Bill Summary for Bill Number SB09-044

Date: 03/02/2009

Final
BILL SUMMARY for SB09-044

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Votes: View-->	Action Taken:
Moved to refer Senate Bill 09-044 to the Committee	PASS

03:58 PM -- Senate Bill 09-044

Representative Hullinghorst presented Senate Bill 09-044 which makes changes to the administrative procedures in the Department of Human Services. She stated the bill makes the following changes:

The bill allows a party to file an audio recording in lieu of a written transcript for department reviews of an administrative law judge's decision;
The bill provides the department final action authority for provider appeals;
The bill clarifies and standardizes the rule-making authority of the State Board of Human Services and the executive director of the department throughout the statutes; and
The bill provides that existing rules are valid and enforceable until revised by the board or the executive director as appropriate.

A fact sheet from the Department of Human Services was provided to the committee, as well as a chart of the administrative procedures appeals process (Attachments D and E respectively).

04:08 PM -- Deborah Nelson, Office of Appeals, Department of Human Services, testified in support of the bill. Ms. Nelson stated that the department processes about 2,000 appeals. She stated that the bill creates more consistency in the process. In response to Representative Gerou's question concerning whether the bill is written too narrowly, Ms. Nelson stated that the bill allows the department of have flexibility.

04:13 PM -- Wade Livingston, former Assistant Attorney General assigned to the Department of Human of Services, spoke in support of the bill.


BILL:	SB09-044
TIME:	04:15:11 PM
MOVED:	McGihon
MOTION:	Moved to refer Senate Bill 09-044 to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a 10-0 roll call vote.
SECONDED:	Green
		VOTE
	Acree	Yes
	Gerou	Yes
	Green	Yes
	Kefalas	Yes
	Kerr J.	Yes
	McGihon	Yes
	Nikkel	Yes
	Primavera	Yes
	Swalm	Yes
	Gagliardi	Yes
	Riesberg	Excused

Final YES: 10 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS