§ 3030c-3. Waivers
(a)
In general
The Assistant Secretary may waive any of the provisions specified in subsection (b) of this section with respect to a State, upon receiving an application by the State agency containing or accompanied by documentation sufficient to establish, to the satisfaction of the Assistant Secretary, that—
(1)
approval of the State legislature has been obtained or is not required with respect to the proposal for which waiver is sought;
(2)
the State agency has collaborated with the area agencies on aging in the State and other organizations that would be affected with respect to the proposal for which waiver is sought;
(3)
the proposal has been made available for public review and comment, including the opportunity for a public hearing upon request, within the State (and a summary of all of the comments received has been included in the application); and
(4)
the State agency has given adequate consideration to the probable positive and negative consequences of approval of the waiver application, and the probable benefits for older individuals can reasonably be expected to outweigh any negative consequences, or particular circumstances in the State otherwise justify the waiver.
(b)
Requirements subject to waiver
The provisions of this subchapter that may be waived under this section are—
(1)
any provision of sections
3025,
3026, and
3027 of this title requiring statewide uniformity of programs carried out under this subchapter, to the extent necessary to permit demonstrations, in limited areas of a State, of innovative approaches to assist older individuals;
(2)
any area plan requirement described in section
3026
(a) of this title if granting the waiver will promote innovations or improve service delivery and will not diminish services already provided under this chapter;
(3)
any State plan requirement described in section
3027
(a) of this title if granting the waiver will promote innovations or improve service delivery and will not diminish services already provided under this chapter;
(4)
any restriction under paragraph (5) of section
3028
(b) of this title, on the amount that may be transferred between programs carried out under part B of this subchapter and part C of this subchapter; and
(5)
the requirement of section
3029
(c) of this title that certain amounts of a State allotment be used for the provision of services, with respect to a State that reduces expenditures under the State plan of the State (but only to the extent that the non-Federal share of the expenditures is not reduced below any minimum specified in section
3024
(d) of this title or any other provision of this subchapter).
(c)
Duration of waiver
The application by a State agency for a waiver under this section shall include a recommendation as to the duration of the waiver (not to exceed the duration of the State plan of the State). The Assistant Secretary, in granting such a waiver, shall specify the duration of the waiver, which may be the duration recommended by the State agency or such shorter time period as the Assistant Secretary finds to be appropriate.
(d)
Reports to Secretary
With respect to each waiver granted under this section, not later than 1 year after the expiration of such waiver, and at any time during the waiver period that the Assistant Secretary may require, the State agency shall prepare and submit to the Assistant Secretary a report evaluating the impact of the waiver on the operation and effectiveness of programs and services provided under this subchapter.