zone, unless serving more than one human service zone.
3 2. Shall serve as the presiding officer of the human service zone board.
4 3. May serve one or more human service zones.
5 4. May hire, take disciplinary actions, and direct the work of a human service zone team
6 member in accordance with the department's policies. The human service zone
7 director has discretion to hire or separate from employment a human service zone
8 team member, on behalf of the human service zone board, subject to the allotted
9 number of approved and funded staff positions by the department.
10 5. Shall notify the department and appropriate host county staff, as directed by the
11 county commissioners, regarding the hiring, dismissal, demotion, suspension without
12 pay, forced relocation within the human service zone, reduction-in-force, or reprisal of
13 a human service zone team member.
14 6. May notify county commissioners, the human service zone board, or other appropriate
15 county staff regarding transfers of staff between the county and the department.
16 7. Shall establish, as agreed upon by the department, equitable compensation and salary
17 increases for all human service zone team members within established appropriation.
18 8. Shall develop a budget for the human service zone in partnership with the department
19 and other human service zone directors to ensure the administration of human
20 services.
21 9. May serve as a designee of the department to supervise department employees
22 assigned to or located within the human service zone.
23 10. Are the custodian designees of the executive director of the department for any child
24 in the custody of the department.
25 SECTION 6. AMENDMENT. Section 50-01.1-08 of the North Dakota Century Code is
26 amended and reenacted as follows:
27 50-01.1-08. Standards of administration - Action upon failure to administer.
28 1. The department shall adopt standards for administration for human services and shall
29 provide training for the implementation of those standards. Each human service zone
30 shall provide for administration of human services that meet those standards.
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1 2. The department shall develop a system of progress