[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 82 (Wednesday, June 19, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5778-S5779]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. HUTCHINSON (for himself, Mr. Sessions, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. 
        Frist, Mr. Lott, Mr. Kyl, Mr. Gramm, and Mr. Thomas):
  S. 2648. A bill to reauthorize and improve the program of block 
grants to States for temporary assistance for needy families, improve 
access to quality child care, and for other purposes; to the Committee 
on Finance.
  Mr. HUTCHINSON. Mr. President, I am pleased to rise today with my 
colleague from Alabama, Senator Sessions, to introduce the Personal 
Responsibility, Work and Family Promotion Act of 2002.
  This legislation is based on President Bush's plan to strengthen 
welfare reform, and on the bill already passed by the House of 
Representatives over one month ago.
  The 1996 welfare reform law expires this year, and it is important 
that the Senate work quickly to strengthen one of the most successful 
reforms we have seen in decades. The results are clear: Welfare reform 
has been enormously successful. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 
from 1996 to 2000, the number of mothers participating in TANF, 
Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, decreased by about 50 percent; 
2.3 million fewer children live in poverty today than in 1996, Heritage 
Foundation. The poverty rate for African-American children has fallen 
to the lowest point in U.S. history. Employment of young single mother 
has nearly doubled, and employment of single mothers who are high-
school dropouts has risen by two-thirds. And this, amidst arguments 
made in 1996 that this law would seen millions of people into poverty.
  While this is good news, and shows the importance or reforms enacted 
in 1996, we will have work to do. Significant numbers of welfare 
recipients are still not employed and on their way to self-sufficiency. 
That is why I am here today. I join with Senator Sessions to introduce 
the President's welfare reform plan.
  This legislation maintains the important features of the 1996 welfare 
reform law. It emphasizes the themes of work, State flexibility, 
marriage, and child well-being. Our goal for every family on welfare is 
to lead them to self-sufficiency.
  While States have made great improvements in moving recipients to 
work, much more needs to be done. This legislation requires that each 
welfare recipient would have an individual plan devised for them that 
maps out their plan to self-sufficiency. Recognizing that everyone has 
different barriers in gaining employment, these individual plans would 
address the specific needs of each individual and provide opportunities 
for meaningful activity.
  Recipients would be required to participate in activities for 40 
hours per week, simulating the work week of the typical American. This 
40 hours is composed of 24 hours of actual work, and 16 hours of work-
related activities, such as job search, training, education, drug 
treatment, marriage and relationship counseling, and parenting 
education. And states are required to increase their work participation 
rates with modest increases each year. By 2007, States must have 70 
percent of recipients participating in work.
  We have added an important provision in this legislation to ensure 
that the work requirements stay strong. Due to credits that states can 
receive under current law, many work participation rates are 
effectively close to 0 percent. This bill requires that by 2007, states 
have 55 percent of their caseloads working, irrespective of credits 
that the State receives for moving recipients to work. This is an 
important provision that ensures that states are actually focusing on 
work. With the strengthening of these work requirements, we also 
provide significant new flexibility for states. States may apply for a 
new State flex program, allowing them to improve service delivery to 
recipients across various programs.
  TANF is not the only program that benefits low-income persons. Food 
stamps, workforce investment programs, Federal housing programs, and 
adult education programs all serve similar populations, yet program 
requirements are often different. The differences in the administration 
of these programs often deters caseworkers and recipients from knowing 
about all the programs available to them. This state flex program would 
allow a state to apply to the appropriate Cabinet secretaries for 
approval. States must continue to serve the same general population, 
but they could devise a more cohesive approach to delivery of services 
and program eligibility. Waivers could only be granted to proposals 
that are likely to improve the quality of the programs involved, and 
states must have specific objectives in their proposal. Regular 
reporting to Congress is included to maintain proper oversight. This 
new flexibility will provide a real opportunity to serve low-income 
populations seamlessly and without conflicting and cumbersome program 
requirements.

  This bill also provides a modest new investment in supporting healthy 
marriage. A child born and raised outside of marriage will spend an 
average of 51 percent of his childhood in poverty. However, a child 
born and raised by both parents in an intact marriage will spend only 7 
percent of his childhood in poverty.
  While one of the goals of welfare reform is to encourage the 
formation and maintenance of two-parent families, this issue has gone 
largely unaddressed. This legislation authorizes $200 million in 
federal funding to reverse the trend of out-of-wedlock births. States 
may use funds for various purposes, including marital preparation 
programs, high school courses

[[Page S5779]]

about the benefits of healthy marriage, and relationship counseling. 
States will have the flexibility to use the program or programs that 
they determine work best for them.
  Children raised by single parents are 5 times more likely to live in 
poverty, 2-3 times more likely to show behavioral problems, and twice 
as likely to commit crimes or go to jail. Marriage and family formation 
programs will not force anyone into marriage, but will provide people 
with the tools to improve their relationships, both at home, and in the 
working world.
  Finally, important TANF funding would be maintained. Despite an 
unprecedented decline in the caseload, this legislation maintains TANF 
funding at $16.5 billion a year. In addition, the supplemental grants, 
which are important to my home state of Arkansas, are also 
reauthorized.
  This legislation provides an additional $1 billion in child care 
funding. Mandatory funding for the Child Care and Development Block 
Grant would increase to almost $3 billion over the next 5 years.
  While this bill increases mandatory funding for child care, I am 
working with my colleagues in the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and 
Pensions Committee to reauthorize and improve the Child Care and 
Development Block Grant. That process is moving forward, and I hope 
that these two both the TANF issues in the Finance Committee, and the 
child care issues in the HELP Committee, will be merged when they are 
considered before the full Senate.
  I hope that the Finance Committee takes this legislation into 
consideration as they work to formulate a plan. I believe that the 
President's plan has strong support, as evidenced by the quick action 
in the House of Representatives, and I encourage my colleagues to join 
me in this effort to improve upon the impressive results in welfare 
reform that we have seen so far. More remains to be done, however, in 
our quest of working towards independence.
  Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President. I rise today along with my colleague, 
Senator Hutchinson, to introduce legislation to reauthorize the 1996 
welfare reform law. Based on the President's welfare improvement 
initiatives, including promoting independence through work, State 
innovation and promoting health marriage and family foundation, this 
bill builds upon the success of the 1996 welfare reforms. Since 
Congress passed welfare reform in 1996, welfare rolls have fallen 
dramatically. Poverty has declined across all categories. Child hunger 
has declined. More single mothers are employed and their income is 
still increasing. Out-of-wedlock births have begun to level off. And 
more children are growing up in married households. By tying welfare to 
work, the 1996 reforms succeeded in making people self-sufficient and 
independent. Yet there is still more that needs to be done.
  Our bill will continue to promote independence through work by 
gradually increasing the work participation standards and allowing 
workers to use up to 16 hours a week for activities to prepare them for 
the workforce including education and training, substance abuse 
treatment, and job readiness assistance. These 16 hours will enable 
welfare recipients to not only find employment, but to open up 
opportunities to become independent and self-sufficient.
  States need the resources and the flexibility that will allow them to 
continue to help families leave welfare for work. This legislation will 
implement the President's ``state flexibility waivers'' which allow 
states to integrate anti-poverty programs from different federal 
departments.
  Senator Hutchinson and I, as members of the Senate Health, Education, 
Labor, and Pensions Committee will continue to work with our colleagues 
to develop meaningful and comprehensive child care legislation to 
complement the welfare reform bill. I believe that we must work hard to 
create child care programs that focus on school readiness and an end to 
the welfare cycle.
  Part of this legislation includes $200 million in grants to states 
for marriage promotion. One of President Bush's top priorities this 
year has been to remove the financial penalties against marriage within 
the welfare system and to provide services and supports to couples who 
choose marriage for themselves. Our bill will assist them in acquiring 
the knowledge and skills necessary to form and sustain healthy, loving 
and protective marriages. Study after study has shown the 
unquestionable benefits marriage has on our society.
  I look forward to working with my colleagues to passing meaningful 
welfare reform legislation that continues to improve upon the welfare 
reforms of 1996 and gives states the resources and flexibility they 
need to help families become stronger and more self-sufficient. I thank 
my colleague from Arkansas, Senator Hutchinson for his work and 
dedication to welfare reform, and I thank President Bush for his vision 
and his dedication to getting this done.
                                 ______