[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 48 (Thursday, April 25, 2002)]
[House]
[Page H1623]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page H1623]]
                        WELFARE REAUTHORIZATION

  (Ms. WOOLSEY asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, 35 years ago, I was a single mom with three 
small children, and even though I was working, I needed Aid for 
Dependent Children to make ends meet.
  When Congress passed welfare reform in 1996, I warned that getting 
women off the welfare rolls and into dead-end jobs would not be enough, 
and that the goal of welfare must be to break the cycle of poverty, not 
just get women jobs that pay slightly above minimum wage.
  With TANF reauthorization, we have an opportunity to fix what went 
wrong by allowing education and training to count as work, and by 
expanding child care to include weekend and evening work.
  Welfare moms can only succeed if they have skills needed for a job 
that pays a livable wage, and if their kids have access to quality 
child care. Welfare must break the cycle of poverty and strengthen our 
families. Let us use this TANF reauthorization to make welfare a 
success. Learn from the last 5 years.

                          ____________________