§114. Fraud in obtaining assistance; withholding information concerning property, income, or beneficiary, or personal circumstances

A. No person shall obtain or attempt to obtain assistance from the Department of Children and Family Services or the Louisiana Department of Health by means of any false statement, misrepresentation, or other fraudulent device. If during the life, or upon the death, of any person who is receiving or has received assistance it is found that the recipient is receiving or has received assistance through misrepresentation, nondisclosure of material facts, or other fraudulent device, the amount of assistance, without interest, shall be recoverable from him or his estate as a debt due the state by court action.

B. If at any time during the continuance of public assistance to any person, the recipient thereof, or the husband or wife of the recipient with whom he or she is living, is possessed or becomes possessed of any property or income in excess of the amount declared at the time of application or reinvestigation of his case and in such amount as would affect his needs or right to receive assistance, it shall be the duty of the recipient, or the husband or wife of the recipient, to notify the Department of Children and Family Services or the Louisiana Department of Health of possession of such property or income, and the department shall, after investigation, either cancel the assistance or alter the amount thereof in accordance with the circumstances, provided, that such investigation shows that such property or income does affect the need of the recipient or his right to receive assistance. If during the life, or upon the death, of any person who is receiving or has received assistance it is found that the recipient or his spouse was possessed of any property or income in excess of the amount reported that would affect his need or right to receive assistance, any assistance paid when the recipient or his spouse was in possession of such undeclared property or income shall be recoverable, without interest, from him or his estate as a debt due the state by court action. The possession of undeclared property by a recipient or his spouse with whom he is living shall be prima facie evidence of its ownership during the time assistance was granted, and the burden to prove otherwise shall be upon the recipient or his legal representative.

C.(1) If the personal circumstances of the recipient change at any time during the continuance of assistance, he shall immediately notify the Department of Children and Family Services or the Louisiana Department of Health of the change. Personal circumstances shall include:

(a) The members of the household.

(b) The place of residence of the recipient.

(c) The establishment of a legal or nonlegal union by the recipient.

(d) The failure of a child between the ages of sixteen and eighteen years, who is receiving aid to dependent children, to attend school regularly.

(2) If during the life, or upon the death, of any person who is receiving assistance it is found that the recipient has received or is receiving assistance of a greater amount than he is entitled to receive as a result of his failure to notify the Department of Children and Family Services or the Louisiana Department of Health of a change of personal circumstances as set forth in this Subsection, any assistance paid during the time that the recipient was receiving assistance of a greater amount than he was entitled to receive as a result of his failure to notify the department shall be recoverable, with legal interest, from him or his estate as a debt due the state by court action.

D. The federal government shall be entitled to share in any amount recovered under the provisions of this Section; however, the amount recovered by the federal government shall not exceed the amount contributed by the federal government in each case. The amount due the United States shall be promptly paid or credited upon collection to the designated agency of the federal government by the Department of Children and Family Services or the Louisiana Department of Health.

E.(1) Persons receiving food stamps or Aid to Families with Dependent Children, or a successor of either program, who have been determined by the Department of Children and Family Services in an administrative hearing, or a court of competent jurisdiction after final appeal, to have fraudulently obtained such food stamps or Aid to Families with Dependent Children, or benefits or assistance from a successor of either program, shall be ineligible for further participation in the program in accordance with the following schedule:

(a) For a period of six months upon the first occasion of such determination.

(b) For a period of one year upon the second occasion of such determination.

(c) Permanently upon the third occasion of such determination.

(2) During the period of ineligibility no household shall receive increased benefits under those programs as a result of its having been disqualified under this Subsection.

(3) Persons receiving medical assistance under provisions of Title XIX of the Social Security Act who have been determined by the Department of Children and Family Services or the Louisiana Department of Health to have fraudulently obtained such medical assistance may be suspended from the medical assistance program for twelve months.

Amended by Acts 1952, No. 29, §1; Acts 1956, No. 184, §1; Acts 1960, No. 299, §1; Acts 1979, No. 769, §4; Acts 1980, No. 769, §1; Acts 1982, No. 494, §1; Acts 1988, No. 427, §1, eff. July 9, 1988; Acts 2018, No. 206, §5.