[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 80 (Tuesday, June 4, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E991-E992]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               INTRODUCTION OF H.R. 3562, WISCONSIN WORKS

                                 ______


                          HON. MARK W. NEUMANN

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 4, 1996

  Mr. NEUMANN. Mr. Speaker, I am submitting for printing in the 
Congressional Record the text of H.R. 3562, a bill to authorize the 
State of Wisconsin to implement the ``Wisconsin Works'' welfare reform 
plan. I am also submitting a list of the 88 Federal waivers requested 
by the Governor of Wisconsin, plus a summary of the Wisconsin Works 
plan, for the benefit of Members of Congress.
  The Wisconsin Works plan was researched, written, debated, and passed 
into law by the citizens of Wisconsin through their elected 
representatives. The plan underwent the scrutiny of numerous public 
hearings and 18 months of public debate. The plan passed the Wisconsin 
state legislature with bipartisan support--both the State Assembly and 
State Senate passed the plan with at least a two-thirds

[[Page E992]]

vote. Finally, the President of the United States enthusiastically 
endorsed Wisconsin's plan in a radio address to the Nation on May 18, 
1996.

                               H.R. 3562

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. AUTHORITY TO IMPLEMENT WISCONSIN WORKS 
                   DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.

       (a) In General.--Upon presentation by the State of 
     Wisconsin of the document entitled ``Wisconsin Works'' (as 
     signed into State law by the Governor of Wisconsin on April 
     26, 1996) to the appropriate Federal official with respect to 
     any Federal entitlement program specified in such document--
       (1) such official is deemed to have waived compliance with 
     the requirements of Federal law with respect to such program 
     to the extent and for the period necessary to enable the 
     State of Wisconsin to carry out the demonstration project 
     described in the document; and
       (2) the costs of carrying out the demonstration project 
     which would not otherwise be included as expenditures under 
     such program shall be regarded as expenditures under such 
     program.
       (b) Limitation of Costs.--Subsection (a)(2) shall not apply 
     to the extent that--
       (1) the sum of such costs and the expenditures of the State 
     of Wisconsin under all programs to which subsection (a) 
     applies during any testing period exceeds
       (2) the total amount that would be expended under such 
     programs during such testing period in the absence of the 
     demonstration project.
       (c) Testing Period.--For purposes of subsection (b), the 
     testing periods are--
       (1) the 5-year period that begins with the date of the 
     commencement of the demonstration project, and
       (2) the period of the demonstration project.
       (d) Recapture of Excess.--If at the close of any testing 
     period, the Secretary of Health and Human Services determines 
     that the amount described in subsection (b)(2) exceeds the 
     amount described in subsection (b)(1) for such period, such 
     Secretary shall withhold an amount equal to such excess from 
     amounts otherwise payable to the State of Wisconsin under 
     section 403 of the Social Security Act (relating to the 
     program of aid to families with dependent children) for the 
     first fiscal year beginning after the close of such period. 
     The preceding sentence shall not apply to the extent such 
     Secretary is otherwise paid such excess by the State of 
     Wisconsin.

     SEC. 2. NO EFFECT ON CERTAIN OTHER WAIVERS GRANTED TO THE 
                   STATE OF WISCONSIN.

       This Act shall not be construed to affect the terms or 
     conditions of any waiver granted before the date of the 
     enactment of this Act to the State of Wisconsin under section 
     1115 of the Social Security Act, including earned waiver 
     savings and conditions. The current waivers are considered a 
     precondition and can be subsumed as part of the Wisconsin 
     Works demonstration.

     SEC. 3. AUTHORITY TO PARTICIPATE UNDER SUBSEQUENT 
                   LEGISLATION.

       If, after the date of the enactment of this Act, any 
     Federal law is enacted which modifies the terms of, or the 
     amounts of expenditures permitted under, any program to which 
     section 1 applies, the State of Wisconsin may elect to 
     participate in such program as so modified.

             Wisconsin Waivers (88) Submitted May 28, 1996


                                General

       1. New fraud penalties
       2. Dual agency administration of medical assistance and 
     food stamps
       3. New performance standards for agencies
       4. End entitlement to cash, health, child care
       5. Fair hearing rights


                Aid to Families with Dependent Children

       1. Definition of dependent child
       2. Definition of AFDC
       3. Benefit for dependent children of parents receiving SSI
       4. No entitlement to job positions
       5. 60 day residency requirement
       6. Assistance group definition
       7. End income/resource exemptions
       8. Refusal of offer of employment
       9. Time-limited participation
       10. Early imposition of time limit clocks
       11. Flexible use of AFDC and medical funds
       12. Agency review of welfare cases
       13. Privatization
       14. Performance standards for agencies
       15. Two month delay in closing cases
       16. Changing assets limits
       17. Lump sums
       18. Benefit calculation
       19. End AFDC needs standard
       20. Elimination of child care disregard
       21. Learnfare sanctions
       22. Non-custodial parent eligibility
       23. Sanction for child support noncooperation
       24. Paying child support directly
       25. Treatment of stepparent income
       26. End medical assistance extension
       27. Eligibility of sponsored aliens
       28. Deeming income of sponsors
       29. Fraud penalties
       30. Minors required to live at home
       31. Statewide eligibility criteria
       32. Quality control
       33. Filing federal fraud reports
       34. Benefits under trial jobs
       35. Placement for unsubsidized jobs
       36. Trial jobs
       37. Community service jobs
       38. Work required for parents of children under age 6
       39. Transition
       40. Job access loans
       41. Flexible use of cash/medical funds
       42. Child care copayment requirements
       43. Community steering committee
       44. JOBS program provisions
       45. AODA participation
       46. Work exemption for parents of children under age 1
       47. Employment category sanctions
       48. Applicant job search
       49. Extensions of time limits
       50. CWEP participation
       51. One parent participation in work program
       52. Emergency assistance
       53. Displacement
       54. Recoupment of overpayment
       55. Garnishing benefits for medical premiums
       56. Automatic data processing


                                Medicaid

       1. Entitlement status of medical assistance
       2. End of medical assistance extension
       3. HMOs
       4. Maintain effort on medical assistance
       5. No public health benefits if employer plan
       6. Health plan premiums
       7. Medical assistance income eligibility limits
       8. Income disregards
       9. Assets
       10. Privatization
       11. Treatment of stepparent income
       12. Minor parents required to live at home
       13. Agency review of cases
       14. Sanction for child support noncooperation


                             Child Support

       1. Paying child support directly
       2. Child support disregard
       3. Mandatory cooperation on child support
       4. Continued eligibility for child support
       5. Child support services for welfare families
       6. Earning incentives on child support


                               Child Care

       1. Eligibility age for child care
       2. Financial eligibility for child care


                              Food Stamps

       1. Certification
       2. Graduated benefit levels
       3. Employment and training program exemptions
       4. Work requirements
       5. Nutrition education

 Major Features of the Wisconsin Welfare Reform Plan (Waiver Submitted 
                             May 28, 1996)

       1. Cash assistance is available only through work or 
     participation in a work activity (such as community service 
     or a sheltered workshop for the disabled).
       2. There is a 5-year lifetime limit on assistance (with 
     limited individual extensions such as for poor local 
     economy).
       3. Teen parents must live at home or in a supervised 
     alternative living arrangement like kinship care or group 
     homes.
       4. Health care coverage (replacing Medicaid) will be 
     obtained from certified HMOs through benefits packages 
     resembling those offered by employers, with recipients paying 
     premiums on a sliding scale and standard copayments. Under 
     the Wisconsin plan, health care spending grows from $445 
     million in FY 1997 to $475 million in FY 1998.
       5. Child care is available to all eligible families who 
     need it to work, with funds focused on lower-income families 
     and recipient copayments linked to the cost of care. Under 
     the Wisconsin plan, child care spending grows from $158 
     million in FY 1997 to $180 million in FY 1998.
       6. The Wisconsin plan includes five food stamp waivers, 
     linking food stamps with other benefits, encouraging work (by 
     maintaining food stamp benefits as work and income rises, by 
     limiting exceptions to required work, and by reducing 
     benefits for failure to work), and requiring nutrition 
     education for participants. Food stamps would be replaced 
     with cash, increasing flexibility and recipient self-esteem.
       7. Even though child care and health care spending grows, 
     other expenses such as subsidized employment expenses, office 
     costs, and state administration fall even more, resulting in 
     lower total welfare spending ($1.063 billion in FY 1997 and 
     $1.042 billion in FY 1998).

                          ____________________