I 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5178 

To enhance public safety by improving the reintegration of youth offenders 

into the families and communities to which they are returning. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 29, 2008 

Mr. GRIJALVA (for himself, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, 

Mr. PAYNE, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, and Ms. CLARKE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and 

in addition to the Committees on Education and Labor and Energy and 

Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 

in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To enhance public safety by improving the reintegration of 

youth offenders into the families and communities to 

which they are returning. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Youth Reentry Im5 provement Act of 2008’’. 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
2 

•HR 5178 IH

1 TITLE I—JUVENILE JUSTICE 

2 AND DELINQUENCY PREVEN3 TION FORMULA GRANTS 

4 SEC. 101. ANNUAL REPORT. 

5 Section 207(1) of the Juvenile Justice and Delin6 quency Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5617(1)) is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) in subparagraph (E) by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

9 the end; 

10 (2) in subparagraph (F) by striking the period 

11 at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

12 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(G) the number of juveniles released from 

14 custody and the types of living arrangement to 

15 which the juveniles were released.’’. 

16 SEC. 102. STATE PLAN. 

17 Section 223(a) of the Juvenile Justice and Delin18 quency Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5633(a)) is 

19 amended— 

20 (1) in paragraph (27), at the end by striking 

21 ‘‘and’’; 

22 (2) in paragraph (28), at the end by striking 

23 the period and inserting a semicolon; and 

24 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

25 paragraphs: 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
3 

•HR 5178 IH

1 ‘‘(29) ensure a procedure for assuring that each 

2 adjudicated juvenile has a written case plan, based 

3 on an assessment of such juvenile’s needs and devel4 oped in consultation with the juvenile and their fam5 ily (as appropriate), that— 

6 ‘‘(A) describes the pre-release and post-re7 lease programs and services that will be pro8 vided to the juvenile to promote the juvenile’s 

9 learning and treatment while under the jurisdic10 tion of the juvenile justice system and to facili11 tate the juvenile’s successful reintegration into 

12 the community; and 

13 ‘‘(B) includes— 

14 ‘‘(i) a description of the living ar15 rangement to which the juvenile is to be 

16 discharged, including a discussion of the 

17 safety, appropriateness, and permanence of 

18 the living arrangement; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) a plan for enrollment of the juve20 nile in post-release financial, housing, 

21 counseling, medical, mental health, sub22 stance abuse, employment, vocational, 

23 training, educational, family support, pub24 lic assistance, legal, and victim service pro25 grams and services, as appropriate; 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
4 

•HR 5178 IH

1 ‘‘(30) support the development of procedural 

2 safeguards which will be applied, among other 

3 things, to assure each adjudicated juvenile of a hear4 ing, in a family or juvenile court or another court 

5 (including a tribal court) of competent jurisdiction, 

6 or by an administrative body appointed or approved 

7 by the court, no earlier than 30 days prior to the ju8 venile’s scheduled release, which hearing shall deter9 mine the discharge plan for the juvenile, including a 

10 determination whether a safe, appropriate, and per11 manent living arrangement has been secured for the 

12 juvenile and whether enrollment in financial, hous13 ing, counseling, medical, mental health, substance 

14 abuse, employment, vocational, training, educational, 

15 family support, public assistance, legal, and victim 

16 service programs and services, as appropriate, has 

17 been arranged for the juvenile; 

18 ‘‘(31) ensure that discharge planning and pro19 cedures are accomplished in a timely fashion prior to 

20 each adjudicated juvenile’s release from custody and 

21 do not delay the juvenile’s release from custody; and 

22 ‘‘(32) provide a description of the State’s use of 

23 funds under this part and other funds for post-re24 lease and aftercare services for juveniles released 

25 from confinement in a juvenile justice facility.’’. 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
5 

•HR 5178 IH

1 SEC. 103. RESEARCH AND EVALUATION; STATISTICAL 

2 ANALYSES; INFORMATION DISSEMINATION. 

3 Section 251 of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 

4 Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5661) by adding at 

5 the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(f) OUTCOME STUDY OF FORMER JUVENILE OF7 FENDERS.—The Administrator shall, directly or via con8 tract, conduct a study of adjudicated juveniles to report 

9 on outcomes for juveniles who have reintegrated into the 

10 community. The study should provide information on out11 comes in the areas of family reunification, housing, edu12 cation, employment, medical, mental health, substance 

13 abuse recovery, repeat maltreatment, repeat victimization, 

14 and repeat offending. The study shall include an analysis 

15 of the juveniles’ fidelity to their discharge plans, including 

16 whether the post-release resources and services anticipated 

17 in their discharge plans to be made available to the juve18 niles were in fact made available.’’. 

19 TITLE II—YOUTH OFFENDER 

20 REENTRY GRANTS PROGRAM 

21 SEC. 201. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM. 

22 The Attorney General shall carry out a program 

23 under which the Attorney General may award grants to 

24 States to provide for programs designed and conducted for 

25 the following purposes: 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
6 

•HR 5178 IH

1 (1) To identify individuals who are incarcerated 

2 in correctional facilities and who are likely to be re3 leased from such facilities before attaining 25 years 

4 of age. 

5 (2) To help such individuals make the transi6 tion to self-sufficiency by providing— 

7 (A) pre-release services such as discharge 

8 planning and reentry planning; 

9 (B) training in— 

10 (i) daily living skills; 

11 (ii) parenting skills; 

12 (iii) budgeting and financial manage13 ment skills; and 

14 (iv) victimization avoidance; 

15 (C) substance abuse prevention; 

16 (D) mental health counseling; 

17 (E) preventive health activities (including 

18 smoking avoidance, nutrition education, sexu19 ally transmitted illnesses prevention (including 

20 HIV prevention), and pregnancy prevention); 

21 and 

22 (F) assistance in applying for income as23 sistance, health insurance, proof of identity, a 

24 driver’s license, and applicable vital records, for 

25 which the individual may be eligible. 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
7 

•HR 5178 IH

1 (3) To help such individuals receive at the pre2 release and post-release stages the education, train3 ing, and services necessary to obtain employment 

4 and housing. 

5 (4) To help such individuals at the pre-release 

6 and post-release stages prepare for and enter post7 secondary training and education institutions. 

8 (5) To provide personal and emotional support 

9 to such individuals at the pre-release and post-re10 lease stages through mentors and the promotion of 

11 interactions with dedicated adults. 

12 (6) To provide post-release financial, housing, 

13 counseling, employment, vocational training, edu14 cational, medical, mental health, substance abuse 

15 services, assistance in applying for public benefits, 

16 family support, and legal and victim service pro17 grams and services, and other appropriate support 

18 and services to such individuals to— 

19 (A) complement their own efforts to 

20 achieve self-sufficiency; and 

21 (B) assure that program participants rec22 ognize and accept their personal responsibility 

23 for preparing for and then making the transi24 tion from adolescence to adulthood. 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
8 

•HR 5178 IH

1 (7) To make available to such individuals post2 release vouchers for postsecondary education and 

3 training. 

4 (8) To help such individuals at the pre-release 

5 and post-release stages repair harm to victims, fam6 ily members, and communities caused by their of7 fense, including through community service, through 

8 victim impact programming, through conflict resolu9 tion, and through dialogue processes. 

10 SEC. 202. APPLICATIONS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—A State may apply for funds from 

12 its allotment under section 203 for a period of five con13 secutive fiscal years by submitting to the Attorney Gen14 eral, in writing, a plan that meets the requirements of sub15 section (b) and the certifications required by subsection 

16 (c) with respect to the plan. 

17 (b) STATE PLAN.—A plan meets the requirements of 

18 this subsection if the plan specifies which State agency 

19 or agencies will administer, supervise, or oversee the pro20 grams carried out under the plan, and describes how the 

21 State intends to do the following: 

22 (1) Design and deliver programs to achieve the 

23 purposes of this title. 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
9 

•HR 5178 IH

1 (2) Ensure utilization of funds for both pre-re2 lease and post-release supports and services, though 

3 not necessarily in a uniform manner. 

4 (3) Ensure that the programs serve individuals 

5 described in section 201(1) of various ages and at 

6 various stages of achieving independence. 

7 (4) Involve the public and private sectors in 

8 helping such individuals achieve independence. 

9 (5) Distribute funds provided to the State 

10 under this section among a diverse range of qualified 

11 private nonprofit providers of pre-release and post12 release supports and services, and ensure that the 

13 entities have equal opportunity to receive the funds. 

14 (6) Cooperate in national evaluations of the ef15 fects of the programs in achieving the purposes of 

16 this title. 

17 (c) CERTIFICATIONS.—The certifications required by 

18 this paragraph with respect to a plan are the following: 

19 (1) A certification by the chief executive officer 

20 of the State that the State will provide assistance 

21 and services to individuals described in section 

22 201(1). 

23 (2) A certification by the chief executive officer 

24 of the State that not more than 30 percent of the 

25 amounts paid to the State from its allotment under 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
10 

•HR 5178 IH

1 section 203 for a fiscal year will be expended for 

2 post-release room or board for such individuals. 

3 (3) A certification by the chief executive officer 

4 of the State that the State will provide training to 

5 help family members, providers of supports and 

6 services, and correctional facility personnel under7 stand and address the issues confronting such indi8 viduals preparing for independent living. 

9 (4) A certification by the chief executive officer 

10 of the State that the State has consulted widely with 

11 public and private organizations in developing the 

12 plan and that the State has given all interested 

13 members of the public at least 60 days to submit 

14 comments on the plan. 

15 (5) A certification by the chief executive officer 

16 of the State that the State will make every effort to 

17 coordinate the State programs receiving funds pro18 vided from an allotment made to the State under 

19 section 203 with other Federal and State programs 

20 for any of such individuals (especially the John H. 

21 Chafee Foster Care Independence Program under 42 

22 U.S.C. 677 and transitional living youth projects 

23 funded under part B of title III of the Juvenile Jus24 tice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (42 

25 U.S.C. 5714–1 et seq.)), local housing programs, 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
11 

•HR 5178 IH

1 programs for disabled individuals, applicable Federal 

2 TRIO programs authorized under chapter 1 of sub3 part 2 of part A of title IV of the Higher Education 

4 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a–11 et seq.), and 

5 youth activities of local workforce one-stop centers. 

6 (6) A certification by the chief executive officer 

7 of the State that each Indian tribe in the State has 

8 been consulted about the programs to be carried out 

9 under the plan; that there have been efforts to co10 ordinate the programs with such tribes; and that 

11 benefits and services under the programs will be 

12 made available to such individuals who are Indian in 

13 the State on the same basis as to other such individ14 uals in the State. 

15 (7) A certification by the chief executive officer 

16 of the State that, when or before an individual de17 scribed in section 201(1) leaves a correctional facil18 ity, the State will inform the individual of the full 

19 range of available financial, housing, counseling, 

20 medical, mental health, substance abuse, employ21 ment, vocational training, education, public benefit 

22 assistance, family support, legal assistance, commu23 nity service, victim impact, and other appropriate 

24 programs, training, support, and services for which 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
12 

•HR 5178 IH

1 the individual is eligible and which are located in the 

2 community to which the individual is returning. 

3 (8) A certification by the chief executive officer 

4 of the State that the State will ensure that such in5 dividuals participating in the program under this 

6 title participate directly in designing their own case 

7 plans, discharge plans, reentry plans and program 

8 activities that prepare them for independent living 

9 and that such individuals accept personal responsi10 bility for living up to their part of the program. 

11 (9) A certification by the chief executive officer 

12 of the State that the State has established and will 

13 enforce standards and procedures to prevent fraud 

14 and abuse in the programs carried out under the 

15 plan. 

16 (10) A certification by the chief executive offi17 cer of the State that the State educational and 

18 training voucher program under this title is in com19 pliance with the conditions specified in section 209, 

20 including a statement describing methods the State 

21 will use— 

22 (A) to ensure that the total amount of edu23 cational assistance to any such individual under 

24 this title and under other Federal and federally 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
13 

•HR 5178 IH

1 supported programs does not exceed the limita2 tion specified in section 209(3); and 

3 (B) to avoid duplication of benefits under 

4 this and any other Federal or federally assisted 

5 benefit program. 

6 (d) APPROVAL.—The Attorney General shall approve 

7 an application submitted by a State pursuant to sub8 section (a) for a period if— 

9 (1) the application is submitted on or before 

10 June 30 of the calendar year in which such period 

11 begins; and 

12 (2) the Attorney General finds that the applica13 tion contains the material required by subsection 

14 (a). 

15 (e) AUTHORITY TO IMPLEMENT CERTAIN AMEND16 MENTS; NOTIFICATION.—A State with an application ap17 proved under subsection (d) may implement any amend18 ment to the plan contained in the application if the appli19 cation, incorporating the amendment, would be approvable 

20 under subsection (d). Within 30 days after a State imple21 ments any such amendment, the State shall notify the At22 torney General of the amendment. 

23 (f) AVAILABILITY.—The State shall make available to 

24 the public, including by posting on a public Internet site, 

25 any application submitted by the State pursuant to subVerDate Aug 31 2005 01:58 Jan 31, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5178.IH H5178

smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
14 

•HR 5178 IH

1 section (a), and a brief summary of the plan contained 

2 in the application. 

3 (g) STATE DEFINED.—For purposes of this title, the 

4 term ‘‘State’’ means any State of the United States, the 

5 District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. 

6 SEC. 203. ALLOTMENTS TO STATES. 

7 (a) GENERAL PROGRAM ALLOTMENT.—From the 

8 amount specified in section 208(1) that remains after ap9 plying section 207(b) for a fiscal year, the Attorney Gen10 eral shall allot to each State with an application approved 

11 under section 202 for the fiscal year the amount which 

12 bears the ratio to such remaining amount equal to the 

13 State youth ratio, as adjusted in accordance with sub14 section (b). 

15 (b) HOLD HARMLESS POSITION.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall 

17 allot to each State whose allotment for a fiscal year 

18 under subsection (a) is less than the greater of 

19 $500,000 or the amount payable to the State under 

20 this title for fiscal year 2008, an additional amount 

21 equal to the difference between such allotment and 

22 such greater amount. 

23 (2) RATABLE REDUCTION OF CERTAIN ALLOT24 MENTS.—In the case of a State not described in 

25 paragraph (1) for a fiscal year, the Attorney General 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
15 

•HR 5178 IH

1 shall reduce the amount allotted to the State for the 

2 fiscal year under subsection (a) by the amount that 

3 bears the same ratio to the sum of the differences 

4 determined under paragraph (1) for the fiscal year 

5 as the excess of the amount so allotted over the 

6 greater of $500,000 or the amount payable to the 

7 State under this title for fiscal year 2008 bears to 

8 the sum of such excess amounts determined for all 

9 such States. 

10 (c) VOUCHER PROGRAM ALLOTMENT.—From the 

11 amount, if any, appropriated pursuant to section 208(2) 

12 for a fiscal year, the Attorney General may allot to each 

13 State with an application approved under section 202 for 

14 the fiscal year an amount equal to the State youth ratio 

15 multiplied by the amount so specified. 

16 (d) STATE YOUTH RATIO.—In this section, the term 

17 ‘‘State youth ratio’’ means the ratio of the number individ18 uals who have attained at least age 12 and who have not 

19 attained age 25 in the State in the most recent fiscal year 

20 for which the information is available to the total number 

21 of individuals who have attained at least age 12 and who 

22 have not attained age 25 in all States for the most recent 

23 fiscal year. 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
16 

•HR 5178 IH

1 SEC. 204. USE OF FUNDS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—A State to which an amount is 

3 paid from its allotment under section 203 may use the 

4 amount in any manner that is reasonably calculated to ac5 complish the purposes of this title. 

6 (b) NO SUPPLANTATION OF OTHER FUNDS AVAIL7 ABLE FOR SAME GENERAL PURPOSES.—The amounts 

8 paid to a State from its allotment under section 203 shall 

9 be used to supplement and not supplant any other funds 

10 which are available for the same general purposes in the 

11 State. 

12 (c) TWO-YEAR AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Payments 

13 made to a State under this title for a fiscal year shall be 

14 expended by the State in the fiscal year or in the suc15 ceeding fiscal year. 

16 (d) REALLOCATION OF UNUSED FUNDS.—If a State 

17 does not apply for funds under this title for a fiscal year 

18 within such time as may be provided by the Attorney Gen19 eral, the funds to which the State would be entitled for 

20 the fiscal year shall be reallocated to 1 or more other 

21 States on the basis of their relative need for additional 

22 payments under this title, as determined by the Attorney 

23 General. 

24 SEC. 205. PENALTIES. 

25 (a) USE OF GRANT IN VIOLATION OF THIS PART.— 

26 The Attorney General shall assess a penalty against a 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
17 

•HR 5178 IH

1 State that operates a program receiving funds from an 

2 allotment made to a State under section 203 in a manner 

3 that is not consistent with, or not disclosed in the State 

4 application approved under section 202, in an amount 

5 equal to not less than 1 percent and not more than 5 per6 cent of the amount of the allotment. 

7 (b) FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH DATA REPORTING

8 REQUIREMENT.—The Attorney General shall assess a 

9 penalty against a State that fails during a fiscal year to 

10 comply with an information collection plan implemented 

11 under section 206 in an amount equal to not less than 

12 1 percent and not more than 5 percent of the amount al13 lotted to the State for the fiscal year. 

14 (c) PENALTIES BASED ON DEGREE OF NONCOMPLI15 ANCE.—The Attorney General shall assess penalties under 

16 this subsection based on the degree of noncompliance. 

17 SEC. 206. DATA COLLECTION AND PERFORMANCE MEAS18 UREMENT. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General, in con20 sultation with State and local public officials responsible 

21 for administering juvenile justice and criminal justice pro22 grams, juvenile justice and criminal justice advocates, 

23 youth service providers, and researchers, shall— 

24 (1) develop outcome measures (including meas25 ures of educational attainment, high school diploma 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
18 

•HR 5178 IH

1 (or its equivalent), employment, homelessness, abuse 

2 and neglect of released juveniles, nonmarital child3 birth, recidivism, and high-risk behaviors) that can 

4 be used to assess the performance of States in oper5 ating youth offender reentry programs; 

6 (2) identify data elements needed to track— 

7 (A) the number and characteristics of 

8 youths receiving services under this title; 

9 (B) the type and quantity of services being 

10 provided; and 

11 (C) State performance on the outcome 

12 measures; and 

13 (3) develop and implement a plan to collect the 

14 needed information beginning with the second fiscal 

15 year beginning after December 14, 2008. 

16 SEC. 207. EVALUATIONS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall con18 duct evaluations of such State programs funded under this 

19 title as the Attorney General deems to be innovative or 

20 of potential national significance. The evaluation of any 

21 such program shall include information on the effects of 

22 the program on education, employment, mental and phys23 ical health, personal development, and housing, and the 

24 use of room and board services and how the use of the 

25 services improves housing outcomes for the individuals. To 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
19 

•HR 5178 IH

1 the maximum extent practicable, the evaluations shall be 

2 based on rigorous scientific standards including, where 

3 practicable, random assignment to treatment and control 

4 groups. The Attorney General is encouraged to work di5 rectly with State and local governments to design methods 

6 for conducting the evaluations, directly or by grant or con7 tract. 

8 (b) FUNDING OF EVALUATIONS.—The Attorney Gen9 eral shall reserve 1.5 percent of the amount under section 

10 208 for a fiscal year to carry out, during the fiscal year, 

11 evaluation, technical assistance, performance measure12 ment, and data collection activities related to this title, 

13 directly or through grants or contracts with appropriate 

14 entities. 

15 SEC. 208. LIMITATIONS ON AUTHORIZATION OF APPRO16 PRIATIONS. 

17 There are authorized to be appropriated for each fis18 cal year— 

19 (1) $200,000,000 to carry out this title; and 

20 (2) $60,000,000 to carry out section 209. 

21 SEC. 209. EDUCATIONAL AND TRAINING VOUCHERS. 

22 The following conditions shall apply to a State edu23 cational and training voucher program under this title: 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
20 

•HR 5178 IH

1 (1) Vouchers under the program may be avail2 able to individuals who are eligible for other services 

3 under the State program carried out under this title. 

4 (2) Vouchers provided for an individual under 

5 this title— 

6 (A) may be available for the cost of attend7 ance at an institution of higher education, as 

8 defined in section 102 of the Higher Education 

9 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002); and 

10 (B) shall not exceed the lesser of $5,000 

11 per year or the total cost of attendance, as de12 fined in section 472 of the Higher Education 

13 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087ll). 

14 (3) The amount of a voucher under this title 

15 may be disregarded for purposes of determining the 

16 recipient’s eligibility for, or the amount of, any other 

17 Federal or federally supported assistance, except 

18 that the total amount of educational assistance to an 

19 individual under this title and under other Federal 

20 and federally supported programs shall not exceed 

21 such total cost of attendance and except that the 

22 State agency shall take appropriate steps to prevent 

23 duplication of benefits under this and other Federal 

24 or federally supported programs. 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
21 

•HR 5178 IH

1 (4) Vouchers provided for an individual under 

2 this title shall not be used for purposes of— 

3 (A) enrollment in a private school or pro4 gram offering elementary or secondary edu5 cation; or 

6 (B) supplementing costs for attending such 

7 a school or program. 

8 (5) The program is coordinated with other ap9 propriate education and training programs. 

10 TITLE III—TREATMENT OF 

11 MEDICAID BENEFITS 

12 SEC. 301. RESTORATION OF MEDICAID BENEFITS FOR 

13 YOUTH UPON RELEASE FROM PUBLIC INSTI14 TUTIONS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1902(a) of the Social Se16 curity Act (42 U.S.C. 1396b) is amended— 

17 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

18 (69); 

19 (2) by striking the period at the end of para20 graph (70) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

21 (3) by inserting after paragraph (70) the fol22 lowing new paragraph: 

23 ‘‘(71) provide that in the case of any individual 

24 who is less than 25 years of age as of the date of 

25 becoming an inmate of a public institution for a peVerDate Aug 31 2005 01:58 Jan 31, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5178.IH H5178

smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
22 

•HR 5178 IH

1 riod and who is less than 25 years of age at the time 

2 of release from such institution, if the individual was 

3 enrolled for medical assistance under the State plan 

4 immediately before becoming such an inmate— 

5 ‘‘(A) the State must suspend, rather than 

6 terminate, such medical assistance for such in7 dividual during such period; and 

8 ‘‘(B) such individual shall be presumed en9 rolled for such assistance upon release from 

10 such institution unless and until there is a de11 termination that the individual is no longer eli12 gible to be so enrolled.’’. 

13 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

15 the amendments made by subsection (a) shall apply 

16 to individuals who become inmates of a public insti17 tution on or after January 1, 2009. 

18 (2) EXCEPTION IF STATE LEGISLATION RE19 QUIRED.—In the case of a State plan for medical as20 sistance under title XIX of the Social Security Act 

21 which the Secretary of Health and Human Services 

22 determines requires State legislation (other than leg23 islation appropriating funds) in order for the plan to 

24 meet the additional requirement imposed by the 

25 amendment made by subsection (a)(3), the State 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS
23 

•HR 5178 IH

1 plan shall not be regarded as failing to comply with 

2 the requirements of such title solely on the basis of 

3 its failure to meet this additional requirement before 

4 the first day of the first calendar quarter beginning 

5 after the close of the first regular session of the 

6 State legislature that begins after the date of the en7 actment of this Act. For purposes of the previous 

8 sentence, in the case of a State that has a 2-year 

9 legislative session, each year of such session shall be 

10 deemed to be a separate regular session of the State 

11 legislature. 

Æ 


smartinez on PRODPC61 with BILLS