Amendments to the Financial Assistance Regulations 2004 may benefit those who felt disadvantaged in July of this year, when the regulations came into effect. yesterday tabled Amendments to the Financial Assistance Regulations 2004 in the House of Assembly.

The regulations lay out the criteria for eligibility, detail the procedure for applying for financial assistance and give the Director the authority to cancel an award and to investigate statements made in application for an award. The schedule of the regulations also lays out the table of allowance expenses.

?I?m sure that everyone in this Honourable House, including you, Mr. Speaker, have heard stories of individuals who were suspected of taking advantage of Financial Assistance in one way or another,? said Mrs. Minors. ?So Mr. Speaker, when the regulations were being drafted, we tried to ensure that the regulations would be strong enough to weed out any fraudulent applications.

?However, the strength of the regulations did lead to unintended consequences. Mr. Speaker, since the implementation of the Financial Assistance Regulations 2004, the Department of Financial Assistance has closely monitored their impact on the clients who receive financial assistance. Our monitoring revealed that some of our clients in the following categories were, in some cases, being disadvantaged.?

These include pensioners/seniors, disabled persons, persons whose property?s Annual Rental Value is more than $9,900, persons who rent a room in a house where they are not a family member and persons who are residents of rest homes or nursing homes which have recently increased their monthly fees.

?Mr. Speaker, when the Financial Assistance Regulations were put in place, it was not the intent to disadvantage any of the aforementioned clients,? Mrs. Minors continued. ?Consequently, the Amendments to the Financial Assistance Regulations which I tabled earlier today have been crafted with the intent to minimise or eliminate any hardship that may befall these particular clients.?

With the approval of the Amendments, pensioners/seniors and the disabled will now be able to be assessed separately and independently from the households in which they reside, regardless of the Annual Rental Value of their property.

?This autonomy creates an atmosphere that enhances the overall quality of life and care for our senior and disabled persons as they will be able to benefit as though they are living independently,? she said.

When it comes to persons whose property?s annual rental value is more than $9,900, Mrs. Minors explained that this will be remedied by substituting ?$9,900? wherever it appears in the current Regulations with the following words, ?the amount specified in section 3(3) (b) of the Rent Increases (Domestic Premises) Control Act 1978?.

This amendment will link the Financial Assistance Annual Rental Value with the value used in setting rent controls and will in effect increase the number of households which will be eligible for assistance under the regulations.

As far as the regulations go for persons who rent a room in a house where they are not a family member, the amendments will allow a person who is 55 years or older, and lives as a boarder in a household, to receive financial assistance.

Mrs. Minors said given the current housing shortage and lack of affordable rental units, it seemed unfair to exclude these persons when they would otherwise be eligible.

In reference to persons who reside in rest or nursing homes, Ms. Minors said it was clear that seniors whose health was declining and who presently resided within a rest or nursing home required a higher level of care.

On this basis, the amendments to the current ?Table of Allowable Expenses? will minimise or negate monthly shortfalls for seniors and their families by increasing rates for rest homes from $2,800 to $3,000 and nursing home rates from $3,500 to $4,000 monthly.

In closing, Mrs. Minors said it was her sincere hope that the amendment to the Financial Assistance Regulations, which come into effect on January 1, 2005, will go a long way to ensuring a happier and more prosperous new year for those that may, in the past, have experienced difficulty in gaining assistance.