United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office Health, Education, and Human Services Division author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 1994-05-13 monographic deposited born digital GA 1.13:HEHS-94-87 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-94-87 P0b002ee1803a0789 f:he94087 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-24 GAOREPORTS-HEHS-94-87 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-HEHS-94-87 HEHS-94-87 Aid to families with dependent children State-administered programs Public assistance programs Disadvantaged persons Child care programs Block grants Eligibility criteria Welfare services Welfare recipients Supplemental security income AFDC Transitional Child Care Program HHS At-Risk Child Care Program Child Care and Development Block Grant Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program California Illinois Massachusetts Michigan New York Texas JOBS Program Other Written Product HEHS In response to the growing number of working mothers with young children, Congress created four new child care programs for low-income families. These programs received more than $1.5 billion in federal funding in fiscal year 1992. Although states are making strides toward coordination of federally funded child care services, some federal requirements, coupled with resource constraints, are creating gaps in the delivery of these services to the poor. Specific service gaps stem from program differences in (1) categories of clients who can be served, (2) limits on the type of employment that clients can undertake without compromising their benefits, (3) limits on the amount of income clients can earn without losing their eligibility, and (4) limits on the time during which clients can receive child care subsidies. Despite congressional expectations that the block grant, the largest of the four programs, would motivate states to boost direct support to working poor families needing child care, the existing fragmented system of subsidized child care appears to provide little incentive for states to do so. In an environment of finite resources, which the child care programs for welfare and recent welfare recipients are entitlements, there is pressure to serve these groups while equally needy working poor families may go unaided. Moreover, each of the four programs unintentionally segments the poor into categories that fail to recognize the similarity of their economic plight and child care needs. State officials believe that they would be better able to deliver child care that supports self-sufficiency if greater consistency existed across programs and if they had greater flexibility in how they spend their federal child care funds. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-94-87/html/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-94-87.htm GAO/HEHS-94-87 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-HEHS-94-87 Other Written Product GAO/HEHS-94-87; Child Care: Working Poor and Welfare Recipients Face Service Gaps; Aid to families with dependent children State-administered programs Public assistance programs Disadvantaged persons Child care programs Block grants Eligibility criteria Welfare services Welfare recipients Supplemental security income AFDC Transitional Child Care Program HHS At-Risk Child Care Program Child Care and Development Block Grant Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program California Illinois Massachusetts Michigan New York Texas JOBS Program