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Date: Monday, March 18, 1996 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Michael Kharfen (202)401-9215
HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala today approved "Work over Welfare," a welfare reform demonstration project in Cabarrus County, North Carolina. This is the second waiver approved for North Carolina by the Clinton administration.
"While the Clinton administration continues to call on Congress to pass real bipartisan welfare reform legislation, we are supporting local efforts to reform welfare now," said Secretary Shalala. "Today, North Carolina adds to Governor Hunt's comprehensive statewide demonstration with this innovative project in Cabarrus County."
"Work Over Welfare" (WOW) will require Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) applicants and recipients with children between the ages of one and five to develop an "Opportunity Agreement" outlining employment and training responsibilities. When the youngest child in a family reaches age five, the adult will become subject to North Carolina's statewide demonstration, "Work First," which has separate work and training requirements.
Under WOW, recipients are required to take part in up to 40 hours of employment and training activities a week, including JOBS activities, job search, and subsidized employment. The state will deny benefits to adult applicants who refuse to sign an agreement, and there are progressive sanctions for failure to comply with the agreement.
To help recipients make the transition from welfare to work, AFDC and food stamp benefits will be "cashed out" to provide wage subsidies to employers. Recipient wages will never be less than they would have received in AFDC and/or food stamp benefits.
"North Carolina's Cabarrus County project is based on a Clinton administration principle of reforming welfare by requiring an agreement between the recipient and the county," said Mary Jo Bane, assistant secretary for children and families. "By setting strong goals for work and providing incentives for employers, Cabarrus County is putting people on the road to trading in their welfare check for a pay check."
The demonstration will operate for two years and will include an in-depth process analysis.