Contacts Needed with Senators on Welfare Reauthorization

March 4, 2013

Government Relations Action Alert Contacts Needed with Senators on Welfare Reauthorization May 24, 2002 Background Now that the House has approved the Personal Responsibility, Work, and Family Promotion Act (H.R. 4737), its version of the reauthorization of the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, action moves to the Senate. In the Senate, two comprehensive welfare reauthorization bills have been introduced--the Work and Family Act (S. 2524) sponsored by Senators Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Tom Carper (D-DE) and the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act Amendments (S. 2052) sponsored by Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV). A tri-partisan group of Senators led by Senators John Breaux (D-LA) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) developed a welfare reauthorization "framework" and Democratic Senators on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee developed a set of reform "principles," but neither group plans to introduce a formal bill. Both social work members of the Senate, Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), signed onto the HELP Committee principles. NASW opposed passage of H.R. 4737, but has not taken a formal position on any of the Senate proposals. The association did urge Senators to sign onto the HELP Committee letter, which supports many of the association's priorities. We continue to concentrate on advocacy on three broad goals: reducing poverty; increasing assistance to families with barriers, such as mental illness, substance abuse, and domestic violence; and enhancing the capacity of the welfare workforce. Summaries and supporters of the key proposals follow. They will also be posted at www.socialworkers.org/advocacy/welfare/legislation/default.asp. The bills, themselves, can be found at http://thomas.loc.gov. Timing The Senate Finance Committee is in the process of developing a "committee" bill that will incorporate many of the ideas included in the various proposals and serve as the primary Senate bill. Committee action has been delayed until after the Memorial Day recess (May 27-31), but is expected to take place either the week of June 10 or more likely the week of June 17. The full Senate hopes to vote on the bill prior to the July 4 recess, scheduled for July 1-5, 2002. Contacts Due to the continuing mail delivery problems on Capitol Hill, the best ways to communicate to your Senators are by fax, email, and telephone. To download a letter to fax or send an email, see CongressWeb at www.socialworkers.org/advocacy/grassroots/congressweb.asp. Sample Telephone Message I am a professional social worker and member of the National Association of Social Workers calling from (city) about welfare reauthorization. I would like to urge Senator (last name) to support proposals that: allow welfare recipients suffering from mental illness, substance abuse or domestic violence sufficient time to overcome their barriers and cope with the stresses of combining work and family. [The time necessary must be based on the needs and strengths of each family. A one-size-fits all approach of three or six months ignores both the research and reality of addiction and disability.] allocate dedicated funding to help states develop a more qualified, stable, and professional welfare workforce. [Without additional training and resources, current frontline workers, many with only high school diplomas, will be ill-prepared to cope with plans for universal engagement of recipients and families will suffer.] maintain the current, more realistic work participation requirements of 30 hours a week for 50 percent of the caseload. increase access to education and training, including post-secondary education, by eliminating the current 12 month restriction and 30 percent cap on participants. Thank you. # # # # # Summary of the Personal Responsibility, Work and Family Promotion Act (H.R. 4737) Adapted from a summary by the Child Welfare League of America Poverty Reduction and Child Well-Being Changes the current purpose of the 1996 law from "end dependence of needy parents on government benefits by promoting job preparation, work, and marriage" to "end the dependence of needy families on government benefits and reduce poverty by promoting job preparation, work, and marriage." Also amends the introductory section to the four purposes to state that the overall purpose is "to improve child well-being" and amends the fourth purpose to emphasize "strengthening healthy two-parent marriages and encourage responsible fatherhood." Universal Engagement and Family Self-Sufficiency Plans Replaces individual assessments with a requirement that every family have a self-sufficiency plan developed by the state and that a parent, caretaker, or family engage in activities in accordance with the plan. The Family Self-Sufficiency Plan requires the state to assess in a manner deemed appropriate by the state the skills, work experience, and employability of each work-eligible individual. The plan is to specify appropriate activities, including direct work activities; require, at a minimum, each member of the family who is work-eligible to participate in these activities; monitor the participation of these family members; regularly review the self-sufficiency plan; and revise the plan as appropriate. Work Requirements Increases the current 50% work requirement by 5% a year until it reaches 70% in 2007. No separate calculation is required for two-parent families. Requires TANF recipients to be engaged 40 hours a week in work and activity. Twenty-four hours of that 40-hour total must be in work. Substance abuse treatment, rehabilitation services, work-related education or training, or job search for three months over a two-year period can be counted as work. Participants, on a case-by-case basis, may be granted an extra month for education or training if necessary to complete a certificate program. For the remaining 16 of the 40 hours, an individual must be engaged in activities defined by the state. There will no longer be a reduced work week (of 20 hours) for mothers with children under age 6. The bill proposes no changes to current law allowing states to exempt 20% of their caseload from the work requirements. Sanctions Requires states to impose what is referred to as a full "check" sanction. In effect, these are "full family" sanctions. If individuals fail to meet certain work and TANF requirements, the entire family benefit must be eliminated at least for a period of time. This full family sanction provision requires states that currently impose a partial sanction on families (reducing their monthly cash assistance) for refusal to meet certain TANF requirements, to cut-off all benefits to the sanctioned family. If an adult fails to meet TANF activities and requirements partially or for one month, then there must be at least a partial reduction in benefits. If the individual fails to meet all TANF requirements for two months or more, then the entire family has to be cut-off from receiving any federal or state TANF assistance for at least one month. TANF Time Limits The bill proposes no changes to the current law, which dictates that no adult may receive more than 5 years of federally funded TANF assistance. Child Care Reauthorizes the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) through 2007. Mandatory, or guaranteed funding, would increase from $2.7 billion to $2.9 billion in 2003 and remain at that same level through 2007. Also increases annual authorization of discretionary CCDF funding by $200 million per year in fiscal years 2003 through 2007. Discretionary funding, now at $2.1 billion, could increase $200 million a year until it reaches $3.1 billion in 2007. These increases are discretionary and therefore subject to the annual appropriations process which means that future child care funding increases would have to compete for scarce dollars against other key child welfare programs, including the Promoting Safe and Stable Families program, Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, and the Child Welfare Services program. Requires states to devise a strategy to address child care quality and develop an annual report on progress. Increases the current 4% quality set-aside of a state's discretionary, mandatory and matching funds to 6%. Allows states to transfer up to 50% of their TANF block grant into the Child Care and Development Fund--an increase from the current 30%. Child Support Allows states to increase the amount of child support funds they pass through to a family by allowing states to increase from $50 to $100 funds passed through to the family. States will not be required to reimburse the federal government for its share of this cost. To qualify, a state must disregard the increased child support passed through to the family in calculating a family's assistance grant level-not reduce the assistance grant by the amount of increased child support received by the family. Also encourages states to pass through all child support to families that have left TANF. The federal government will share in this cost. Transitional Medical Assistance Allows for a one-year extension of the transitional medical assistance program (TMA) through FY 2003. TMA provides temporary health care coverage to families who have become ineligible for Medicaid, usually due to the move from welfare to self-sufficiency. Abstinence Education Extends Section 510 of the Maternal and Child Health Block Grant, the abstinence-unless-married education program until FY 2007. Current funding for this abstinence education program is $50 million for FY 2002. To receive funding under this program, only an abstinence-unless-married curriculum can be taught. States are restricted from using these funds to teach both abstinence and contraception. TANF Funding Maintains the current TANF funding level at $16.5 billion through 2007. Continues to provide $319 million a year in supplemental grants to 17 states. Creates a new a $100 million competitive grant, Healthy Marriage Promotion program. Funds can be used for: 1) ad campaigns on the value of marriage and the skills needed to have a stable and healthy marriage, 2) high school classes on the value of marriage, relationship skills and budgeting, 3) marriage skill classes for non-married women or men, 4) training for engaged couples, 5) training for married couples, 6) divorce reduction, marriage mentoring, and programs to reduce disincentives to marriage in means-tested programs. To receive funds under this new program, a state must provide a 50% match and can use its federal TANF funds for the match. Creates a new $20 million fatherhood program. Competitive grants are awarded to local entities with matches of at least 80% in federal dollars. Funds can be used for: (1) responsible parenting; (2) enhancing the ability of low-income unemployed fathers to provide support; (3) improving fathers ability to manage family business affairs through education, mentoring, household management, budgeting, etc.; and (4) encouragement of healthy marriages through premarital education, premarital inventories, marital therapy, divorce education, and mediation and relationship enhancement programs, including those designed to reduce child abuse and domestic violence. Applicants must describe how they will address child abuse and domestic violence and how they will coordinate with state and local entities on these issues. Reduces the existing TANF high performance bonus to $100 million and is renamed the Bonus to Reward Employment Achievement. This bonus is currently funded at $200 million per year with a complex formula set up to measure job placement, job advancement, and access to certain support services such as child care. There is no limit on the number of states that can earn a portion of this bonus. Social Services Block Grant Retains current funding of $1.7 billion for the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG). Restores states' ability to transfer 10% of their federal TANF funds into SSBG. Super-Waiver Authority Grants broad authority to the Secretaries of the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, Education, Housing and Urban Development, and Agriculture to waive various program requirements and laws. This waiver authority covers Child Care, TANF, SSBG, the food stamp program, housing programs except those under Sections 7 and 8, the Labor Department's Wagner-Peyser Act and the Department of Education's Adult Education and Family Literacy Act. This "super-waiver" proposal does not impose any significant limitations on the types of rules states that can apply to be waived, except that a waiver must not result in higher federal costs than would be incurred under standard federal law. This stands in stark contrast to most waiver provisions of current law, which include certain safeguards. States are only required to show that the waiver would further the purposes of all of the programs involved. If the Secretary of the Department did not respond within 90 days, the waiver would be automatically approved. Unlike past waiver policies that allowed states to operate demonstration projects to test the efficacy of new initiatives or alternative approaches, there would be no requirement that these waivers have a research objective or be subject to an independent evaluation. WORK AND FAMILY ACT (S. 2524) Summary by Office of Senator Carper Supported by Senators Evan Bayh (D-IN), Tom Carper (D-DE), Bob Graham (D-FL), Joseph Lieberman (D-CT), Hillary Clinton (D-NY), Zell Miller (D-GA), Jean Carnahan (D-MO), Ben Nelson (D-NE), Bill Nelson (D-FL) Requiring Work & Providing Supports Increase Work Participation Rates to 70% by 2007: The TANF work participation rate for single-parent families started at 35% in 1996 and is now at 50%. The work participation rate serves as the only result-oriented measure in TANF required by the Federal Government. The focus on work should continue and states should be expected to increase their work participation rate incrementally to 70% by 2007. Provide Additional Funding for Child Care: Provides an additional $8 billion over five years in mandatory child care funding to the Child Care Development Block Grant to help low-income families find quality care for their children and eliminate the biggest barrier stopping single mothers from re-entering the workforce. In addition, the Social Services Block Grant is restored to $2.8 billion. States utilize these funds for child care and transportation. Require Welfare Recipients to Work a Full Time Work Week: Under current law, single parent families are required to work 30 hours, and two-parent families are required to work 35 hour weeks. The proposal will raise the work week to 40 hours (full-time engagement) for TANF recipients. The work requirements will be contingent upon the availability of adequate child care funding (detailed below). In addition, an incentive will be provided if the individual is working 40 hours with at least 24 hours of core work. Replace Caseload Reduction Credit: The current caseload reduction credit, used to lower the states' work participation rates, is criticized for encouraging states to remove individuals off the rolls but not to necessarily find recipients sustainable employment. Therefore, the caseload reduction credit should be replaced with credits targeted at moving people to work and avoiding cash assistance. The credits include partial credit for placing non-custodial parents in work and collecting child support, providing child care and transportation assistance to those working, individuals participating in higher education for at least 20 hours, and those working part-time (at least 15 hours of core work activities). These credits collectively are capped at 15%. In addition, credit is provided for moving welfare recipients to work, bonus credit is provided if the recipient is placed in a higher paying job (defined as 50% of the state's average wage) and states can obtain credit for increasing their child support collection on behalf of current and former TANF recipients. Allow Recipients to Address Work Hurdles for Three Months Without Penalizing the State. In order to allow states flexibility, a recipient can address a work hurdle such as substance abuse, domestic violence, depression, or mental health issues for 3 months within a 24 month period without counting in the state's caseload for the purposes of calculating the work participation rate. Expansion of Vocational Training and Education: States would be allowed to count up to half the individuals participating in vocational education and training to do so for 24 months. In order to be eligible for the 24-month period, states would need to certify that the individual was working towards a degree or certificate. The current law limiting the participants to 30% of the caseload is retained. Create Competitive Grant for Public/Private Partnerships for Educational Opportunities: TANF recipients who are working should have the opportunity for upward mobility in their employment. In order to encourage public-private partnerships to provide educational opportunities for recipients, funds will be provided for programs that provide community college access for recipients who demonstrate a commitment to work. In addition, funding will be provided for the "Parents as Scholars" program that has already been implemented in states such as Maine and Arkansas. Set Equal Work Goals for Single and Two-Parent Families: Bayh/Carper levels the playing field for single and two-parent families by asking states to meet the same work-participation requirements for each. Under current law, states must ensure that 90% of two-parent families and only 50% of single-parent families be engaged in some form of work activity. Fund Transitional Jobs: Transitional Jobs programs place workers in short-term, subsidized jobs that combine on-the-job work experience with an array of support services to help participants overcome their barriers to employment and transition into unsubsidized jobs. Most transitional jobs programs combine 20 hours of work per week with additional hours of substance abuse treatment, language skills training, or other barrier removal activities. Participants are still eligible for work supports, such as child care, Medicaid and Food Stamps. Inclusion of Health Care as Critical Work Support: Traditional Medical Assistance (TMA) is a critical support that strengthens incentives for welfare recipients to go to work and remain employed without losing health insurance coverage. Under TMA, most of those who leave welfare for work - and whose earning would otherwise make them ineligible for Medicaid - may continue to get transitional health care coverage for up to a year longer. This bill includes the extension of the Transitional Medical Assistance for one year and Senator Clinton is supporting legislation to extend it for the full five years. Strengthening Families Promote Responsible Fatherhood and Stable Families: The 1996 welfare reform law focused much of its attention on custodial parents (usually mothers). The next generation of welfare reform must also include an emphasis on non-custodial parents (usually fathers). Senator Bayh's Responsible Fatherhood Act, designed to promote responsible fatherhood and married, two-parent families, is incorporated into The Work and Family Act in order to: authorize $50 million for states to provide support to state and local governments, nonprofit, charitable, and religious organizations' efforts to promote responsible fatherhood; a $25 million Challenge Grant program to encourage states and communities to solicit free air time from broadcasters to promote responsible fatherhood, and; provide $2 million per year to establish a National Clearinghouse to assist states and communities in their efforts to promote and support responsible fatherhood. Part of the fatherhood and non-custodial parents program in the legislation will provide additional funds for demonstration programs to conduct policy reviews and provide recommendations for low-income men in a coordinated fashion among the justice system, TANF system, child care enforcement agencies, and employment programs. Require Non-Custodial Parents to Pay Child Support or Face Consequences: The bill provides funds for programs - already implemented in some counties - that encourage child support payments and work by providing non-custodial parents the option of either going through a court-supervised employment program or being found in contempt of court (for non-compliance with the child support order). A solid example of this approach is Gulf Coast Jewish Family Services in Clearwater, Florida. States will be given funds to implement court-supervised employment programs and employment support services so that noncustodial parents, including ex-offenders, will pay child support and avoid jail. Prevent Teen Pregnancy: As a nation, we should commit ourselves to reducing teen pregnancy by at least 25% over the next ten years. Although teen pregnancy rates continue to decline in a majority of states, it continues to be a major cause of poverty in America, and rate increases were experienced in 11 states and nationally among Hispanic teens. States will be provided with grants to implement teen pregnancy prevention programs that are proven to be effective. Additional funds will be provided as an incentive for states to achieve a minimum of a 2.5% annual decrease in teen birth rates. In addition, funding for a clearinghouse that will provide resources and media consultation will be provided. Encourage Child Support Payments: States would be allowed to pass-through child support directly to families currently or formerly on TANF. In addition, the bill also relieves states of their obligation to repay the Federal government its share of the collections it allows to be passed through. If a state gives up its share of the payment, the federal government will give up its share too. Improve Child Support Enforcement Measures: Establishes demonstration projects to give certain local, public agencies involved in the collection of child support greater access to several enforcement tools; Creates a GAO study on the collection efforts and practices of private child support collection agencies; Lowers from $5,000 to $2,500 the amount of child support arrears needed to trigger a current-law provision on suspending an individual's passport; and permits the use of the federal tax refund offset to collect child support arrears after a child has turned 18 years of age. Encourage Cooperation Between Child Support Enforcement and Related Agencies: the Bayh/Carper bill will fund demonstration projects for states to create innovative efforts to increase child support collection. Child Support enforcement agencies should test ways to coordinate with the justice department, employment communities, hospitals and other stakeholders to establish methods to reach out to men in the beginning of the process and prevent nonpayment of child support. Ban Discrimination Against Two-Parent Families: A number of states have policies that provide a disincentive for marriage, such as the 100-hour rule that eliminates TANF assistance for two-parent families where one parent works more than 100 hours a month, and the seven to thirty day waiting period that applies exclusively to two-parent families seeking TANF assistance. Bayh/Carper restricts states from imposing these anti-marriage requirements unless the state passes a law to do so. Restore Benefits for Legal Immigrants: Each state would have the option to cover legal immigrant parents and children (who meet eligibility requirements) with TANF dollars and services. Supplemental funds will be provided to states impacted by this provision. In addition, states would have the option to provide Medicaid and SCHIP to otherwise legal immigrant children and pregnant women who entered the United States after August 22, 1996. Accountability measures will be added under both provisions to ensure that legal immigrants who receive benefits and their sponsors are in compliance with their sponsorship agreements and affidavits of support. Flexibility & Resources Restore Contingency Fund to Help Recession-Proof TANF: The contingency fund was allowed to expire last year. There was general agreement that the fund had triggers and requirements that would make it difficult for states access funds in a time of need. The bill will revise the triggers and make the fund more accessible for states. Maintain the TANF Block Grant: The bill will maintain the block grant at $16.5 billion per year because the caseload has been reduced by 50 percent since 1996, and less than half of TANF and MOE spending is for cash assistance. Restore Funding for Social Services Block Grant (SSBG): This provision will restore the original funding level for the SSBG to $2.8 billion by 2007. The SSBG is used by states to provide a variety of services including providing child-care to low-income families. Credit States for Spending On All Four Purposes of TANF: Currently, state dollars spent on teen pregnancy prevention and the formation and maintenance of two-parent families cannot count toward state "Maintenance of Effort" (MOE) requirements. This may discourage states from spending state funds on some of the more family oriented goals in TANF. States should be given the flexibility necessary to spend their MOE funds effectively. Replace Current Bonus Funds: The two bonus funds, the illegitimacy bonus (reduction in out-of-wedlock births) and the high performance bonus in TANF have not been effective in impacting how states spend their funds. This $300 million per year can be better utilized by creating grants to prevent teen pregnancy and create additional work initiatives. Restore Supplemental Grants: Reduces the disparity between states in TANF funding which are a result of the basic TANF funding formula enacted in 1996. Provide funding for Pathway Grants: These grants would be utilized by states to improve the coordination of support programs for low-income families and non-custodial parents. States would be required to conduct assessments of their regional labor markets and identify industries or occupations that need workers and compare industry job seekers needs with the job preparation infrastructure. Worker Protections and Accountability: Under current law, four anti-discrimination statutes apply to activities funded by TANF: the Age Discrimination Act of 1975; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990; the Fair Labor Standards Act, and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This bill requires a GAO review of how states have complied with the requirements of these laws and make recommendations for improving compliance. HHS is also required to issue a "best practices" guide for states in complying with these laws in TANF. The bill also includes strong statutory language to ensure that TANF funds are not used to displace public employees. Specifically, this bill will ensure that states comply with the minimum wage under the Fair Labor and Standards Act when implementing welfare programs. TRIPARTISAN CONSENSUS PROVISIONS ON WELFARE REAUTHORIZATION Summary by Office of Senator Breaux Supported by Senators John Breaux (D-LA), Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Jim Jeffords (I-VT), Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), Olympia Snowe (R-ME) Universal Engagement. Consistent with President Bush's recommendation, we agree there should be a universal engagement provision incorporated into reauthorization of the 1996 welfare reform law. In order to ensure universal engagement, we agree that states should be required to improve and expand on the Individualized Responsibility Plan (IRP) so that every family has a specific plan detailing the steps and work supports needed to move the parent into meaningful work activities and achieve self-sufficiency. We acknowledge that in order to create an effective system of universal engagement, states will require some planning time. However, beginning in FY04, every new TANF client must have an IRP within 60 days. Since a parent's responsibility extends to her children as well as to her job, we propose that the IRP also include an assessment of the well-being of each child in the family, especially considering the research showing that adolescents have many challenges. This provision is designed to respond to President Bush's commitment to promote child well-being. Work Participation Rates. We agree that too many TANF recipients are not engaged in enough meaningful activity. Consistent with President Bush's recommendation to measure progress on universal engagement, we support increasing the minimum work participation rate 5% annually from the current Fiscal Year 2002 level of 50% participation to reach 70% by 2007. Employment Credit. To make work real, our plan would eliminate the caseload-reduction credit and replace it with a workable employment credit. The new credit only provides incentives to states for parents that truly work. It gives states credit for moving people from welfare to work, and gives extra credit for those states that move people off of cash assistance for higher-paying jobs (33 percent of the state's average wage). It measures state performance along the entire continuum from welfare to work by rewarding states for providing short-term emergency assistance, which prevents people from ever needing welfare benefits in the first place, and for providing vital work support services such as child care and transportation. It more accurately measures the level of work activity among those served by 1) Providing half credit to states for people working at least half of the required work hours, pro-rated to full credit for people working all required work hours, and 2) Excluding people deemed severely and permanently disabled during the year from the state's work participation requirement. This provision comes from the "Making Work Pay Act," authored by Senator Lincoln. Work Hours. To support President Bush's goal of encouraging more work, we agree to increase the number of hours of work-focused activities required to meet the work participation rate from 20 hours to 24 hours. However, in response to comments from our states regarding the feasibility moving 70% of all TANF clients to a required 40 hour work week, we agree to maintain the current total of 30 hours engagement in approved work activities. Additionally, in response to concerns from our states and recognizing the unique challenges mothers with young children face, we maintain the current law provision "deeming" mothers with children under 6 who are engaged in 20 hours of approved work activity as meeting the full work requirement. Definition of Work. Because we have heard great success stories from our states and believe that the 1996 welfare reform law has been a qualified success, having moved over 60% into private sector jobs, we agree to maintain existing criteria for what counts as an approved work activity, and add the following activities as approved activities only if included in a family's IRP: Education and Training. In order to promote the proposition that the next stage of welfare reform should focus on, not merely moving people into jobs, but helping them achieve self sufficiency by getting good, high paying jobs, we support allowing parents access to increased education and training programs, if it is deemed that a family would benefit from these programs. Therefore, we support allowing states to provide up to 24 months of vocational education to meet the work participation requirement. This provision was passed in a bipartisan vote in the Senate in 1998, though it was not finally adopted by the Congress. We also encourage states to help teen parents finish their education by no longer counting them toward the overall 30% cap on vocational education. Adult Basic Education. Basic adult education will count toward the full work participation requirement for 3 months. If basic adult education is included as part of the client's IRP for a longer period of time, an additional 3 months of adult basic education may count toward the work requirement provided that it is combined with work or job-readiness activities. States will be allowed to count basic adult education as part of the flexible 6 hour work requirement until an adult successfully completes their program. Substance Abuse. We have a great deal of empathy for those who are struggling with multiple barriers. We recognize that these individuals may need more time before they are prepared to be accountable under a rigorous work requirement, such as the one we are proposing. Therefore, we believe that substance abusers should get treatment so that they are able to become self-sufficient and succeed in a job. Our plan allows three months of full-time substance abuse treatment and three additional months of treatment combined with job-readiness activities to count toward the work participation rate for individuals certified as having a substance abuse problem, and for whom substance abuse treatment is part of their IRP. TANF Funding. As suggested by President Bush, we propose to maintain the current level of funding for the TANF block grant and renew the TANF supplemental grants. Maintenance of Effort. states should continue their commitment to working families by extending the state contribution through the maintenance of effort (MOE) requirement. Child Care. Because child care is essential for parents who are working, we will ensure that the Child Care Development Fund has sufficient funding to accommodate the new work participation rates. It is not our intention to add to a state's burden by increasing the work requirement without sufficient resources for states to provide needed work supports. We recognize that some members of our tripartisan group have additional child care concerns which they will pursue as the reauthorization process proceeds. Additionally, we include some TANF child care provisions in legislation co-authored by Senator Snowe. Contingency Fund. We agree with President Bush that the contingency fund should be reauthorized and improved. Social Services Block Grant. We should restore $2.8 billion per year for the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG). In addition, we agree with the President to allow states to transfer 10% of its TANF funds to SSBG as promised in 1996. Marriage. We agree with President Bush that funds should be provided to states to encourage healthy marriages. We provide a $100 million annual fund to conduct research and demonstration projects, and provide technical assistance primarily focusing on family formation and healthy marriage activities. We also provide a $100 million grant program available to a limited number of states, territories, and tribal organizations to develop innovative approaches to promoting healthy marriage and reducing out-of-wedlock births. We agree to allow use of these funds to support teen pregnancy prevention programs so that young people will wait until they are mature enough to successfully enter into marriage. Consistent with the President's emphasis on healthy marriages, we agree that healthy marriage programs must address the special needs of domestic violence victims. Two-Parent Participation Rate Requirements. We agree with President Bush, that two-parent families should not be penalized. Therefore, we eliminate the separate two-parent family participation rates. Time Limits. We adopt the President's proposal to continue the existing 60-month time limit set in 1996 so that welfare is clearly a temporary program designed to promote self-sufficiency. Health Care. As in 1996, we should provide a five- year extension of Transitional Medical Assistance (TMA) for parents and children leaving welfare, including administrative improvements in the "Transitional Medical Assistance Improvement Act," authored by Senator Breaux. Families moving into work should not lose access to health care and no parent should have to choose between a job and health care for their child. Legal Immigrants. We provide a state option to provide benefits to legal immigrants under TANF, regardless of date of entry. Abstinence Education. We extend the Human Resources and Services Administration's Community-Based abstinence education grants and the Adolescent Family Life abstinence program at current funding levels. Spending Flexibility. We adopt the President's suggestions to clarify the definition of "assistance"; allow state designation of "Rainy Day Funds"; and increase state flexibility regarding carried-over funds. We also increase state flexibility to transfer TANF funds to carry out existing transportation-for-jobs programs or reverse-commute projects. Accountability. Following the suggestion by President Bush, we require HHS to research the best ways to construct performance measures that relate to the various goals of the TANF program and require HHS to promulgate "best practice" standards on the most appropriate procedures for sanctions. We also require states to make public the financial and program data submitted to HHS when the data is transmitted, including posting the information on the state's web-site. Anti-Discrimination. We require GAO to conduct a review of how states have complied with the requirements of the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, Section 504 of the Rehab Act of 1973, the ADA, and Civil Rights, as well as make recommendations for improving compliance. Streamline Administrative Rules for Foster Care. States must retain the income and assets standards for foster care established in the 1996 welfare reform law as the minimum standard. Subject to a CBO estimate, states would have the option of updating the standards to align them with TANF eligibility. Child Support. We agree that more child support dollars should get through to the family by allowing states to pass-through child support directly to families currently or formerly on TANF. states should also be relieved of their obligation to repay the Federal government its share of the collections it allows to be passed through. This provision is based on the "Child Support Distribution Act of 2001," authored by Senator Snowe. Research of "What Works." Longitudinal studies of TANF applicants and recipients will be conducted in 10 states to determine the factors that contribute to positive employment and family outcomes. SENATE HEALTH, EDUCATION, LABOR & PENSIONS (HELP) COMMITTEE PRINCIPLES Signed by Senators Edward Kennedy (D-MA), Paul Wellstone (D-MN), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Chris Dodd (D-CT), Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Hillary Clinton (D-NY), Jon Corzine (D-NJ), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Russ Feingold (D-WI), Jack Reed (D-RI), Paul Sarbanes (D-MD), Daniel Akaka (D-HI), Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Patty Murray (D-WA), Carl Levin (D-MI), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) May 22, 2002 Honorable Max Baucus Chairman Senate Finance Committee 219 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 Honorable Charles E. Grassley Ranking Member Senate Finance Committee 203 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 Dear Chairman Baucus and Senator Grassley: As you know, despite the significant decline in welfare caseloads since the enactment of the 1996 reform law, more than 31 million people - including nearly 12 million children - remain in poverty today. Many low-income working families continue to struggle day-to-day to provide the basic necessities for their families. The current TANF reauthorization provides an opportunity to significantly improve the stability and quality of life for low-income working families, and we are writing to let you know our views on this important issue. Increase the Basic Block Grant: At current spending levels, the basic block grant will not keep up with inflation. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, if funding levels are frozen, the real value of the block grant will be reduced by 22% below its level when it was established in 1997. This will leave states with fewer resources to serve the needs of low-income families, including the one million receiving supports, but not counted on the welfare rolls. More funding is necessary to allow states to adequately support the basic needs of working individuals and families. Respect for Congressional Authority: Superwaiver authority would constitute an unprecedented transfer of authority from Congress to the Executive branch. As proposed, superwaivers also threaten to reduce the total amount of resources targeted to low-income families and communities. We firmly oppose any such proposals to create superwaivers. Flexibility in Addressing Individual Needs: The current welfare reform debate should be about people, not about numbers. States have demonstrated great innovation and success in moving welfare recipients to meaningful jobs. Uniformly raising the work requirements for all welfare recipients would fail to take into account individual needs and responsibilities for their children. We strongly support the work hour requirement of 30 hours per week for parents with children age six or older proposed by a tri-partisan group of Finance Committee members. We further support the concept of providing flexibility and credit to states that want to invest in moving people into good full-time jobs. Skills for a Competitive Workforce: Investing in people�s skills is essential because it increases family income and fosters a competitive workforce, which is the foundation of a robust economy. Training and education - including vocational, post-secondary, and basic adult education, work-study, GED studies, ESL, and literacy activities - should count toward TANF work requirements. We also support wage-based transitional job programs to build the skills necessary to secure stable employment. The link between job training and welfare programs should be strengthened by making TANF agencies mandatory partners with the workforce system created by the Workforce Investment Act at the state and local level. Employment for Families Facing Multiple Barriers: A large number of TANF families report one or more barriers to work. Families facing serious obstacles to employment should be able to participate in programs to overcome these barriers, and time spent in such activities should count in meeting work participation requirements. These activities should include participation in programs to address domestic violence, substance abuse, physical or mental impairments, limited English proficiency, limited literacy, learning disabilities, and caring for sick or disabled children. Support for Child Care: Current TANF proposals would impose large new child care costs. Without significant new funding, it will be impossible to meet those costs. At current funding levels, only about one in seven federally eligible children receives a child care subsidy. Many of the nation�s young children are being cared for in settings of low quality. Early care experiences profoundly affect children for years to come. To assure access to quality child care for low-income working parents, we recommend an additional investment of $11.25 billion over five years in mandatory spending. Any increased child care needs created by changes in the TANF program should be met with funding beyond this investment. Rewarding Work: While state TANF programs have succeeded in moving many families from welfare to work, too many low-wage, low-skill workers do not earn enough to meet their families� basic needs. As families make the transition from welfare to work, they should not be penalized by losing the work supports that help to keep them working and off welfare. Families that work, but remain in poverty, should be eligible for additional income supplements, without requiring states to count those months against the federal lifetime limits on assistance. Transitional Medicaid should be reauthorized for five years, and should be readily available to families leaving welfare to work. Worker Protections & Civil Rights: Welfare reauthorization should ensure compliance with nondiscrimination, civil rights, and employment laws. Welfare laws should codify the Department of Labor�s determination that welfare recipients who work are protected by the same workplace and civil rights laws that apply to other workers. Welfare recipients should not be forced to work for less than the minimum wage, and they should not be used to replace current employees or positions. States should ensure that welfare recipients are informed of their civil rights, and should also monitor the enforcement of non-discrimination in service delivery, including the collection of data to ensure compliance. Case workers should be appropriately trained in civil rights laws. Fairness to Legal Immigrants: States should have the flexibility to use federal funds to serve legal immigrant families in their TANF programs. Both the National Governor�s Association and the National Conference of State Legislatures have recommended that states be given this option. Legal immigrants work hard, pay taxes, and are eligible to serve in the U.S. military. We support the full and immediate restoration of TANF, Medicaid, and SCHIP benefits to legal immigrants. Strengthening Families: As growing numbers of families move toward work, states must have the flexibility to support efforts to balance work and family responsibilities and meet the unique needs of working families with children, including children with disabilities. States should make reasonable allowances for TANF recipients caring for infants or sick or disabled children. State Flexibility for Abstinence Funding: In July 2001, the Surgeon General issued a report encouraging Americans to become educated and responsible for their health, including sexual behavior. We support personal responsibility and an educated, healthy society. We believe that states should have the flexibility to use abstinence education funds to provide comprehensive sex education that promotes abstinence, but also provides medically-accurate information to reduce health risks and teen pregnancy. We believe that the goals of TANF are best achieved by improving the skills of the workforce, supporting and rewarding work by low-income parents, strengthening families, and encouraging states to meet the unique needs of welfare recipients. We thank you for your leadership and look forward to working with you to ensure that federal welfare policies help working families to escape poverty and achieve self-sufficiency. For additional welfare reauthorization resources, see www.socialworkers.org/advocacy/welfare/default.asp. AS ALWAYS, THANKS FOR YOUR ADVOCACY!