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House and Senate Reauthorize Perkins Act After years of effort by the Women Work! network and other advocates, the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Act (S. 250) is headed to the White House. The law to renew $1.3 billion in grants for high schools and community colleges largely reinforces trends already in progress at the state and program level: such as replacing the word “vocational” in the law's title with the term “career”. It also takes several positive steps to ensure that women in transition have greater access to the vocational education system. The Senate and House passed reauthorization bills in spring of 2005, but action on the bill languished due to White House concerns and other urgent priorities. Then, after more than a year without official action, a series of rapid developments thrust the measure back into motion. On July 20, House and Senate negotiators approved a compromise version of their respective bills – known as a conference report – which passed unanimously by the Senate six days later. On Saturday July 29 , the House voted, 399-1, to approve the measure and ready it for the President's signature. In 1998, the most recent previous reauthorization of the Perkins Act eliminated the statewide “gender equity set-asides” that funded programs for single parents, displaced homemakers and nontraditional training for women. This resulted in program closings and has significantly reduced services for women in transition. The new Perkins legislation takes several positive steps to ensure that women in transition have greater access to the vocational education system (though it stops short of reinstating the gender-equity set-asides). Victory for Women In a major victory for advocates of women's economic equity, the new law would require local recipents of Perkins dollars to use funds for activities that prepare special populations – including single parents and displaced homemakers who are enrolled in career and technical education programs – for high skill, high wage or high demand occupations that will lead to self-sufficiency. Current law requires local plans only to describe strategies and programs for special populations. However, this requirement is largely symbolic because the law does not require that local funds be used to carry out these plans. Congratulations to everyone who worked to achieve this change. Your sustained advocacy could translate into increased funding for hundreds of existing women in transition programs and also lead to the creation of new programs. President Bush is expected to sign the Perkins Act reauthorization into law – though grudgingly. For several years now, the President has proposed eliminating the Perkins vocational training program, urging Congress to use funding to expand his No Child Left Behind initiative into high schools. Highlights of the Bill Supportive Services - Supportive services, such as child care and transportation, ensure the full participation of women in transition in career and technical education. Since 1999, States have acted under federal Department of Education guidance to allow local programs to use Perkins funds to provide supportive services to special population students who are not eligible or able to receive these services through other programs. Women Work! and other gender equity advocates were successful in clarifying states' flexibility to use Perkins funds for supportive services – including providing direct assistance, as well as referrals – in the new law. The conference report defines supportive services as “transportation, child care, dependent care, tuition, books, and supplies and other services necessary to enable an individual to participate in career and technical education activities.” The new law specificies that eligible agencies and recipients retain the flexibility to provide direct assistance to special populations who are participating in career and technical education programs under certain conditions: “Funds must be used to supplement, not supplant, assistance that is otherwise available from non-Federal sources, and assistance may only be provided to an individual to the extent that it is needed to address barriers to the individual's successful participation in career and technical education.” Accountability - The new law would make several changes to the Perkins accountability system. The measure increases accountability for local programs and requires that both states and local recipients disaggregate, or break out, performance data into categories such as:
States and local recipients must also identify and quantify any disparities in performance between these categories of students and the performance of all students. The new law also creates separate core performance indicators for secondary and postsecondary students. Notably, and after much advocacy from Women Work! the core indicator of performance on nontraditional training was preserved for both secondary and postsecondary students. The nontraditional training indicator plays an important role in advancing gender equity in career and technical education. Finally, the new law adds an additional optional performance indicator for states: self-sufficiency. Self-sufficiency is defined in the report language as: “a standard of economic independence that considers a variety of demographic and geographic factors, as adopted, calculated, or commissioned by a local area or state.” Incorporating the concept of self-sufficiency into the Perkins program helps to increase the focus on economic independence and preparing students for jobs that pay better wages. Funding - The way that funds are structured within states would not change under the new law: 85 percent of funds to local recipients, 5 percent for state administration activities, and 10 percent for state leadership activities, including $60,000 to $150,000 for nontraditional training activities. The Senate reauthorization bill had proposed lifting the $150,000 cap on nontraditional training activities, intending to increase funds spent on statewide nontraditional training services. However, State Equity Coordinators and equity advocates maintained that removal of the cap would actually result in a reduction in funding; states would most likely drop to the floor, or move in that direction, without a target to reach to prove their commitment. As a result, the “target” has been retained in the final compromise bill. Tech Prep - The conference report compromise maintains Tech Prep – which funds math and science classes to prepare high school students for technical colleges – as a separate program. (The House bill had proposed merging Tech-Prep with the Perkins grant program). However, states have the option to consolidate all or part of their Tech Prep grants with Perkins State Basic Grants. Programs of Study - The new law will also require states, in conjunction with high schools and community colleges, to develop “programs of study”, that guide students on specific career paths from secondary through postsecondary education and into the workforce. These programs of study must:
Every institution that receives funds under the bill, must put in place at least one of the various “programs of study”. Senate Passes WIA Reauthorization Bill In a surprise move on the evening of June 29, the U.S. Senate passed the Workforce Investment Act Amendments of 2005 by unanimous consent. The legislation would reauthorize the nation's One-Stop workforce development system, which has not been renewed since 1998. The House of Representatives passed its Workforce Investment Act (WIA) reauthorization in March of 2005, by a party line vote of 220-224. Two contentious provisions included in the House WIA package have held the Senate bill in limbo since last spring. The House reauthorization proposal would consolidate funding for dislocated workers, adult workers and the Employment Services. Women Work! has serious concerns about this proposal which would pit groups of workers against one another and put low-wage workers, especially women, at a disadvantage. The House bill would also allow faith-based groups that receive job-training grants to base their hiring decisions on the religion of job applicants – which opponents say could open the door to religious and racial discrimination. The Senate bill, a product of bipartisan compromise, contains neither of these provisions. Instead, S. 1021 allows for many improvements over current law. Several changes would benefit single parents, displaced homemakers and women seeking non-traditional employment – all of whom are generally underserved by the current One-Stop system. The Workforce Investment Act Amendments of 2005 would:
In order for these amendments to become law, representatives on a joint House-Senate conference committee still must reconcile differences between the two bills and negotiate a compromise reauthorization measure, which will need to be approved by both chambers before the measure could be sent to the President. Given the vast differences between the House and Senate proposals it is not clear whether Congress will be able to complete work on the Workforce Investment Act before the end of this year. Both Houses have adjourned for August recess and will not return until September. After Labor Day, Congress will briefly resume work before adjourning once again for the mid-term elections. Sen. Enzi (R-WY), chairman of the Senate HELP (Health, Education, Labor and Pensions) committee, which has jurisdiction over the bill, stated on July 26th, that he hoped conference committee action on WIA would “quickly follow”. If a conference committee is appointed this fall, it will mark the furthest point reached on WIA reauthorization since Congress first began the debate in 2001. If the bill is not completed before final adjournment of 109th Congress at the end of 2006, the WIA reauthorization process will have to start over in the newly-elected 110th Congress. In June, the House Appropriations Committee cut the Department of Labor Women's Bureau funding by $666,000, reducing the agency's already scarce budget to just $9 million. In July, thanks to the efforts of the Women Work!'s network, the Senate Appropriations Committee rejected the House's proposed Women's Bureau budget cut and approved a $334,000 increase (above FY2006 levels) for the Bureau. This fall, Congress will have to reconcile the difference between the Senate's funding increase and the House's funding cut. Members of Congress are heading home to their districts for summer recess. Don't miss this opportunity to meet your Members of Congress and tell them that the final funding amount for the Women's Bureau must be the $10 million proposed by the Senate. See this issues Advocacy Tip of the Month for details! For many women, the challenge of achieving economic self-sufficiency just became more difficult. On June 29th, the Department of Health and Human Services released limiting new regulations for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), the federal welfare law which provides temporary financial assistance for pregnant women, parents and there children, and sometimes, children only. These new regulations provide specifics on how states must implement the changes authorized by TANF reauthorization (as part of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005), which became law in February. Starting October 1, 2006, the Deficit Reduction Act (DRA) requires that 50 percent of all families and 90 percent of two parent families in each state's TANF program participate in “work activities”. As under previous law, to be counted as participant, parents of children under six must participate in work activities for 20 hours each week and other parents must participate for 30 hours each week. According to the most recent data available, only four states -- Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Wyoming – are operating at or above a 50 percent rate. However, even these states will face difficulties under the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) new rules. The regulations make it harder for states to meet the work participation rates by requiring states to include (with some exceptions) parents who do not receive TANF assistance but live with a child who is receiving assistance in the work rate calculation. Previously, child-only cases were excluded. The new regulations also tax states, by adopting incredibly narrow definitions of the twelve TANF “work activities.” Since 1996, TANF law has listed twelve “work activities” which can count toward states' work participation rates – but the federal government has always refrained from defining these categories in order to give states the flexibility they needed to best serve TANF participants. As a result of remarkably narrow definitions for each of the twelve activities, states may be hard-pressed to eliminate current practices that are successful in advancing economic self-sufficiency, for women and families.
TANF work activities are divided into two categories: “core activities” and “non-core activities”. Participants must spend at least 20 hours a week in “core activities”, in order for “non-core activities” to count towards their participation rate. The new TANF regulations put up barriers to education, work/life balance opportunities and support services; the program elements research has shown help program participants achieve self-sufficiency. Slamming the Door Shut to Education - Stating that “the TANF program was not intended to be a college scholarship program,” the new regulations explicitly prohibit postsecondary education that results in a BA degree from counting as a core work activity. This restriction holds even when the degrees prepare individuals for specific occupations. Associate degrees may still count as vocational education, in certain cases. The new rules also prohibit stand-alone basic skills and English as a Second Language (ESL) programs from counting as a core work activity. States will have to figure out a way to integrate basic skills training and ESL into work-focused programs into order to provide this training to TANF recipients. Making it Harder to Balance Work and Family - In a reversal of prior HHS policy, the new regulations prohibit states from counting study time that does not occur in a structured study hall toward work participation rates. Previously, parents could study at home while caring for children, or after they put their children to sleep, In addition, states are prohibited from counting many other family-related activities towards work-activities. Participants can no longer take their children to the doctor for immunizations as part of the job-readiness activity, or care for a disabled household member as part of the community service activity. Ignoring Barriers to Employment - Research and experience suggests that many TANF participants face multiple barriers to employment and may require specialized services such as mental health counseling or substance abuse counseling to help them prepare for work. However, the new rules limit opportunities for TANF participants to address barriers to employment. Participation in substance abuse, mental health and other rehabilitation services would count under the “job search and readiness category” which limits the activity to four consecutive weeks and for up to six weeks in any 12 month period. In the past, states have included these services as part of the community service work activity – which is not subject to time limits – or, as part of job skills training. Although the new rules became effectively immediately, HHS is accepting suggestions until August 28, after which HHS may modify the regulations in response to comments. Women Work! encourages you to take part in the comment process and make your voice and experiences heard. Click here and search for Keyword or ID ACF-2006-0076-0001 to read the new rules and submit comments. If you are interested in preparing comments and would like assistance, please contact Erin Mohan, Women Work! Public Policy Director. Minimum Wage Maneuvers Continue Late Thursday evening, Senate Democrats defeated an effort by Republican leadership to legislation (HR5970) that combined a minimum wage increase with several policies that would be severely detrimental for American workers. Republican leaders attached to the minimum wage increase, an estate tax provision that would have cost over $750 billion, while helping only a little over 8,000 of the wealthiest Americans and a provision that would have eliminated state laws that protect workers who receive tips. Under current federal law, employers can pay tipped employees as little as $2.13/hr in direct wages, as long as they earn enough in tips to equal the federal minimum wage. Seven states require employers to directly pay tipped employees the full minimum wage -- just like other employees. HR 5970 would have eliminated these state requirements. Thank you to everyone who contacted their Senators on this issue. Your calls saved the wages of hundreds of thousands of tipped workers from being slashed. This skirmish was just one in a series of recent actions after Democrats vowed to raise the federal minimum wage this year. This session Democrats have pressured Republican leadership by attempting to attach minimum wage amendments and language to several bills. Though the most recent bill to increase the minimum wage had to be defeated in order to protect America's tipped workers, other opportunities to increase the minimum wage will may emerge this fall when Congress returns from Summer Recess. As noted in the June Insider, the current Federal minimum wage is the lowest since 1956, when adjusted for inflation, and has not been raised in nine years. Despite increases in corporate productivity and corporate profits, working men and women have not seen any increases in their wages. An increase in the minimum wage would help to raise over 6 million workers out of poverty, of which nearly 4.8 million are women. Efforts to raise the minimum wage have picked up momentum on the state level as well and several states have increased their minimum wages this year. In the past week, the Massachusetts state legislature overrode Governor Mitt Romney's veto to set the highest minimum wage in the country at $8.00 an hour. In addition, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina have recently enacted laws to raise their state minimum wages to $7.15 and $6.15, respectively. Currently, 23 states have minimum wages above the Federal level of $5.15 per hour.
Source: Economic Policy Institute In addition, six states – Arizona, Colorado, Ohio, Montana, Missouri and Nevada – have added ballot initiatives to raise state minimum wage to their November ballots.
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