What is the “Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act” of 1996? It is the legislation that is considered the first step in welfare reform. The act replaced “Aid to Families with Dependent Children” (AFDC) with “Temporary Assistance for Needy Families” (TANF). The first thing the act did was to require those accepting assistance to actively look for work. Focusing on single mothers with dependent children the act also limits the total benefits that can be claimed over a lifetime to sixty months.
Since its passage in 1996, eight million people have claimed benefits. The monthly caseload is around the two million mark. Over that time at least two hundred-fifty thousand have been forced to leave the program. Their federal and state time limits had expired. There is not much information on how these families are doing as there is no mandate to track the successfulness of those leaving the program. This means that we do not know if the families that have run out of time are starving, have a roof over their head, or even getting the medical help that they need. After the time limit there is no option to return to welfare if a family cannot make it.
Some of the things that we do know, reminds me why we as a people must learn how to become real neighbors. Over 31% of single women that have children are living under the poverty level. A family of four that makes $22,050 is considered to be at the 100% of the poverty level. The statistics quoted here and in my research material may not be accurate as they come from sources like unemployment insurance records that do not track those who do not look for work. If a family does not know what is available to them they will not apply for existing aid which means they will not be tracked in any way.
In the late 1990’s, not long after the act went into effect, the employment levels went up due to the booming economy. This means that the welfare caseloads went down as it was easy for the women to find jobs. In the early part of the new century, the economy has declined causing the unemployment rate of poor mothers to jump from 9.8% to 12.3%. The effect of the current recession has not been reported yet.
Of the jobs that the women leaving welfare have found, the majority are low paying, require little training and provide no benefits. Most of these jobs keep the women below the poverty level. At least a third of these women rely on extended family to help them get by. Among the women who have left welfare some are not working. Around twenty-five percent of the non-working women are unable to work due to illness or disability. Some of these women qualify for social security disability, or other programs. The process may be overwhelming without the help of others. Another drawback to any program is that it still relies on the government to provide for our neighbors.
By focusing on getting people off TANF and into the workforce, the PRWOR overlooks some of the barriers to succeeding in the workforce. As women go back to work their children may have needs that cause them to miss work to take care of them. Some of the women that have been forced off welfare have a limited education that also limits the jobs that they are qualified for. They can also have a limited work experience. Women in poor health have problems with work attendance issues, which is a barrier to success.
Due to these barriers some of the people may end up cycling on and off welfare until their benefits expire. Benefits get interrupted making their incomes unstable. The whole cycle makes the persons employment history look poor, which makes it even harder to get and hold a job.
There are many more disadvantages for people who stay on TANF for the full five years without going into the workforce. Studies have shown that many of these women have low reasoning capabilities, a limited education and language skills. They are also prone to have more physical health problems. All of these are issues that make it even more important for neighbors to get involved.
There are a few support programs in existence for the people who leave TANF for work. For those who do not receive medical benefits on the job, Medicaid is available based on income. With these limitations, there are those who do not qualify which makes it hard to keep them and their children healthy. There is a limited amount of childcare available that may or may not continue after the sixty months. Private childcare is costly, with the cost of providing care for one child can cost more than the mother can earn.
As the mother makes more money, any childcare benefits that she may receive will decrease. These costs then become too much for the mothers to keep up with. Food stamps are available for those who qualify due to income.
So far we have been focusing on the results of passing PRWOR on those leaving welfare. From this point on I will be focusing on how we as neighbors can ease this transition so that when people leave welfare, they have a better chance at succeeding. There are five community building tools that are very effective in this process. Each of these tools can be used by itself, but to provide the most benefit we must look at each neighborhood and individual to see which tools, or combination of tools will guarantee success. Another thing to remember is that we need to act as a neighborhood, working together to accomplish these goals. Relying on outside sources alone fosters dependence and helps keep the poverty cycle going.
The first tool in the community building inventory is the capacity inventory. Anyone working to develop community can take this inventory by using a one on one survey that focus on individual skills and abilities instead of needs, problems, and deficiencies. To be sure that you get accurate information the survey should be done by people who live in the neighborhood who have a passion for making change. These people are more likely to get an honest response from their neighbors. The survey will ask each person what they do best, and where they can use these skills. By nurturing these skills you can do anything from creating new jobs to developing training opportunities.
We have two different categories of skills that we need to explore. There are those that lead to employment or enterprise creation. The other category is for skills that might be used to contribute to the community. One of the uses for these skills might be for the neighbors to create skills banks. They can then barter or give talents to others in the community.
Another use is to create a learning exchange where people can teach and learn from each other. You can also create community celebrations that feature the cultural and artistic skills of the residents. By involving the whole community and using all of their skills the neighbors form new relationships that narrow the gap between the jobless and those with work. Why is this important? Because it builds social support and provides more economic opportunities.
The next tool in our inventory is the self help peer group. Not only are these great for those trying to overcome addiction, but they can also be used for training purposes. People are more likely to learn from others in their own peer group. There are neighborhoods that have used peer groups to provide peer financed “loan circles” modeled on Bangladesh’s Grameen Bank. Peer groups convert people with needs into people that have resources and give help.
We then come to a tool used with success in Canada that has made its way to the United States. This tool is the circle of support. The circle of support is a small group consisting of friends and family of the person trying to make the change in their life. The friends and family help to set goals to be met. They then discuss the barriers to reaching those goals. From there they strategize on ways to reach the goals. This helps their friend or family member make their dreams for the future be realized. The person receiving the support learns how to plan, gather resources, and ask for help. This helps them to build new relationships while using skills to reconnect with the community.
The first three tools in the community tool box have focused on individuals within the community, and how they can work together to get things done. There are cases where we might need more resources than these. The next two tools help us to tap into more resources than the individual can give.
We now move on to the associational inventory. As associations in the community have a mission, they are ideally suited to bring neighbors together. They activate residents to accomplish goals. They also amplify the talent, resources and skills of members of society. Associations include religious groups, social and cultural groups as well as groups organized for neighborhood improvement and advocacy. Some examples are the VFW, American Legion, your local church, lake associations to name a few. Many of these organizations are willing to take on more community building tasks if asked. They are often willing to include welfare recipients in their organizations.
Our last tool is the Business Inventory. This consists of identifying the businesses in the neighborhood and working with them to make changes for the better. The inventory can be used to identify future and present employment opportunities. As we work with business we can build relationships between the businesses and residents on welfare to create opportunity that the current welfare system does not identify. We can work with the businesses in the area to ensure that any job training we develop is designed with real employment opportunities in mind.
What have I been doing build community in my home town? I have been involved with Asset Based Community Development through one of the local churches for the last year. Some of the things that I have found in the rural surroundings of Maine have showed me that there has to be some thought put into how to make it work here. Most communities that have been successful with this process are in the cities. People tend to know their neighbors a little better as they are forced to interact due to the fact that the urban population is closer together. In Maine, a majority of us live farther apart, forcing us to put effort into interacting with our neighbors. Our jobs are usually twenty to thirty minutes from our home, so those we do interact with are not our neighbors.
I am in the process of showing the local church that they have the skills to reach out and be a true neighbor. This means that they have skills of the head, like the knowledge to teach someone how to read, skills of the heart, their passions, and skills of the hands, like being able to cook meals for those that are unable. The next step in this process is to find families, including myself, who are willing to step out of their comfort zone and invite neighbors over for coffee, dinner, or anything else that will bring neighbors together. Between the pastor and myself we have managed to show the congregation how to look for neighbors that could use our interaction, or help. We have helped one young man, who was injured, by finishing his shed for him.
As I have been educating the church, I have been trying to educate the community by writing articles for the local newspapers. As I go into the community to some of the local gatherings I have been letting my neighbors know what I am doing. This has had an effect on the community as I was invited to a “Future Search” conference by the local school district. I was very impressed by the process, as it focuses on many of the same ideas as ABCD. “Future Search” invites the major players of the community to come and brainstorm about changes they feel are needed in the community or school district in this case. There were teachers, local pastors, business owners, and other people involved with the community. They have taken this information and built a planning board with guidelines developed from the conference. One of the main points brought out in the conference was the need for parents to be more involved. They have implemented better communications with parents. Another was the responsible use of technology. We want to make sure that our children know how to use technology to better their chances after school, while making sure that they maintain the basic reading, writing, and mathematical skills. In this way we know that our children would survive the loss of technology if it ever happened.
As we start working together as neighbors, using any or all of these tools we will start seeing people in our neighborhoods instead of “welfare recipients”. By doing so we will be bringing the neighborhood together and improve the community as a whole, not just the “needy”. This will improve both the social and economic condition of the neighborhood. I believe that once we start in one neighborhood showing growth, it will spread out and the whole state will be better for it. Not only will we know that those leaving welfare will make it, but I believe that this will give incentive for more people to leave the system.
References
Green, M., & Kretzman, J. P. (1998). A community toolbox for welfare reform: Building the bridge from client to citizen [Brochure]. Retrieved from http://www.nhi.org/online/issues/96/toolbox.html
Green, M., & Kretzmann, J. P. (1997, November/December). Community tool box for welfare reform: Building the bridge from client to citizen. Retrieved February 26, 2010, from National Housing lnstitute: Shelterforce Online website: http://www.nhi.org/online/issues/96/toolbox.html
Hildebrandt, E., PhD, RN, ANP., & Stevens, P., PhD, RN. (2009, May). Impoverished women with children and no welfare benefits: The urgency of researching failures of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program. American Journal of Public Health, 99(5), 793-801. Retrieved from http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1683162601&sid=1&Fmt=3&clientId=31650&RQT=309&VName=PQD
Retrieved March 30, 2010
2 comments:
this is intersting, goes a long way toward explaining why it is so easy for many to just stay on these type of programs instead of really getting ahead by working
This is great Theodore(Teddy). You put alot of research into it. If only more people would wake up to the situation. I'm very proud of you. Aunt Bev
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