Challenge program for social services.

WORKING DRAFT
2006
STATE OF
WYOMING
06LSO-0416.E1

SENATE FILE
NO.
SF0108

Challenge program for social services.

Sponsored by:
Senator(s) Larson

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to administration of government; creating the challenge program for social services; providing for grants to eligible communities and other political subdivisions for unfunded or underfunded social services; providing for use of grant funds; providing for administration of the program; providing funding and requiring matching funds; requiring reports; providing an appropriation; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of
Wyoming
:

Section 1.
W.S. 9
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901 through 9
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905 are created to read:

ARTICLE 9
WYOMING
CHALLENGE PROGRAM FOR SOCIAL SERVICES

9
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12
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901.

Challenge program for social services; definitions.

(a)

As used in this article:

(i)

"Board" means the state loan and investment board;

(ii)

"Eligible community" means a county, city or town. "Eligible community" may also mean any joint powers board or special district created for the purposes of funding and providing social services;

(iii)

"Holding account" means the challenge program for social services holding account established pursuant to W.S. 9-12-905(b);

(iv)

"Private donations account" means the challenge program for social services private donations account established pursuant to W.S. 9
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905(a);

(v)

"Social service" means those services provided by private not for profit entities that address human health and welfare needs in
Wyoming
. Those needs include, but are not limited to human health, human nutrition, child care, senior citizen needs, mental health and family services.

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902.

Challenge program for social services; purpose; creation; administration; rulemaking authority; eligible projects.

(a)

It is the purpose of this article to encourage private entities to provide funding on a voluntary basis to be used in partnership with
Wyoming
government to provide social services to citizens of the state. The state loan and investment board shall provide for day to day administration of this article through a contract with a private not for profit entity located in Wyoming, with experience administering privately funded social services programs. The contract shall require the administrator to actively seek private donations to the private donations account. The administrator shall be subject to rules of the board. The administrator of the program shall provide recommendations to the board for approval of grants under this article. Final approval shall rest with the board acting in accordance with this article.

(b)

Any eligible community may submit an application to the board for a grant under this program on forms prescribed by and subject to rules promulgated by the board. Application by a joint powers board shall require the approval of all participating agencies to the joint powers agreement.

(c)

Grants may be recommended by the administrator and awarded by the board for social service projects which:

(i)

Are for a valid public purpose, of primary benefit to citizens of the state;

(ii)

Are within the authority of the applicant to provide;

(iii)

Are consistent with any requirements placed upon the privately donated matching funds which are to be used for the project being funded;

(iv)

Are not fully funded by another means of state or local government funding;

(v)

Are not for artistic or solely cultural activities; and

(vi)

Are not for capital construction projects.

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903.

Social service projects; demonstration of need.

(a)

To qualify for a grant under this article, an applicant shall demonstrate:

(i)

The viability of the project;

(ii)

The social service is not otherwise provided in the community or may not continue to be provided without the grant funds;

(iii)

That all necessary costs to provide the social service project will be funded at the time of receipt of a grant under this article, with any additional funding sources specified within the project application;

(iv)

Any other criteria developed by the board consistent with the purposes of this article.

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904.

Social service project grants; approval by state loan and investment board.

(a)

Grants shall be awarded on a matching basis with funds within the private donations account being matched in an equal amount with funds within the state holding account. No money shall be expended from the private donations account unless matched in accordance with this subsection. No money shall be expended from the holding account unless it has been appropriated by the legislature to the board.

(b)

Grants shall be used to fund approved project costs in accordance with approved applications and rules of the board.

(c)

The administrator shall prioritize recommendations for grant approvals to the board and the board shall prioritize projects for approval in accordance with the following criteria and rules of the board:

(i)

The number of persons to be served by the project;

(ii)

The cost per person of providing the social service;

(iii) The overall benefit provided to the public as a result of funding the project.

(d)

Not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00) within the public holding account and one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00) within the private donations account shall be used to fund any single project or be provided to any one (1) applicant in any fiscal year.

(e)

The board shall adopt rules as necessary to implement its duties under this article.

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905.

Challenge program for social services accounts.

(a)

There is created a private donations account to receive funds donated to the state of
Wyoming
for purposes of this program created by this article. Funds in the private donations account are continuously appropriated to the board to be used only for grants under this article.

(b)

A holding account is created to retain appropriations for matching amounts for grants approved by the board in accordance with this article. The board may also annually expend funds from the holding account for contract services for administration of this article.

(c)

Earnings on funds within the private donations account and the holding account shall be credited to the appropriate account.

Section 2.

(a)

There is appropriated fifty thousand dollars ($50,000.00) from the general fund to the state loan and investment board for initial contract administration, and rulemaking to implement this act.

(b)

There is appropriated from the general fund to the holding account established pursuant to W.S. 9
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905(b), five million dollars ($5,000,000.00). Funds appropriated under this section may be expended by the state loan and investment board in accordance with this act in the fiscal biennium beginning July 1, 2006.

Section 3.

(a)

The contract administrator selected by the state loan and investment board pursuant to this act shall submit an initial report by October 1, 2006 and a final report by October 1, 2007 to the board regarding funds received for the private donations account, social service project grants awarded and the effectiveness of the grants in achieving the stated social service purposes of the grants.

(b)

The state loan and investment board shall incorporate the administrator's reports required by subsection (a) of this section into reports from the board to the joint labor, health and social services interim committee and the joint appropriations interim committee regarding the effectiveness of grants awarded pursuant to this act. The board's preliminary report shall be submitted by November 1, 2006 and its final report by November 1, 2007.

Section 4.

This act is effective July 1, 2006.

(END)

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SF0108