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| | Tuesday, September 19, 2017
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Welfare to work
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Department of Human Services (DHS) Commissioner Danielle W. Barnes have announced plans to reinstate the federal work requirement for able-bodied adults without dependents in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) . The requirement was waived in 2008 during the economic recession. With the state’s record low unemployment rates and significant job growth, Haslam says the waiver is no longer needed across most of the state. It will remain in place in 16 counties, including Cocke County, which are designated as economically distressed. Haslam also announced he will propose legislation to the 2018 General Assembly that will incentivize work, reduce fraud and strengthen program integrity in the state’s welfare programs. The state will reestablish work requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents who receive SNAP benefits (formerly known as food stamps) beginning February 1, 2018. Work requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents were waived in 2008 as the Great Recession struck the nation and Tennessee with high unemployment. As the economy has recovered, most other states have either fully or partially restored the work requirement. Of the approximately 1 million Tennesseans who receive SNAP benefits, the re-instated work requirement will likely impact 58,000 able-bodied individuals without dependents who are not currently meeting the requirement. To satisfy the work requirement, an individual must: work at least 20 hours per week; or participate in qualifying education and training activities at least 20 hours per week; or participate in an approved workfare/volunteer program at least 20 hours per week. DHS will partner with the Department of Labor and Workforce Development and the Department of Economic and Community Development to assist individuals in meeting the work requirement in the affected counties. The Haslam administration is also proposing changes to the rules for cash welfare payments, or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. Those reforms are intended to stamp out fraud and eliminate penalties for the working poor. They could also have the effect of raising the amount of cash many families receive by about $100 a month. In recent years, some studies have questioned whether work requirements are effective in reducing poverty or in weeding out slackers who could be in the workforce. Other changes could make welfare programs more generous. The Haslam administration suggests easing rules that penalize low-income Tennesseans for accepting a job or receiving a raise. Haslam says that would give recipients more incentive to move off welfare. Haslam also proposes tying caps for welfare to the "standard of need." Benefits are currently limited to $185 a month. Under his formula, a family of three would receive as much as $277 a month in direct assistance.
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