HHS Introduces New Welfare Plan

By Dan Gorenstein on Wednesday, April 19, 2006.

listen:

Congress has renewed the federal welfare program known as Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, or TANF.

The state Department of Health and Human Services has scrambled to comply with the new federal rules.

HHS introduced its 25 page plan for the first time publicly at a state Senate Finance Committee hearing Wednesday.

New Hampshire Public Radio's Dan Gorenstein reports.

In order to understand the state welfare plan, it's important to understand the two key changes to the new TANF law.

First, the Federal government requires the state to increase the number of recipients working 30 hours a week by 1,164 people.

That's to meet the requirement that all states must have 50% of their TANF caseloads employed in any given week.

T.4
1:20 every single state is challenged with this issue, how do you reach the 50% benchmark.

That's HHS Commissioner John Stephen.

The second key change is what the federal government is willing to count as 'work.'

Currently vocational education classes and job search programs do count.

Under the new law those activities will be limited.

More traditional forms of work- like internships, community service or a traditional job will count.

Given the new more restrictive requirements, the name of the game is to find enough TANF recipients who can actually meet them.

Program Director Terry Smith says the Department has targeted four groups of people.

T.18
6:13 we currently have 350 families who are exempt with children between the ages of one and two....we have 148 clients who are more than four months pregnant...we have 400 clients in job search beyond the allowable time period...we have 266 clients in a post-secondary activity beyond 12 months.

Add up the pregnant mothers, the parents with children between 1 and 2, those still searching for work, and students and the state meets its targeted goal.

Smith told the Senate Finance Committee that pushing some recipients towards work more quickly helps those who have more severe problems.

T.7
:30 the focus of the law seems to be about participation rates, and that is true. However, 50% of our clients have to participate, but 50% don't. the 50% that don't who have barriers and issues, such as substance abuse and mental health we will continue to work with them.

Low-income activist Sara Dustin told Senators requiring mothers of young children back into the workplace is short-sighted.

T.10
13:03 raising a child is a private pleasure and has no value to the state. And if you look at things this way- then it makes a lot of sense to tighten up on these mothers. But if you look at it another way, that women who raise children are doing an absolutely essential economic service- they are producing the next workforce...then I think you should be worrying...as we crack down and crack down on the amount of time poor mothers have to spend with their children.

Dustin, other activists, and even Finance Committee member Senator Lou D'Allesandro criticized HHS for not getting its proposal out sooner.

T.15
:12 there are some people who came here to testify with a great deal of expertise, for example Maryann Broshak worked for the department for 30 years and her area of specialization was TANF. And it would be very important to get her input on these changes...so it's very important for the committee to go through it before we make any decisions.

It's unclear how much time the committee will devote to the proposal.

The Finance Committee must vote on the legislation by April 28th.

Senate Majority Leader Bob Clegg says he likes the idea of getting people into work as quickly as possible.

Despite the sweeping changes, HHS estimates it will cost the state only half a million dollars a year.

That's peanuts, said Clegg, compared to the penalties the state would face if it didn't meet new federal requirements.

T.19
4:02 what's it cost me if I don't do it? That's what I have to look at. If a half a million dollars saves me a million dollars, then it's a good thing for the state.

Governor John Lynch says there may be a need for some changes, but wants to make sure they aren't punitive.

The state must be in compliance with the new law by October 1st.

For NHPR News, I'm DG.