Sixty-first General Assembly
LLS NO. 980843.01D DFH
HOUSE BILL 981394
STATE OF COLORADO
BY REPRESENTATIVES Pankey, Dean, Entz, Kaufman, Reeser, and Tool;
also SENATOR Blickensderfer.
REREVISED
STATE, VETERANS & MILITARY
AFFAIRS
A BILL FOR AN ACT
CONCERNING THE PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION OF PERSONS
APPLYING FOR STATE BENEFITS.
Bill Summary
(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced
and does not necessarily reflect any amendments that may be subsequently
adopted.)
Requires applicants for public assistance or medical
assistance who are 18 years of age or older to supply a form of
personal photographic identification either by providing a valid
Colorado driver's license or an identification card issued by
the department of revenue. Authorizes the department of human
services and the department of health care policy and financing
to establish an unreasonable hardship exemption to this requirement.
Allows applicants to receive assistance on an emergency basis
until the applicant is able to obtain or qualify for the license
or identification card; however, a county department is not required
to recover emergency assistance from an applicant who fails, upon
recertification, to meet the photographic identification requirement.
Authorizes the division of motor vehicles to exempt any person
from paying the identification card fee who is referred by a county
department of social services for the purposes of obtaining a
driver's license or identification card.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado:
SECTION 1. 262106 (3), Colorado Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
262106. Applications for
public assistance. (3) Applications
and requests for public assistance under this article shall be
made to the county department of the county or the state designated
agency, where applicable, for the county in which the applicant
is a resident. The state department by its rules and
regulations shall prescribe the form
and procedure for applications or requests for social services.
The application for assistance payments shall be in writing or
reduced to writing in the manner and upon the form prescribed
by the state department, shall contain the name, age, and residence
of the applicant, the category or type of assistance payments
sought, a statement of the amount of property, both real and personal,
in which the applicant has an interest and of all income which
he OR SHE may have at the time of the filing of the application,
and such other information as may be required by rules of the
state department, and shall be verified by the signature of the
applicant or his OR HER legally appointed guardian. IN ADDITION,
AN APPLICANT WHO IS EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER SHALL BE REQUIRED
TO SUPPLY A FORM OF PERSONAL PHOTOGRAPHIC IDENTIFICATION EITHER
BY PROVIDING A VALID COLORADO DRIVER'S LICENSE OR A VALID IDENTIFICATION
CARD ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE PURSUANT TO SECTION 422302,
C.R.S. THE STATE DEPARTMENT MAY ADOPT RULES THAT EXEMPT APPLICANTS
FROM THE REQUIREMENT OF SUPPLYING A FORM OF PERSONAL PHOTOGRAPHIC
IDENTIFICATION IF SUCH REQUIREMENT CAUSES AN UNREASONABLE HARDSHIP
OR IF SUCH REQUIREMENT IS IN CONFLICT WITH FEDERAL LAW. THE STATE
DEPARTMENT SHALL ALSO ADOPT RULES THAT ALLOW FOR ASSISTANCE TO
BE PROVIDED ON AN EMERGENCY BASIS UNTIL THE APPLICANT IS ABLE
TO OBTAIN OR TO QUALIFY FOR A DRIVER'S LICENSE OR IDENTIFICATION
CARD; HOWEVER, A COUNTY DEPARTMENT IS NOT REQUIRED TO RECOVER
EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE FROM AN APPLICANT WHO FAILS, UPON RECERTIFICATION,
TO MEET THE PHOTOGRAPHIC IDENTIFICATION REQUIREMENT.
SECTION 2. 264106 (3), Colorado Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
264106. Application
verification of eligibility. (3) The
state department shall promulgate rules and
regulations to simplify the processing
of applications in order that medical benefits are furnished to
recipients as soon as possible, including rules that provide for
initial processing of applications for medical assistance only
at locations other than the county departments or locations used
for processing applications for aid to families with dependent
children. Said rules and regulations
may make provision for the payment of medical benefits for a period
not to exceed three months prior to the date of application in
cases where the applicant did not make application prior to his
OR HER need for said medical benefits. Adequate safeguards shall
be established by the state department to insure that only eligible
persons receive benefits under this article. IN ADDITION, AN
APPLICANT WHO IS EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER SHALL BE REQUIRED
TO SUPPLY A FORM OF PERSONAL PHOTOGRAPHIC IDENTIFICATION EITHER
BY PROVIDING A VALID COLORADO DRIVER'S LICENSE OR A VALID IDENTIFICATION
CARD ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE PURSUANT TO SECTION 422302,
C.R.S. THE STATE DEPARTMENT MAY ADOPT RULES THAT EXEMPT APPLICANTS
FROM THE REQUIREMENT OF SUPPLYING A FORM OF PERSONAL PHOTOGRAPHIC
IDENTIFICATION IF SUCH REQUIREMENT CAUSES AN UNREASONABLE HARDSHIP
OR IF SUCH REQUIREMENT IS IN CONFLICT WITH FEDERAL LAW. THE STATE
DEPARTMENT SHALL ALSO ADOPT RULES THAT ALLOW FOR ASSISTANCE TO
BE PROVIDED ON AN EMERGENCY BASIS UNTIL THE APPLICANT IS ABLE
TO OBTAIN OR QUALIFY FOR A DRIVER'S LICENSE OR IDENTIFICATION
CARD; HOWEVER, A COUNTY DEPARTMENT IS NOT REQUIRED TO RECOVER
EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE FROM AN APPLICANT WHO FAILS, UPON RECERTIFICATION,
TO MEET THE PHOTOGRAPHIC IDENTIFICATION REQUIREMENT.
SECTION 3. 422306 (1) (a), Colorado Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
422306. Fees disposition. (1) The department shall charge and collect the following fees:
(a) A fee of three dollars and fifty cents at the time of application for an identification card or renewal of an identification card or three dollars and fifty cents for a duplicate card; except that, for applicants sixty years of age or older AND APPLICANTS REFERRED BY ANY COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES PURSUANT TO SECTION 262106 (3), C.R.S., OR SECTION 264106 (3), C.R.S., there shall be no fee;
SECTION 4. No appropriation. The general assembly has determined that this act can be implemented within existing appropriations, and therefore no separate appropriation of state moneys is necessary to carry out the purposes of this act.
SECTION 5. Effective date applicability. (1) This act shall take effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the ninetyday period after final adjournment of the general assembly that is allowed for submitting a referendum petition pursuant to article V, section 1 (3) of the state constitution; except that, if a referendum petition is filed against this act or an item, section, or part of this act within such period, then the act, item, section, or part, if approved by the people, shall take effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by proclamation of the governor.
(2) The provisions of this act shall apply to persons applying for public assistance or medical assistance on or after the applicable effective date of this act.