Copyright 2002 eMediaMillWorks, Inc.
(f/k/a Federal Document Clearing House, Inc.)  
Federal Document Clearing House Congressional Testimony
March 7, 2002 Thursday
SECTION: CAPITOL HILL HEARING TESTIMONY

LENGTH: 3101 words

COMMITTEE: HOUSE WAYS AND MEANS

HEADLINE: WELFARE TIME LIMITS AND WORK REQUIREMENTS

TESTIMONY-BY: JENNIFER REINERT,, SECRETARY,

AFFILIATION: WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

BODY:
... Development

Testimony Before the Subcommittee on Human Resources of the House Committee on Ways and Means

Hearing on Implementation of Welfare Reform Work Requirements and Time Limits

March 7, 2002

Introduction

Chairman Herger, Ranking Member Cardin and members of the ...

... for inviting me here today to give Wisconsin's perspective on how TANF reauthorization can move the nation forward in our welfare reform efforts.

I venture to say that everyone of us in this room, and the legislatures and Governors of all 50 states share the ...

... work- training opportunities and work support, and its flexibility - all targeted at empowering parents to achieve personal responsibility for the welfare of their families.

President Bush's reauthorization proposal retains the welfare-to work philosophy so fundamental to our reform efforts and leaves the funding levels and distribution formula unchanged. These are critical to helping states move to the next juncture of welfare reform. His proposal also introduces new program elements that will serve to enhance states' efforts. For example, the Program Integration ...

... per month in exchange for work training and educational activities.

W-2 Transitions: Participants with more severe barriers to work receive $628 per month in exchange for participation in appropriate activities that move the participant towards ...

... training they are most in need of. Everyone is required to participate to the extent his or her abilities allow. Parents who are found to have more severe barriers such as substance abuse, physical or mental health issues or domestic violence, are offered a legitimate opportunity to address their needs through ...

... participants, they will find the means to make it happen. The flexibility and empowerment strategies combined with these performance standards and accountability are what made welfare reform such a success in Wisconsin.

We've invested in initiatives that not only support parent's entry into the workforce, ...

... mobility and lifelong learning for all of Wisconsin's workforce. While W-2 is the stepping stone into the workforce for parents with barriers to employment, the program by itself may not raise someone out of poverty. But the service delivery system in which ...

... children of SSI recipients and Kinship Care cases. In these cases, the parent of the child is either unable to work due to a disability or not caring for the child due to child welfare concerns. Both of these programs are run by the Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services - this is particularly critical for the Kinship Care cases. It ensures that child welfare interventions and family reunification efforts can be made as necessary.

Where do we go from here?

In Wisconsin, we are extending our efforts at serving the more ...

... program who is willing to participate to their ability. Given that premise, Wisconsin was careful to build in features that ensure those individuals with more barriers to employment will not fall through the cracks: the extension policies I mentioned earlier for both the 24-month and ...

... successful with this population. Among other things, we are contracting with the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to design a screening tool for multiple barriers and we recently implemented a performance standard that bases W-2 contract dollars on appropriate assessment of participants.

Conclusion ...