NOTE: Hyperlinks provided in this policy fax briefing were correct as of the time of publication of this fax briefing.

November 1999 - Vol. 1, No 8

Contents of Fax Briefing:

• Inspector General Reports On TANF Sanctions and Notification
• Nearing Adjournment Congress Acts on Several Bills of Interest
• New York City Mayor Plans To Require Homeless To Work As Condition of Shelter
• HHS Reports That Only 10% of Eligible Families Receive Child Care Subsidies
• Audio Conference On Child Support Scheduled For November 12, 1999

Inspector General Reports On TANF Sanctions and Notification

Under TANF, states must sanction clients who fail to participate in work activities or to cooperate with child support enforcement. Sanctions range from a minimum of a $25 cash deduction to lifetime ineligibility for program services (five states impose this sanction). Thirty-seven states impose full-family sanctions (loss of the entire grant), and 14 impose partial sanctions for failure to cooperate with program requirements. A series of recent evaluations of sanction notices conducted by the Office of the Inspector General have found that:

• States have received little guidance in developing sanction notices, resulting in notices that range widely in quality and content.
• More than two-thirds of TANF offices do not provide information to clients about the dollar amount of sanctions or the definition of "good cause" exemptions from work requirements.
• Only one-third of sanction notices provide information to clients on how to overturn a sanction and have full benefits reinstated.
• More than one-quarter of the notices reviewed gave incomplete or no information to clients on contacting local legal services.
• Some sanction notices were difficult to understand, with confusing wording that complicated sanction details.

The reports, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families: Improving the Effectiveness and Efficiency of Client Sanctions; Improving Client Sanction Notices, and Educating Clients about Sanctions, can be obtained by calling the San Francisco Regional Office at 415/437-7900, or on the web at http://www.dhhs.gov/progorg/oei.

Nearing Adjournment Congress Acts on Several Bills of Interest

As Congress approaches a budget resolution, a fourth continuing resolution has extended funding through November 10, 1999. Many appropriations have been negotiated between the Senate and House, and presented to the President despite his threat of a veto. Other bills will either remain in committee until the next session or could be attached to appropriations bills prior to the adjournment of this session. Among notable developments as of this writing:

• The Fathers Count Act of 1999 (H.R. 3073) will be considered on the floor of the House next Tuesday, November 9. The House Education and Workforce Committee passed an 'Amendment In the Nature of a Substitute' to the bill on Thursday, November 4, containing most of the provisions in the original bill. The bill will now be considered by the Rules Committee on Monday, November 8, at which time several amendments are expected to be offered. Some provisions of the bill, including provisions related to Welfare-to-Work eligibility simplification, could be attached to bills in the Senate before Congress adjourns. If the full bill passes the House, it is not clear that the Senate would take action on it prior to adjournment.
• The Labor-HHS appropriations bill was passed with significant cuts to the President's budget proposal, including: a $680 million cut to Title XX, the Social Services Block Grant, to $1.7 billion from $2.38 billion; a cap of 4.25% on the amount of a state's TANF block grant that could be transferred to Title XX, reduced from 10%, and a reduction in federal discretionary spending for all programs of .97%. The President has promised a veto of the bill.
• Most other bills reported in earlier fax briefings have not, as of this writing, been moved out of committee. These include Senator Kohl's bill, the Children First Child Support Reform Act of 1999, allowing for a full pass-through of child support (S. 1036); and the Building Opportunities Bonus Act (H.R. 699), sponsored by Representative Woolsey, which would reward states that enact welfare policies and support programs that lift families out of poverty; Senator Bayh's Responsible Fatherhood Act of 1999 (S. 1364), a bill to support public awareness of fatherhood issues, and S. 1488, the Compassion for Children and Child Support Enforcement Act of 1999, introduced by Representative Henry Hyde, which would assign to the IRS the right to collect child support. The Violence Against Women Act of 1999 (H.R. 357 and H.R. 1248), also had not moved out of committee at this writing, although the VAWA reauthorization bill was the subject of House Subcommittee on Crime hearings on September 29. The repeal of the hold harmless provision, which is part of H.R. 1802, the Foster Care and Independence Act, was passed in the House last summer and remains in the Senate Finance Committee.

New York City Mayor Plans To Require Homeless To Work As Condition of Shelter

The New York Times reports that New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani has announced plans to apply a work requirement to "able-bodied" residents of homeless shelters. The plan would require that, for any shelter resident, work would be required and any earnings beyond the amount of a public assistance grant would go to pay the shelter, up to the shelter's actual cost per bed, reported to be $20,000 per year.

The proposed rules would also mean that shelter residents who lose welfare eligibility would no longer be entitled to use the shelter, and their children could be taken into foster care, according to Anthony Coles, an adviser to Mayor Giuliani. Advocates for the homeless have expressed concern over the plan, noting that 10% of those currently in family shelters have been mistakenly cited for noncompliance with welfare rules; that many shelter residents who are disabled are already being expected to work for public assistance and are erroneously losing their exemptions, and that many shelter residents currently work but cannot afford housing.

The work requirement is supported by 1997 State social services regulations aimed at moving the homeless into work. Advocates for the homeless have legally challenged the rule, but in February 1999 an appellate court ruled against the objections. The city expects to apply the new rule to 4,600 families as well as 7,600 single adults in the city's shelter system in about 60 days. City Councilman Stephen DiBrienza denounced the proposal and plans to hold oversight hearings on it next month. DiBrienza also questioned the impact the policy would have on the day care system, which already has a waiting list of 40,000 families.

HHS Reports That Only 10% of Eligible Families Receive Child Care Subsidies

A new report from Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Access to Child Care for Low-Income Working Families, estimates that just 10% of families eligible for child care subsidies under federal eligibility criteria are being served under the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF), a major source of Federal child care assistance for low and moderate-income families. The program allows parents to choose day care in a family child care home, with a relative, or in a child care center.

The report finds that states are utilizing their full allotments for childcare, but the available federal funding falls short of the child care subsidy needed by a wide margin.

The gap leaves low-income families spending a greater percentage of their income on child care (18%) than is the case for families above poverty (7%). The lack of subsidies puts these families at greater risk of cutting back on work hours and going into debt.

Also cited in the report are recent findings that quality child care programs make a difference in children's cognitive performance, language development, social adjustment and overall child behavior.

It should be noted that TANF law provides for the exemption from work requirements for single custodial parents of children under the age of six who cannot obtain child care.

The report can be obtained on the web at http://www.acf.dhhs.govs/ccreport.htm.

Audio Conference On Child Support Scheduled For November 12, 1999

The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) is planning an audio conference on child support and TANF, Child Support: What If It All Came Home, on November 12, 1999 from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m., as part of its ongoing series on low-income programs. The conferences are convenient, informative and inexpensive. Registration can be completed at their website, http://www.clasp.org, or by telephone, 202/797-6535. The November 12 conference will discuss family-friendly distribution policies and sound financing of the child support program, with a focus on potential state legislative activities. Panelists include Elaine Ryan (American Public Human Services Association), Paula Corrigan-Halpern (Metropolitan Family Services, Chicago) and Vicki Turetsky (CLASP).