An Act to Require the Department of Health and Human Services to
Maine Legislature, Session 132, LD 0612
Sponsors: HENDERSON, MOORE
Amends: 22 MRSA §20-B, 22 MRSA §23

Legislative Document
No. 612
H.P. 380
House of Representatives, February 25, 2025
An Act to Require the Department of Health and Human Services to 
Review Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and 
Electronic Benefits Transfer Card Transactions and Lottery 
Operations
Received by the Clerk of the House on February 20, 2025.  Referred to the Committee on 
Health and Human Services pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint 
Rule 401.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative HENDERSON of Rumford.
Cosponsored by Senator MOORE of Washington and
Representatives: ALBERT of Madawaska, CIMINO of Bridgton, COLLINS of Sidney, 
COOPER of Windham, DAIGLE of Fort Kent, HAGGAN of Hampden, OLSEN of Raymond, 
QUINT of Hodgdon.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  22 MRSA §20-B is enacted to read:
§20-B.  Lottery winnings of benefits recipients
1. Department to enter data-matching agreement with Department of 
Administrative and Financial Services. Beginning January 1, 2026, the department shall 
enter into a data-matching agreement with the Department of Administrative and Financial 
Services to identify households with lottery winnings of $3,000 or more and, to the extent 
permissible under federal law, treat this data as verified upon receipt. To the extent the data 
is not verified upon receipt, the department shall make referrals for further investigation to 
identify households with winnings equal to or greater than the resource limit for elderly or 
disabled households as defined in 7 Code of Regulations, Section 273.8(b).
2. Cross-checking data for prize winners. The Department of Administrative and 
Financial Services may not distribute lottery winnings to any prize winner without first 
cross-checking data provided by the department to determine whether the prize winner is 
enrolled in Medicaid or has been enrolled in Medicaid in the previous 12 months or is a 
member of a household enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or has 
been a member of a household enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program 
in the previous 12 months. If the Department of Administrative and Financial Services 
determines that:
A. A lottery prize winner is not enrolled in Medicaid and has not been enrolled in 
Medicaid in the previous 12 months and is not a member of a household enrolled in the 
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and has not been a member of a household 
enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in the previous 12 months, 
the Department of Administrative and Financial Services shall proceed with its 
customary procedures for distributing lottery winnings under applicable law; and
B. A lottery prize winner is enrolled in Medicaid or has been enrolled in Medicaid in 
the previous 12 months or is a member of a household enrolled in the Supplemental 
Nutrition Assistance Program or has been a member of a household enrolled in the 
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in the previous 12 months, the Department 
of Administrative and Financial Services shall:
(1) Notify the department and request an estimate of the State's expenditures in 
providing Medicaid benefits and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program 
benefits to the prize winner over the previous 5 years by calculating the 
department's per capita administrative costs, the duration of the prize winner's 
enrollment and specific charges incurred or provider payments made on behalf of 
the prize winner;
(2) Deduct from the lottery prize the amount relevant to the prize winner specified 
in subparagraph (1);
(3) Remit the deducted amount to the department as reimbursement; and
(4) Pay the prize winner the remaining lottery prize under applicable law, with 
notice to the prize winner of the deduction.
3. Exemptions. The provisions of this section do not apply to an individual who is:
A. Medically certified as physically or mentally unfit for employment; or
B. A parent or caretaker personally providing the care for a dependent child with 
serious medical conditions or with a disability, as determined by the department.
4. Benefits programs and lottery materials. The department and the Department of 
Administrative and Financial Services shall modify all Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition 
Assistance Program and lottery materials, including contracts, tickets, brochures, 
advertisements and eligibility notices, to provide sufficient notice of the deductions 
required under this section.
5. Rules.  The department and the Department of Administrative and Financial 
Services shall adopt rules to carry out the provisions of this section. Rules adopted pursuant 
to this subsection are routine technical rules as defined by Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 
2-A.
Sec. 2.  22 MRSA §23, sub-§1-A is enacted to read:
1-A.  Out-of-state transactions.  The department shall monitor electronic benefits 
transfer system data and flag any exclusive out-of-state EBT card transactions by a 
recipient over a period of 90 days. Within 30 days of flagging a recipient's transactions, the 
department shall contact any recipient who makes solely out-of-state EBT card transactions 
over a period of 90 days to determine whether the recipient continues to reside in the State. 
If the department determines that the recipient no longer resides in the State or the recipient 
does not respond to the department contact under this subsection within 30 days of contact, 
the department shall terminate any benefits received by the recipient under this subchapter. 
Within 15 days of termination, the department shall provide the information on the recipient 
to the United States Department of Agriculture office for the district in which the recipient 
resided prior to moving from the State.
SUMMARY
This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services to cross-check data of 
lottery winners with recipients of Medicaid benefits or the Supplemental Nutrition 
Assistance Program and to deduct from the winnings the past 5 years of benefits received 
by the prize winner and administrative costs. The bill also requires the department to 
monitor out-of-state electronic benefits transfer, or EBT, system transactions and terminate 
the benefits of any recipient who makes solely out-of-state EBT card transactions over a 
90-day period and is determined to no longer reside in the State or does not respond to 
department contact.