FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Tuesday, November 2, 1993
Contact: David Siegel (202) 401-9215
Georgia Welfare Demonstration
HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala today approved a welfare
demonstration for the state of Georgia which will operate statewide
for a five-year period.
Under the demonstration, called the "Personal Accountability
and Responsibility Project" (PAR), Georgia will have the option of
reducing welfare payments when an able-bodied adult willfully
refuses an offer of full-time employment. In addition, the plan
contains a provision denying additional incremental cash benefits
for additional children born after a family is on welfare.
Benefits under such programs as Medicaid and Food Stamps will
still be available to all family members, however. Additionally,
Georgia will offer family planning services and instruction in
parental skills to all Aid to Families with Dependent Children
families as part of this component.
"Georgia's demonstration will test a number of strategies for
reducing long-term welfare dependency. The Clinton administration
remains committed to allowing states to experiment with welfare
demonstrations," Shalala said.
The employment component of the PAR project will allow
Georgia's welfare agency to exclude from an AFDC grant any able-
bodied recipient between the ages of 18 and 60 who has no children
under 14 and who willfully refuses to accept work, or who terminates
employment without cause. In such cases, the family's welfare grant
can be reduced for up to three months for the first refusal.
The family expansion portion of the PAR project will enable the
state to deny incremental cash payments to AFDC families who have
received benefits for at least two years and have additional
children. Given the unique formula used by Georgia in calculating
benefits recipients would be able to "earn back" the amount of
benefits denied through receipt of either child support or earnings.
Mary Jo Bane, HHS' assistant secretary for children and
families, said, "We will work closely with the state to see that the
demonstration is implemented in an effective manner. The PAR
project will include a rigorous evaluation, and I look forward to
reviewing the results of the Georgia demonstration."
The demonstration will begin on Jan. 1, 1994.
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Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are
available at http://www.hhs.gov/news.
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