FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Monday, July 31, 1995
Contact: Michael Kharfen (202) 401-9215
HHS APPROVES AMENDMENTS TO UTAH WELFARE WAIVER
HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala today approved amendments to the "Single
Parent Employment Demonstration" (SPED) project, a welfare demonstration
project in Utah. Utah is the 32nd state to receive approval for a welfare
waiver under the Clinton administration.
"Utah's demonstration emphasizes
President Clinton's principles for welfare reform -- moving people into
work and providing the supports they need for self-sufficiency,"
said Secretary Shalala. "The Clinton administration continues to
deliver on its promise of state flexibility in welfare reform."
Utah implemented the SPED project in
1993. The amendments extend the availability of transitional Job Opportunities
and Basic Skills Training Program (JOBS) services and the applicability
of certain Food Stamp provisions from one year to two years after a
family leaves Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC).
The amendments provide the state authority
to terminate AFDC cash benefits to a family for continued failure to
participate in the JOBS program. The original demonstration's sanctions
for non-participation will continue to result in a reduction in AFDC
cash benefits by $100 per month. The new sanction may be imposed after
the $100 sanction has been in effect for two months, but only after
repeated efforts have been made to encourage participation of the parent
and benefits have been reduced.
"The demonstration recognizes that families need support in order
to successfully transition from welfare to work," said Mary Jo
Bane, HHS assistant secretary for children and families. "By extending
JOBS services, working to get more recipients participating in JOBS
activities, and imposing tougher sanctions, Utah invests in people so
that work-not welfare-becomes a way of life."
The amendments will be in effect until
the end of the SPED project in five years. The demonstration includes
a rigorous evaluation.
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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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