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TANF Final Rule: New Fact Sheet
Women Work! has developed a new fact sheet detailing changes under the TANF Final Rule issued by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) earlier this month.
The Department of Health and Human Services published final regulations for the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program on February 5th. The Final Rule makes revisions to previous "interim" regulations issued in June of 2006. Although these previous regulations -- designed to implement changes to TANF passed by Congress in a reauthorization bill earlier that year -- took effect immediately, HHS collected comments and proposed changes to the new rules through the end of August 2006. The Final Rule responds to several concerns raised by Women Work!, along with many other organizations, during the summer 2006 comment period.
While several unnecessary restrictions remain in place, the final regulations make it somewhat easier for women receiving welfare to access the education and training that leads to long-term economic self-sufficiency. For example, the revised regulations will allow States to count up to a year of college coursework toward a BA as part of federal work participation requirements. In addition, HHS will no longer require that countable homework time be supervised.
Click here to download Women Work!'s brief overview of the TANF Final Rule. |
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House Passes Higher Education Act Reauthorization
On Thursday, February 7th, the House of Representatives passed the College Opportunity and Affordability Act by a vote of 354-58. The legislation would reauthorize the Higher Education Act of 1965, which has been up for renewal since 2004. The Higher Education Act (HEA) authorizes federal student financial aid and other programs that promote college access and success for unemployed and underemployed women. The Senate passed its version of HEA reauthorization in July.
Among other provisions, the House bill contains a number of key changes to Higher Education programs that will benefit women in economic transition -- many of which Women Work! recommended during the drafting of the bill (click here to read Women Work!'s recommendations.) Specifically, HR 4137 would improve the following:
Financial Aid
- Allows eligible students to receive Pell Grants year-round, not just during the typical school-year. The bill also directs the government to study the possibility of making student aid available to students who attend college less than half-time.
- Makes the financial aid process more responsive to students who pursue modularized programs of study. Modularized programs, which separate longer programs into smaller segments with credentials awarded for each segment, offer solutions for adult students, female and male, for whom pressing family and financial responsibilities make it difficult to complete a traditional full-length program.
Child Care
- Expands student eligibility for the Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CAMPIS) program, which increases access to on-campus child care for low-income student parents. The bill also increases the minimum per-school CAMPIS grant from $10,000 to $30,000, making it more likely that schools will apply to participate in the program.
Support Services
- Establishes a competitive pilot program to provide "Bridges from Jobs to Careers" grants to colleges. These grants would support bridge programs and other innovations in remedial education to increase lower-skilled workers' completion of occupational credentials.
- Establishes a pilot program to provide a "Student Success Grant" to students who receive Pell Grants. Under the program, the Department of Education would award competitive grants to eligible schools to help low-income students persist in and complete postsecondary education and training. Grants would be $1,500 per student, per year for five years.
The legislation will now proceed to a joint House-Senate conference committee where differences between the House and Senate versions of Higher Education reauthorization will be ironed out.
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FMLA's 15th Birthday Brings Proposals to Expand and to Narrow the Law
A Senate hearing last Wednesday, commemorating the 15th anniversary of the landmark Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), considered pending legislation intended to expand the law, as well as recently proposed Department of Labor regulations that would restrict certain FMLA protections. Currently, the FMLA guarantees up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave a year for workers in organizations with more than 50 employees. Leave can be used for the care of seriously ill family members, the birth or adoption of a child, or an employee's own serious health condition.
On February 11th, the Department of Labor Employment Standards Administration published a proposal to change several existing regulations under FMLA. The proposed rule would primarily make changes to the "medical" side of FMLA leave, which allows workers to take time off to care for seriously ill family members or to recover from their own serious conditions. One new proposal would require that employees follow pre-established workplace call-in procedures if they need to take unscheduled leave. Currently, employees can take leave and then designate it as FMLA-qualifying leave within two days of the absence. The new rules would also allow employers to contact employees' medical providers directly in order to obtain authentication of a serious health condition. Click here to read a summary of full proposed rule.
The Department seems to be operating on a different wavelength than Congress, where Children and Families Subcommittee Chairman Christopher Dodd (D-CT) is working on legislation to expand -- rather than narrow -- the FMLA. The Family and Medical Leave Insurance Act, a bi-partisan bill introduced by Dodd along with Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK), would provide up to eight weeks of partially paid leave to people who need to take time off work for those reasons allowed under the FMLA, by creating an "insurance fund" paid for by small contributions from both employers and workers.
Another Dodd proposal, The Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act would expand FMLA coverage to employers with 25 or more employees -- enabling 13 million more Americans to access the FMLA. This legislation also provides parents with up to 24 hours of leave during any 12-month period to participate in a school activity of a son or daughter and allows victims of domestic violence to take job-protected leave to cope with its effects.
Comments on the DOL's proposed rules are due by April 11th. Please let Women Work! know if you would like assistance in preparing comments by emailing Erin Mohan at emohan@womenwork.org. |
| Congress Completes Economic Stimulus Package
On February 4th, Congress passed the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008, a package of tax incentives and rebates intended to avert a severe economic downturn.
Because Senate Democrats failed to garner the 60 votes necessary to add provisions -- such as an unemployment insurance extension -- the final bill looks very similar to the measure originally passed by the House and blessed by the President.
Under the package, individuals will receive rebate checks of up to $600 and couples will receive checks of up to $1,200, plus $300 for each child under 17. Low-income individuals (earning at least $3,000 per year) who do not owe taxes will receive smaller rebates -- $300 for individuals, $600 for couples-along with the standard $300 for each child under 17. | |
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