The bill creates specific elements for public benefits theft in the
theft statute. A person commits public benefits theft when a person intentionally misrepresents or withholds a material fact for determining eligibility, and does so for the purpose of obtaining or retaining public benefits the recipient of the public benefits is not eligible for.
For the purposes of calculating the value of the public benefit
involved, the bill defines it as the difference between the value of the public benefit received and the value of the public benefit the recipient
was eligible for; except that, if the agency that provides the public benefit makes a referral for prosecution more than 180 calendar days after first receiving evidence of a misrepresentation or withholding of material fact, the value of the public benefit received after the agency received the evidence must be subtracted from the total.
