Welfare Reform in
Washington State
• Summary Overview
• Analysis of Case
• Questions & Answers
University of New Mexico
PA 590-Program Evaluation and
Performance Measurements
Summer 2008, Prof. M. Rivera
Christell Begay &
Shelley Wooten
• Foundations of the American Welfare State
– Establish during the Great Depression
• President Franklin Roosevelt
– Creates the Social Security Act of 1935 - Foundation of the welfare
system
» Vocational programs
» Public health
» Child welfare programs (AFDC)
• President Lyndon Johnson implements changes
– Food stamps
– Medicare & Medicaid programs
• Welfare: A controversial issue in America
– Create dependency and stifle private initiative
– Poverty was a byproduct of a capitalist state
– Government is responsible for those without
economic security
– Costs for services continue to climb
– Individuals on welfare increase during the 70’s and
80’s
• Restructuring Welfare in America
– 8/22/96: President Bill Clinton introduces the
Welfare Reform
– signs the PRWORA
(Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity
Reconciliation Act)
– Eliminates AFDC (Aid to Families with Dependent
Children) and is replaced with TANF (Temporary
Assistance to Needy Families
• Restructuring Welfare in America
(Federal Requirements)
– 5 years for recipients of TANF benefits
– Working within 2 years of receiving benefits
– 2001, single parents required to work 30/hrs/week
• Two-parent households must have one parent working a min. of
35/hrs/week
• 12 month exemption for parents with child under age one
– States failing to meet work requirements face reduction in
their grant
– PRWORA – decrease caseload and increase work
participation
Welfare Reform in Washington State
• 1997 – WorkFirst in Washington State
– Immediate participation in employment
– Reduce number of individuals on welfare
– Help people in low-income families
• Find job, keep job, become self-sufficient
• Four agencies share responsibility
–
–
–
–
Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS)
Employment Security Department (ESD)
State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC)
Department of Community, Trade, and Economic Development (CTED)
Welfare Reform in Washington State
• Governor Gary Locke, 1997 signed House Bill
3901 creating the WorkFirst Program
• Clare Banks – Assistant to the Director of the
WorkFirst Division
• Accountability
WorkFirst Successes
2000 Press Releases
• Washington's child poverty rate declining; well below national
trend August 10, 2000
2001 Press Releases
• Locke announces limited extension of TANF benefits November
6, 2001
2002 Press Releases
• Washington wins nearly $14 million in federal funds for
WorkFirst successes. July 19, 2002
• Gov. Locke accepts national innovation award for WorkFirst's
Community Jobs program April 15, 2002
• Governor adjusts welfare reform spending in response to
climbing welfare caseloads February 14, 2002
2002 Press Releases
• Gov. Gary Locke Honors Businesses for Helping Families Move from Welfare to
Work November 20, 2002
• WorkFirst celebrates five-year anniversary with lowest welfare caseload July 30,
2002
2003 Press Releases
• Gov. Gary Locke Announces New Statewide Welfare-to-Work Effort August 26, 2003
• Washington's welfare reform program takes cuts to balance budget January 24, 2003
2004 Press Releases
• Gov. Gary Locke honored businesses for helping Washington families move from
welfare to work May 18, 2004
• Gov. Gary Locke promotes state's effort to help more Washington families get federal
tax dollars (More on Earned Income Tax Credit.) April 7, 2004
2005 Press Releases
• Governor Gregoire has announced her plans to strengthen the WorkFirst Program.
November 10, 2005
2006
• Governor Gregoire Reforms WorkFirst to be More Efficient and
Effective at Placing Clients in Jobs September 25, 2006
• Governor Gregoire Announces Colleges to Offer Opportunity
Grants to Low-Income Adults August 15, 2006
2007
• DSHS names new head of the Economic Services
Administration December 13, 2007
• Governor Gregoire Announces WorkFirst Successful in Helping
More Families Break the Cycle of Poverty July 16, 2007
• WorkFirst Holds Parents Accountable February 28, 2007
• Governor create sub-cabinet Workfirst
– Draft set performance measurements
• Set targets agencies involved with Workfirst
• State Legislative and DSHS
– Created on performance measures
“Reduce the number of families on public
assistance”
• WorkFirst exceeded performance targets
– Legislatives
– Governor’s
• Banks witness 5 years of success
• In 2001, cases jumped to 54, 801
– Compared to 53, 153 in Nov 2000
Appendix 4: Washington WorkFirst Cases November 1999 – February 2001
Washington’s Unemployment Rate
8
7
6
5
4
Unemployment Rate
3
2
1
0
Ranking
out of 51
1999
#48
2001
#48
2003
#49
2005
#40
2007
#27
Source: Department
of Labor
• August 3, 1993
• Government Performance and Results Act
– Maximize Congress’s performance
– Ensure Accountability
– Benefit American taxpayers
• Federal Agencies
– Issue performance reports for fiscal years
*Source: Restoring Gov’t Integrity Through Performance, Results, and
Accountability
• Program elimination
– Non-performing programs
– Redundant
– Overlapping
– More effective in the private sector
– Outdated service
• Continue creating new programs and spending
that regard current problems
• Sources: Restoring Gov’t Integrity Through Performance, Results,
and Accountability
•
•
•
•
•
Agency Inspectors General (IG)
U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO)
Congressional Budget Office (CBO
Office of Management and Budget
Agency Inspectors General (IGs)
– Highlight poor performance agencies in reports
• Sources: Restoring Gov’t Integrity Through Performance, Results,
and Accountability
Avoid Elimination
• Reliable performance information
• Seek assistance with:
•
•
•
•
•
Agency Inspectors General (IG)
U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO)
Congressional Research Service (CRS)
Other external auditors
Own investigators
– Sources: Restoring Gov’t Integrity Through Performance, Results, and
Accountability
Jan. 26, 2008
New Mexico welfare fund has $45 million surplus from lack of recipients
•NM is 3rd highest state with people living in poverty
•Payments to families are increased 15% in Bernalillo County to $340.72 a month
•Caseload at its lowest point ever
•1996 = 33,203
Aug. 2007 = 13,925
•Department does not track statistics for disqualification
•making too much money or not willing to participate in requirements; work and
education – can’t earn more than $11,220 annual salary
•Enrollment difficulty
Class discussion
NM returns $45M for lack of clients
• Should the TANF program continue in New
Mexico?
• Should TANF criteria be reevaluated?