Child Care: Current System Could Undermine Goals of Welfare Reform
(Testimony, 09/20/94, GAO/T-HEHS-94-238).

Although almost 10 million children are on welfare today, the existing
welfare system requires few of their parents to be in school or
training. Welfare reform proposals, however, would require many more
welfare recipients to participate in education or training as well as
require them to find work after two years. Should such proposals be
enacted, many more welfare parents will need child care subsidies. Yet
only a small fraction of eligible parents have received child care
subsidies. Furthermore, the fragmented nature of the child care funding
streams, with entitlements to some client categories, time limits on
others, and activity limits on others, produces unintended gaps in
services. This limits the ability of low-income families to become
self-sufficient. Finally, as states deplete funds for welfare clients,
they often turn to funds earmarked for the child care needs of the
working poor, putting the working poor at greater risk of welfare
dependency. For all of these reasons, GAO believes that welfare reform's
goal of economic independence for the poor could be undermined if the
problems in the child care subsidy system are not adequately addressed.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

 REPORTNUM:  T-HEHS-94-238
     TITLE:  Child Care: Current System Could Undermine Goals of Welfare 
             Reform
      DATE:  09/20/94
   SUBJECT:  Aid to families with dependent children
             State-administered programs
             Public assistance programs
             Disadvantaged persons
             Child care programs
             Block grants
             Subsidies
             Welfare services
             Welfare recipients
             Supplemental security income
IDENTIFIER:  AFDC
             Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program
             Transitional Child Care Program
             HHS At-Risk Child Care Program
             Urban Institute National Child Care Survey of 1990
             JOBS Program
             
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