Four months after the most substantial overhaul of the state welfare system in a decade, health officials report positive initial results.
Critics, however, point to a steep drop in enrollment.
Some believe fewer people on assistance means poor people are falling through the cracks.
New Hampshire Public Radio's Dan Gorenstein reports.
When state welfare director Terry Smith is asked about the success of the new program he likes to talk about personal responsibility.
Before the state adopted changes to its Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF program people could receive monthly checks for up to six months without ever sitting down with a work program counselor.
But now, in order to receive any cash assistance, an individual must first make that meeting.
Just since October, the state's rate of so-called 'no-shows' dropped from 70% to fewer than 20%.
18:18 people were concerned that TANF clients...we would lose TANF clients b/c they couldn't make it to the orientation. In a way that is an insidious disrespect for clients b/c they have been finding ways, they are smart people out there, they just happen to be poor. And they are finding ways to get to the orientation. And they are participating.
Smith knows getting yourself to orientation is not the same thing as getting a job.
But he sees it as indicative of people's ability to meet the more demanding requirements of the new TANF program.
In 2006, federal officials increased the number of people who had to enroll in work activities such as unsubsidized employment, internships, and limited vocational education.
If states failed to place 50% of their caseload into those types of activities they could lose federal funding.
In response, New Hampshire HHS officials took steps to thin the number of clients on welfare by removing work exemptions for certain people- mothers with children between the ages of 1 and 2, for example.
The state also sped up the time it took to be kicked-off welfare.
Four months into the new plan 575 fewer families are on the books.
That's a troubling number to Dick Green.
The former Republican state Senator and current co-chair of the Governor's TANF Advisory Council wants to know what a lot of low-income advocates want to know- where are those people now.
4:31 ...what our concern is if we are scaring away people who could be eligible from coming in to participate, our concern is that there are children out there who are not being served. It's not like we are looking for business, we just want to make sure that the children are not being slighted b/c of a process which has become so difficult.
Green says if people aren't applying for state assistance there's a good chance they are showing up at local welfare offices around the state.
But according to the local welfare administrators association, no city or town has reported a sharp spike in welfare claims.
While some advocates wring their hands over the drop, welfare director Terry Smith says the change was expected.
19:50 Given that's what happened in welfare reform in the 1990's. I would have been surprised if something like that didn't happen this time as well. It is probably a natural sort of caseload adjustment.
1:37 what we are seeing now can't be compared to what we saw when TANF was implemented in 1997...
That's Mary Anne Broshek who previously ran the state's welfare program.
...we were still seeing lots of caseload decreases b/c of a better economy. And people finding jobs....the two can simply not be compared.
Broshek says the state hasn't experienced an economic boom remotely similar to the one from the mid-90's.
Also this time around, she says the state has seen a greater drop in the overall percentage of cases.
Broshek quickly adds that it's too soon to draw any firm conclusions, but is eager to receive data from HHS in a week or two.
What really separates critics from supporters is philosophy.
Both groups want TANF clients to achieve long-term self-sufficiency.
HHS believes the best way to do that is to get people into work as quickly as possible.
But Broshek says it seems to her the state's overriding concern is to just meet the federal work participation rate and avoid any penalties.
Instead, she believes the state must return to a system that focuses on the barriers a person has to joining the workforce.
4:22 What are the skills people need to resolve the obstacles they have to go out, get a job and support their family. That needs to be the focus, not what activities does the federal government approve of.
HHS officials say they expect to release more data on TANF soon.
Meanwhile lawmakers are expected to introduce a bill that would make substantial changes to the current welfare system next month.
For NHPR News, I'm DG.
