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Senate committee adopts amendment tightening work-waiver enforcement in DHS proposal
Summary
The committee approved an amendment to Senate Bill 527 that adds documentation and suspension rules for participants in a DHS work-waiver program; DHS staff said the language aligns with the waiver submitted to CMS but warned courts could still affect implementation.
Senator Missy Irvin, sponsor of Senate Bill 527, won committee approval Tuesday for an amendment that requires participants in a Department of Human Services work-waiver program to comply with federal and state work requirements and to provide documentation showing compliance; the amendment also spells out suspension as a consequence for noncompliance.
The amendment matters because it seeks to harden enforcement language around a work requirement that DHS has included in a waiver submitted to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Committee members said the change was intended to ensure clarity for participants and for CMS reviewers.
Irvin introduced the amendment and asked DHS officials to explain the text. Christy Putnam, Secretary of DHS, and Janet Mann, a DHS official, told the committee that the amendment requires participants to follow all applicable federal and state work requirements and to provide the “required information to demonstrate compliance.” Mann said the amendment also “includes … the consequences for not complying, which is suspension,” and the committee heard that the provision is consistent with the work-waiver application DHS filed with CMS the prior week.
Committee members asked whether the added language could jeopardize approval by CMS or create legal exposure. Putnam said the amendment is “consistent with the amendment waiver amendment for work requirement that was submitted to CMS last week.” Mann and Irvin acknowledged a remaining legal risk: if courts later rule against state work requirements, the state could be forced to change course. Mann told members the bill is written to follow models other states used that have survived court challenges, but she cautioned the administration may still need to “navigate what a court may say.”
There were no public proponents or opponents signed up to speak specifically for or against the bill during the committee session. After discussion the committee adopted the amendment and then passed SB 527 as amended on a voice vote.
The action is now forwarded with the amendment language that DHS officials said strengthens enforcement and clarifies participant notice of suspension for noncompliance; the committee record shows the bills and amendment were adopted without a recorded roll-call tally in the transcript.
What’s next: The bill, as amended, will move to the full Senate for consideration; DHS told the committee it considers the amendment consistent with the waiver it submitted to CMS but acknowledged that federal or judicial developments could alter implementation.
