PARRIS N. GLENDENING, Governor

Ch. 593

(4) will not result in any increased cost to the State over the duration of the
waiver;

(c) Prior to granting any waiver under subsection (a) of this section, the Secretary
of Human Resources shall:

(1)     refer the waiver request to the Joint Committee on Welfare Reform for
its review; and

(2)     hold a public hearing, advertised in a newspaper of general circulation,
in the county where the waiver would be implemented;

(d) The Secretary of Human Resources may terminate at any time any waiver
granted under this section after providing written notice of the proposed termination to
the local department of social services 30 days prior to the effective date of the
termination;

(e)     The Secretary of Human Resources may not grant any waiver under this
section that violates federal law or regulations unless appropriate waiver authority is
obtained from the appropriate federal agency; and

(f)     On or before December 1 of each year, the Secretary of Human Resources
shall submit a report, subject to § 2-1312 of the State Government Article, to the Joint
Committee on Welfare Reform on the nature, scope, and duration of waivers that have
been requested, granted, denied, or terminated, including available information on the
effects of any waiver in effect during the year.

SECTION 5. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That it is the intent of the
General Assembly that the Department of Human Resources make every effort to ensure
that adult Family Investment Program recipients engaged in work activities under the
Family Investment Program established under Article 88A of the Code not be employed
or assigned to jobs: (1) that displace or partially displace current employees or positions;
(2) that replace individuals who are laid off from the same or any substantially equivalent
job; or (3) where an employer has terminated the employment of a regular employee or
otherwise caused an involuntary reduction of its workforce in order to fill the vacancy so
created with an adult Family Investment Program recipient.

SECTION 6. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That the Department of Human
Resources, in consultation with the Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation and
the Office of Administrative Hearings, shall establish on or before July 1, 1997 and maintain
a grievance procedure for resolving complaints of alleged violations of provisions of the
federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunities Opportunity Reconciliation Act
of 1996 that pertain to displacement of employees by individuals engaged in work
activities under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Block Grant program. In
addition to any local department of social services and Department of Human Resources
steps, the grievance procedure shall include an opportunity for a hearing before the Office
of Administrative Hearings step. The Department of Human Resources shall report,
subject to § 2-1312 of the State Government Article, to the Joint Committee on Welfare
Reform on or before December 1, 1997 on the operation of the procedure, the number of
complaints, and the resolution of those complaints.

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