CHAPTER 11. WORKFARE AS CONDITION FOR RECEIPT OF TOWNSHIP ASSISTANCE
IC 12-20-11
Chapter 11. Workfare as Condition for Receipt of Township
Assistance
IC 12-20-11-1
Public projects work requirement for township assistance
recipients; exceptions; determination of suitability; value of
performance; furnished equipment; supervision; insurance;
displacement of employees; failure to comply
Sec. 1. (a) The township trustee shall obligate any adult member
of a recipient household to do any work needed to be done within the
county or an adjoining township in any other county for any
nonprofit agency or governmental unit, including the state, having
jurisdiction in those townships, unless:
(1) the obligated individual is not physically able to perform the
proposed work;
(2) the obligated individual is a minor or is at least sixty-five
(65) years of age;
(3) the obligated individual has full-time employment at the
time the recipient receives township assistance;
(4) the obligated individual is needed to care for an individual
as a result of the individual's age or physical condition;
(5) the township trustee determines that there is no work
available for any adult member of the recipient household; or
(6) the individual obligated to perform the work is, at the
direction of the township trustee, attending:
(A) courses under section 3 of this chapter; or
(B) a job training program under IC 12-20-12-1 or another
job training program approved by the township trustee.
(b) The township trustee shall determine a township assistance
applicant's suitability to perform available work under this section.
The township trustee may provide for medical examinations
necessary to make the determination.
(c) A township assistance recipient shall perform an amount of
work that equals the value of assistance received by the township
assistance recipient or the recipient's household. The township
assistance recipient shall receive credit for the work performed, as
assigned by the township trustee, at a rate not less than the federal
minimum wage.
(d) The unit of government or nonprofit agency for which work
is performed under this section shall furnish the necessary tools,
materials, or transportation, unless the trustee agrees in writing to
furnish the necessary tools, materials, or transportation.
(e) Supervision of the work of a township assistance recipient
under this section is the responsibility of the governmental unit or
nonprofit agency for which the work is performed.
(f) The township trustee shall see that a township assistance
recipient performing work under this section is covered by adequate
liability insurance for injuries or damages suffered by or caused by
the township assistance recipient.
(g) A township assistance recipient may not be assigned to work
that would result in the displacement of governmental employees or
in the reduction of hours worked by governmental employees.
(h) The failure of a township assistance recipient to perform work
assigned by the township trustee within a reasonable period required
by the township trustee is a basis for denying further assistance to the
recipient or the recipient's household for not more than one hundred
eighty (180) days, unless the recipient shows good cause for not
performing the work.
As added by P.L.2-1992, SEC.14. Amended by P.L.51-1996, SEC.41;
P.L.73-2005, SEC.55.
IC 12-20-11-2
Nonprofit human services agency employment; suitability; value
of performance; furnished equipment; supervision; insurance;
displacement of employees
Sec. 2. (a) The township trustee may require the recipient to
perform work for nonprofit human services agencies located within
the county or an adjoining township in another county unless the
recipient attends courses under section 3 of this chapter.
(b) The township trustee shall determine a township assistance
applicant's suitability to perform available work under this section.
The township trustee may provide for medical examinations
necessary to make the determination.
(c) A township assistance recipient shall perform an amount of
work that equals the value of assistance received by the township
assistance recipient or the recipient's household. The township
assistance recipient shall work off the assistance at a rate not less
than the federal minimum wage.
(d) The nonprofit agency for which work is performed under this
section shall furnish the necessary tools, materials, or transportation,
unless the trustee agrees in writing to furnish the necessary tools,
materials, or transportation to and from the work site from the
trustee's office.
(e) Supervision of the work of a township assistance recipient
under this section is the responsibility of the nonprofit agency for
which the work is performed.
(f) The township trustee shall ensure that a township assistance
recipient performing work under this section is covered by adequate
liability insurance for injuries or damages suffered by or caused by
the township assistance recipient.
(g) A township assistance recipient may not be assigned to work
that would result in the displacement of employees of the nonprofit
agency or in the reduction of hours worked by those employees.
As added by P.L.2-1992, SEC.14. Amended by P.L.73-2005, SEC.56.
IC 12-20-11-3
Work exemption and tuition reimbursement for education courses
Sec. 3. (a) If a township assistance recipient, after referral by the
township trustee, is accepted and attends adult education courses
under IC 20-30-6-1 or courses at Ivy Tech Community College, the
township assistance recipient is exempt from performing work or
searching for work for not more than one hundred eighty (180) days.
(b) The township trustee may reimburse a township assistance
recipient for tuition expenses incurred in attending the courses
described in subsection (a) if the recipient:
(1) has a proven aptitude for the courses being studied;
(2) was referred by the trustee;
(3) does not qualify for other tax supported educational
programs;
(4) maintains a passing grade in each course; and
(5) maintains the minimum attendance requirements specified
by the educational institution.
As added by P.L.2-1992, SEC.14. Amended by P.L.5-1995, SEC.7;
P.L.51-1996, SEC.42; P.L.1-2005, SEC.138; P.L.127-2005, SEC.6;
P.L.1-2006, SEC.196; P.L.2-2007, SEC.161.
IC 12-20-11-4
Satisfaction of prior township obligations prerequisite to additional
township assistance; hardship temporary assistance; confirming
documentation
Sec. 4. (a) The township trustee may require a township assistance
applicant or an adult member of the applicant's household to satisfy
all obligations to perform work incurred in another township before
additional township assistance is granted. However, in case of an
emergency, the trustee may temporarily waive the work obligation
incurred from another township and provide temporary assistance to
an applicant or a household in order to relieve need or immediate
suffering.
(b) The township trustee may request from another township
trustee documentation necessary to confirm that a township
assistance applicant or an adult member of the applicant's household
performed or did not perform work in another township.
As added by P.L.2-1992, SEC.14. Amended by P.L.51-1996, SEC.43;
P.L.73-2005, SEC.57.
IC 12-20-11-5
Application of worker's compensation laws; repayment of
assistance
Sec. 5. (a) Work performed under this chapter is considered as
satisfaction of a condition for township assistance and is not
considered as services performed for remuneration or as repayment
for township assistance. However, a township assistance recipient
performing work under this chapter and the governmental unit or
nonprofit agency for which the recipient works are covered by the
medical treatment and burial expense provisions of IC 22-3-2
through IC 22-3-6 with regard to the work performed.
(b) A township trustee may not seek federal or state
reimbursement, foreclose a lien, or otherwise seek repayment of
assistance for which a recipient or an adult member of the recipient's
household has satisfactorily completed a workfare requirement.
As added by P.L.2-1992, SEC.14. Amended by P.L.51-1996, SEC.44;
P.L.73-2005, SEC.58.