The FY 2000 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations conference report, part of the omnibus appropriations package passed by Congress, includes several provisions from Welfare-to-Work legislation (S. 1317) sponsored by U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii). These provisions are needed to help welfare recipients who face the greatest barriers to self-sufficiency and lack the skills necessary to enter the workforce. The agreement culminates negotiations involving Senator Akaka, Representative Benjamin Cardin (D-MD), sponsor of Welfare-to-Work legislation in the House, the Clinton Administration, Department of Labor, Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee.
The agreement will help States deal with families who remain on welfare rolls and need the most assistance, many who will lose this assistance under cut-off dates included in the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act. Nationwide to date, only $283 million out of $3 billion available for Welfare-to-Work has been spent. In Hawaii alone, only about 37 percent of TANF recipients have been eligible to participate in the program. The biggest barrier to the program's effectiveness has been its strict eligibility criteria.
"This agreement is a good first step toward helping more of those in need," said Akaka. "These changes will help people leave welfare rolls through job readiness, job search, and job placement. I will continue working to extend the Welfare-to-Work program itself."
Under the terms of the agreement, Welfare-to-Work will be available to anyone who demonstrates evidence of long-term dependency, specifically any individual who has received Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) for at least 30 months–consecutive or not–or will become ineligible for TANF within 12 months.
Current law is cumbersome because it requires participants to meet two out of three eligibility requirements: (1) no high school diploma or GED and low reading, writing or math skills, (2) poor employment history, and/or (3) substance abuse treatment required for employment. Many high school dropouts cannot participate because they are able to read, or vice versa–many individuals graduated from high school and are still unable to read, but cannot participate in Welfare-to-Work because they have their high school diplomas.
The agreement, similar to Senator Akaka's bill, improves eligibility criteria for non-custodial parents. It will allow non-custodial parents to participate in Welfare-to-Work if they are unemployed, underemployed, or having difficulty paying child support, and if their minor child or custodial parent demonstrate need in certain ways (i.e. have been on public assistance for more than 30 months or will lose TANF benefits within the year).
The agreement relaxes "work first" requirements. The welfare reform law requires individuals to move off of welfare straight into employment, without providing any opportunity to improve their education or job skills–these are components that have long been demonstrated to help people maintain meaningful employment. Similar to Senator Akaka's bill, the agreement provides six months of vocational education and job training before individuals go to work. Senator Akaka will work to pass the provision in S. 1317 that allows unlimited access to job skills training, vocational education, and basic education before individuals must go to work.
The agreement also includes other provisions that will make it easier for Welfare-to-Work agencies to operate the program.
According to the Hawaii Department of Human Services, about 1,000 families per month have lost their TANF benefits because they have not complied with work participation requirements. The Welfare-to-Work program is helping these individuals. Provisions that Senator Akaka worked to pass in the current agreement will make it possible for more needy individuals in Hawaii to take advantage of job readiness, job placement and other employment services accessible through the Welfare-to-Work program.
"My visits to Welfare-to-Work programs in Hawaii highlighted the ongoing need for these services in the islands,"Akaka noted. "Efforts have been hindered by unnecessarily strict eligibility requirements. These new changes will allow more people to receive help from WorkHawaii and Goodwill Industries on Oahu, Maui Economic Opportunity, Hawaii County Economic Opportunity Council, and DLIR offices on Kauai and the Big Island."
