§ 26-1-112 — Locating violators - recoveries

Colorado § 26-1-112

• Jurisdiction: Colorado
• Title 26: Human
• Art.: Department of Human Services

Text

(1) The executive director of the
department of human services or district attorneys may request and shall receive
from departments, boards, bureaus, or other agencies of the state or any of its
political subdivisions, and the same are authorized to provide, such assistance and
data as will enable the state department of human services and county
departments properly to carry out their powers and duties to locate and prosecute
any person who has fraudulently obtained public assistance under this title. Any
records established pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be available only
to the state department of human services, the county departments, the attorney
general, and the district attorneys, county attorneys, and courts having jurisdiction
in fraud or recovery proceedings or actions.

(2) (a) All departments and agencies of the state and local governments
shall cooperate in the location and prosecution of any person who has fraudulently
obtained public assistance under this title, and, on request of the county board, the
county director, the state department of human services, or the district attorney of
any judicial district in this state, shall supply all information on hand relative to the
location, employment, income, and property of such persons, notwithstanding any
other provision of law making such information confidential, except the laws
pertaining to confidentiality of any tax returns filed pursuant to law with the
department of revenue. The department of revenue shall furnish at no cost to
inquiring departments and agencies such information as may be necessary to
effectuate the purposes of this article. The procedures whereby this information
will be requested and provided shall be established by rule of the state department.
The state department or county departments shall use such information only for
the purposes of administering public assistance under this title, and the district
attorney shall use it only for the prosecution of persons who have fraudulently
obtained public assistance under this title, and he shall not use the information, or
disclose it, for any other purpose.

(b) (I) Whenever the state department of human services or a district
attorney, for the state department, or the state department on behalf of a county
department recovers any amount of fraudulently obtained public assistance funds,
the federal government shall be entitled to a share proportionate to the amount of
federal funds paid unless a different amount is otherwise provided by federal law,
the state shall be entitled to a share proportionate to the amount of state funds
paid and such additional amounts of federal funds recovered as provided by federal
law, and the county department shall be entitled to a share proportionate to the
amount of county funds paid unless a different amount is provided pursuant to
federal law or this section.

(II) Whenever a county department, a county board, a district attorney, or a
state department on behalf of a county department recovers any amount of
fraudulently obtained public assistance funds in the form of assistance payments, it
shall be deposited in the county general fund and the federal government shall be
entitled to a share proportionate to the amount of federal funds paid unless a
different amount is provided for by federal law, the state shall be entitled to a share
proportionate to one-half the amount of state funds paid, and the county shall be
entitled to a share proportionate to the amount of county funds paid and, in
addition, a share proportionate to one-half the amount of state funds paid. In the
case of funds recovered from fraudulently obtained food stamp coupons by the
county department, the county board, the district attorney, or the state department
on behalf of a county department, the county shall be entitled to the share of the
recovered funds provided by the federal Food Stamp Act.

(3) (a) Whenever the county department, the county board, the district
attorney, or the state department on behalf of a county department pursuant to
Public Law 96-58 recovers funds from food stamp coupons which were obtained
through unintentional client error, the county shall be entitled to the share of the
recovered funds provided by the federal Food Stamp Act.

(b) Whenever a county department, a county board, a district attorney, or the
state department on behalf of the county recovers any amount of public assistance
payments funds that were obtained through unintentional client error, the federal
government shall be entitled to a share proportionate to the amount of federal
funds paid, unless a different amount is provided for by federal law, the state shall
be entitled to a share proportionate to seventy-five percent of the amount of state
funds paid, the county shall be entitled, except for the Colorado works program, to
a share proportionate to the amount of county funds paid, if any, and, in addition, a
share proportionate to twenty-five percent of the amount of state funds paid. In the
Colorado works program, the county shall be entitled to a share proportionate to
the amount of county funds paid and, in addition, a share proportionate to one-half
the amount of state funds paid.

(4) Actual costs and expenses incurred by the district attorney's office in
carrying out the provisions of subsections (2) and (3) of this section shall be billed
to counties or a county within the judicial district in the proportions specified in
section 20-1-302, C.R.S. Each county shall make an annual accounting to the state
department on all amounts recovered.

Legislative History

Source: L. 73: R&RE, p. 1167, � 1. C.R.S. 1963: � 119-1-11. L. 77: (1) R&RE and (3)(c) amended, p. 1329, �� 1, 2, effective July 1; (3)(a) and (3)(c) amended, p. 1331, � 1, effective January 1, 1978. L. 79: Entire section R&RE, p. 639, � 4, effective June 7. L. 81: (2)(b) R&RE, p. 1367, � 1, effective July 1. L. 85: (2)(b)(II) amended, p. 937, � 1, effective May 16. L. 89: (1) and (2) amended and (3) and (4) added, p. 1193, � 2, effective June 7. L. 91: (2)(b)(II) and (3)(a) amended, p. 1860, � 2, effective July 1. L. 93: (1), (2), and (3)(b) amended, p. 1142, � 81, effective July 1, 1994. L. 97: (3)(b) amended, p. 1221, � 5, effective July 1. L. 2006: (1), (2), and (3)(b) amended, p. 1988, � 13, effective July 1.