H259 - 2023 Appropriations Act. (SL 2023-134)

Overview: Section 9J.1 of S.L. 2023-134 expresses the General Assembly's approval of the plan titled "North Carolina Temporary Assistance for Needy Families State Plan FY 2022-25" (Plan). The Plan was prepared by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), presented to the General Assembly, and covers the period of October 1, 2022, through September 30, 2025. DHHS is authorized to submit the plan to the US Department of Health and Human Services. The section also specifies the following:

• The following counties are approved as Electing Counties: Beaufort, Caldwell, Catawba, Lenoir, Lincoln, Macon, and Wilson.
• Counties that submitted the letter of intent to remain as an Electing County, or to be redesignated as an Electing County and the accompanying county plan for years 2022- 2025, must operate under the Electing County budget requirements effective July 1, 2022. For programmatic purposes, these referenced counties must remain under their current county designation through September 30, 2025.
• For each year of the 2023-2025 fiscal biennium, Electing Counties will be held harmless to their Work First Family Assistance allocations for the 2022-2023 fiscal year, provided that remaining funds allocated for Work First Family Assistance and Work First Diversion Assistance are sufficient for payments made by DHHS on behalf of Standard Counties pursuant to the statute (G.S. 108A 27.11(b)).
• If the projections of Work First Family Assistance and Work First Diversion Assistance for the 2023-2024 fiscal year, or the 2024-2025 fiscal year, indicate that remaining funds are insufficient for Work First Family Assistance and Work First Diversion Assistance payments to be made on behalf of Standard Counties, DHHS is authorized to deallocate funds, of those allocated to Electing Counties for Work First Family Assistance in excess of the sums set forth in the law (G.S. 108A 27.11), up to the requisite amount for payments in Standard Counties. Prior to deallocation, DHHS must obtain approval by the Office of State Budget and Management. If DHHS adjusts the allocation, then a report must be made to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health and Human Services and the Fiscal Research Division.

This section became effective July 1, 2023.