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108th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 367
To amend part A of title IV of the Social Security Act to reauthorize
and improve the temporary assistance to needy families program, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 12, 2003
Mr. Rockefeller introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Finance
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend part A of title IV of the Social Security Act to reauthorize
and improve the temporary assistance to needy families program, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS; AMENDMENTS TO SOCIAL
SECURITY ACT.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Personal
Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act Amendments of
2003''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as
follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents; amendments to Social Security
Act.
Sec. 2. Findings.
TITLE I--FUNDING
Sec. 101. Reauthorization and annual adjustment of State family
assistance grants.
Sec. 102. Contingency fund.
Sec. 103. Bonus for reduction of child poverty.
Sec. 104. Reauthorization of other grants.
Sec. 105. Restoration of funding for the Social Services Block Grant.
Sec. 106. Repeal of Federal loans for State welfare programs.
Sec. 107. GAO reports on TANF funding and expenditures.
TITLE II--SUPPORTING WORK
Sec. 201. Making work pay.
Sec. 202. Increase in guaranteed funding for child care.
Sec. 203. Parents as scholars program.
Sec. 204. Elimination of recipients completing secondary school from
limit on number of TANF recipients
participating in vocational educational
training.
Sec. 205. Vocational training and other preemployment activities.
Sec. 206. State option to credit months engaged in work or parents as
scholars program for purposes of 5-year
assistance limit.
Sec. 207. Innovative Business Link partnership for employers and
nonprofit organizations.
TITLE III--SUPPORTING FAMILIES
Sec. 301. Elimination of separate work participation rate for 2-parent
families.
Sec. 302. Ban on imposition of stricter eligibility criteria for 2-
parent families.
Sec. 303. Family formation fund.
Sec. 304. Ensuring child well-being.
Sec. 305. Funding for families assisted by a territory program.
TITLE IV--STATE FLEXIBILITY
Sec. 401. Pathway to self-sufficiency grants to improve coordination of
assistance for low-income families.
Sec. 402. State option to offer wage subsidies.
Sec. 403. Exclusion of victims of domestic violence from 20 percent
limitation on hardship exception.
Sec. 404. Clarification of authority of States to use TANF funds
carried over from prior years to provide
TANF benefits and services.
Sec. 405. Continuation of prewelfare reform waivers.
Sec. 406. State option to align foster care and adoption assistance
eligibility with TANF eligibility.
Sec. 407. Promoting work and responsibility among all families with
children.
Sec. 408. Authority to transfer TANF funds to carry out an access to
jobs project or a reverse commute project.
TITLE V--HEALTHY CHILDREN
Sec. 501. Revision and simplification of the transitional medical
assistance program (TMA).
Sec. 502. Optional coverage of legal immigrants under the medicaid
program and title XXI.
Sec. 503. Second chance homes.
TITLE VI--PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY
Sec. 601. Public availability of State program and financial data
submissions.
Sec. 602. Study and guidelines regarding compliance with
nondiscrimination provisions.
Sec. 603. Ensuring TANF funds are not used to displace public
employees; application of workplace laws to
welfare recipients.
Sec. 604. Research and development.
Sec. 605. GAO study on impact of ban on SSI benefits for legal
immigrants.
Sec. 606. Grants to improve States' policies and procedures for
assisting individuals with barriers to
work.
Sec. 607. Ensuring a professional TANF program staff.
TITLE VII--EFFECTIVE DATE
Sec. 701. Effective date.
(c) Amendments to Social Security Act.--Except as otherwise
specifically provided, whenever in this Act an amendment is expressed
in terms of an amendment to or repeal of a section or other provision,
the reference shall be considered to be made to that section or other
provision of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 301 et seq.).
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity
Reconciliation Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-193; 110 Stat. 2105)
was a fundamental change to reform the Federal welfare system
to shift it from an entitlement program into a transition
program to help families move from welfare to work and personal
responsibility.
(2) Since enactment of the 1996 welfare reform law, welfare
cash assistance caseloads have dropped dramatically, by nearly
50 percent, and approximately \2/3\ of welfare recipients who
have left the cash assistance rolls have left for work.
(3) Another sign of reform and progress is that funding has
shifted from providing monthly cash assistance for parents to
stay at home to over \1/2\ of the funding targeted to pay for
work supports, such as child care, transportation, job
placement, limited job training, or other priorities.
(4) More investments in quality child care will allow
parents to enter and continue in the workforce knowing that
their children have access to safe, meaningful child care,
hopefully with emphasis on child development and preparation to
ensure that each child gains the skills needed to enter school
ready to learn.
(5) While families are moving from welfare to work, and
employment rates are up, many families struggle in low-wage
jobs and have trouble getting promised supports such as
medicaid, child care, food stamps, and other supports available
under programs intended to help families.
(6) Child poverty rates are improving, but more must be
done to reduce poverty in the 2,000,000 families who are still
struggling.
(7) Parents who remain on the welfare caseloads face
multiple barriers to employment and therefore need a range of
services to address their needs and move from welfare to work.
(8) Children deserve to be raised in supportive homes,
preferably with 2 loving parents. It is crucial to end policies
that discriminate against serving 2-parent families within the
welfare system. It is also important to support innovative
programs to encourage full participation in child support and
child rearing by noncustodial parents.
(9) Welfare reform has been successful because it has been
a flexible partnership between the Federal Government and the
States, and retaining the partnership and flexibility will be
important for the future.
(10) The State agencies responsible for administering the
temporary assistance to needy families program have had to
assume many new and more complex responsibilities which
necessitates improving and upgrading the skills and ability of
the workers at those agencies to ensure high quality service
delivery and meet all program goals.
(11) Studies indicate disparate racial treatment in the
implementation of the temporary assistance to needy families
program with respect to determining eligibility for assistance under
the program, disseminating information, providing referral for
services, and imposing sanctions for non-compliance with program
requirements.
TITLE I--FUNDING
SEC. 101. REAUTHORIZATION AND ANNUAL ADJUSTMENT OF STATE FAMILY
ASSISTANCE GRANTS.
(a) In General.--Section 403(a)(1) is amended (42 U.S.C.
603(a)(1))--
(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``1996'' and all that
follows through ``2002'' and inserting ``2004 through 2008'';
(2) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as subparagraph (I);
(3) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) through (D) as
subparagraphs (C) through (E), respectively;
(4) in subparagraph (C), as so redesignated--
(A) in the heading, by striking ``State'' and
inserting ``Base state''; and
(B) by striking ``As used in this part, the term
`State family assistance grant' means'' and inserting
``Subject to subparagraph (F), as used in this part,
the term `base State family assistance grant' means'';
(5) by inserting after subparagraph (A), the following:
``(B) State family assistance grant defined.--As
used in this part, the term `State family assistance
grant' means the sum of--
``(i) the base State family assistance
grant; and
``(ii) the annual adjustment amount.'';
(6) by inserting after subparagraph (E), as redesignated by
paragraph (3), the following:
``(F) Update of base for certain states.--
``(i) In general.--With respect to a base
State family assistance grant made for any of
fiscal years 2004 through 2008, in the case of
a State that meets the criteria described in
clause (ii) or (iii), subject to clause (v),
the amount of the base State family assistance
grant determined under this paragraph for that
State for such a fiscal year shall be increased
by the applicable amount described in clause
(iv) for that fiscal year.
``(ii) Receipt of supplemental grant for
fiscal year 2002.--For purposes of clause (i),
the criteria described in this clause is that a
State received a supplemental grant under
paragraph (3) for fiscal year 2002 (as in
effect with respect to such fiscal year).
``(iii) State basic tanf grant per poor
person is below national average.--For purposes
of clause (i), the criteria described in this
clause is that, with respect to a State and a
fiscal year, the State basic TANF grant per
poor person for the immediately preceding
fiscal year is less than the national average
State basic TANF grant per poor person for such
preceding fiscal year.
``(iv) Applicable amount.--
``(I) All qualifying states.--For
purposes of clause (i), the applicable
amount described in this clause is the
amount equal to 2.5 percent of the sum
of--
``(aa) the amount required
to be paid to the State under
former section 403 (as in
effect during fiscal year
1994); and
``(bb) the amount (if any)
paid to the State under
paragraph (3) for fiscal year
2002 (as in effect with respect
to such fiscal year).
``(II) Original qualifying
states.--In the case of a State that
meets the criteria described in clause
(ii), the amount determined under
subclause (I) for a fiscal year shall
be further increased by the amount
described in item (bb) of that
subclause.
``(v) Preservation of update.--In the case
of a State that fails to meet the criteria
described in clause (iii) for a fiscal year but
that did satisfy such criteria for a prior
fiscal year, the amount of the base State
family assistance grant determined under this
paragraph for that State for such a fiscal year
shall be increased by the amount determined for
the State under clause (iv)(I) for the most
recent fiscal year for which the State
satisfied such criteria.
``(vi) Definitions.--In this subparagraph:
``(I) State basic tanf grant per
poor person.--The term `State basic
TANF grant per poor person' means, with
respect to a State and a preceding
fiscal year--
``(aa) the base State
family assistance grant for the
State (as defined under
subparagraph (C) and, if
applicable, increased under
this subparagraph); divided by
``(bb) the number of
individuals, according to the
2000 Census Supplementary
Survey, who were residents of
the State and whose income does
not exceed the poverty line.
``(II) National average state basic
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