Reports & Analyses

• Apr 16, 2013  |  Vickie Choitz and Patrick Reimherr Mind the Gap: High Unmet Financial Need Threatens Persistence and Completion for Low-Income Community College Students Over the last three decades, college tuition and fees have increased nearly four times faster than median income and four-and-a-half times faster than inflation. The rapid increase in college costs and flat or reduced funding in student aid has resulted in sizable unmet need and has forced students -- particularly low-income students -- to borrow more, work more hours, take fewer courses, or in some cases, drop out altogether. Unmet need and student loan debt for students at high-cost institutions have attracted widespread public attention. Less attention has been paid to unmet need at community colleges, where 41 percent of all undergraduates living in poverty are enrolled, according to the most recent data available (2007-2008). Download PDF
• Apr 08, 2013  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - April 2013 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. Read Online
• Apr 03, 2013  |  Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Bryant Taking Aim at Gun Violence: Rebuilding Community Education and Employment Pathways In a single generation, our nation is faced with the prospect of losing over 132,000 black men and boys to gun violence. Moreover, for every black male who dies from gun violence, there are another 24 others who suffer non-fatal injuries - making the impacts of such violence even greater. In black communities, gun violence is about far more than reforming gun control laws and empowering law enforcement. Gun violence for young black males predominates in communities where residents live in concentrated disadvantage with high rates of unemployment, school dropout, and poverty. The absence of opportunities in these communities gives rise to criminal activity and the loss of too many young lives. Solving the crisis of gun violence in communities requires that America address the issue of concentrated poverty and geography. The rebuilding and strengthening of these communities through creating infrastructure to provide improved education and employment opportunities for black youth will significantly reduce issues of gun violence. Read Online   |   Download PDF   |   Additional PDF
• Apr 02, 2013  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Getting Down to Business Newsletter - April 2013 Getting Down to Business is a CLASP monthly update on the latest news about business and paid leave. Read Online
• Mar 29, 2013  |  Lavanya Mohan CLASP Work Supports Newsletter - March 2013 The Work Supports Newsletter is a monthly update that summarizes CLASP's work on safety net programs that include cash assistance (TANF), nutrition supports (SNAP), refundable tax credits, health insurance, child support enforcement and child care subsidies. Read Online
• Mar 26, 2013  |  Andrea Lindemann Gilliam and Liz Ben-Ishai Implementing Earned Sick Day Laws: First Out of the Gate: San Francisco's Sick Days Law Implementing a new law is always a complex process. But what happens when you are the first jurisdiction in the country to pass such a law? This was the unique challenge facing San Francisco when it passed the nation's first earned sick days law in 2006. The City and County government took on the challenge admirably, employing a variety of creative strategies to conduct outreach to the public, write meaningful rules, and ensure the law would be properly enforced. Download PDF
• Mar 25, 2013  |  Allegra Baider, Vickie Choitz, Amy Ellen Duke-Benfield, Marcie W.M. Foster, Linda Harris, Elizabeth Lower-Basch, Neil Ridley, Julie Strawn Funding Career Pathways and Career Pathway Bridges: A Federal Policy Toolkit for States This toolkit is designed to help interagency state teams identify and facilitate "braiding" of federal resources to design and develop career pathways and bridges into them for adults and out-of-school youth. The toolkit also will help state teams identify state policy barriers to using federal resources for career pathways and bridges and, ideally, address them. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Mar 19, 2013  |  Chris Warland and Melissa Young, National Transitional Jobs Network and Elizabeth Lower-Basch, CLASP Innovative City and State Funding Approaches to Supporting Subsidized Employment and Transitional Jobs A new paper from the National Transitional Jobs Network and CLASP provides strategies and makes recommendations on leveraging and blending multiple sources of funding to support subsidized employment programs. In addition to highlighting the opportunities to use block grant funding, from both TANF and Community Services Block Grant (CSBG), the paper identifies efforts to fund these jobs by averting future expenses associated with prisons and other corrections measures and by leveraging public contracting and bidding opportunities. The webinar is also available. Read Online   |   Download PDF   |   Additional PDF
• Mar 15, 2013  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch and Neil Ridley Navigating Federal Programs to Build Sustainable Career Pathways in the Health Professions: A Guide for HPOG Programs Healthcare is one of the fastest growing sectors in our economy, and there are many jobs in this sector that require fewer than 4 years of college education, have high demand, and offer good pay. However, low-income workers often face barriers to accessing the education and training they need to enter these jobs, including lack of information, poor basic skills, confusing and poorly aligned training programs, cost of training, and need for supportive services, such as child care and transportation. The Heath Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG), authorized by section 5507 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA; Public Law 111-148), address this issue by supporting models for providing education, training, and support services to enable recipients of cash assistance under Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and other low-income individuals to obtain well-paying jobs in high-demand healthcare occupations. The HPOG program is one of several provisions of ACA aimed at supporting training for the healthcare workforce of the future. Download PDF
• Mar 13, 2013  |  Patrick Reimherr, Tim Harmon, Julie Strawn, Vickie Choitz Executive Summary: Reforming Student Aid: How to Simplify Tax Aid and Use Performance Metrics to Improve College Choices and Completion Funded as part of the Gates Foundation's Reimagining Aid Design and Delivery project, our paper focuses on two areas that have received scant attention from federal policymakers: tax-based student aid and the use of performance metrics in aid policy. IOur paper offers a range of policy options for consolidating the various tax-based aid provisions and better targeting this aid toward low- and modest-income families. We also propose piloting “real-time payment” of the American Opportunity Tax Credit to deliver this aid to students when they enroll, not just at tax time. Our ideas are backed by ten-year revenue estimates and distributional estimates from the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center. Download PDF
• Mar 12, 2013  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - March 2013 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. Read Online
• Mar 08, 2013  |  Patrick Reimherr, Tim Harmon, Julie Strawn, Vickie Choitz Reforming Student Aid: How to Simplify Tax Aid and Use Performance Metrics to Improve College Choices and Completion Our paper offers a range of policy options for consolidating the various tax-based aid provisions and better targeting this aid toward low- and modest-income families. We also propose piloting "real-time payment" of the American Opportunity Tax Credit to deliver this aid to students when they enroll, not just at tax time. Our ideas are backed by ten-year revenue estimates and distributional estimates from the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center. We've crafted our recommendations to be revenue neutral or modestly positive to respond to current budget realities, and we believe these proposals are timely, given the potential for tax reform in this Congress. Download PDF
• Mar 04, 2013  |  Lavanya Mohan CLASP Work Supports Newsletter - February 2013 CLASP is inaugurating this Work Supports e-newsletter to highlight the efforts of CLASP and our colleague organizations to help ensure low-income families get the support they need to stay employed and provide for their families. Read Online
• Mar 04, 2013  |  Liz Ben-Ishai Getting Down to Business Newsletter - March 2013 Getting Down to Business is a CLASP monthly update on the latest news about business and paid leave. Read Online
• Mar 01, 2013  |  CLASP and ASBC Better Businesses and Better Workplaces: The Role of Comprehensive Business Certification Increasingly, businesses are seeking out certifications as tools to assess their impact and verify that their practices are consistent with their values. For job quality advocates, who are increasingly recognizing the crucial role of business support in successful campaigns, both certifying organizations and certified businesses can be valuable partners. This issue brief provides job quality advocates with a primer on the nuts and bolts of the certification movement and suggests ways advocates can foster fruitful relationships between the movements. Download PDF
• Feb 27, 2013  |  Liz Ben-Ishai Implementing Earned Sick Days Laws: Learning from Seattle's Experience This issue brief draws upon Seattle's experience implementing its Paid Sick and Safe Time Ordinance to delineate best practices for implementing such laws. Seattle passed its earned sick days law in September 2011. The task of implementation in Seattle fell to the city's Office for Civil Rights (SOCR). CLASP spoke with SOCR staff to learn about their innovative approaches to outreach, implementation, and enforcement. Download PDF
• Feb 22, 2013  |  CLASP's Youth Policy Team "Keeping Connected" eUpdate This periodic update for the field is a part of CLASP's ongoing work to advance policy and practice that will dramatically improve the education, employment, and life outcomes for youth in communities of high youth distress. It highlights policy happenings in education, training and youth development that impact black male achievement. Read Online
• Feb 19, 2013  |  Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Bryant, Linda Harris, Kisha Bird Investing in Boys and Young Men of Color: The Promise and Opportunity Boys and young men of color in the United States face challenges in the areas of education, employment, and health. In the last several years, there has been greater focus on understanding these challenges and identifying potential solutions. While we know more about effective programmatic solutions, we still have much to learn about the systemic barriers that impede the success of males of color. Effecting policy changes in these areas will produce sustainable gains for boys and young men of color. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation commissioned CLASP to conduct a scan of these policy opportunities to inform the development of their Forward Promise Initiative. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Feb 14, 2013 A Framework for Measuring Career Pathways Innovation This working paper examines three elements of career pathway metrics development and provides an overview of what state and local/regional career pathway systems have done in relation to those elements. Our scan provides an impression of current practices but not a systematic description. Download PDF
• Feb 14, 2013 The Alliance for Quality Career Pathways Approach: Developing Criteria and Metrics for Quality Career Pathways The Alliance for Quality Career Pathways is a two-year, state driven, CLASP-led effort to identify criteria that define high quality career pathway systems and a set of shared performance metrics for measuring and managing their success. CLASP will work with 10 states that are leading the nation in experience with developing and taking to scale career pathways, using a consensus process, to create this framework of criteria and metrics. These leading states participating in the Alliance are Arkansas, California, Illinois, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Oregon, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. Download PDF
• Feb 08, 2013  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - February 2013 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. Read Online
• Feb 07, 2013  |  Liz Ben-Ishai Business Support for the Family and Medical Leave Act The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which enables workers to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid job-protected leave to care for their own serious illness, a sick family member, or to bond with a new baby, has been used by millions of workers since its passage in 1993. As this important piece of legislation celebrates its 20th anniversary, new data shows that the vast majority of businesses find administering the law easy, and 80 percent of small businesses favor the legislation. But the data also point to a pressing need for paid leave programs, like those in California and New Jersey. In those states, family leave insurance programs have made it possible for employees to take paid family leave, easing the financial burden of caring for oneself and one's family. Research shows that businesses in California have found the state's Paid Family Leave (PFL) program to be good for or have little effect on business. This brief from CLASP demonstrates business support for both the FMLA and paid family leave, while highlighting the pressing need for paid leave. Download PDF
• Feb 06, 2013  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Goals for TANF Reauthorization This updated Policy Brief argues that poverty alleviation and prevention of material hardship and creation of effective pathways to economic opportunity should be the goals of TANF reauthorization and recommends program changes that would more effectively promote these goals. Download PDF
• Feb 01, 2013  |  Work/Life & Job Quality Getting Down to Business Newsletter - February 2013 Getting Down to Business is a CLASP monthly update on the latest news about business and paid leave. Read Online
• Jan 24, 2013  |  Helly Lee Research Shows Long-Lasting Benefits of EITC The EITC is a widely successful program that has been shown to help lift families above poverty and contribute to the short-, intermediate- and long-term support of low-income families. Download PDF
• Jan 11, 2013  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - January 2013 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Dec 20, 2012  |  CLASP and National Employment Law Project Seizing the Moment: A Guide to Adopting State Work Sharing Legislation After the Layoff Prevention Act of 2012 This report from CLASP and the National Employment Law Project is a guide for state leaders and advocates seeking to implement work sharing programs, which provide employers with an alternative to layoffs. The Middle Class Relief and Job Creation Act -- signed by President Obama in February 2012 -- included provisions designed to encourage states to adopt or revitalize work sharing programs. The Act presents a rare opportunity for states to put in place another counter-cyclical tool that will help workers, employers and communities during economic downturns in the future. Download PDF
• Dec 19, 2012  |  CLASP and ZERO TO THREE Expanding Access to EHS: Illinois Child Care Initiative The Illinois Child Care Collaboration Program promotes collaboration between child care and other early care and education providers, including Early Head Start (EHS), by creating policies to ease blending of funds to extend the day or year of existing services. While no funding is provided through the initiative, participating programs may take advantage of several child care rule exceptions that make it easier to access child care subsidy dollars to extend the day/year of EHS services. Download PDF
• Dec 19, 2012  |  CLASP and ZERO TO THREE Expanding Access to EHS: Illinois Prevention Initiative The Illinois Prevention Initiative provides grants to home-based and center-based programs to expand access to the Early Head Start (EHS) model as well as other birth to 3 models. The goal is to serve additional children birth to age 3 and help grantees increase program quality. The initiative to expand access to EHS and other models was established by the Illinois State Board of Education in 2007, as recommended by the Illinois Early Learning Council. Download PDF
• Dec 19, 2012  |  CLASP and ZERO TO THREE Expanding Access to EHS: Kansas Initiative Kansas Early Head Start (KEHS) provides comprehensive services following federal Head Start Program Performance Standards for pregnant women and eligible families with children from birth to age 4. KEHS was implemented in 1998 using Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) quality set-aside dollars augmented by a transfer of federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds. The initiative was designed to improve the availability and quality of child care for infants and toddlers in Kansas. Download PDF
• Dec 19, 2012  |  CLASP and ZERO TO THREE Expanding Access to EHS: Maine Initiative Maine has two initiatives that build on Early Head Start (EHS). The first initiative, Fund for a Healthy Maine, provides tobacco settlement money to existing Head Start and EHS programs to expand the number of children who receive full-day, full-year services. The second initiative, Supplemental, provides state general revenue funds to all Head Start programs to add additional slots, some of which may be used for EHS. Download PDF
• Dec 19, 2012  |  CLASP and ZERO TO THREE Expanding Access to EHS: Maryland Initiative Since 2000, Maryland has provided state supplemental funds to Head Start and Early Head Start (EHS) programs to improve access. Local EHS programs may use funds, through child care partnerships, to extend the EHS day or year. Download PDF
• Dec 19, 2012  |  CLASP and ZERO TO THREE Expanding Access to EHS: Minnesota Initiative Minnesota provides supplemental state funding to existing federal Head Start and Early Head Start (EHS) grantees to increase their capacity to serve additional infants, toddlers, and pregnant women. The initiative was started in 1997 when the state legislature earmarked $1 million of the general state Head Start supplemental funds for children birth to age 3. Download PDF
• Dec 19, 2012  |  CLASP and ZERO TO THREE Expanding Access to EHS: Missouri Initiative Missouri's Early Head Start/Child Care Partnership Project expands access to Early Head Start (EHS) services for children birth to age 3 by developing partnerships between federal Head Start, EHS contractors, and child care providers. Head Start and EHS contractors that participate in the initiative provide services through community child care providers to both increase the number of children receiving EHS services and improve the overall quality of care. Download PDF
• Dec 19, 2012  |  CLASP and ZERO TO THREE Expanding Access to EHS: Nebraska Initiative Since 1999, Nebraska's Early Head Start Infant/Toddler Quality Initiative has supported Early Head Start (EHS) and community child care partnerships to improve the quality and professionalism of infant and toddler care. EHS programs apply to receive funding to establish partnerships with center-based or home-based child care. Download PDF
• Dec 19, 2012  |  CLASP and ZERO TO THREE Expanding Access to EHS: Oklahoma Initiative The Oklahoma Early Childhood Program uses public and private funds to enhance and expand high quality early care and education opportunities for children birth through age 3. The George Kaiser Family Foundation initiated the pilot in 2006 by matching state general revenue with private donations. Since that time, other private funders and providers have begun to contribute matching funds. Download PDF
• Dec 05, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - December 2012 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Nov 26, 2012 Possibilities and Pitfalls: The Role of Licensing in Supporting Relatives in Caring for Children in Foster Care Download PDF
• Nov 13, 2012  |  Christine Johnson-Staub Planning Funding Partnerships: A Worksheet to Help States Get Started in Putting it Together The following worksheet comes from CLASP's "Putting It Together: A Guide to Financing Comprehensive Services in Child Care and Early Education." States and communities embarking on financing partnerships to expand access to comprehensive services can use this worksheet to begin mapping the need, available resources, and potential partnering strategies that will help them move forward. This document may be downloaded, edited, and saved. Download PDF
• Nov 09, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - November 2012 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Nov 05, 2012  |  Coalition for Access and Opportunity Data Sharing in Public Benefit Programs: An Action Agenda for Removing Barriers This paper from the Coalition for Access and Opportunities highlights opportunities for the federal government to eliminate or minimize administrative obstacles to data sharing that will improve access to government benefits and services for the people who need them. It offers suggestions to reduce the duplicative work that overwhelms state and local agency staff who help consumers apply for public benefits. It also presents important avenues to maximize federal investments in human services when budgets are tight. Download PDF
• Oct 31, 2012  |  Emily Firgens and Hannah Matthews State Child Care Policies for Limited English Proficient Families The most recent set of CCDBG state plans for FFY 2012-2013 offer insight into how states' activities and policies are targeted toward LEP and immigrant families, children, and providers. We provide in this paper summaries of state responses to questions about engaging with LEP families and providers and better serving them through state child care assistance programs. Download PDF
• Oct 09, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - October 2012 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Oct 01, 2012  |  Elizabeth Kenefick and Elizabeth Lower-Basch Helping TANF Recipients Overcome Addiction This brief aims to provide updated information on the range of state policies and highlights some of the promising approaches that states are using to address substance abuse by TANF recipients. It is based primarily on a recent CLASP-commissioned survey conducted by students at George Washington's School of Public Policy, as well as interviews they conducted with state TANF program administrators. Download PDF
• Oct 01, 2012  |  Matt Lewis, Elizabeth Kenefick, and Elizabeth Lower-Basch Random Drug Testing of TANF Recipients is Costly, Ineffective and Hurts Families Updated October 2012. Legislators in a number of states have proposed to test all TANF recipients for drug use. This updated brief explains that random drug testing may be unconstitutional, and is a costly and ineffective way to identify individuals in need of substance abuse treatment. Screening, targeted testing programs, and enhanced treatment options are a better approach to helping TANF families affected by substance abuse. Download PDF
• Sep 13, 2012  |  Stephanie Schmit and Jamie Colvard Expanding Access to Early Head Start: State Initiatives for Infants and Toddlers at Risk All babies need good health, strong families, and positive early learning experiences to foster their healthy intellectual, social, and emotional development. Unfortunately, far too few young children receive the supports they need to build a strong foundation for future growth. The federal Early Head Start (EHS) program was created in 1994 to address the comprehensive needs of children under age 3 in low-income families and vulnerable low-income pregnant women. Research shows that EHS positively impacts children's cognitive, language, and social-emotional development; family self-sufficiency; and parental support of child development. This report highlights how states are using innovative funding, policies, and partnerships, to expand the critically important EHS program and better meet the needs of more low-income children and pregnant women living in their state. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Sep 10, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - September 2012 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Aug 30, 2012  |  Ivory Toldson & Candice Crowell CLASP Middle School/High School Boys of Color Policy Scan and Information Gathering This report is a summary of the findings from over 500 online and telephone surveys with local practitioners and national experts in the area of boys and young men of color. They shared perspectives on which issues were most pressing in the areas of education, employment, and health as well as solutions for moving the work forward more effectively in communities. Download PDF
• Aug 14, 2012  |  Christine Johnson-Staub Putting it Together: A Guide to Financing Comprehensive Services in Child Care and Early Education This guide provides state policymakers and advocates with strategies to maximize resources and make policy changes that drive funds, resources, and community partners to child care and early education programs to benefit young children and families. Separate from blending and braiding funding streams at the local or program level, the strategies described in this guide focus on state policy decisions that can facilitate the innovative use of funds, encourage partnerships at the state and local level, and replicate promising models from other states. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Aug 09, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - August 2012 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jul 09, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - July 2012 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jun 28, 2012  |  Marcie Foster with Lennox McLendon Sinking or Swimming: Findings from a Survey of State Adult Education Tuition and Financing Policies At no time in recent history has the importance of adult education been greater and the funding more threatened. Despite the fact that as many as 93 million adults in the U.S. may need basic skills services to improve their economic prospects, funding for these services is stagnating at the federal level and being slashed in statehouses and state agencies across the country. Demand remains high, with at least 160,000 people on waiting lists that exist in nearly every state. To begin the conversation about how to meet existing and emerging needs with shrinking resources, CLASP and the National Council for State Directors of Adult Education (NCSDAE) surveyed state directors of adult education in February 2012. The goal was to glean information about important policies that govern the way adult education is funded, including the costs borne by local districts, community colleges, and other providers and by the states, the federal government, and students. Download PDF
• Jun 06, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - June 2012 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jun 04, 2012  |  Christine Johnson-Staub and Stephanie Schmit Home Away From Home: A Toolkit for Planning Home Visitng Partnerships with Family, Friend, and Neighbor Caregivers Home visiting and family, friend, and neighbor (FFN) partnerships hold great opportunity to reach more children with family support services during the critical early years. This toolkit provides states with an overview of FFN and home visiting partnerships, a tool to help states explore and establish this type of partnership, and case studies of existing home visiting and FFN partnerships. Download PDF
• May 17, 2012  |  Stan Dorn and Elizabeth Lower-Basch Moving to 21st-Century Public Benefits: Emerging Options, Great Promise, and Key Challenges Currently, millions of needy individuals and families do not receive some or all of the benefits for which they are eligible. In many cases, this is due to the complicated and burdensome processes involved in demonstrating that an applicant has met all eligibility requirements and in recertifying this information on a regular basis. Written for the Coalition for Access and Opportunity, this paper illustrates how sharing data and basing eligibility decisions on existing information can cut administrative costs, help more families in need of assistance access benefits and strengthen programs. Download PDF
• May 14, 2012  |  CLASP & IWPR Paid Time Off: The Elements and Prevalence of Consolidated Leave Plans This report released by CLASP and the Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR) examines Paid Time Off (PTO) banks and their prevalence. Nearly one in five employees in the United States receive leave in the form of a PTO bank, but the contours of such policies are often little understood-especially outside of the human resources community. This report is a first step in understanding PTO banks so that further questions and insights about PTO banks and low-wage workers and their employers can be explored. Download PDF
• May 04, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - May 2012 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Apr 30, 2012  |  Linda Harris and Kisha Bird Workforce Investment Act Reauthorization May Move Youth Development Field Back a Decade On March 29, 2012, Rep. Virginia Foxx, Rep. Joseph J. Heck and Rep. Howard P. McKeon introduced a Workforce Investment Act (WIA) reauthorization bill (H.R. 4297). This analysis looks at the bill's youth provisions. Download PDF
• Apr 24, 2012  |  Marcie Foster Refocusing Adult Education on Career and Postsecondary Success Two proposals to reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) are in the House of Representatives. Both proposals reflect a priority of greater alignment among adult education (Title II), workforce development (Title I), and postsecondary education, and both increase the focus on preparing adult students not just to earn a secondary school diploma but for college and careers. Despite these similarities, the bills differ across several dimensions. This analysis highlights key provisions in each bill that strengthen or weaken the overall goal of refocusing Title II on career and postsecondary success. Download PDF
• Apr 16, 2012  |  Evelyn Ganzglass and Neil Ridley Reauthorizing WIA: The House Workforce Block Grant Heads in the Wrong Direction On March 29, 2012, Rep. Virginia Foxx, Rep. Joseph J. Heck and Rep. Howard P. McKeon introduced a Workforce Investment Act (WIA) reauthorization bill (H.R. 4297). To help advocates and stakeholders, CLASP has developed a set of criteria for evaluating this bill and other proposals that consolidate programs offering workforce services to low-income families and individuals. In applying these criteria to H.R. 4297, CLASP finds that the bill fails on most counts. Download PDF
• Apr 03, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - April 2012 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Mar 29, 2012  |  Neil Ridley and George Wentworth A Breakthrough for Work Sharing: A Summary of the Layoff Prevention Act of 2012 On February 22, 2012, President Obama signed H.R. 3630, extending the payroll tax cut and federal unemployment assistance through the end of 2012. Included in the $143 billion measure are provisions designed to expand a creative layoff aversion strategy called work sharing. This summary of the Layoff Prevention Act of 2012 is produced by CLASP and the National Employment Law Project (NELP). Download PDF
• Mar 28, 2012  |  Stephanie Schmit and Danielle Ewen Supporting Our Youngest Children: Early Head Start Programs in 2010 This policy brief examines the latest data from the Program Information Reports (PIR) that all Early Head Start (EHS)programs must submit to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In 2010, Early Head Start saw its largest increase in enrollment in its history. EHS families continued to access services at a high rate and children continued to be connected to medical and dental services. Challenges continue to exist as teachers' salaries remain stagnant and a smaller percentage of teachers have an associate's degree or higher in 2010 compared to 2009 and 2006. Download PDF
• Mar 02, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - March 2012 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Mar 02, 2012  |  Marcie Foster The Adult Education and Economic Growth Act: Toward a Modern Adult Education System and a More Educated Workforce This is an update to a similar brief from November 2011. The Adult Education and Economic Growth Act (AEEGA) was introduced in the House of Representatives in June 2011 by Rep. Ruben Hinojosa (TX-15) and in February 2012 in the Senate by Sen. Jim Webb (VA). The Act (H.R. 2226 and S. 2117) would amend the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) to encourage the use and availability of career pathways for low-skilled adults, strengthen the focus of adult education on postsecondary and career success, increase the number of adult education students receiving marketable postsecondary credentials, and modernize the adult education system to meet the needs of 21st century jobs. Although AEEGA could substantially improve WIA-particularly the Title II provisions that govern adult education-it could be strengthened by incorporating stronger provisions that promote better alignment between WIA Titles I and II, including a shared system of accountability. Download PDF
• Feb 23, 2012  |  Karen Schulman, Hannah Matthews, Helen Blank and Danielle Ewen A Count for Quality: Child Care Center Directors on Rating and Improvement Systems Quality Rating and Improvement Systems (QRIS) are designed to give providers incentives and supports to improve quality and parents information about child care quality. With the growth in QRIS, CLASP, together with the National Women's Law Center, interviewed child care providers participating in QRIS in several states. This report provides findings on the key components of QRIS, cross-cutting lessons on QRIS strategies, and recommendations for policymakers from the perspective of child care center directors. Download PDF
• Feb 09, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - February 2012 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Feb 09, 2012  |  Christine Johnson-Staub Promote Access to Early, Regular and Comprehensive Screening Very young children develop in the context of their physical and mental health and the capacity of their families and other caregivers to address the full range of early childhood development. All babies and toddlers in child care need parents, providers, and caregivers supported by and linked to community resources. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that early, regular and comprehensive health, mental health, and developmental screenings and related services are made available at recommended ages for vulnerable infants and toddlers through connections with all infant and toddler providers and caregivers. This document presents research supporting the recommendation to promote access to early, regular, and comprehensive screening. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Feb 03, 2012  |  Stephanie Schmit and Danielle Ewen Putting Children and Families First: Head Start Programs in 2010 This policy brief examines the latest data from the Program Information Reports (PIR) that all Head Start programs must submit to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In 2010, Head Start served more participants than the previous year. PIR data show that Head Start is continuing to provide critical services for poor children and their families. Families continued to seek Head Start services at a high rate and nearly all children had health insurance at the end of the program year. Challenges still exist as teachers' salaries remain stagnant and the percent of teachers with degrees decreased slightly from 2009 to 2010. Download PDF
• Jan 18, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education A Tool Using Data to Inform a State Early Childhood Agenda This tool is intended for state advocates and policymakers to use as they work to develop a state early childhood agenda. It includes a series of key questions to understand the context and conditions of young children, birth to six, in the state. Where possible, we also include infant/toddler specific questions. Questions include data on demographics and program participation (such as health and nutrition programs), as well as the details of child care and early education settings in the state. Users can download and save a copy of this tool, fill in their state’s data, and compare to national data points (which are provided where appropriate). Read Online   |   Download File
• Jan 10, 2012  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - January 2012 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Dec 09, 2011  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - December 2011 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Nov 10, 2011  |  Marcie Foster The Adult Education and Economic Growth Act (H.R. 2226) The Adult Education and Economic Growth Act (AEEGA) was introduced in the House of Representatives in June 2011 by Rep. Ruben Hinojosa (TX-15). The bill (H.R. 2226) would amend the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) to encourage the use and availability of career pathways for low-skilled adults, strengthen the focus of adult education on postsecondary and career success, increase the number of adult education students receiving marketable postsecondary credentials, and modernize the adult education system to meet the needs of 21st century jobs. Although AEEGA could substantially improve WIA - particularly the Title II provisions that govern adult education - it could be strengthened by incorporating stronger provisions that promote better alignment between WIA Titles I and II, including a shared system of accountability. Download PDF
• Nov 08, 2011  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Big Ideas for Job Creation: Rethinking Work Opportunity - From Tax Credits to Subsidized Job Placements This paper is part of the Big Ideas for Job Creation in a Jobless Recovery project, which includes proposals from more than a dozen leading experts on practical, scalable proposals to create more jobs for the U.S. economy. CLASP Senior Policy Analyst Elizabeth Lower-Basch recommends that deeper, more targeted subsidies administered at the state level are an effective way to encourage employers to hire disadvantaged workers and create jobs. There are federal subsidies such as the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) currently in place to encourage hiring of disadvantaged workers, but in contrast, they often provide large windfalls to employers in low-wage, high-turnover industries without creating any net new jobs or changing who they hire. Download PDF
• Nov 07, 2011  |  Child Care and Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - November 2011 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide techincal assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Oct 31, 2011  |  Stan Dorn How Human Services Programs and Their Clients Can Benefit from National Health Reform Legislation On Jan. 1, 2014, most health care coverage expansions included in the health care reform law, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), will take effect. The ACA requires each state to use a single integrated, user friendly eligibility process that draws on existing data in real time for eligibility determination, enrollment and retention in both of these programs. This paper, written by Stan Dorn for the Coalition for Access and Opportunity, highlights the opportunities to use the ACA to leverage improvements in eligibility systems for human services programs. Download PDF
• Oct 06, 2011  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - October 2011 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Oct 05, 2011  |  Hannah Matthews Meeting the Early Learning Challenge: Supporting English Language Learners CLASP's "Meeting the Early Learning Challenge" series provides information and policy options for states as they develop their applications for the Race to the Top - Early Learning Challenge. Download PDF
• Oct 04, 2011  |  CLASP & CEPR How Much Does Employee Turnover Really Cost? CLASP and the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) have released a turnover calculator, a dynamic new tool that allows employers to calculate how much turnover costs in just 10 questions. Employee turnover costs businesses millions each year, but many employers don't realize exactly how much it's costing their company. Workplace policies that support workers such as paid sick days and paid family leave can help employers reduce turnover and improve their bottom line. Read Online
• Oct 03, 2011  |  Christine Johnson-Staub Meeting the Early Learning Challenge: A Checklist for a High Quality QRIS CLASP's "Meeting the Early Learning Challenge" series provides information and policy options for states as they develop their applications for the Race to the Top - Early Learning Challenge. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Sep 21, 2011  |  CLASP American Jobs Act: New Work and Learning Opportunities for Low-Income, Unemployed Adults and Youth This CLASP analysis of the American Jobs Act examines provisions specifically aimed at those workers most affected by the recession as well as those struggling even before the economy turned sour. In particular, it looks at the $5 billion Pathways Back to Work Fund, which includes three elements that would create work and learning opportunities for thousands of disadvantaged individuals across the country. Download PDF
• Sep 19, 2011  |  Hannah Matthews and Danielle Ewen Meeting the Early Learning Challenge: Better Child Care Subsidy Policies CLASP's "Meeting the Early Learning Challenge" series provides information and policy options for states as they develop their applications for the Race to the Top - Early Learning Challenge. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Aug 23, 2011 At the Forefront: Poverty Impact Projections A Poverty Impact Projection (PIP) is an emerging tool that asks and answers the question at the forefront of the policy process such as, "If we pursue this policy, how much should it increase or decrease poverty?" This new report examines states where PIPs have been considered and offers thoughts about structuring PIPs. Download PDF
• Aug 23, 2011  |  Julie Strawn Farther, Faster: Six Promising Programs Show How Career Pathway Bridges Help Basic Skills Students Earn Credentials That Matter Students forced to complete a long sequence of remedial or English language classes before they can begin their postsecondary program rarely earn college certificates or degrees. This brief highlights six promising programs that show how career pathway bridges help lower-skilled students move farther and faster along college and career paths through dual enrollment in linked basic skills and occupational certificate courses. Because creating such bridges requires collaboration across college silos, they can also transform the way colleges operate. Download PDF
• Aug 04, 2011  |  CLASP Deficit Reduction: Plans to Reduce the Nation's Deficit Should Protect the Disadvantaged (August Update) From the beginning, we've known that reducing the deficit would require tough choices about how the nation invests its financial resources. But it also requires answering moral and philosophical questions about the kind of nation we want to be now and in the future. Today, one in seven of us is poor, including one in four children under age five, and nearly one-third of us are low-income. In the last three decades, the income gap between rich and poor has widened. Unemployment has hovered around 9 percent or higher for the last two and a half years and economists project it will remain high in the foreseeable future. Cutting programs that promote opportunity and alleviate poverty while leaving tax breaks for the wealthiest and corporate tax loopholes untouched is anathema to the nation's shared core values and detrimental to its future. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Jul 28, 2011 Colorado Economic Opportunity Poverty Reduction Task Force Part of the Poverty and Opportunity: What Difference Can a Task Force Make? series, this brief profiles Colorado's Economic Opportunity Poverty Reduction Task Force and its impact on the state. Download PDF
• Jul 28, 2011 Illinois Commission on the Elimination of Poverty Part of the Poverty and Opportunity: What Difference Can a Task Force Make? series, this brief profiles the Illinois Commission on the Elimination of Poverty and its impact on the state. Download PDF
• Jul 28, 2011 Legislative Commission to End Poverty in Minnesota by 2020 Part of the Poverty and Opportunity: What Difference Can a Task Force Make? series, this brief profiles the Legislative Commission to End Poverty in Minnesota by 2020 and its impact on the state. Download PDF
• Jul 28, 2011 Ohio Anti-Poverty Task Force Part of the Poverty and Opportunity: What Difference Can a Task Force Make? series, this brief profiles the Ohio Anti-Poverty Task Force and its impact on the state. Download PDF
• Jul 28, 2011 Poverty and Opportunity: State Government Task Forces Member Composition and Operations Around the nation, a growing number of state governments have established task forces or commissions to develop new strategies and recommendations for tackling poverty and providing opportunity. This chart documents the member composition and operations of these task forces. Download PDF
• Jul 28, 2011 Poverty and Opportunity: What Difference Can a Task Force Make? About 20 states, including Washington D.C., have established a state government poverty and opportunity task force. Eleven of these states have set poverty reduction targets, such as cutting poverty in half in a decade. This report profiles four of these task forces in Minnesota, Ohio, Illinois and Colorado, and provides an overview of their impacts. Download PDF
• Jul 11, 2011  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - July 2011 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jun 14, 2011  |  Teresa Lim and Hannah Matthews Expand Monitoring and Technical Assistance To protect and promote the growth and development of very young children, providers and caregivers need to demonstrate constant vigilance over signs of potential harm and maintain clean, nurturing spaces. All babies and toddlers in child care need healthy and safe environments in which to explore and learn. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that states conduct routine monitoring of infant and toddler child care in centers and family child care settings at least twice a year, provide technical assistance to help providers with licensing compliance, and use information on provider compliance to inform parents and ensure ongoing improvements in monitoring systems and child care quality. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Jun 06, 2011  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - June 2011 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jun 02, 2011  |  Elizabeth Hoffmann & Danielle Ewen What State Leaders Should Know About Early Head Start Early Head Start (EHS) is a federally-funded, community-based program that provides comprehensive child and family development services to low-income pregnant women and families with children under the age of 3. This paper reviews 11 key aspects of how the EHS program works and includes considerations for state leaders. The paper is meant to serve as an introduction to the program for state policymakers, not to provide official guidance or interpretation of the laws and regulations governing EHS. Download PDF
• May 03, 2011  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - May 2011 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Apr 19, 2011  |  Evelyn Ganzglass, Keith Bird & Heath Prince Giving Credit Where Credit is Due: Creating a Competency-Based Qualifications Framework for Postsecondary Education and Training Postsecondary credentials are the keys to individual self-sufficiency, greater civic participation, and higher levels of family well-being and the catalysts for local, regional, and national economic growth. Often overlooked in discussions of increasing the number and quality of postsecondary credentials awarded is that a great deal of credit-worthy education and training is taking place, but it is often disconnected from educational pathways that could lead to postsecondary certificates or degrees. Given the growing importance of postsecondary credentials to economic success, this disconnect of high-quality, noncredit education and training from education that can be counted toward a degree suggests a gaping hole in education policy and in employment and training policy. Download PDF
• Apr 05, 2011  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - April 2011 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Mar 09, 2011  |  Hannah Matthews Child Care Assistance in 2009: Spending Update This analysis details state child care expenditures from the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant programs. We find that spending on child care assistance decreased slightly in 2009. Thirty-three states increased overall spending, while 18 states made cuts. Without ARRA funds, more states would have made greater cuts. The number of children receiving assistance, however, remains far lower than the number of children eligible for assistance. Download PDF
• Mar 04, 2011  |  Marcie Foster, Julie Strawn, and Amy Ellen Duke-Benfield Beyond Basic Skills: State Strategies to Connect Low-Skilled Students to an Employer-Valued Postsecondary Education Having a postsecondary education -- broadly defined as a credential beyond a high school diploma -- continues to be one of the most important factors in getting a good job and advancing in the workforce. Critical federal programs, such as funding for student aid and job training, can help lower-skilled adults and youth access postsecondary education, but important policy choices that support their success and completion can be made at the state and local levels. This report describes strategies that state policymakers can use to strengthen connections between basic skills education and postsecondary education to help lower-skilled adults and out-of-school youth attain the postsecondary credentials they need to advance in the labor market. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Mar 01, 2011  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Guide to Use of TANF and MOE Funds This brief summaries the federal rules regarding use of federal TANF funds and state funds claimed towards the Maintenance of Effort (MOE) requirement. Download PDF
• Feb 28, 2011  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - March 2011 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Feb 17, 2011  |  Neil Ridley and Evelyn Ganzglass Responding to the Great Recession: How the Recovery Act Boosted Training and Innovation in Three States Two years after the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act or ARRA) became law, Congress is preparing to take up reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). With its one-time infusion of resources, the Recovery Act nearly doubled federal funding for adult, dislocated worker and youth programs under WIA during 2009-2010 and set national priorities for the public workforce system's response to what is now being described as the Great Recession. The lessons from Recovery Act implementation should inform WIA reauthorization as it proceeds. This report examines the response of three states and local areas to the urgency of the recession, additional funding and the opportunities and challenges afforded by the Recovery Act. Download PDF
• Feb 17, 2011  |  CLASP Two Years Later: Impacts of Select ARRA Programs for Low-Income Workers & Families This document looks at select provisions in the Recovery Act that affected low-income people and their families. In areas where there is available data, it notes the impact of the program on the number of people who benefited from ARRA provisions. While the effect of the Recovery Act will be debated and analyzed by policy experts and researchers for years to come, some of the early evidence makes it clear that the Recovery Act benefited the nation by easing some immediate effects of the recession and preventing deeper hardship. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Feb 16, 2011  |  LaDonna Pavetti (CBPP), Liz Schott (CBPP) and Elizabeth Lower-Basch (CLASP) Creating Subsidized Employment Opportunities for Low-Income Parents: The Legacy of the TANF Emergency Fund During 2009 and 2010, 39 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and eight Tribal TANF programs received approval to use $1.3 billion from the TANF Emergency Fund to create new subsidized employment programs or expand existing ones. This paper examines how states used the flexibility they were given to design and implement subsidized employment programs and what challenges they faced in getting them up and running, and draws lessons for future such programs. Download PDF
• Feb 03, 2011  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - February 2011 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jan 21, 2011  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Cash Assistance since Welfare Reform This Policy Brief summarizes trends in cash assistance since welfare reform -- declining caseloads, progress in employment and poverty reduction in the early years, with setbacks since 2001, and an intense focus on meeting work participation rate requirements. Download PDF
• Jan 21, 2011  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Block Grant This Policy Brief explores the wide range of programs for low-income families supported by the TANF block grant and the declining share of the grant dedicated to cash assistance. It also highlights the degree to which the grant has been eroded by inflation and population grown. Download PDF
• Jan 12, 2011  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch and Abigail Newcomer Federal Funding for Integrated Service Delivery These briefs describe federal programs identified as possible funding sources for one or more components of integrated service delivery, including benefit access, workforce development and financial literacy services. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Jan 07, 2011  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - January 2011 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Dec 09, 2010  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - December 2010 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Dec 09, 2010  |  Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt We Dream A World: The 2025 Vision for Black Men and Boys This compelling new report presents a broad social and political strategy to drastically change outcomes for young black boys who will come of age in the year 2025. It is the product of five years of research and brainstorming by a diverse set of scholars, researchers and other thought leaders in the African American community. Download PDF
• Nov 04, 2010  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - November 2010 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Nov 04, 2010  |  Vickie Choitz Getting What We Pay For: State Community College Funding Strategies that Benefit Low-Income, Lower-Skilled Students Community colleges across the nation appear to be facing a "perfect storm" during which surging enrollments, tepid state funding, and strong accountability forces are colliding to severely threaten access to and completion of postsecondary education and credentials by lower-skilled and low-income students. This policy brief describes strategies state policymakers can use to realign community college financing--including tuition policies--to improve postsecondary access and success for lower-skilled and low-income students and to achieve stronger state economic health. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Oct 27, 2010  |  Danielle Ewen and Hannah Matthews Adopting 12-Month Subsidy Eligibility: Impacts on Children, Families, and State Child Care Programs Under federal regulations, states have a great deal of flexibility in setting child care assistance policies. Adopting 12-month subsidy eligibility, with limited interim reporting requirements, is one strategy states can implement to promote sustained access to subsidies and continuous care arrangements for children. This paper lays out the associated impacts of adopting an annual redetermination policy on children, parents, and state subsidy systems. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Oct 25, 2010  |  Melissa Boteach and Jodie Levin-Epstein Battling Poverty in the Golden State: Recommendations for the California Statewide Poverty Commission This brief offers best practices and strategies learned from other state poverty commissions in advance of California's statewide symposium on poverty. Despite times of economic distress and deep budget, California is the latest state to undertake a comprehensive plan to reduce poverty. It's exactly during these times that states must convene stakeholders to stop the bleeding and provide a vision to move forward. Download PDF
• Oct 05, 2010  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - October 2010 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Sep 29, 2010 Relative Foster Care Licensing Waivers in the States: Policies and Possibilities This report, a joint project of CLASP and the ABA Center on Children and the Law, prepared in collaboration with ChildFocus, the Children's Defense Fund, Generations United and the Grandfamilies State Law and Policy Resource Center. This document presents background information on foster care licensing for relatives. It also includes an overview of Title IV-E reimbursement for relative foster homes and information on the current landscape of waivers of foster home licensing standards, as well as recommendations for licensing standards that can help further the goal of maintaining family connections for children in foster care. Download PDF
• Sep 23, 2010  |  Hannah Matthews Child Care Assistance in 2008 This analysis details state child care expenditures from the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant programs. We find that spending on child care assistance decreased slightly in 2008. Thirty states increased overall child care spending, while 21 states made cuts. The number of children receiving assistance, however, remains far lower than the number of children eligible for assistance. Download PDF
• Sep 09, 2010  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - September 2010 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Aug 31, 2010  |  Hannah Matthews and Danielle Ewen Early Education Programs and Children of Immigrants: Learning Each Other's Language This paper was written for the Urban Institute's roundtable on Young Children in Immigrant Families and the Path to Educational Success. It discusses the federal and policy landscape for serving young children of immigrants in early care and education and includes policy recommendations for improving access for immigrant families. Read Online
• Aug 05, 2010  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - August 2010 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jul 29, 2010  |  Sarah Fass Hiatt and Abigail Newcomer President Obama's Asset Limit Proposal: Supporting Families and Promoting Improved Coordination This paper from Single Stop USA, CLASP, and First Focus describes the president's budget proposal to create an asset limit floor for several federal means tested programs. Download PDF
• Jul 08, 2010  |  Julie Strawn Shifting Gears: State Innovation to Advance Adult Workers and the Economy in the Midwest Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Jul 06, 2010  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - July 2010 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jun 23, 2010 Sample State Legislation to Extend Foster Care, Adoption and Guardianship Protections, Services and Payments to Young Adults Age 18 and Older Download PDF
• Jun 11, 2010  |  Neil Ridley Workforce Investment Act: Strengthening Priority of Service for Low-Income Adults through WIA Reathorization A key feature of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) is a tiered service delivery structure that provides core, intensive and training services to adults and dislocated workers. WIA requires states and local areas to implement a priority of service for public assistance recipients and other low-income adults when local adult funds are determined to be limited. Although federal regulations suggest that funds are "generally limited" and that a priority of service is likely to be needed, states and local areas have considerable flexibility to define the policy and determine whether and how to implement it. An early evaluation of WIA revealed that implementation of priority of service varied widely in states and localities. Download PDF
• Jun 08, 2010  |  Child Care & Early Education Early Childhood Education Update - June 2010 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• May 05, 2010  |  Teresa Lim Early Childhood Education Update - May 2010 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Apr 21, 2010  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch TANF Emergency Fund: Creating Summer Jobs for Youth This report explains the rules and requirements for using the TANF Emergency Fund to support summer jobs for youth. Download PDF
• Apr 09, 2010  |  Teresa Lim Early Childhood Education Update - April 2010 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Apr 08, 2010  |  Rachel Schumacher Promote Health and Safety As they develop from birth to age 3, young children rely on the adults who care from them to keep them clean, dry, fed, and safe from harm. All babies and toddlers in child care need healthy and safe environments in which to explore and learn. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that states ensure that state licensing rules require practices and training that protect the safety of infants and toddlers―by addressing physical environments, safe sleep practices, bathing, and accident prevention―and promote infant/toddler health and well-being (including areas such as hand-washing, holding, feeding, comforting, diapering, and providing responsive caregiving); make certain that all infant and toddler providers and caregivers have access to the training and technical assistance needed to care for this age group; and require training prior to child care subsidy receipt. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Mar 31, 2010  |  Tiffany Conway Perrin Detailed Summary of Home Visitation Program in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act included, among other critical provisions, $1.5 billion in mandatory funding over 5 years for high quality, evidence-based, voluntary early childhood home visitation services. This investment will significantly expand home visitation services, helping to ensure that more children have the opportunity to grow up healthy, safe, ready to learn and able to become productive members of society. This summary details the provisions of the new program. Download PDF
• Mar 22, 2010  |  Evelyn Ganzglass, Andrew Reamer, Brandon Roberts, Whitney Smith, Rachel Unruh Recommendations for Incorporating Postsecondary and Workforce Data into Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Mar 15, 2010  |  Elizabeth Hoffmann A Tool Using Data to Inform a State Infant/Toddler Care Agenda This tool is intended for state advocates and policymakers to use as they work to develop a state infant/toddler care agenda. It includes a series of key questions to understand the context and conditions of infants and toddlers in the state. Questions include data on demographics and program participation (such as health and nutrition programs), as well as the details of child care and early education settings in the state. Users can download and save a copy of this tool, fill in their state’s data, and compare to national data points (which are provided where appropriate). Read Online   |   Download File
• Mar 10, 2010  |  Teresa Lim Early Childhood Education Update - March 2010 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Mar 09, 2010  |  Sara Hastings, Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt, and Linda Harris Building a Comprehensive Youth Employment Delivery System: Examples of Effective Practice Many communities have shown tremendous commitment to youth employment. The return on investment and effort, however, can be greatly multiplied if federal youth funds, discretionary funding, resources from other youth serving systems, and community resources are brought together to build comprehensive youth employment system. Key elements of such a system include: a strong convening entity, an effective administrative agent, a well-trained case management arm, strong partnerships across systems that serve youth, and high quality work experience and career exposure. Download PDF
• Feb 23, 2010 Recommendations on Performance Accountability in the Workforce Education and Training System Recommendations on Performance Accountability in the Workforce Education and Training System urges the federal government to change current performance accountability provisions in WIA Titles I and II to address specific problems in each program and over time to implement a system of shared accountability across workforce and other education and training programs. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Feb 04, 2010  |  Teresa Lim Early Childhood Education Update: February 2010 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jan 25, 2010  |  CLASP Federal Policy Recommendations for 2010 Our nation faces many domestic challenges, including improving access to affordable health care, improving access to education as well as education outcomes, and providing debt and foreclosure relief. CLASP's 2010 federal policy recommendations are equally essential to achieving healthy and thriving families and improving the nation's prosperity. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Jan 21, 2010  |  Hannah Matthews and Danielle Ewen FAQ: Using Title I of ESEA for Early Education This paper provides answers to frequently asked questions on using Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act funds on early education. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Jan 15, 2010  |  Teresa Lim Early Childhood Education Update - January 2010 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jan 08, 2010  |  Dorothy Smith Poverty and Opportunity - State Poverty Task Force Recommendations Around the nation, a growing number of state governments have established task forces or commissions to develop new strategies and recommendations for tackling poverty and providing opportunity. Download PDF
• Dec 22, 2009  |  Teresa Lim and Rachel Schumacher State CCDBG Plans to Promote Opportunities for Babies & Toddlers in Child Care (Full Report) CLASP's Charting Progress for Babies in Child Care project highlights state policies that support the healthy growth and development of infants and toddlers in child care settings. The foundation of the project is a policy framework comprised of four key principles describing what babies and toddlers in child care need and 15 recommendations for states to move forward. This report analyzes state Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) plans for FFY 2008-2009 through the lens of this policy framework and highlights state policies to improve infant/toddler child care. Download PDF
• Dec 22, 2009  |  Teresa Lim and Rachel Schumacher State CCDBG Plans to Promote Opportunities for Babies & Toddlers in Child Care (Policy Brief) CLASP's Charting Progress for Babies in Child Care project highlights state policies that support the healthy growth and development of infants and toddlers in child care settings. The foundation of the project is a policy framework comprised of four key principles describing what babies and toddlers in child care need and 15 recommendations for states to move forward. This policy brief summarizes key findings from an analysis of state Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) plans for FFY 2008-2009 through the lens of the policy framework and highlights state policy approaches. Download PDF
• Dec 10, 2009  |  Teresa Lim Early Childhood Education Update - December 2009 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Dec 09, 2009  |  Elizabeth Hoffmann and Tiffany Conway Perrin Extending Home Visiting to Kinship Caregivers and Family, Friend, and Neighbor Caregivers This paper explores how home visiting programs are serving children in kinship care and in family, friend, and neighbor care, based on CLASP's interviews with major national models of home visiting and other stakeholders. It also presents detailed considerations for implementing home visiting with these caregivers, including matters of curricula, staffing, and service referral, and discusses opportunities that result from serving these caregivers. It concludes with recommendations for states and the federal government. Download PDF
• Nov 17, 2009  |  Rachel Schumacher Establish Core Competencies Learning to recognize the cues of very young children before they can talk is one of many important skills for child care providers and caregivers. All babies and toddlers in child care need nurturing, responsive providers and caregivers they can trust to care for them as they grow and learn. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that states establish a core body of knowledge, skills, and expertise that providers and caregivers need in order to give babies and toddlers quality care, based on current research on social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development. This document presents research supporting the recommendation to establish core competencies. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Nov 17, 2009  |  Rachel Schumacher Provide Access to Training, Education, and Ongoing Supports Early experiences and relationships – including those in child care settings—help shape the architecture of the brain. All babies and toddlers in child care need nurturing, responsive providers and caregivers they can trust to care for them as they grow and learn. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that states seek to ensure access to specialized professional development for providers working with infants and toddlers, including participation in higher education programs, community-level training, ongoing individualized consultations, and access to appropriate information and supports for caregivers, so that all those who care for infants and toddlers in all settings understand and implement a core body of knowledge and skills. This document presents research supporting the recommendation to provide access to training, education, and ongoing supports. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Nov 16, 2009  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch The TANF Emergency Fund: A New Resource for Domestic Violence Programs The TANF Emergency Fund can both provide victims of domestic violence with financial and in-kind services to help address domestic violence issues and also relieve some of the funding pressures on providers. Download PDF
• Nov 09, 2009  |  Teresa Lim Early Childhood Education Update - November 2009 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Nov 03, 2009  |  Dorothy Smith Measure by Measure: The Current Poverty Measure v. the National Academy of Sciences Measure This report highlights alternative poverty measures for each state and the District of Columbia using a Census tool that calculates alternative measures based on a National Academy of Sciences recommendation and an NAS recommendation that considers geographic price difference adjustment. Download PDF
• Nov 02, 2009  |  Rachel Schumacher A Tool to Examine State Child Care Subsidy Policies and Promote Stable, Quality Care for Low-Income Babies and Toddlers This tool, part of CLASP's Charting Progress for Babies in Child Care project, is designed to provide a policy framework that lays out child care subsidy policies that can be implemented to better support babies and toddlers and their families. Users can download and save a copy of this tool, then fill in the appropriate columns with their state's current policies and opportunities for change. Read Online   |   Download File
• Nov 02, 2009  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Questions and Answers about the TANF Emergency Contingency Fund This document explains the opportunities for states to help low-income families using the new TANF Emergency Contingency Fund created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. This version is updated to reflect the questions and answers posted by HHS in October 2009 Download PDF
• Oct 01, 2009  |  Teresa Lim Early Childhood Education Update - October 2009 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Sep 21, 2009  |  Hannah Matthews Child Care Assistance in 2007: Spending Update This analysis details state child care expenditures from the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant programs. We find that spending on child care assistance increased slightly in 2007. Thirty-one states increased overall child care spending, while 20 states made cuts. The number of children receiving assistance, however, remains far lower than the number of children eligible for assistance. Download PDF
• Sep 18, 2009  |  Ronnie Kauder and Neil Ridley Earning and Learning: Options under the Workforce Investment Act Adults with limited work experience, low education and skill levels and other barriers to employment face the greatest challenges, especially at a time of rising unemployment. Strategies that combine work and learning are critical to help these individuals to enter or regain employment. This paper focuses on two program strategies that combine work and learning: on-the-job training and paid work experience combined with skill development. Download PDF
• Sep 08, 2009  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Increasing Low-Income Access to Opportunity This article, published by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, focuses on the New England region's efforts to give visibility to poverty and opportunity through task force initiatives, summits, and state poverty targets. Download PDF
• Sep 01, 2009  |  CLASP Federal Policy Recommendations for 2009 and Beyond The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) has developed an extensive federal policy agenda for President Obama and the 111th Congress directed at improving the lives of low income people. That agenda is outlined in this document. Download PDF
• Aug 05, 2009  |  Teresa Lim Early Childhood Education Update - August 2009 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jul 24, 2009  |  Workforce Team CLASP Recommendations for Reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act (Title I) Adult Program CLASP's recommendations for changes to Title I of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) aim to re-focus the workforce investment system on raising the skills of the American workforce and better connect WIA with other education, training and work support programs to create multiple pathways to postsecondary and career success for low-income adults, dislocated workers and disadvantaged youth. Download PDF
• Jul 20, 2009  |  Amy Ellen Duke-Benfield and Evelyn Ganzglass Letter to the House Committee on Education and Labor on the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (HR 3221) Download PDF
• Jul 10, 2009  |  Teresa Lim Early Childhood Education Update - July 2009 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jul 01, 2009  |  Alan W. Houseman Civil Legal Aid in the United States: An Update for 2009 While there is new hope for increased federal funding and a renewed interest in civil legal aid at the federal level, civil legal aid is facing reductions in funding from state sources which, until 2009, had been expanding and had overtaken LSC as the largest source of civil legal aid funding. State funding actually increased for civil legal aid in 2008. Today, however, state budgets are facing far greater crises than the federal budget and have far fewer options for financing because most cannot create significant deficits. Download PDF
• Jun 15, 2009  |  Matt Lewis Distance Learning Can Help Low-Income Parents Attend School: TANF Agencies Should Adopt Supportive Policies (Revised) In the wake of the interim rules implementing the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, several states have expressed concerns about distance learning programs meeting the work verification requirements established by the US Department of Health and Human Services under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. This paper identifies language from HHS-approved work verification plans that other states can adopt in order to maximize access to distance learning and raise work participation rates. It also highlights some restrictive and burdensome language that should be dropped from work verification plans. Download PDF
• Jun 12, 2009  |  Michelle Vinson and Vicki Turetsky State Child Support Pass-Through Policies This chart lists all 50 states and the District of Columbias child support pass-through and income disregard policies as of June 2009. Download PDF
• Apr 29, 2009  |  Evelyn Ganzglass and Julie Strawn Using Increased Funding Under WIA to Create Multiple Pathways to Marketable Postsecondary Credentials and Middle-Class Employment This paper discusses how the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) system can use new funding and flexibility under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to implement cutting-edge workforce education and training strategies that can help low-skill adults and out-of-school youth gain the skills and credentials they need to fill the pipeline of skilled workers for jobs important to local economies. It focuses on career pathways as a framework for strengthening employer engagement and linkages among workforce education and training programs; and as a model for improving how training and related services are delivered in the WIA adult, dislocated workers and youth programs. Download PDF
• Apr 20, 2009  |  David Fischer and Jeremy Reiss From Stimulus to System: Using the ARRA to Serve Disadvantaged Jobseekers This paper explores models and mechanisms for connecting low-skilled jobseekers to ARRA-related job opportunities--including community-benefit agreements, job linkage/first source hiring, and goals and standards for job creation and job quality--and for subsequently engaging jobseekers in further skill-building and educational programs. Download PDF
• Apr 19, 2009  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Delaware State on Track to Tackle Child Poverty Article discussing Delaware's upcoming Governor's Summit on Child Poverty and Economic Opportunity and the start of Delaware's actions to provide opportunity for all. Download PDF
• Apr 15, 2009  |  Linda Harris Considerations for WIA Reauthorization: Title I Youth Provisions WIA reauthorization provides the opportunity to re-think and strengthen the youth delivery system across the country. CLASP recommendations focus on increase targeting to high risk youth and more strategic alliances among youth serving systems. Download PDF
• Apr 15, 2009 Workforce and Education Strategies for Achieving National Economic Priorities - Recommendations for the U.S. Department of Education This document contains recommendations offered by CLASP and other leading adult education and workforce development organizations on specific actions the US Department of Education should take to meet our national economic challenges and achieve our priorities. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Apr 15, 2009 Workforce and Education Strategies for Achieving National Economic Priorities - Recommendations for the U.S. Department of Labor This document contains recommendations offered by CLASP and other leading adult education and workforce development organizations on specific actions the US Department of Labor should take to meet our national economic challenges and achieve our priorities. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Apr 06, 2009 Recommendations for a Final Budget Resolution in Support of Low-income People This is a new analysis from CLASP that examines the House and Senate budget resolutions. Both resolutions commit to deficit reduction on or before the President's timeline, and both budgets provide funding for major priorities proposed by the President. But the budgets differ in some areas on how they would achieve these priorities. Download PDF
• Apr 03, 2009  |  Allegra Baider and Elizabeth Lower-Basch Making the Employment Connection: New Opportunities to Support Transitional Jobs Programs Using the TANF Emergency Contingency Fund This paper highlights new opportunities to develop or expand Transitional Jobs programs using funding from the new Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Emergency Contingency Fund, which was authorized by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Download PDF
• Mar 26, 2009  |  Neil Ridley Work Sharing--an Alternative to Layoffs for Tough Times At a time of rising unemployment, work sharing programs provide an alternative to layoffs and have benefits for workers, employers and the government. These programs should be expanded and more states should adopt them. This paper describes work sharing and the opportunity for federal action to expand its use. Download PDF
• Mar 23, 2009  |  Hannah Matthews Ten Policies To Improve Access To Quality Child Care For Children In Immigrant Families While children in immigrant families represent a rapidly growing segment of the nation's child population, they are less likely to access child care and early education settings compared to their peers in native-born families. Part of CLASP's "Reinvesting in Child Care" series, this paper presents ten policies for state policymakers to implement now with economic recovery funds to improve access to quality child care for children in immigrant families. Download PDF
• Mar 13, 2009 The Congressional Budget Resolution: An Opportunity to Renew Support for Low-Income People The federal budget: An opportunity to renew support for low-income people. Download PDF
• Mar 10, 2009  |  Rachel Schumacher Benefitting Babies: Ten Policies States Can Implement Now to Improve Infant/Toddler Child Care with Economic Recovery Funds This paper presents ten policy ideas for state policymakers to implement now with economic recovery funds to support quality programs and enhancement strategies that will improve early care and learning for infants and toddlers. Download PDF
• Mar 09, 2009  |  CLASP and the National Women's Law Center Making Use of Economic Recovery Funds: Child Care Policy Options for States This joint paper offers state policymakers and advocates a set of policy options for effectively spending CCDBG economic recovery funds to create new jobs, serve more families, and improve the quality of child care. Download PDF
• Mar 04, 2009  |  Elizabeth Hoffmann Promote Access to Comprehensive Services Very young children develop in the context of their physical and mental health and the capacity of their families and other caregivers to address the full range of early childhood development. All babies and toddlers in child care need parents, providers, and caregivers supported by and linked to community resources. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that states link comprehensive health, mental health, and family support services for vulnerable babies and toddlers to all child care settings, and provide culturally and linguistically appropriate service information to parents, providers, and caregivers. This document presents research supporting the recommendation to promote access to comprehensive services. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Mar 04, 2009  |  Hannah Matthews Provide Information on Infant/Toddler Care Choosing child care for their very young children is often a difficult and emotional task for parents. All babies and toddlers in child care need their families to have access to quality options for their care. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that states provide all parents of infants and toddlers with culturally and linguistically appropriate information on choosing high-quality care and subsidy eligibility. This document presents research supporting the recommendation to provide information on infant/toddler care. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Mar 02, 2009 Principles for State Implementation of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act CLASP has signed on in support of these Principles for State Implementation, developed by the Working Poor Families Project, to guide state policymakers as they allocate funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Download PDF
• Feb 27, 2009  |  Hannah Matthews CCDBG: What's in the law? The federal Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) program allows states broad discretion to develop their child care assistance programs within federal guidelines. This brief lays out the federal requirements states must follow in designing their child care programs and spending CCDBG funds. Download PDF
• Feb 13, 2009 Preliminary Summary of Key Provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Aimed at Improving the Lives of Low-Income Americans CLASP preliminary summary of key provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act aimed at improving the lives of low-income Americans. Download PDF
• Jan 23, 2009  |  Hannah Matthews Child Care Assistance: A Program That Works As the economic recovery package moves through Congress, it is critical that it include a $3 billion increase in the federal child care assistance program, the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG). Child care is a program that works. Research shows that child care assistance makes a significant difference in the economic health and security of families. It helps families sustain their participation in the workforce, reduce instability in care arrangements that can impact work, and move out of poverty. Download PDF
• Jan 23, 2009  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein and Webb Lyons Target Practice: Lessons for Poverty Reduction Target Practice outlines how governments (local, state and the federal) can use targets (goals and timelines to achieve those goals) as a policy tool for reducing poverty by drawing on lessons learned from targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and homelessness. Download PDF
• Jan 22, 2009  |  Alan W. Houseman, Linda Perle What Can and Cannot Be Done: Representation of Clients By LSC-Funded Programs Download File
• Jan 12, 2009 CLASP's Workforce Education and Training Policy Recommendations to Promote Inclusive Economic Recovery This paper is a summary of recommendations CLASP has made on workforce education and training policy that promote inclusive economic recovery. The recommendations include workforce investments to assist low-income and other workers hardest hit by economic recession and help prepare our workforce for the jobs of the future. Download PDF
• Jan 09, 2009  |  Teresa Lim Early Childhood Education Update - January 2009 CLASP's Early Childhood Education Update is a monthly roundup of news, legislative developments, research, and other developments of interest to the early care and education community. This update is part of CLASP's project, funded by The Joyce Foundation, to provide technical assistance to early childhood policymakers and advocates in Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Read Online
• Jan 01, 2009  |  Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Lessons Learned: Community Perspectives on Supporting the Path to Positive Outcomes for Youth CLASP convened city leadership from eight communities around the country which face the problem of high levels of youth distress. These city leaders provided their grounded perspective on the challenges that communities face when trying to create a continuum of supportive services at sufficient scale to serve all their youth. They also discuss the role that national policy organizations can play in supporting their work. Download PDF
• Jan 01, 2009 New Help for Children Raised by Grandparents and Other Relatives: Questions and Answers About the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 Download PDF
• Dec 08, 2008  |  Sara Hastings Harnessing the Power of Advocacy: Massachusetts' Efforts to Increase State Resources for Youth Across the country, cities and states struggle to garner the resources necessary to address the many issues facing their disconnected young people. Over the last several years, a highly coordinated local and statewide advocacy movement has experienced groundbreaking legislative success in the state of Massachusetts. This policy brief outlines the ways in which advocacy coalitions were formed at the state level in Massachusetts and the approaches advocates used to garner support and resources for systems and programs that serve youth. Download PDF
• Nov 21, 2008  |  Hannah Matthews Child Care and Development Block Grant Participation in 2007 Based on preliminary data from the Child Care Bureau, this fact sheet provides a snapshot of participation in the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) program in 2007. CCDBG served a monthly average of 1.7 million children. While 22 states increased the number of children served, 27 states served fewer children in 2007 than in the previous year. This fact sheet reviews data, including the ages of children receiving assistance, the types of child care settings used, and the reasons families receive assistance. See also Infants and Toddlers in the Child Care and Development Block Grant Program: 2007 Update for a snapshot of participation of infants and toddlers in CCDBG. Download PDF
• Nov 21, 2008  |  Hannah Matthews Infants and Toddlers in the Child Care and Development Block Grant Program: 2007 Update Based on preliminary data from the Child Care Bureau, this fact sheet provides a snapshot of participation of infants and toddlers in the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) program in 2007. Over a quarter of children served in CCDBG are under the age of 3, but the share of children receiving CCDBG who are infants and toddlers varies from state to state. This fact sheet includes state-by-state information on the ages of children served in CCDBG. See also Child Care and Development Block Grant Participation in 2007 for an overview of CCDBG participation by children of all ages. Download PDF
• Nov 18, 2008  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Sustaining Anti-Poverty Solutions: Keep an Eye on the Prize This article first appeared in "Bridging the Gap: Reshaping Poverty Policy in America" a special issue of the Neighborhood Funders Group newsletter\". Download PDF
• Nov 12, 2008  |  CLASP Recover, Renew, Rebuild: Workforce Policies for a Strong and Fair Economy Education and training are major contributors to economic prosperity. They are drivers of economic mobility and opportunity. Workforce policies to help individuals who are struggling in the labor market also are a critical component of a recovery package to get America working again. This report contains CLASP workforce policy recommendations for Congress and the Administration to address the immediate economic crisis and to make a down payment on the longer-term agenda of building a stronger and more equitable economy. It includes actions they can take to: help workers and families recover from the current recession; renew the nation's commitment to good jobs and upward mobility for all and rebuild middle class jobs. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Nov 10, 2008  |  Julie Cohen (ZERO TO THREE) and Danielle Ewen Infants and Toddlers in Child Care This joint brief makes policy recommendations to create supports for, and expand access to, quality child care for infants and toddlers, focusing on the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), tax policy, and appropriations. The brief also summarizes research on the importance of quality child care. Download PDF
• Nov 07, 2008  |  CLASP Beyond Stimulus: Shoring Up the Safety Net, Securing the American Dream The United States is entering into a recession which many will be longer and more severe than any we have faced in recent decades. As Congress and the new President consider what actions to take, CLASP calls for a package that goes beyond stimulus aimed at temporarily boosting consumer demand. This paper outlines actions that Congress should take immediately to strengthen safety net programs that provide critical assistance to vulnerable workers and families and to ensure that all Americans have the opportunity to share in the benefits of recovery. Download PDF
• Nov 03, 2008  |  Hannah Matthews and Danielle Ewen Child Care Assistance in 2006: Insufficient Investments Spending on child care assistance increased slightly in 2006. Thirty-two states increased spending, while 19 states made cuts to their child care programs. Meanwhile, federal funding for child care has remained nearly flat for six years. Analysis of expenditure data from the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant show that states will need more help just to maintain current service levels. Download PDF
• Oct 29, 2008  |  Linda Harris and Evelyn Ganzglass Creating Postsecondary Pathways to Good Jobs for Young High School Dropouts This paper advocates expansion and better integration of efforts to connect high school dropouts between the ages of 16 and 24 to pathways to postsecondary credentials that have value in the labor market. The paper highlights examples of innovations in policy, program delivery, pedagogy in adult education, youth development and dropout recovery, and postsecondary education that should be built upon in developing more robust and successful dropout recovery and postsecondary education policies and practices to open the door to higher wages and career opportunities for this population. The authors urge federal officials, governors, school administrators, college officials, workforce leaders and employers to provide leadership in building the supports and pathways at scale to bring dropout youth back into the education and labor market mainstream. The paper was prepared for the Center for American Progress. Download PDF
• Oct 28, 2008  |  Campaign for Youth Our Youth, Our Economy, Our Future: A National Investment Strategy for Reconnecting America's Youth The Campaign for Youth has developed a national strategy outlining opportunities for federal investment in disconnected youth. These two documents--the full strategy document and its accompanying executive summary--have been circulated to all 2008 presidential candidates. Download PDF
• Oct 16, 2008  |  Alan W. Houseman and the CLASP Staff CLASP Federal Policy Recommendations for 2009 and Beyond CLASP has developed an extensive federal policy agenda for the next President and Congress directed at improving the lives of low income people. The detailed agenda makes recommendations for changes in policy at all levels of the federal government: the White House, Federal departments and agencies, the budget and appropriations' process, and the law-making process in Congress. This publication provides an overview of our agenda organized into eleven key recommendations. Taken as a whole, the eleven recommendations call for increasing investments in effective programs and funding streams that concretely help children, youth, and families thrive; strengthening and modernizing the nation's safety net; and building supportive pathways for low-income youths and adults to good jobs that sustain families and communities. Download PDF
• Oct 14, 2008 Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act (H.R.6893) Summary Download PDF
• Oct 14, 2008 The Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 Offers Help to Children Raised by Relatives Download PDF
• Sep 30, 2008  |  Rachel Schumacher and Elizabeth Hoffmann Build Supply of Quality Care Nurturing and responsive infant/toddler child care is difficult to provide, and even harder for parents to find, yet all babies and toddlers in care need high quality care. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that states build the supply of high-quality child care settings for all babies and toddlers, with a special focus on underserved communities—including those in low-income, rural, and/or immigrant and language-minority communities. This document presents research supporting the recommendation to build supply of quality care. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Sep 30, 2008  |  Hannah Matthews Support a Diverse and Culturally Competent Workforce Child care providers and caregivers need a set of skills to work effectively and respectfully across cultures. All babies and toddlers in child care need nurturing, responsive providers and caregivers they can trust to care for them as they grow and learn. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that states ensure the diversity and cultural competence of infant and toddler providers and caregivers in order to meet the needs of the state’s children under three and their families. This document presents research supporting the recommendation to support a diverse and culturally competent workforce. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Sep 30, 2008  |  Rachel Schumacher and Elizabeth Hoffmann Use Subsidy Policies to Promote Stable, Quality Care The ability of low-income parents to secure the consistent, responsive, nurturing child care their babies and toddlers need is affected by state policies governing state subsidy systems. All babies and toddlers in child care need their families to have access to quality options for their care. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that states use state child care subsidy policies to support stable, continuous access to the highest-quality providers and caregivers for infants and toddlers in low-income families. This document presents research supporting the recommendation to use subsidy policies to promote stable, quality care. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Sep 24, 2008  |  Amy Ellen Duke-Benfield and Julie Strawn Congress Expands Student Aid and Supports Innovation in Student Success, Basic Skills and Workforce Partnerships On August 14, 2008, President Bush signed into law P.L. 110-315, Higher Education Opportunity Act, the long-awaited reauthorization of the Higher Education Act of 1965. This piece summarizes the key provisions that will influence postsecondary access and success for nontraditional students, including year-round Pell Grants and new pilot programs championed by CLASP for Student Success Grants, Business Workforce Partnerships, and basic skills Bridges from Jobs to Careers programs. Download PDF
• Sep 23, 2008 Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act 2008 resources The Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act (P.L. 110-351) will help hundreds of thousands of children and youth in foster care by promoting permanent families for them through relative guardianship and adoption and improving education and health care. Additionally, it will extend federal support for youth to age 21. P.L. 110-351 also will offer for the first time many American Indian children important federal protections and support. H.R. 6893 has bipartisan support and is fully paid for. This bill resolves differences between the House-passed Fostering Connections to Success Act (H.R.6307) and the Senate Finance Committee-approved Chairman’s Mark of S. 3038, the Improved Adoption Incentives and Relative Guardianship Support Act. P.L. 110-351 was unanimously passed by the House on suspension of the rules on September 17, 2008 and in the Senate by unanimous consent on September 22, 2008. The law was signed by President Bush on October 7, 2008. Read Online
• Sep 16, 2008 Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act Will Improve Outcomes for Children and Youth in Foster Care Download PDF
• Aug 25, 2008  |  Rachel Schumacher Improve Center Ratios and Group Sizes When child care providers and caregivers are able to focus attention on each baby or toddler in their care, it is easier for them to monitor safety, attend to individual physical needs, and promote child well being. All babies and toddlers in child care need healthy and safe environments in which to explore and learn. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that states ensure that infants in center-based programs are cared for in groups no larger than six, with ratios of one child care provider to no more than three infants, and that toddlers are cared for in groups no larger than eight, with ratios of one provider to no more than four toddlers. This document presents research supporting the recommendation to improve center ratios and group sizes. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Aug 25, 2008  |  Rachel Schumacher and Elizabeth Hoffmann Improve Family Child Care Ratios and Group Sizes When child care providers and caregivers are able to focus attention on each baby or toddler in their care, it is easier for them to monitor safety, attend to individual physical needs, and promote child well being. All babies and toddlers in child care need healthy and safe environments in which to explore and learn. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that states ensure that no more than two children under age 2 be cared for by a family child care provider at one time, and that group size not exceed six children (including all children related to the provider). This document presents research supporting the recommendation to improve family child care ratios and group sizes. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Aug 25, 2008  |  Rachel Schumacher and Elizabeth Hoffmann Promote Continuity of Care Strong attachment relationships between babies and toddlers and the adults who care for them are critical to early brain development. All babies and toddlers in child care need nurturing, responsive providers and caregivers they can trust to care for them as they grow and learn. To support this goal, CLASP recommends that states provide information and supports for providers and caregivers to develop nurturing, responsive, and continuous relationships with children from when they enter child care to age three. This document presents research supporting the recommendation to promote continuity of care. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Jul 30, 2008  |  Hannah Matthews and Rachel Schumacher Ensuring Quality Care for Low-Income Babies: Contracting Directly with Providers to Expand and Improve Infant and Toddler Care The supply of high-quality infant and toddler child care is limited, particularly for low-income families. While most states provide child care assistance through vouchers or certificates, states have the option of contracting directly with providers to expand infant/toddler care for low-income families. Based on interviews with state policymakers, this paper explains how states are using contracts to create or stabilize care in particular communities or for specific populations; to create child care slots meeting quality standards important for infants and toddlers; to extend the day for infants and toddlers served in Early Head Start; and to improve the quality of infant/toddler family child care. Download PDF
• Jul 02, 2008  |  Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt and Jonathan Larsen (National Youth Employment Coalition) Comments/Recommendations in response to Department of Education Proposed NCLB Rules in Federal Register Document E8-8700 Adaptations to No Child Left Behind provide an opportunity to strengthen our nation's educational structure and system of services to better educate struggling students and to re-engage youth who have dropped out. Our comments relate specifically to giving increased attention to struggling students and disconnected youth. Local education agencies can be incentivized to pay closer attention to these populations through increasing the graduation rate requirements, and Supplemental Education Services and public school choice are potential vehicles for providing these students with the educational environments and supports to increase their academic success. Download PDF
• Jun 18, 2008 Early Head Start Participants, Programs, Families, And Staff In 2006 This fact sheet reviews the 2006 Program Information Reports (PIR) data for the Early Head Start program, which serves children under age 3 and pregnant women. In 2006, Early Head Start continued to provide vital services to a diverse group of low-income children and families, most of which included at least one working parent. Most children received medical, dental, and disability screenings and follow-up services when necessary. Pregnant women also received prenatal and postnatal health care, dental care, and mental health care. Families also accessed services at high rates; 84 percent of families accessed at least one social service. However, just 2.4 percent of eligible children receive Early Head Start services. Download PDF
• Jun 18, 2008 Head Start Participants, Programs, Families, And Staff In 2006 This fact sheet reviews the 2006 Program Information Report (PIR) data for all Head Start programs, including preschool, Early Head Start, Migrant and Seasonal Head Start, and American Indian and Alaskan Native programs. In 2006, Head Start continued to provide vital services to a diverse group of low-income children and families. Most children received medical, dental, and disability screenings and follow-up services when necessary. Data show that increasingly, children in Head Start are receiving health insurance through public programs, even though 70 percent of families included at least one working parent. In addition, Head Start teacher education levels continued to rise, while salaries decreased 2 percent from the previous year after inflation adjustment. Download PDF
• Jun 09, 2008  |  Neil Ridley, Elizabeth Lower-Basch, and Matt Lewis Low-Income Workers and Families Hardest Hit by Economic Decline Need Help Now American workers and families are being squeezed between a declining labor market and increasing costs for food, fuel, and other basic needs. This paper describes the economy's impact on vulnerable adults and youth, and lays out recommendations for action that can make a real difference in the lives of low-income workers and their families. Download PDF
• Jun 04, 2008  |  Allegra Baider Congressional Action Needed to Ensure Low-Income Adults Receive Critical Employment and Training Services Under the Workforce Investment Act The Workforce Investment Act (WIA) authorizes the nation's federally funded workforce development system, which provides critical employment and training services to individuals and employers. However, since the enactment of WIA, the share of low-income adults receiving intensive and training services has steadily declined. This paper provides an analysis of the structural issues within the law that are contributing to these declines and offers recommendations on how Congress can reverse these trends by reinvesting in workforce development and transforming WIA through reauthorization. Download PDF
• Jun 03, 2008  |  Tiffany Conway and Rutledge Q. Hutson Healthy Marriage and the Legacy of Child Maltreatment: A Child Welfare Perspective The twelfth in a series on Couples and Marriage Research Policy, this brief looks at marriage from a notably different perspective than previous briefs in the series. This brief explores how childhood experiences, specifically child maltreatment and involvement with the child welfare system, impact the potential for a healthy,lasting marriage. The brief summarizes the research on the barriers to a healthy marriage and what is known about the long term impacts of child maltreatment and foster care. Finally, the authors offer recommendations for addressing the unique needs of couples in which one or both partners have experienced childhood maltreatment. Download PDF
• May 16, 2008  |  Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt A Collective Responsibility, A Collective Work: Supporting the Path to Positive Life Outcomes for Youth in Economically Distressed Communities This paper presents a picture of risk and challenge for youth in distressed communities and outlines how these communities can band together to create a continuum of supportive activities to bolster youth's success in school and life. As youth grow and develop, individualized support and exposure to new experiences has a significant impact on their life trajectory. Youth in economically distressed communities deserve to have access to these types of opportunities, which are much more readily available to their peers in other communities. This investment in youth can have a positive effect on academic success, future life earnings, family stability, and the livelihood of the community. This paper may be helpful in guiding a community's thinking about how to get started in creating a sustainable support system for all of its youth. Click here to download the Executive Summary. Download PDF
• Apr 25, 2008  |  Rachel Schumacher and Elizabeth DiLauro (ZERO TO THREE) Building on the Promise: State Initiatives to Expand Access to Early Head Start for Young Children and Their Families This report from CLASP and ZERO TO THREE examines actions states have taken to enhance Early Head Start (EHS). Less than 3 percent of babies and toddlers who are eligible for EHS are reached at current federal funding levels. Twenty states use at least one of four main approaches: 1) Extending the day or year of existing EHS services, 2) Expanding the capacity of existing EHS and Head Start programs to increase the number of children and pregnant women served, 3) Providing resources and assistance to child care providers to help them deliver services meeting EHS standards, and 4) Supporting partnerships between EHS and center-based and family child care providers to improve the quality of care. The report also analyzes opportunities and challenges facing state policymakers and provides recommendations for state leaders interested in promoting better futures for at-risk children through building on Early Head Start. CLASP and ZERO TO THREE have also prepared state profiles detailing the approaches of Kansas and Iowa to expanding Early Head Start. Download PDF
• Apr 25, 2008  |  Rachel Schumacher and Elizabeth DiLauro (ZERO TO THREE) Executive Summary: Building on the Promise: State Initiatives to Expand Access to Early Head Start for Young Children and Their Families Executive Summary of Building on the Promise: State Initiatives to Expand Access to Early Head Start for Young Children and Their Families Download PDF
• Apr 17, 2008  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein and Kristen Michelle Gorzelany Seizing the Moment: State Governments and the New Commitment to Reduce Poverty in America The three leading presidential candidates are now on record with a public commitment to address poverty and opportunity in the United States. This is in concert with growing state efforts and signals a dramatic turnaround in tackling poverty. In just the last two years, one of every five states has taken action to put poverty on the political agenda. This joint report from CLASP and Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity outlines those efforts and provides charts detailing action by policy area. Download PDF
• Apr 09, 2008  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Tax Credits and Public Benefits: Complementary Approaches to Supporting Low-Income Families Tax credits and public benefits are complementary approaches to supporting low-income families; policy makers do not need to choose between them. By understanding the advantages and disadvantages of both mechanisms, advocates and policy makers can better choose the right tool for the job at hand, rather than adopting a one-size fits all approach. Download PDF
• Mar 20, 2008  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Education and Training for TANF Recipients: Opportunities and Challenges under the Final Rule On February 5, 2008, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services published the final rules implementing changes in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program made by the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. This paper explains the changes in the new rules that affect recipients' access to education and training, and the actions that states will need to take in order to take advantage of these changes. Many welfare recipients lack the education needed to successfully compete in the labor market. By enabling recipients to participate in education and training activities, states can help improve their long-term employment and earnings outcomes as well as increase their participation rates. Download PDF
• Mar 12, 2008  |  Amy-Ellen Duke and Julie Strawn Overcoming Obstacles,Optimizing Opportunities: State Policies to Increase Postsecondary Attainment for Low-Skilled Adults This paper, by Amy-Ellen Duke and Julie Strawn, provides an overview of state policies that can be most successful in helping lower-skilled adults enter and succeed in college and careers. The paper introduces a series of state policy reports developed as part of Breaking Through, a national project that is helping community colleges identify and develop institutional strategies that can enable low-skilled adult students to enter into and succeed in occupational and technical degree programs at community colleges. Download PDF
• Feb 13, 2008  |  Amy-Ellen Duke A Strong Step for Students: House Higher Education Bill Promotes Innovation and Student Success Last Thursday, the House of Representatives passed the College Opportunity and Affordability Act. This legislation, moves Congress one step closer to the long-awaited reauthorization of the Higher Education Act of 1965, which governs federal student financial aid and other programs that promote access for low-income and underrepresented students. The bill now goes to a conference committee of House and Senate members. CLASP urges the committee to adopt the provisions passed by the House and to support two changes which the Senate is addressing in reauthorization. Download PDF
• Feb 06, 2008  |  Rutledge Q. Hutson Comments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on the Interim Final Rule Regarding Medicaid Case Management and Targeted Case Management Services CLASP is concerned about the detrimental effects the interim final rule regarding Medicaid case management and targeted case management services, will have on children being served by child welfare programs, including child protective services and foster care programs. Download PDF
• Feb 04, 2008  |  Hannah Matthews and Danielle Ewen President's Budget Disregards Sound Investments for Young Children Every Administration uses the budget to send a signal about its priorities for the coming year. In this period of economic downturn, when our most vulnerable children and families need access to comprehensive supports, the message of this budget is simple and stark: children in low-income working families don't matter. Download PDF
• Jan 30, 2008  |  Danielle Ewen, Aaron Nelson, and Hannah Matthews CCDBG State Plan Reported Activities To Support Limited English Proficient (LEP) And Immigrant Communities This paper provides examples of activities that states reported within the Child Care and Development Block Grant program to better serve immigrant and LEP communities. CLASP reviewed FY 2006-2007 CCDBG state plans for references to initiatives that would support immigrant families and/or providers, Limited English Proficient (LEP) families and/or providers, English Language Learners, or linguistic and cultural diversity. We find that state reported activities in these areas were often vague and few states reported carrying out multiple strategies. Download PDF
• Jan 30, 2008  |  Kirsten D. Levingston and Vicki Turetsky Debtors' Prison--Prisoners' Accumulation of Debt as a Barrier to Reentry First published by the Clearinghouse Review Journal of Poverty Law and Policy in Summer 2007, this paper describes the types of criminal financial sanctions levied against people as they make their way through the criminal justice system and the child support policies that lead to unrealistic and counterproductive payment obligations. Cost-recovery policies enforced by criminal justice and child support agencies are ill-advised, undermining the criminal justice system's rehabilitation goals, the child support system's goals to support children, and society's interest in fully reintegrating people after release from prison. Download PDF
• Jan 30, 2008  |  Tiffany Conway and Rutledge Q. Hutson Parental Incarceration: How to Avoid a "Death Sentence" for Families First published by the Clearinghouse Review Journal of Poverty Law and Policy in Summer 2007, this paper highlights a number of promising services and supports for incarcerated parents and recommends what attorneys representing or working with incarcerated parents and their children can do to minimize harm to children. Download PDF
• Jan 09, 2008  |  by Elizabeth Hoffmann and Danielle Ewen Supporting Families, Nurturing Young Children: Early Head Start Programs in 2006 This policy brief analyzes the 2006 Program Information Reports (PIR) data for the Early Head Start program, which serves children under age 3 and pregnant women. In 2006, Early Head Start supported families with working parents from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds through a broad range of services, including medical, dental, and mental health services. Since 2004, more Early Head Start children and pregnant women received dental exams; more pregnant women had health insurance; and more pregnant women received mental health services. As in previous years, teacher education levels increased, but salaries remained stagnant. Also, more Early Head Start children are in informal care outside program hours. Download PDF
• Dec 20, 2007  |  Amy-Ellen Duke and Evelyn Ganzglass Strengthening State Adult Education Policies for Low-Skilled Workers At a time when employers increasingly need better educated and skilled workers to succeed, too few states have taken significant actions to improve adult education and literacy. This brief, prepared for the Working Poor Families Project, provides an overview of state adult education policies and programs and recommends ways they can be strengthened to provide better job advancement opportunities for lower-skilled adults and older youth. Download PDF
• Oct 18, 2007  |  Julie Strawn Policies to Promote Adult Education and Postsecondary Alignment This paper was prepared for the third meeting of the National Commission on Adult Literacy on August 20, 2007. As introduced by its author, CLASP senior policy analyst Julie Strawn, the publication focuses on "helping adults with lower skills and/or limited English proficiency earn postsecondary credentials that open doors to family-supporting jobs." It examines obstacles to moving toward this goal--with major attention to lack of alignment between federal and state adult education efforts, job training services, and postsecondary education policies. It also draws attention to the financial, personal, and family challenges that prevent adults from seeking and completing programs. Numerous policy and action recommendations are given for the commission's consideration. The 28-page publication is also available in bound version from the Council for Advancement of Adult Literacy (for pricing and ordering instructions, bheitner@caalusa.org). Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Oct 05, 2007  |  Danielle Ewen and Hannah Matthews Title I And Early Childhood Programs: A Look At Investments In The NCLB Era This paper explores the wide range of ways in which school districts are using funds from Title I of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) for early education through kindergarten and examines how the implementation of NCLB has impacted those investments. It also makes recommendations for local educational agencies interested in creating Title I-funded early education programs or thinking about how to sustain these types of investments in the face of policy and funding challenges. Download PDF
• Sep 19, 2007  |  Amy-Ellen Duke and Julie Strawn Congress Expands Access to Postsecondary Education and Training for Low-income Adults On September 7, Congress enacted H.R. 2669, the College Cost Reduction and Access Act. The act substantially helps nontraditional students, such as working adults and older youth, by expanding grant aid and simplifying access to aid. In particular, the act increases the maximum Pell Grant and lets working low-income adults keep more of their earnings. CLASP applauds members of the Senate's Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee and the House's Education and Labor Committee for recognizing the particular challenges faced by low-income working adults and acting to address many of them in this legislation. Download PDF
• Sep 11, 2007  |  Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt, Linda Harris, Mala Thakur, and Jonathan Larsen Recommendations to Improve No Child Left Behind for Struggling Students and Disconnected Youth Every day, an estimated 2,500 students across the nation drop out of high school. While the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) has succeeded in bringing to light the disparities that exist in our education system, it has failed to shine a light and provide solutions to the pressing problem of high school dropouts. These recommendations--by CLASP and the National Youth Employment Coalition--focus on how the resources in NCLB can be used to ensure that these youth have access to systems, support, and funding to attain a viable education that prepares them for future learning opportunities and the world of work. Download PDF
• Sep 03, 2007  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Opportunity at Work: Improving Job Quality This paper describes the state of job quality in the U.S. today and makes the case that improving job quality is a critical part of the agenda for reducing poverty, supporting families, rewarding effort, and expanding opportunity for all. Download PDF   |   Additional PDF
• Aug 22, 2007  |  Alan W. Houseman Civil Legal Aid in the United States: An Update for 2007 Since 2005, the civil legal aid system in the United States has seen some very positive developments, including increased funding and new efforts to improve quality and access. Still, most areas of the country lack the funding and available pro bono assistance to provide low-income persons who need them with legal services; as a result, many low-income persons who are eligible for civil legal assistance are unable to obtain it. This report provides an overview of the civil legal aid system in the United States as of mid-2007. Download PDF
• Jul 20, 2007  |  Linda Harris and Rhonda Tsoi-A-Fatt Recommended Changes to the No Child Left Behind Act to Address Workforce Issues CLASP recommendations submitted to the House Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness of the Committee on Education and Labor. Download PDF
• Jul 19, 2007  |  Linda Harris Recommendations for WIA Reauthorization Legislation: Title I Youth Provisions Reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) is happening at a particularly important time for state and local youth delivery systems. During the past few years, increased attention has been given to the unacceptably high dropout rates in districts across the country. As local communities seek to put interventions in place, WIA can and should play a pivotal role. It is important that the reauthorization incorporate the past five years' experiences and lessons learned related to youth delivery, especially in economically distressed areas. Download PDF
• Jun 15, 2007  |  Rachel Schumacher, Katie Hamm, and Danielle Ewen Making Pre-Kindergarten Work For Low-income Working Families As of 2006, 38 states and the District of Columbia had pre-kindergarten programs, which vary considerably in their design. While low-income children stand to gain the most from early care and education initiatives, working families may not be able to access programs that are not responsive to their needs. This paper discusses research supporting the need to review initiatives to ensure maximum access for children in working families, especially low-income children; highlights key strategies to address the needs of low-income working families; and examines the extent to which state pre-kindergarten policies currently do so.This paper is based on research conducted for the CLASP report All Together Now: State Experiences in Using Community-based Child Care to Provide Pre-Kindergarten. Download PDF
• Jun 08, 2007  |  Anne Goldstein (on behalf of ZERO TO THREE), Katie Hamm, and Rachel Schumacher Supporting Growth and Development of Babies in Child Care: What Does the Research Say? This brief outlines research to make the case that state policies can promote the quality and continuity of early childhood experiences and positively impact the healthy growth and development of babies and toddlers in child care--the central tenet of the Charting Progress for Babies in Child Care project, conducted by CLASP with ZERO TO THREE. The majority of infants and toddlers will spend some time in non-parental care during these early years; and research shows that secure relationships with parents and caregivers are of primary importance for cognitive, social, and emotional development. The project will highlight how state child care subsidy, licensing, and quality enhancement policies can increase the odds that vulnerable babies and toddlers have positive early learning and development experiences when in child care settings. Download PDF
• May 18, 2007  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Improving Access to Education and Training for TANF Participants The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant is one of the major sources of funding for services designed to help low-income parents succeed in the workplace. The TANF law limits the degree to which states can count TANF families engaged in education and training activities toward federal work participation rate requirements--an unfortunate limitation, given the strong link between educational attainment and earnings. In this two-pager, CLASP recommends that Congress remove these arbitrary limits on education and training. Download PDF
• May 18, 2007 Making HEA an Engine of Economic Productivity and Worker Prosperity The skill requirements of today's and tomorrow's jobs continue to rise--by 2020 it's estimated that 15 million new jobs will require college preparation. This paper, from CLASP, the National Consumer Law Center, and the Workforce Alliance, argues that the U.S. can meet this increasing demand by modernizing the Higher Education Act (HEA) through reauthorization. It suggests ways Congress can better align HEA with the needs of employers and the realities of working adults' lives. Download PDF   |   Additional PDF
• May 18, 2007  |  Amy-Ellen Duke and Julie Strawn Update WIA Title II to Help More Adult Education Students Gain Postsecondary Credentials and Move Up to Better Jobs Since passage of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) in 1998, it's become clear both that an increase in basic skills leads to an increase in low-skilled individuals' earnings and that these earnings increases typically fall short of what people need to become self-sufficient. There is a new consensus on the importance of increasing transitions from adult education to postsecondary education and training. Currently, however, WIA Title II does not reflect this consensus. These recommendations are intended to update Title II to support state and local innovations in this critical area. Download PDF
• May 17, 2007  |  Danielle Ewen and Hannah Matthews Recommendations To Support High-Quality Early Education Programs Through Reauthorization Of The No Child Left Behind Act Unlike other early care and education funding sources, Title I of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) has seen some increases in funding levels since 2002. As a result, a number of policymakers interested in investing in high-quality early care and education programs have turned to Title I as a funding source. This publication, which draws from two years study of the relationship between Title I and high-quality early education, offers recommendations for the reauthorization of NCLB. Download PDF
• May 17, 2007 Recommendations for Reauthorization of Title I of the Workforce Investment Act Adult and Youth Programs The United States economy is undergoing a major transformation. This requires a new vision for workforce policy--one that promotes a \"high-road\" path to U.S. competitiveness and greater economic opportunity for all workers. These recommendations for reauthorization of Title I of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) focus on both the supply and demand sides of the labor market, in order to address the long-term needs of workers and employers in the new competitive economy. (Updated July 3, 2007.) Download PDF
• May 17, 2007  |  Allegra Baider, Abbey Frank, and Evelyn Ganzglass Recommendations to Strengthen Title I of the Senate WIA Reauthorization Bill Passed by the 109th Congress As the 110th Congress turns once again to WIA reauthorization, a new opportunity exists to ensure that our public workforce system is responsive to the diverse needs of low-wage workers and low-income populations. This paper focuses specifically on recommendations to strengthen the bipartisan Senate WIA bill that passed in the 109th Congress (HR 27 EAS, which incorporated S 1021), which the Senate may use as a starting point for a new bill. Download PDF
• May 15, 2007 The Partnership to Protect Children and Strengthen Families The Partnership was formed by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees; the American Public Human Services Association; Catholic Charities USA; CLASP; the Children's Defense Fund; the Child Welfare League of America; the National Child Abuse Coalition; and Voices for America's Children. In May 2007, the founding partners issued a set of recommendations to enhance federal child welfare law to better protect children and ensure them nurturing families and invited others to join the Partnership. Nearly 30 national organizations now comprise the Partnership. Download PDF
• May 02, 2007  |  Hannah Matthews and Deeana Jang Executive Summary: The Challenges of Change: Learning from the Child Care and Early Education Experiences of Immigrant Families Executive Summary of The Challenges of Change: Learning from the Child Care and Early Education Experiences of Immigrant Families Download PDF
• May 02, 2007  |  Hannah Matthews and Deeana Jang The Challenges of Change: Learning from the Child Care and Early Education Experiences of Immigrant Families One of every five children in the United States is the child of an immigrant. Although these children stand to benefit from high-quality child care and early education programs, available data show that they are less likely to participate in all types of non-parental care than children of U.S.-born citizens are. To explore the reasons for the lower participation of children of immigrants, CLASP conducted site visits across the country to learn first hand about the challenges that immigrant families face. CLASP sought out immigrant leaders and direct service providers, immigrant parents, child care and early education providers, and policymakers. This report identifies multiple barriers that impede immigrant families from accessing high-quality child care and early education. It also highlights promising strategies being used in local communities to break down those barriers and to improve child care and early education programs so that they are more responsive to the needs of diverse immigrant families. It concludes with a set of recommendations for federal, state, and local policymakers, advocates, private foundations, and researchers. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Apr 24, 2007 Recommendations for Improving Education Outcomes for Children and Youth in Foster Care Through Amendments to the McKinney-Vento Act/Education Reauthorization in the No Child Left Behind Act The reauthorization of Title X, Part C of the No Child Left Behind McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act provides an opportunity for schools to better understand the unique situations and experiences of children in foster care and for child welfare agencies to focus more on the educational needs and outcomes of the children and youth they are serving. This set of recommendations is a joint publication by CLASP, the Child Welfare League of America, the Children's Defense Fund, Lutheran Services in America, and Voices for America's Children. Download PDF
• Apr 20, 2007  |  Julie Strawn and Amy-Ellen Duke Recommendations to the House Committee on Education and Labor Regarding Reauthorization of the Higher Education Act These recommendations were submitted to Chairman George Miller and members of the House Committee on Education and Labor. They recommend changes to the Higher Education Act (HEA) that 1) help more working adults and other nontraditional students enroll in and complete postsecondary programs by offering greater financial and other support, 2) help colleges in their critical workforce development role by promoting innovation in program content and delivery, and 3) simplify the aid application process and increase aid to the neediest students. Download PDF
• Apr 20, 2007  |  Julie Strawn and Amy-Ellen Duke Updating WIA Title II to Help More Adult Education Students Gain Postsecondary Credentials and Move up to Better Jobs These recommendations to the U.S. Senate are intended to update the Workforce Investment Act (WIA)Title II (the Adult Education and Literacy Act) and support state and local innovations focused on increasing transitions from adult education to postsecondary education and training. Download PDF
• Mar 13, 2007  |  Abbey Frank, Elizabeth Lower-Basch, and Annette Case Where the Funds Are: The Use of FSET Funds for Workforce Training Programs Funding for workforce training programs is limited. Many of the traditional funding streams used to cover the costs of these programs have been cut, leaving administrators to think creatively about alternative funding sources. One possibility is the Food Stamp Employment and Training program (FSET), which supports employment and training services for food stamp participants. This policy brief provides an overview of the FSET program and funding streams and discusses ways that workforce training programs can access FSET funds to improve the employability of FSET participants. Download PDF
• Mar 12, 2007  |  Vicki Turetsky Staying in Jobs and Out of the Underground: Child Support Policies that Encourage Legitimate Work This policy brief explains why policymakers and practitioners should manage the child support obligations of incarcerated and re-entering men to help them maintain regular employment, limit participation in the underground economy, reduce recidivism, and provide steady support to their children over time. A companion brief will outline specific child support strategies to help these parents reconnect to work and family. Download PDF
• Mar 08, 2007  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Responsive Workplaces: The Business Case for Employment that Values Fairness and Families More and more, working parents have dual--and dueling--responsibilities on the job and at home. Some employers have adapted and made their workplaces responsive to working parents, offering, for example, flexible scheduling and paid time off. Often, such measures have benefited the employers, too, demonstrating that businesses can do well by doing good. This article--reprinted from Mother Load, a special report from The American Prospect on family-friendly workplaces--addresses the business case for workplaces that respond to families' needs. Download PDF
• Feb 27, 2007 The Promise of New Funding for Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment to Promote Safety, Permanence, and Well-Being for Children: Questions & Answers About New Grants under the Child and Family Services Improvement Act of 2006 P.L. 109-288 These questions and answers (Q&A) were prepared by an informal coalition of groups, including the American Public Human Services Association, Center for Law and Social Policy, Child Welfare League of America, Children's Defense Fund, Legal Action Center, National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors, and the Rebecca Project for Human Rights. Our group convened after passage of the Child and Family Services Improvement Act of 2006 to develop materials about the new funding and the opportunity for those concerned about alcohol and drug addiction and its impact on children and families to use it to improve outcomes for children and families. We hope that this Q&A will stimulate organizations and agencies to begin planning and forming regional partnerships so they will be ready to apply for grants under the Act once they are formally announced by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in the Spring of 2007. Read Online
• Feb 21, 2007  |  Christopher Mazzeo, Brandon Roberts, Christopher Spence, and Julie Strawn Working Together: Aligning State Systems and Policies for Individual and Regional Prosperity Julie Strawn of CLASP coauthored this new report, from the Workforce Strategy Center, which asserts that the current systems are not working effectively to produce the kinds of knowledge workers need for our new economy. The paper examines state policy and system improvements that would enhance the ability of workers to gain skills to advance to better jobs and the ability of employers to find skilled workers. These improvements include increasing access to postsecondary education and training; enabling current students to succeed and complete marketable credentials; increasing transitions between literacy, language, and postsecondary education and training programs; incorporating employer demand and state economic priorities in educational planning; expanding the capacity of postsecondary institutions; and measuring program results. Download PDF
• Feb 09, 2007  |  Rutledge Q. Hutson Bush Administration's "Child Welfare Program Option" Puts Children Who Have Been Abused or Neglected at Greater Risk The Bush Administration's 2008 budget proposal talks about a goal of increasing services and supports for children, but its budget recommendations go in the opposite direction. This brief focuses on the Administration's "Child Welfare Program Option," offering a summary of what is known about the proposal and the concerns and questions CLASP has about the approach suggested. Download PDF
• Feb 05, 2007  |  Danielle Ewen and Hannah Matthews Families Forgotten: Administration's Priorities Put Child Care Low on List Despite evidence that child care assistance is critical to helping low-income families to work and to succeed financially, the President's FY 2008 budget proposal freezes discretionary child care funding for the sixth consecutive year. According to the Administration's own estimates, 300,000 children will lose child care assistance by 2010. This is in addition to 150,000 children who have already lost assistance since 2000. Download PDF
• Feb 01, 2007  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Family and Medical Leave Act: Response to Request for Information In December, the Department of Labor published a request for information concerning the implementation of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). In these comments, CLASP expresses support for continuing current policies to protect workers who need to take leave and argues for expanding FMLA to more workers and providing paid leave. Download PDF
• Jan 30, 2007  |  CLASP and CBPP Implementing the TANF Changes in the DRA: "Win-Win" Solutions for Families and States, Second Edition This report from CLASP and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is intended to guide state administrators and advocates as they consider implementing the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) provisions of the 2006 federal budget, called the Deficit Reduction Act (DRA). This report has been updated to reflect the Interim Final Rule and guidance issued by HHS in response to states' Work Verification Plans. The report discusses the legal structure of the work participation requirements; strategies for improving and increasing engagement in programs; strategies for increasing support for working families (through increased earnings disregards, stand-alone "work supplement" programs, and child support distribution options) and helping states meet participation rates; disability laws and ways to improve the effectiveness of TANF-related programs for individuals with disabilities; and the fiscal implications of the TANF, child care, and child support provisions. To view/print specific chapters, visit http://www.cbpp.org/archiveSite/2-9-07tanf.htm Download PDF
• Jan 22, 2007  |  Helene Stebbins and L. Carol Scott Better Outcomes For All: Promoting Partnerships Between Head Start And State Pre-K This report, a collaboration between CLASP and Pre-K Now, examines how Head Start and state pre-kindergarten programs can work together to best serve young children and their families. The authors conducted in-depth interviews with state pre-k program directors, Head Start collaboration coordinators, and providers of both Head Start and state pre-k programs in five states. The report finds that collaborations led to the enrollment of more children; the availability of more full-day, full-year options; and improvements in the quality of programs across settings. All of those interviewed for the report noted that collaboration is possible under current law and that it is well worth the effort. Download PDF
• Jan 19, 2007  |  Tiffany Conway & Rutledge Q. Hutson In-Depth Summary of Child and Family Services Improvement Act of 2006 The Child and Family Services Improvement Act of 2006 (CFSIA) represents an important step toward providing crucial services to children and families involved or at risk of becoming involved with the child welfare system. Of particular benefit are the addition of $40 million annually and the attention given to improving the workforce and addressing substance abuse, specifically methamphetamine abuse. This summary outlines the provisions of the law. Download PDF
• Jan 08, 2007  |  Elizabeth Lower-Basch Congress Should Take Action to Restore Flexibility Lost in 2006 Welfare Reauthorization and HHS Regulations The 2006 TANF reauthorization substantially increased effective work participation rates on states, and it limited state flexibility to individualize work requirements. HHS's interim regulations implementing this law included narrow definitions of the countable work activities, definitions that further restrict state flexibility to use a range of effective work-related activities. This paper outlines a series of changes that Congress should make to restore flexibility and encourage states to allow low-income families to participate in a range of activities that will improve their self-sufficiency. Download PDF
• Dec 11, 2006  |  Paula Roberts Voluntary Paternity Acknowledgment: An Update of State Law Voluntary paternity establishment programs have been a great success for both parents and children. While federal law sets out the general rules for such programs, there is some state variation. Among the major differences involve 1) the ability of minor parents to use the voluntary establishment process, 2) the process for rescinding an acknowledgment, and 3) under what circumstances an acknowledgment can be challenged after the rescission period. This memo and its accompanying tables describe and analyze these state variations. Download PDF
• Dec 01, 2006  |  Natalie Branosky, Mark Greenberg, Elisa Minoff et al Staying On, Stepping Up The issue of promoting employment retention and advancement is an important topic in UK policy debates, as it is in the U.S. This report discusses research and experience that might be used to strengthen the U.K.'s efforts. In the third chapter--"Employment retention: evidence from the UK and the US"-- Elisa Minoff and Mark Greenberg from CLASP and Natalie Branosky from the Centre for Economic and Social Inclusion provide a survey and discussion of the employment retention research and experience for single parents in the U.S. and U.K. This report was published by One Parent Families, a British charity which supports lone parents and their children. For more information, please go to www.oneparentfamilies.org.uk. Download PDF
• Nov 13, 2006  |  Linda Harris with Charles Modiano, consultant Making the Juvenile Justice - Workforce System Connection for Re-entering Young Offenders: A Guide for Local Practice This guidebook is designed to provide advice from the field to communities who are interested in pursuing more formal connections--or strengthening existing connections--between the workforce and justice systems. It draws on experiences in eight communities and focuses on on-the-ground challenges and solutions related to blending the cultures, adapting programming, engaging employers, and meeting performance. Download PDF
• Nov 01, 2006  |  Hannah Matthews and Danielle Ewen Child Care Assistance in 2005: State Cuts Continue State spending on child care assistance declined in 2005 for the second consecutive year. Twenty-two states made cuts to their child care programs, as the number of children living in low-income families that received help from these programs continued to decline. Many families turn to child care assistance programs to get help paying for the child care they need in order to work and to succeed. This policy brief provides an overview of national expenditure data for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds directed towards child care. View the associated chart showing state-by-state changes in child care expenditures and CCDBG participation from 2004 to 2005. Download PDF
• Oct 31, 2006  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein with Laura Boyd Paid Sick Days Legislation: A Legislator's Guide Unlike most of the nations of the world, the U.S. has no national paid sick days policy. But lawmakers are starting to address the issue at the local and state levels. This guide, a joint publication of CLASP and the Women Legislators' Lobby, is intended to help legislators think through the provisions that make up paid sick days legislation. It identifies ten primary issues to consider when moving from a hypothetical idea to concrete legislation, and it offers several possible options for addressing each. Download PDF
• Oct 20, 2006  |  Paula Roberts Proposed Medical Child Support Regulations This publication describes new proposed federal regulations relating to medical support enforcement and suggests issues on which interested people may wish to comment. Download PDF
• Sep 12, 2006  |  Tiffany Conway and Rutledge Hutson Comments to the Children's Bureau, ACF on the Proposed Rule to Implement the National Youth in Transition Database (NYTD) These are CLASP's official comments to ACF on the proposed rule to implement the National Youth in Transition Database (NYTD), published in the Federal Register on July 14, 2006. This is the rule proposed for implementing the data collection requirements of the Foster Care Independence Act of 1999. Download PDF
• Aug 29, 2006  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein and Webb Lyons Targeting Poverty: Aim at a Bull's Eye Forty years after the war on poverty and a year after Katrina struck, commitments to tackle poverty are beginning to come back onto political and policy agendas. The report identifies efforts around the nation to set poverty targets -- numerical goals and timelines -- for the reduction or elimination of poverty. For example: In California, a 2006 bill calls for child poverty to be eliminated by 2026; in Connecticut, state law already establishes that child poverty is to be reduced by 50 percent by 2014. Among the reasons why poverty may be gaining attention is the increasing concern among many Americans that at some point they and their families may experience poverty. These and other issues are explored. Download PDF
• Aug 25, 2006  |  Katie Hamm More than Meets the Eye: Head Start Programs, Participants, Families, and Staff in 2005 This policy brief examines the latest data from the Program Information Reports (PIR) that all Head Start programs must submit to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In 2005, Head Start served fewer children than in previous years. At the same time, PIR data show that Head Start is increasingly a provider of last resort for low-income families. Despite a decrease in the number of families served, there was an increase in the number of families accessing an array of services through Head Start, including services for substance abuse, child abuse or neglect, mental health, and English as a Second Language courses. As in previous years, teacher education levels increased, but salaries remained stagnant. Download PDF
• Aug 03, 2006  |  Rachel Schumacher, Katie Hamm, Anne Goldstein, and Joan Lombardi Starting Off Right: Promoting Child Development From Birth In State Early Care And Education Initiatives State early care and education policies that start at birth and address the full range of children's development can potentially identify health and developmental issues, link families to necessary supports, and assure that those who care for infants and toddlers have the tools to stimulate early learning and development and ease transitions into the preschool and elementary years. This paper describes a menu of state strategies to improve early care and education for infants and toddlers, and supports to their families, including: examples of specific policies to promote child development birth to 3, as well as ideas for state funding and governance structures that provide attention and resources for all children birth to age 5. Read Online   |   Download PDF
• Aug 01, 2006  |  Webb Lyons Flex in the City: The Story of a Mayor and His Vision In Houston, Mayor Bill White has taken a personal role in fostering a workplace flexibility initiative. The Houston effort is designed not only to give workers more control over their lives, but also to reduce traffic congestion. The Mayor and his staff are gearing up for "Flex in the City," a two-week period designed to get more employers to adopt a workplace flex option. This issue brief, the fourth in CLASP's work-life balance series, links to a live 10-minute interview with the Mayor and also points to other programs and legislation around the U.S. that make the connection between workplace flexibility and reduced traffic congestion. Download PDF
• Jul 30, 2006  |  Paul Legler (PSI) and Vicki Turetsky More Child Support Dollars to Kids: Using New State Flexibility in Child Support Pass-Through and Distribution Rules to Benefit Government and Families The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 provides new state flexibility to pass through more child support dollars to current and former TANF families. This policy brief describes the new DRA changes in assignment and distribution rules, and explains why they can improve child support compliance, assist families making the transition from welfare to work, help states meet work participation and child support performance rates, and reduce state costs. The policy brief is also available at www.policy-studies.com. Download PDF
• Jul 21, 2006  |  CLASP and the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities Analysis of New Interim Final TANF Rules This collaborative analysis provides an overview of the major regulatory provisions and the implications for state policies of rules issued by the Department of Health and Human Services on June 29, 2006. The interim final regulations implement the changes to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program made by the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. The analysis explains the new federal definitions of the countable work activities and their implications for education and training and services for individuals with barriers to employment. The analysis also examines the treatment of child-only cases, how hours of participation must be counted tracked and verified, implications for child care, and changes in the maintenance of effort requirement. Download PDF
• Jul 20, 2006  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Getting Punched: The Job and Family Clock...It's Time for Flexible Work for Workers of All Wages Get the facts on the dramatic labor market changes that result in more and more workers facing dual and dueling responsibilities -- those at work and those at home. Businesses that recognize this tension address it through responsive scheduling and paid time off; and, these businesses benefit from cost savings when they do. Getting Punched suggests 10 ways that government should get more involved in promoting responsive workplaces for workers of all wages. It's about time. Download PDF
• Jun 29, 2006  |  Paula Roberts Paternity Disestablishment in 2006 This is the latest update on developments in the area of paternity disestablishment. This piece also contains a detailed discussion of issues emerging as parents who have established parentage through the voluntary acknowledgment process attempt to disestablish paternity through the use of genetic testing. Download PDF
• Jun 22, 2006  |  Vicki Turetsky Child Support Provisions in the Deficit Reduction Act The fiscal year 2006 federal budget, signed into law on February 8, 2006, makes major funding and program changes to the child support program and creates a new federal grants program for fatherhood and marriage initiatives. This four-page brief offers a preliminary analysis of the child support and fatherhood provisions of the new budget law. Download PDF   |   Additional PDF
• May 30, 2006  |  Paula Roberts Final Regulation on Review and Adjustment of Child Support Orders This brief memo discusses the final federal regulation on states' ability to use a quantitative standard for determining whether an adjustment should be sought in a child support case when review indicates that some change may be appropriate under the state's child support guidelines. Download PDF
• May 23, 2006  |  Allegra Baider and Abbey Frank Transitional Jobs: Helping TANF Recipients with Barriers to Employment Succeed in the Labor Market Transitional jobs programs are a promising strategy for helping TANF recipients with barriers to employment transition into the labor market. Program participants are paid wages, gain work experience, and build skills necessary for future success in the workplace. Download PDF
• May 10, 2006  |  Mark Greenberg, Danielle Ewen, and Hannah Matthews Using TANF for Early Childhood Programs In recent years, states have made significant investments in pre-kindergarten programs in order to help young children enter school ready to learn. Federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds are among the sources states have tapped to support some or all of their early childhood initiatives. This brief, supported by the Foundation for Child Development, outlines when and how states can use TANF funds to support early childhood programs, and examines the impact of TANF changes included the 2006 federal budget (called the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005) on this use. Download PDF
• May 09, 2006  |  Abbey Frank, Mark Greenberg, and Robert Zdenek Getting Connected: Employer Engagement in Work Supports More than one quarter of U.S. working families have incomes below 200 percent of the federal poverty line. Work supports--government benefits ranging from the Earned Income Tax Credit and child care assistance to Medicaid, the state Children's Health Insurance Program, and food stamps--can help low-income families make ends meet and maintain employment. But many employers are unaware of or reluctant to help connect workers to these supports. This policy paper looks at the role employers can play in connecting employees to supports, employers' concerns about this role, and observations from six sites with workplace-based efforts underway to improve access to work supports. Download PDF
• May 01, 2006  |  Mark Greenberg and Nisha Patel Coordinating Individual Development Accounts and the Workforce Investment Act to Increase Access to Postsecondary Education and Training This paper was jointly developed by CLASP and the Center for Social Development, Washington University in St. Louis. It explores the potential coordination of Individual Development Accounts with Workforce Investment Act programs to increase access to postsecondary education, job training, and related services for low-income individuals. Download PDF
• Apr 17, 2006  |  Evelyn Ganzglass Strategies for Increasing Participation in TANF Education and Training Activities The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) provisions in the fiscal year 2006 federal budget will require most states to substantially increase the number of TANF recipients participating in work-related activities. This paper aims to help state policymakers, program administrators, and others identify approaches to meeting federal participation rates while also improving programs' ability to help families enter and maintain sustainable employment. It summarizes existing research on how skills and credentials impact labor market success and on effective skills training and postsecondary education strategies. It also examines rates of participation in education and training, and recommends strategies to expand access to these activities within the new TANF policy context. Download PDF
• Apr 06, 2006  |  Amy-Ellen Duke, Karin Martinson, and Julie Strawn Wising Up: How Government Can Partner With Business to Increase Skills and Advance Low-Wage Workers Helping low-wage workers upgrade their skills is a critical part of public policies to advance workers and to attract and retain "good" jobs—those that pay enough to support a family and offer health care, sick leave, and other important benefits. One promising approach has states and local governments partnering with business and industry to train workers and encourage the creation and retention of good jobs. This report examines five such training partnerships underway in four states, and offers innovative practices, challenges, and lessons learned for states and localities. Download PDF
• Apr 03, 2006  |  Hannah Matthews Child Care Assistance Helps Families Work: A Review of the Effects of Subsidy Receipt on Employment Reliable and stable child care helps parents retain steady employment and reduces workplace absenteeism, but the high costs of care challenge many families, particularly low-income working parents. Child care assistance can help. This policy brief reviews relevant research and finds that low-income mothers who receive child care subsidies are more likely to be employed, to stay off welfare, and to have higher earnings. For that reason, increasing investments in child care assistance is necessary to help families move from welfare to work and to help low-income parents continue working. Download PDF
• Mar 17, 2006  |  Katie Hamm and Danielle Ewen From the Beginning: Early Head Start Children, Families, Staff, and Programs in 2004 This policy brief profiles the Early Head Start program--which serves low-income children under age 3, pregnant women, and their families with comprehensive early education and support services--using the latest data from the Program Information Reports that all Head Start grantees must submit to the U.S. Department of Health. Major changes in 2004 included more children with access to a continuous source of dental care and fewer families receiving TANF benefits. The proportion of home visitors and teachers with degrees also increased, although teacher salaries remained stagnant. (Head Start Policy Brief No. 7.) Download PDF
• Feb 27, 2006  |  Linda Harris Learning from the Youth Opportunity Experience: Executive Summary This brief summary accompanies the 50-page full report detailing the experiences of 22 communities that received U.S. Department of Labor Youth Opportunity Grants to support education, work exposure, and youth development for under-served young people. Download PDF
• Feb 17, 2006  |  Casey Trupin, Vicki Turetsky, Rutledge Q. Hutson Final 2006 Budget Bill Cuts Services to Abused and Neglected Children On February 8, 2006, President Bush signed into law the 2006 federal budget bill, which includes provisions to decrease federal funding for a range of services that help children who have been abused or neglected. It also removes foster care payments for some low-income relatives caring for children at risk of abuse and neglect, and restricts access to some Medicaid services for children in foster care. The bill makes two modest improvements to child welfare funding, but they are not sufficient to offset the cuts. This brief examines the bill's impact on child welfare funding. Download PDF
• Feb 17, 2006  |  Evelyn Ganzglass and Abbey Frank Reform or Dismantling? President's Workforce System Proposal Raises Serious Concerns President Bush's 2007 budget proposal calls for drastic reduction in funding for training and employment services and the consolidation of Workforce Investment Act and Employment Service programs into a single block grant to states. The proposed changes would channel most of the remaining resources into individual training vouchers thus diminishing state and local flexibility to tailor programs to meet the needs of employers and job seekers, especially low-income adults, hard-to-employ individuals, and disadvantaged youth. Download PDF
• Feb 16, 2006  |  Linda Harris Learning from the Youth Opportunity Experience: Building Delivery Capacity in Distressed Communities In 2000, the U.S. Department of Labor awarded significant Youth Opportunity (YO) Grants to 36 high-poverty urban, rural, and Native American communities. The grants were designed to serve all young people in these areas, regardless of income or connection to school or work. Communities were required to assess and integrate existing youth-serving systems and agencies to support education, work exposure, youth development, and other services for young people. Despite evidence of considerable community accomplishments, the YO grants were ended in 2005. This report, based on a survey of 22 of the 36 sites, examines the approaches' strengths, challenges, and lessons learned, and offers recommendations for policy and practice. The appendix of this report contains a brief description of the collaborative efforts in which these YO communities were engaged. Download PDF
• Feb 10, 2006  |  Paula Roberts Changes to the Child Support Program: An Overview of the Provisions of the 2006 Federal Budget and the 2007 Budget Proposal This brief describes the changes in the child support program that result from passage of the 2006 federal budget bill (called the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005) as well as the effective date for those changes. It also describes possible additional changes contemplated by the Bush Administration's fiscal year 2007 budget proposal. Download PDF
• Feb 10, 2006  |  Danielle Ewen and Hannah Matthews Toward a Decade of Indifference: Administration Budget Ignores Child Care Needs of Working Families Child care assistance is critical to helping low-income working families succeed and find quality child care that fosters their children's well-being and healthy development. Yet the President's 2007 budget proposal, released on February 6, 2006, freezes discretionary child care funding for the fifth consecutive year. The result will be a 25 percent drop in the number of children from low-income working families who get help paying for child care by 2011, as compared with 2000 numbers. Download PDF
• Jan 30, 2006  |  Mark Greenberg The TANF Participation Rate Structure under the Budget Reconciliation Bill Pending budget legislation would change the TANF work participation rate rules in important ways. At the same time, current rules relating to many aspects of the participation rate structure would remain unchanged. This document provides a summary of the overall structure that would result, including how participation rate requirements would be calculated, which activities would count as participation, and how the "caseload reduction credit" and penalty provisions would work. Download PDF
• Jan 30, 2006  |  Elisa Minoff The UK Commitment: Ending Child Poverty by 2020 In 1999, the United Kingdom (UK) announced its pledge to cut child poverty by one-quarter by 2004 and eliminate it by 2020. This paper examines the history of this ambitious commitment, and the progress to date. It also analyzes the components of the national effort--which range from employment supports, asset building initiatives, and child-targeted assistance to tax, welfare, and education policies--and the next steps the UK is considering to meet the goal of eradicating child poverty. Download PDF
• Jan 20, 2006  |  Mark Greenberg and Sharon Parrott (CBPP) Summary of TANF Work Participation Provisions in the Budget Reconciliation Bill The budget reconciliation bill expected to be up for a vote in the House of Representatives on February 1st includes a set of provisions related to TANF and federal child care funding, including changes to TANF work participation rules. This report, jointly issued with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), provides a brief summary followed by a more detailed explanation of each change. Download PDF
• Jan 19, 2006  |  Casey Trupin Federal Budget Bill May Reduce Federal Child Welfare Funds to California by Hundreds of Millions of Dollars Shortly after it returns on January 31, 2006, the U.S. House of Representatives will vote on a budget package already approved by the Senate. This package, called the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, contains numerous cuts to human services, including child welfare. California will bear the largest share of the funding losses in the nation. This paper examines how the budget agreement will affect children and families in California's child welfare system--particularly, the bill's financial disincentives to placing children with relatives and time restrictions on federal administrative funds for children in relative care. Download PDF
• Jan 19, 2006  |  Hannah Matthews and Danielle Ewen Reaching All Children? Understanding Early Care and Education Participation Among Immigrant Families One in five children in the United States is the child of an immigrant. These children stand to benefit greatly from high-quality child care and early learning programs, yet appear less likely to participate in such programs. This paper summarizes evidence about the participation of young children of immigrants in early care and education programs as well as the demographic and socio-economic characteristics of immigrant families that likely influence participation. It then offers policy recommendations for state and local administrators of pre-kindergarten and other early care and education programs, and proposes areas for additional research. This paper is part of CLASP's Breaking Down Barriers project, which is supported by the Foundation for Child Development. Download PDF
• Jan 18, 2006  |  Vicki Turetsky Families Will Lose At Least $8.4 Billion in Uncollected Child Support if Congress Cuts Funds--and Could Lose Billions More In February, Congress is expected to vote on the FY 2006 budget agreement. The current version would cut federal child support funds by more than 20 percent. Despite the claim that families would not be hurt, the Congressional Budget Office estimates that at least $8.4 billion in child support would go uncollected over the next 10 years if the incentive match is eliminated. This report uses Congressional Budget Office projections to show how much funding each state stands to lose and how much child support will go uncollected if the cuts are enacted. Download PDF
• Jan 16, 2006  |  Mark Greenberg New TANF Requirements Could Result in New Large Costs and Risk of Federal Penalties for California In February 2006, the House of Representatives will vote on a federal budget bill that revises work requirements for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, and creates significant penalties for states that fail to meet these requirements. Given its size and caseload, California will incur significant costs in order to meet the new requirements, and will still be at great risk for penalties. This report uses available federal data to examine the federal bill's budgetary implications in California. Download PDF
• Jan 12, 2006  |  Mark Greenberg The TANF Reconciliation Bill Provisions This PowerPoint presentation examines the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) reauthorization provisions in the House and Senate budget reconciliation bills, debated in January 2006. It includes information on the changes to the structure of the program and key concerns for policymakers and advocates. Mark Greenberg gave this presentation to a Welfare Advocates Meeting at the Coalition on Human Needs on January 12, 2006. Download PDF
• Jan 09, 2006  |  Paula Roberts The Child Support Provisions of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 The conference agreement of the fiscal year 2006 federal budget (also called the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005) includes changes to the child support program. This short publication offers a clear description of the Act's specific changes to the financing of the child support program and how it works. The House is expected to vote on the Act on February 1, 2006. Download PDF
• Jan 06, 2006  |  Mark Greenberg Conference TANF Agreement Requires States to Increase Work Participation by 69 Percent, but New Funding Meets Only a Fraction of New Costs The budget conference agreement includes a mandate that states meet a 50 percent Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) work participation rate in order to avoid federal penalties. The bill forces states to make an unpalatable choice: increase work participation rates by an estimated 69 percent or cut the number of families receiving assistance--or both. What's more, the bill provides states with new funds that amount to less than $70 per new participant per month. Download PDF
• Dec 14, 2005  |  Abbey Frank and Elisa Minoff Declining Share of Adults Receiving Training under WIA are Low-Income or Disadvantaged The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) significantly changed the way federally funded job training and employment services are structured, and has impacted who receives training under the program. In particular, the share of training recipients who are low-income or have barriers to employment has dropped since WIA was enacted. This paper examines the data, considers some possible explanations for this decline, and offers recommendations for WIA reauthorization and state and local action to increase the share of training resources directed to adults who are low-income, single parents, or have other barriers to finding and keeping employment. Download PDF
• Dec 08, 2005  |  Paula Roberts Parentage Case Update: Can a Child Have Two Mothers? Modern technology makes it possible for a child to have two mothers.Should the law recognize this? This memo analyzes three recent California cases that use traditional laws and methods of analysis to find that the law should.The cases may be useful to other jurisdictions trying to decide how to approach such situations. Download PDF
• Dec 05, 2005  |  Paula Roberts Child Support Cooperation Requirements and Public Benefits Programs: An Overview The TANF and Medicaid programs impose assignment and child support cooperation requirements on participating adults. The Food Stamp, SCHIP and child care programs may also contain child support cooperation requirements. This paper examines the rules in each separate program and then describes what happens if an individual is subject to a cooperation requirement in more than one program. The author makes recommendations for streamlining the requirements and making sure that individuals who are subject to the requirement of more than one program are treated fairly. Download PDF
• Nov 21, 2005  |  Katie Hamm and Danielle Ewen Still Going Strong: Head Start Children, Families, Staff, and Programs in 2004 As Congress considers legislation to reauthorize the federal Head Start program, this policy brief examines the latest data from the Program Information Reports that all Head Start grantees must submit to the U.S. Department of Health. In 2004, Head Start continued to provide early education services and medical, dental, and mental health screenings for poor children, as well as comprehensive supports for families. The number of teachers with degrees grew substantially in 2004--65 percent of teachers had an Associate's Degree or higher. Less than half of eligible children, however, receive Head Start services. Download PDF
• Nov 17, 2005  |  Vicki Turetsky Backing Away From Parental Responsibility: Child Support Budget Cuts Will Unravel a Decade of Progress Under the House of Representatives' proposed budget reconciliation bill, the child support program faces a 40 percent cut in federal funds over the next 10 years--funds the program uses to establish and enforce non-custodial parents' child support responsibilities to their children. The cuts threaten to reverse a decade of stunning progress in a program that serves two-thirds of all single-parent families in the United States and benefits more than 17 million children. This paper examines the importance of the child support program, the reasons behind its dramatic improvement in performance, and how these cuts would jeopardize families of all income levels. Download PDF
• Oct 27, 2005  |  Vicki Turetsky Update: Ways and Means Committee Approves 40 Percent Cut in Child Support Funds The Committee on Ways and Means has approved deep cuts to the federal funding for child support services, which would severely reduce states' ability to collect child support for low- and moderate-income families. This policy brief outlines the changes, and uses Congressional Budget Office projections to show how much funding each state stands to lose and how much child support will go uncollected if the cuts are enacted. Download PDF
• Oct 25, 2005  |  Vicki Turetsky Child Support-Related Provisions in New Katrina Relief Legislation This paper outlines the child support-related provisions of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Emergency Response and Recovery Act of 2005, signed into law on September 21, 2005. It also describes recent Health and Human Services policy guidance and pending legislation that would clarify the law. Finally, it recommends that Congress adopt additional short-term child support measures to help states impacted by the hurricanes. Download PDF
• Oct 24, 2005  |  Vicki Turetsky The Child Support Enforcement Program: A Sound Investment in Improving Children's Chances in Life The Child Support Enforcement program's performance has improved dramatically in recent years. This six-page report explains why the program is a sound investment--returning $4.38 in collected support for every dollar the government spends. (See also, The Child Support Program: An Investment That Works, July 2005.) Download PDF
• Sep 29, 2005 Employment and Training in the Response to Katrina: Some Principles for Ensuring Access to Jobs and Training As communities rebuild in the wake of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, it is critical that local residents have access to the jobs created. CLASP offers specific recommendations to policymakers, program administrators, and advocates to ensure that recovery efforts bolster the skills and circumstances of low-wage workers, and help families and communities emerge stronger than they were before the floodwaters rose. Download PDF
• Sep 20, 2005  |  Linda Harris Campaign for Youth Issues Considerations for Youth and Communities Impacted by Hurricane This collective response from a coalition of national policy and advocacy organizations draws attention to the needs of the vulnerable youth impacted by Hurricane Katrina and makes a set of recommendations. Download PDF
• Sep 16, 2005  |  <a href=mailto:vturet@clasp.org>Vicki Turetsky</a> In Everybody's Best Interests: Why Reforming Child Support Distribution Makes Sense for Government and Families More than 17 million children are served by the public child support program&#151;but many never see the funds collected on their behalf. Instead, collections are used to recoup the public costs of families' welfare cash assistance. Recent reform proposals would shift the program's emphasis from cost recovery to family support. This brief describes the regulations, and how families and government alike stand to benefit from the direct pass-through of child support payments to children. Download PDF
• Sep 09, 2005  |  Julie Strawn and Amy-Ellen Duke Why the Senate Higher Education Bill is Good News for Low-Income Adults--and How to Make it Even Better On September 8th, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee unanimously approved S. 1614, bipartisan legislation to reauthorize the Higher Education Act. Among the bill's provisions that will help low income adults are new, supplemental Pell grants to the poorest students; expansion of Pell grants to students enrolled less than half-time or attending year round; pilots of student aid for modularized programs; and grants to prepare nontraditional students for high growth jobs. Further improvements in the bill are needed, though, to increase aid to working adults, to simplify student aid applications, and to prevent fraud and abuse. Download PDF
• Aug 19, 2005 Improving TANF for Teens by Jodie Levin-Epstein and Angie Schwartz, Skadden Fellow, Teens & TANF Project Director, National Center for Youth examines the capacity of the nation's welfare program to assist adolescents, delineates the special rules of TANF for teen parents, and offers recommendations related to both populations. Tips on ways that Legal Aid organizations can work with teens who need help -- and are often overlooked - are also provided. This article first appeared in "Our Commitment to Youth" a special issue of Clearinghouse Review: Journal of Poverty Law and Policy, published by the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law in July-August 2005. Download PDF
• Aug 19, 2005  |  Paula Roberts Recent State Efforts in Medical Child Support In August of 2000, the Medical Child Support Working Group issued a report recommending over 70 changes in medical child support that would facilitate the enrollment of more children being raised in single-parent families in public and private health care coverage. While efforts to implement the recommendations at the federal level have been slow, many states have moved ahead and developed innovative approaches to medical support establishment and enforcement. This memo updates state developments over the last two years. Download PDF
• Aug 19, 2005  |  Linda Harris What's a Youngster to Do? The Education and Labor Market Plight of Youth in High-Poverty Communities Statistics show that many young adults in economically distressed communities are being left behind in educational systems and in the job market. This article highlights the magnitude of distress in selected communities and outlines a set of considerations for policy-making and action at the national and community level. Pub No. 05-40. 9 pages. August 2005. Download PDF
• Aug 06, 2005  |  Linda Harris Memo on Reconnecting Our Youth Memo on Reconnecting Our Youth From a Coalition of Voices Contact person: Linda Harris, Senior Policy Analyst, CLASP As increased attention is being focused on the graduation rate crisis in this country, this memo draws attention to the 32% of youth who are being left behind. The memo which was sent to President Bush offers a set of recommendations endorsed by over 250 organizations. This site features the memo, the signatories, links to related issue briefs and research and advocacy tools. An effort continues, coordinated by The Campaign for Youth, to advance these recommendations with the Administration, Congress, Governors and federal agencies. Download PDF
• Jul 26, 2005  |  Katherine Hart and Rachel Schumacher Making the Case: Improving Head Start Teacher Qualifications Requires Increased Investment This policy paper, part of the Head Start Series, describes changes in Head Start teacher qualifications in light of recent policy history and assesses whether states and higher education systems are prepared for a major policy change requiring more teachers to have a B.A. It presents both relevant research and federal data from Head Start Program Information Reports (PIR) from 2002-2003. Download PDF
• Jul 26, 2005  |  Paula Roberts Medical Support Update: The Federal Scene In 1998, Congress enacted the Child Support Performance and Incentive Act (CSPIA). One outgrowth of CSPIA, the Medical Child Support Working Group (MCSWG), made nearly 80 recommendations for change in law, policy, and practice to improve the chances that children served by the child support enforcement program would obtain adequate, accessible, and affordable health care coverage. During the past 18 months, some progress has been made at the federal level to move forward on this agenda. This memo describes some of these recent developments. Download PDF
• Jul 14, 2005  |  Danielle Ewen Cost of Meeting House and Senate Proposed Head Start Teacher Qualification Requirements This analysis provides a preliminary estimate of the necessary level of funding needed to raise the degree qualifications to meet the requirements in the Head Start reauthorization legislation currently proposed in the House and Senate. CLASP's analysis demonstrates that it will cost at least $2.7 billion over six years to cover the cost of educating the necessary number of teachers in the House bill and raising their compensation to the levels of kindergarten teachers. To pay for the cost of the Senate requirements for increased education and raising compensation, CLASP estimates that it will cost as much as $3.4 billion over six years. Download PDF
• Jul 07, 2005  |  Lacinda Hummel and Jodie Levin-Epstein A Needed Transition: Lessons from Illinois about Teen Parent TANF Rules TANF legislation includes two rules specific to minor parents (parents under age 18). One rule requires that minor parents live in an approved arrangement, usually with their parents. The other rule requires that minor parents typically participate in education leading to a high school diploma or GED. This issue brief reviews how Illinois approached eligibility under the two minor parent rules, and it explores why and how Illinois moved forward with a transitional compliance administrative rule. It also examines the effect the rule has had--notably that the process led to a better understanding of minor parents' individual circumstances and thus led to fewer inappropriate denials. Download PDF
• Jun 29, 2005  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein How to Exercise Flexible Work: Take Steps with a "Soft Touch" Law In the U.K., a new "soft touch" law gives some employees the right to ask their employers for a change in work arrangements. This brief, the third in the Work-Life Balance Series, describes how U.K. employers partnered with government on work-life balance, highlights findings about flexible work, and identifies issues to explore in any U.S. adaptation. Click here for an annotated version of this brief, which also includes an appendix of U.K. surveys on the soft touch law. Download PDF
• Jun 10, 2005  |  Paula Roberts Paternity Disestablishment in 2004-2005 This memo analyzes the statutory and case law developments in paternity disestablishment from late 2004 and early 2005, as well as recently enacted statutes. The first appendix describes in detail the reported cases in 2004 and early 2005. The cases are divided by topic and listed alphabetically by state. The second appendix contains a chart listing the major state cases in the last eight years in regard to paternity disestablishment for marital children. The third appendix charts similar case law as regards non-marital children. Download PDF
• May 31, 2005  |  Julie Strawn and Amy-Ellen Duke Recommendations Regarding the Reauthorization of the Higher Education Act These recommendations were submitted to Chairman Mike Enzi of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on May 28, 2005. They recommend changes to the Higher Education Act to ensure that higher education policies and funding streams at the federal, state, and local levels support the workforce education role of postsecondary institutions and meet the needs of the nontraditional students typically enrolled in occupational programs, particularly working adults and older youth who are on their own financially. Download PDF
• May 16, 2005  |  Rachel Schumacher, Danielle Ewen, Katherine Hart, and Joan Lombardi Policy Brief: All Together Now: State Experiences In Using Community-Based Child Care To Provide Pre-Kindergarten This brief is based on the 61-page report of the same name, which was commissioned by the Brookings Institution. It studies the emergence of the mixed delivery model, in which pre-kindergarten is delivered in community-based settings and schools. This policy brief, the fifth in the Child Care and Early Education Series, describes principal approaches to state implementation of the mixed delivery model but does not provide examples of state policies. See the full report for details about state policy choices. Download PDF
• May 09, 2005  |  Danielle Ewen and Katherine Beh Neas Preparing for Success: How Head Start Helps Children with Disabilities and Their Families In 2004, 13 percent of the children in Head Start and Early Head Start (more than 134,000 children) were diagnosed with a disability. Without Head Start, some of these children might have gone undiagnosed, leaving their disabilities unaddressed for years. This paper, a joint venture between CLASP and Easter Seals, updates data from a 2003 paper of the same title. It details the requirements that Head Start grantees must meet to serve children with disabilities and provides data on how the programs are meeting them. Download PDF
• May 02, 2005  |  Linda Harris Recommendations for Senate WIA Reauthorization: Title I Provisions Affecting Youth Congress is currently considering Workforce Investment Act (WIA) reauthorization proposals. In March, the House passed its WIA reauthorization bill, H.R. 27. In January, Senator Enzi introduced S. 9, which contains several improvements over current law with regard to service to youth. This document contains CLASP's key recommendations for further improvements to Title I youth provisions in S. 9. Download PDF
• Apr 15, 2005  |  Paula Roberts Update on the Uniform Parentage Act (2002) The Uniform Parentage Act (UPA) provides a comprehensive framework for establishing the parentage of children born to both married and unmarried couples. The UPA was revised in 2002, and six states have enacted it in some form. This memo includes a table that compares major provisions of the model act to state enactments and variations. Download PDF
• Apr 13, 2005  |  Nisha Patel Senate WIA Reauthorization Bill Should Not Adopt the Administration's Consolidation or WIA Plus Proposals The Administration has proposed two Workforce Investment Act (WIA) initiatives that would effectively eliminate requirements that existing employment and training funding streams be targeted for populations and purposes specified by Congress. This brief paper outlines the reasons the Senate should reject both proposals in its WIA reauthorization bill. Download PDF
• Apr 08, 2005  |  Nisha Patel Recommendations for Senate WIA Reauthorization Legislation: Title I Provisions Affecting Disadvantaged Adults Congress is currently considering WIA reauthorization proposals. In March, the House passed its WIA reauthorization bill, H.R. 27. In January, Senator Enzi introduced S. 9. While S. 9 contains a number of positive provisions with regard to disadvantaged adults, this document contains CLASP's key recommendations for further improvements to Title I provisions in S. 9. Download PDF
• Mar 30, 2005  |  Danielle Ewen, Jennifer Mezey, and Hannah Matthews Missed Opportunities: The Possibilities and Challenges of Funding High-quality Preschool through Title I of the No Child Left Behind Act This paper, funded by the Foundation for Child Development, provides general background on the legislation behind Title I and provides an overview of the available data on the use of Title I funds for preschool, as well as illustrative examples of how a few states and local communities have used Title I funds for these programs. It also examines the U.S. Department of Education's statutes, regulations, and guidance on the use of Title I funds for preschool and raises some unanswered questions. Finally, it discusses how the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act may affect the availability of Title I funding for preschool programs. Download PDF
• Mar 16, 2005  |  Mark Greenberg and Jennifer L. Noyes Increasing State and Local Capacity for Cross-Systems Innovation: Assessing Flexibility and Opportunities under Current Law This paper was written as part of a collaborative effort between the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, Hudson Institute, and CLASP. The authors analyze the flexibility, opportunities, and barriers under current federal law with respect to cross-program integration and collaboration. Download PDF
• Mar 16, 2005  |  Mark Greenberg and Jennifer L. Noyes Supporting Cross-Program Integration: Some Recommendations for Federal Policy and Practice This brief is based on the paper Increasing State and Local Capacity for Cross-Systems Innovation. Drawing on the papers' findings and consultation with a range of state and federal policymakers, the brief provides the authors' recommendations for federal action on cross-program state and local service integration efforts. This brief was written as part of a collaborative effort between the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, Hudson Institute, and CLASP. Download PDF
• Mar 15, 2005  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein To Have and To Hold: Congressional Vows on Marriage and Sex This paper discusses what the government has already done to promote abstinence-unless-married programs and marriage, and what it proposes to do with the reauthorization of the welfare law. The article then discusses the relationship between marriage and pregnancy prevention, including research findings on the influence of childbearing on marriage. It concludes with some welfare reauthorization recommendations for Congress on this topic. A condensed version of this paper appears in the April 1, 2005, SIECUS Report, Vol. 33, No. 1. Download PDF
• Feb 24, 2005  |  Rachel Schumacher, Danielle Ewen, Katherine Hart, and Joan Lombardi All Together Now: State Experiences in Using Community-Based Child Care to Provide Pre-Kindergarten This paper, commissioned by the Brookings Institution, studies the emergence of the mixed delivery model, in which pre-kindergarten is delivered in community-based settings and schools. It describes findings of CLASP survey of states that was undertaken to understand the policy choices, opportunities, and challenges of including community-based child care providers in their pre-kindergarten programs. Also, now available are individual detailed descriptions of each of the 29 states' responses to the CLASP survey on the state policies used to integrate pre-kindergarten into community-based child care settings. Download PDF
• Feb 22, 2005  |  Julie Strawn and Amy-Ellen Duke President's Budget Sabotages Pipeline of Skilled Workers CLASP estimates that nearly half a million people--at least 470,000--would be denied literacy, Adult Basic Education, GED, and English as a Second Language services due to the President's proposed budget cuts. This analysis includes a table of state-by-state data estimating the impact of the proposed cuts. Click here to view the Excel version of this table. Download PDF
• Feb 08, 2005  |  Paula Roberts New Regulation on Review and Adjustment of Child Support Orders This memo describes a new Interim Final regulation on review and adjustment of child support orders in states using the guidelines method of adjustment. The Office of Child Support Enforcement is proposing to return to a policy under which these states can adopt quantitative standards for adjusting support orders. Such standards allow states to disregard adjustments of a small magnitude, even when such adjustments could be consequential for both low-income custodial parent families and obligors. Download PDF
• Feb 02, 2005 fy 2003 tanf spending TANF Spending Download PDF
• Jan 04, 2005  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Taking the Next Step: What Can the U.S. Learn about Sick Leave from New Zealand? This policy brief, based on the report High Wire Act and the second in the Work-Life Balance Series, looks at what New Zealand has done to provide paid sick days for its workers. Drawing from the New Zealand experience, the brief then provides recommendations on what United States policymakers can do to ensure that workers have paid sick days. Download PDF
• Dec 30, 2004  |  Paula Roberts Paternity Disestablishment in 2004: The Year in Review This memo analyzes the statutory and case law developments in late 2003 and 2004. It contains two appendices. The first appendix describes in detail the reported cases in 2004. The cases are divided by topic and listed alphabetically by state. The second appendix contains two charts listing the major state cases in the last seven years. One chart deals with disestablishment for marital children and the other for non-marital children. This memo follows up the publications titled Truth and Consequences, Parts I, II, and III and a memo from June 2004. All documents are available at www.clasp.org. Download PDF
• Dec 10, 2004  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Taking the Next Step: What Can the U.S. Learn about Parental Leave from New Zealand? This brief, the first in the Work-Life Balance Series, discusses New Zealand's experience with paid parental leave and includes qualitative data from 17 New Zealand small businesses on their experiences with their new law. It concludes with policy implications and some next steps for the United States in this arena. The brief summarizes the key findings from the report High Wire Act: Balancing Families and Jobs at Precarious Points by Jodie Levin-Epstein. Download PDF
• Nov 01, 2004 CLASP Audio Conference Transcript: Interview with Author Jason DeParle (September 10, 2004). Jason DeParle, an award-winning New York Times reporter, discusses his book, American Dream: Three Women, Ten Kids, and a Nation's Drive to End Welfare. University of Pennsylvania sociologist Kathy Edin and CLASP Policy Director Mark Greenberg join DeParle to discuss the findings of the book. This audio conference is moderated by Jodie Levin-Epstein. Download PDF
• Oct 20, 2004  |  Paula Roberts OIG Studies on Possible Recoupment of SCHIP Costs Through the Child Support Program The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) recently conducted studies in several states on the potential for recouping State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) costs from non-custodial parents through the child support program. This memo summarizes the OIG recommendations and state actions so far for Connecticut, Indiana, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Texas, and Virginia. Download PDF
• Oct 06, 2004  |  Paula Roberts Litigation Success on the Issue of Recoupment of Child Support Overpayments This memo discusses the ramifications of the recent court decision in Gamble v. Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. The court found that the Eleventh Amendment barred monetary relief against the state and its officials. It also barred declaratory and injunctive relief against the state, but the Eleventh Amendment did not bar such relief against state officials. Plaintiffs counsel then successfully moved for a preliminary injunction to stop the state from recouping erroneous overpayments of child support. Download PDF
• Oct 05, 2004  |  Mark Greenberg and Jennifer L. Noyes The Opportunities for Service Integration Under Current Law This article, which appeared in the Summer 2004 issue of Focus, published by the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Institute for Research on Poverty, identifies barriers to social services integration. The National Governors Association, Hudson Institute, and CLASP initiated a project to examine several key areas in which states wanted to promote service integration and then identify legal issues and potential legal barriers to such integration. As part of the project, the authors developed a set of joint recommendations for federal actionlegislative, regulatory, and administrativeto support state and local service integration efforts. The entire journal issue is available at www.ssc.wisc.edu/irp/focus/focus.htm. Download PDF
• Oct 01, 2004  |  Paula Roberts and Michelle Vinson State Policy Regarding Pass-Through and Disregard of Current Months Child Support Collected for Families Receiving TANF-funded Cash Assistance This chart lists all 50 states and the District of Columbias child support pass-through and income disregard policies as of August 31, 2004. Download PDF
• Sep 16, 2004  |  Abbey Frank Comments to the Employment and Training Administration on the EMILE System These comments, submitted to the Employment and Training Administration of the U.S. Department of Labor, discuss the proposed new method of data collection for 12 employment and training programsthe EMILE system. While CLASP believes the EMILE system will both provide richer data about program participation across 12 employment and training programs, CLASP is also concerned that not enough attention has been given to defining the various data elements and that the proposal does not provide any new funding to develop and implement the new reporting system. Download PDF
• Sep 13, 2004  |  Paula Roberts Establishment of Paternity and Enforcement of Support Orders When a Member of the Military Is Involved The Department of Defense employs approximately 1.4 million active duty military personnel, 1.4 million reservists, 2 million retirees, and 800 thousand civilian employees. Many of these employees and retirees are non-custodial parents. This memo to child support advocates details how to deal with the military in establishing and enforcing support orders. Download PDF
• Sep 01, 2004  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein High-Wire Act: Balancing Families and Jobs at Precarious Points This report, prepared by Levin-Epstein during an Ian Axford Fellowship in New Zealand, examines two work-leave policies: parental leave and sick days leave. It considers the implications of these policies, particularly for low-income families and for small businesses, in New Zealand and the United States. Download PDF
• Aug 27, 2004  |  Abbey Frank Where the Funds Are: Potential Use of Child Support Funds for Transitional Jobs Programs Transitional jobs programs combine subsidized employment, skill development, and support services to help participants overcome substantial barriers to employment. This policy brief focuses on the ways in which states can leverage portions of federal child support funds to offset some of the costs of transitional jobs programs that are either targeted towards noncustodial parents or include noncustodial parents as a part of their client base. Download PDF
• Aug 18, 2004  |  Abbey Frank State-by-State WIA Program Participation Data--Program Year 2002 States were required to begin implementation of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) by July 2000 and have been continuously developing their programs since that time. Under the Act and associated regulations, states are required to collect a series of demographic and performance outcome information on each WIA participant who accesses intensive or both intensive and training services. At the completion of the program year (July-June), states are required to submit data on those participants that exited the WIA program during the year. Individual participant data are collected and reported annually to the Department of Labor through the WIASRD system. The complete WIASRD data for PY 2002 have recently become available. These tables provide state-by-state data on program participation for PY 2002. Download PDF
• Aug 04, 2004 CLASP Audio Conference Transcript: Disconnected Youth: Educational Pathways to Reconnection (July 9, 2004) CLASP Senior Policy Analyst Linda Harris moderates a discussion about innovative ideas for reconnecting at-risk youth to education with Rob Ivry, Senior Vice President at MDRC; Laurel Dukehart, Manager of the Gateway to College Replication Project at Portland Community College; and Jack Wuest, Director of the Chicago Alternative Schools Network. Download PDF
• Jun 29, 2004 CLASP Audio Conference Transcript: A New Progressive Agenda: Innovative Ideas for Work and Immigration Policy (June 4, 2004) Deepak Bhargava and Janice Fine of the Center for Community Change explain recent trends in the low-wage labor market, particularly as they relate to immigrants (both legal and undocumented); comment on the prospects for immigration reform on Capitol Hill; and describe new advocacy efforts on the local and national levels to improve conditions for struggling immigrants and other low-wage workers. Download PDF
• Jun 23, 2004  |  Katherine Hart and Rachel Schumacher Moving Forward: Head Start Children, Families, and Programs in 2003 This eight-page policy brief, the fifth in a series, offers the latest data available from Program Information Reports submitted to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services by all federal Head Start grantees. In 2003, Head Start continued to serve a diverse population of low-income children, mostly in working families. Head Start provided early education and a range of services to poor children and their families, including developmental and mental health screenings and special education and early intervention services. In 2003, more Head Start children had access to continuous medical and dental care than in previous years. Early Head Start children showed a particularly dramatic increase in access to dental care, rising from 47 percent in 2002 to 64 percent in 2003. Download PDF
• Jun 17, 2004  |  Paula Roberts Paternity Disestablishment Case Update Since the publication of the CLASP series on paternity disestablishment, Truth and Consequences, (available in the 2003 section of the Child Support publications page) there have been a number of new reported paternity disestablishment cases. The newest cases are summarized in this memorandum, which updates the memo posted on this site in March 2004. Download PDF
• May 25, 2004  |  Nisha Patel Why Funding for Job Training Matters Recent proposals to cap or reduce Workforce Investment Act (WIA) funding come at a time when already limited WIA resources are unable to keep pace with the demands of businesses and local communities for skilled workers and the needs of workers for access to training. This one-page fact sheet argues that Congress should increase, not cap or reduce, resources for job training. ( Download PDF
• May 21, 2004 CLASP Audio Conference Transcript: Financing Child Welfare: What Policies Best Protect Children? (May 7, 2004) Cassie Statuto Bevan, Senior Policy Advisor for House Majority Leader Tom DeLay; Nick Gwyn, Minority Staff Director of the House Human Resources Subcommittee; and Rutledge Hutson of the Childrens Defense Fund discuss the current child welfare crisis confronting states, explain how federal financing affects child welfare services, and describe financing reform proposals being discussed on Capitol Hill. Download PDF
• May 21, 2004  |  Paula Roberts Proposed Food Stamp Regulations that Involve Child Support Obligations Many of the households participating in the Food Stamp Program contain a person who either pays or receives child support. In 2002, Congress made changes in the food stamp laws that affect these households, especially those that contain a person who is paying child support. This memorandum summarizes the proposed regulations that cover these changes and discusses some of the issues they raise. Download PDF
• May 13, 2004  |  Anita Mathur, with Judy Reichle, Julie Strawn, and Chuck Wiseley From Jobs to Careers: How California Community College Credentials Pay Off for Welfare Participants This report, a joint venture of CLASP and the California Community Colleges Chancellors Office, tracks the employment rates and median annual earnings of female welfare participants who exited the California community college system in 1999-2000. The report shows that women receiving welfare in California who complete an Associate degree or certificate work more and earn substantially more in the two years after college than they did before college. In addition, while attending school, the women welfare participants were more likely to be employed than the general California welfare population. Download PDF
• Apr 30, 2004 Comments to the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance The Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance is preparing a report to Congress on simplification of the federal financial aid application process and on other changes that allow students to better balance the demands of work, school, and family. These comments to the Advisory Committee, submitted in conjunction with the National Consumer Law Center and the Workforce Alliance, provide concrete suggestions on how to better align the Higher Education Act with the needs of employers and the realities of working adults lives. Download PDF
• Apr 23, 2004 Safeguarding Federal Financial Aid from Fraud and Abuse During reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, Congress has the opportunity to make higher education more accessible for underserved students, including many working adults and older youth. This two-page fact sheet, jointly prepared by the National Consumer Law Center, CLASP, and the Workforce Alliance, urges Congress to seize this opportunitybut with caution. Innovations and reforms must be balanced against the danger of repeating past abuses. Students and taxpayers must be protected from unscrupulous schools that are in business not to educate but to chase federal dollars. (Publication No. 04-24). Download PDF
• Mar 25, 2004  |  Paula Roberts SSI and Child Support In contrast to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program contains a mandatory child support disregard. However, at present, only 25 percent of those SSI children living with just one parent actually receive child support. Thus, a substantial number of SSI children might benefit from more aggressive pursuit of support on their behalf. This memorandum summarizes the options laid out in a recent Social Security Administration brief about how to increase child support, and overall income, for children receiving SSI. Download PDF
• Mar 15, 2004  |  Paula Roberts OIG Studies on Potential Medicaid Savings Through Cost Contributions from Noncustodial Parents This memorandum for state child support advocates summarizes recent reports from the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on seven states potential for recouping some of their Medicaid costs for children in single-parent families through improved medical support enforcement. In particular, the OIG is interested in the capacity of noncustodial parents who did not provide private health care coverage to their children to contribute toward the cost of their childrens Medicaid coverage. The states for which OIG has released reports are Connecticut, Indiana, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Texas, and Virginia. Download PDF
• Mar 11, 2004  |  Paula Roberts No Minor Matter: Developing a Coherent Policy on Paternity Establishment for Children Born to Underage Parents For the roughly 150,000 babies born each year to unwed minors, paternity establishment is a complicated issue. Paternity establishment provides children with crucial financial and emotional support and access to larger extended families. At the same time, it can cause problems for minor parents: immature youngsters might enter an ill-advised marriage; a young man might sign an acknowledgment for a child who is not his genetic offspring; or a young woman who is a victim of incest or statutory rape might be better off if paternity is not established. The potential rights, limitations, and obligations of the minor parents, their babies, and the grandparents all need to be considered in developing thoughtful approaches to this issue. This policy brief (which is based on a longer report) offers recommendations to states for developing consistent laws and policies to address paternity establishment among minor parents. Download PDF
• Feb 12, 2004  |  Mark H. Greenberg, Emil Parker, and Abbey Frank Integrating TANF and WIA Into a Single Workforce System: An Analysis of Legal Issues A number of states and localities want to promote improved coordination or integration of workforce development efforts under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant and the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). This analysis identifies and analyzes legal issues presented by integrating TANF and WIA. This paper was written as part of a collaborative effort between the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, CLASP, and the Hudson Institute. Download PDF
• Feb 10, 2004  |  Rutledge Q. Hutson Providing Comprehensive, Integrated Social Services to Vulnerable Children and Families: Are There Legal Barriers at the Federal Level to Moving Forward? Over the past several years, social service providers have increasingly recognized that families seeking assistance often face multiple, complex needs and that they require the services of more than one program. Working in consultation with state and local officials, this paper offers a model of cross-system integration focusing on comprehensive services for children and families. This paper was written as part of a collaborative effort between the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, CLASP, and the Hudson Institute. Download PDF
• Jan 28, 2004  |  Kate Irish, Rachel Schumacher, and Joan Lombardi Head Start Comprehensive Services: A Key Support for Early Learning for Poor Children This policy brief, the fourth in the Head Start Series, describes the comprehensive services Head Start children receive. It presents data from Head Start Program Information Reports (PIR) from the most recent program year, 20012002, and compares them, when possible, to national data on the services low-income children and families receive. Download PDF
• Jan 12, 2004  |  Nisha Patel, LeaAnne DeRigne, Mark Greenberg, and Andy Van Kleunen Side-by-Side Comparison of Title I Provisions in House and Senate WIA Reauthorization Bills The Workforce Investment Act (WIA) expires this year and must be reauthorized. This table, done in conjunction with the Workforce Alliance, provides a side-by-side comparison of the current WIA legislation and the bills passed by the House and Senate. Download PDF
• Dec 31, 2003  |  Amy Hirsch Some Days Are Harder Than Hard: Welfare Reform and Women With Drug Convictions in Pennsylvania This report consists of interviews of 26 women with drug convictions and of staff in the criminal justice system in the state of Pennsylvania. These women are banned from ever receiving cash assistance or food stamps, no matter what they do, because they have felony drug convictions. Federal law allows states to opt-out of the ban, but requires them to pass legislation in order to do so. At least 27 states have taken the option to support women in recovery. (Originally published in 1999.) Download PDF
• Dec 19, 2003  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Lifting the Lid Off the Family Cap: States Revisit Problematic Policy for Welfare Mothers Since 1992, 24 states have implemented some type of a family cap policy, usually to discourage welfare recipients from giving birth to children while receiving cash assistance. Recently, however, a handful of states have begun to rethink the family cap. This policy brief, the first in a series on Childbearing and Reproductive Health Policy, explains what family cap policies are, reviews some of the research on their effectiveness, explains how many families are affected by them, describes challenges that have been mounted against these policies, and recommends that states with family caps consider repealing these mistaken and potentially harmful policies. Download PDF
• Dec 18, 2003  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Teen Parents and Abstinence Education: Research Findings, 2003 This compilation of summaries of new research is designed as a reference tool for practitioners, policymakers, and others interested in teen parents (and particularly their relationship to welfare programs) and abstinence education. Download PDF
• Dec 18, 2003  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein and John Hutchins Teens and TANF: How Adolescents Fare Under the Nations Welfare Program This policy brief, published by the Kaiser Family Foundation, offers an update on what is known about the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs effects on different populations of teens: teen parents receiving TANF benefits, youth living in TANF families, and youth participating in TANF-funded programs. The brief provides background on the welfare program, summarizes the latest research, and discusses the implications of a number of TANF policies for teens and their families. Download PDF
• Dec 09, 2003  |  Jennifer Mezey, Katherine Beh Neas, and Kate Irish Policy Brief: Coming Together for Children with Disabilities: State Collaboration to Support Quality, Inclusive Child Care Families with children with disabilities have difficulty finding high-quality, appropriate child care for their childrenand this is particularly true for low-income families. This policy brief from CLASP and Easter Seals discusses the challenges these low-income families face; presents the findings of a survey of administrators of state child care and Individuals with Disabilities Education Act programs; explains the importance of collaboration among these programs; and suggests policy recommendations for federal and state governments. Download PDF
• Nov 26, 2003  |  Paula Roberts Recent Cases on a Variety of TANF/Child Support Issues In the last three years there have been a number of reported cases dealing with the child support program and its relationship to the federal welfare program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). This memo summarizes cases that deal with issues commonly faced by child support clients and their attorneys. Download PDF
• Nov 24, 2003  |  Paula Roberts New Regulations on Obtaining Health Care Coverage from Non-custodial Parents Who Are Federal Employees If a non-custodial parent has health care coverage available through employment, the state must order the non-custodial parent to enroll the children in that coverage (unless the children are already covered by some policy other than Medicaid). Until October 30, 2000, however, this scheme did not apply to federal employees. While decision-makers could order non-custodial parents who were federal employees to provide health care coverage for their children, unless such employees voluntarily complied, there was no way to enforce the orders. A law was passed to ensure enforcement of health care orders to federal employees; however, a number of questions about its proper implementation that have kept it from being as effective as it could be. This memo outlines some areas of concern on which public comment might be helpful. Download PDF
• Nov 06, 2003  |  Alan W. Houseman and Linda E. Perle Securing Equal Justice for All: A Brief History of Civil Legal Assistance in the United States This document chronicles civil legal assistance for the low-income community in the United States from its privately funded beginnings, through its achievement of federal funding, to its expansion and growth into a national program operating throughout the United States. It also describes some of the political battles that have been fought around the legal services program and the restrictions that have come with government funding. It concludes with some brief thoughts about the future. Download PDF   |   Additional PDF
• Oct 23, 2003  |  Abbey Frank and Hedieh Rahmanou State-by-State WIA Program Participation Data, PY 2000 States were required to begin implementation of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) by July 2000 and have been continuously developing their programs since that time. Under the Act and associated regulations, states are required to collect a series of demographic and performance outcome information on each WIA participant who accesses intensive or both intensive and training services. At the completion of the program year (July-June), states are required to submit data on those participants that exited the WIA program during the year. Individual participant data are collected and reported annually to the Department of Labor through the WIASRD system. The complete WIASRD data for PY 2000 have recently become available. These tables provide state-by-state data on program participation for various groups of individuals for PY 2000. Download PDF
• Oct 23, 2003  |  Abbey Frank and Hedieh Rahmanou State-by-State WIA Program Participation Data, PY 2001 States were required to begin implementation of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) by July 2000 and have been continuously developing their programs since that time. Under the Act and associated regulations, states are required to collect a series of demographic and performance outcome information on each WIA participant who accesses intensive or both intensive and training services. At the completion of the program year (July-June), states are required to submit data on those participants that exited the WIA program during the year. Individual participant data are collected and reported annually to the Department of Labor through the WIASRD system. The complete WIASRD data for PY 2001 have recently become available. These tables provide state-by-state data on program participation for various groups of individuals for PY 2001. Download PDF
• Oct 01, 2003  |  Nisha Patel, Lisa Ranghelli, and Mark Greenberg Policy Brief: A Means to an End: Integration of Welfare and Workforce Development Systems This is the 8-page policy brief based on the report of the same name. Download PDF
• Oct 01, 2003  |  Lisa Ranghelli, Nisha Patel, and Mark Greenberg Report: A Means to an End: Integration of Welfare and Workforce Development Systems During the last decade, before and after implementation of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant, state welfare agencies became increasingly focused on linking low-income families with employment. At the same time, in implementing the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA), states created one-stop centers and focused on addressing the fragmentation and duplication that has often plagued state employment and training programs. The transformation of state welfare and workforce systems has prompted states to assess the relationship between the two systems. This report describes how four statesFlorida, Ohio, Utah, and Wisconsinhave approached integration of TANF and WIA services; how integration has affected TANF-eligible families, other workers and job seekers, employers, and state and local governments; possible lessons learned from early experiences; and policy implications. A concluding section offers recommendations for state and federal policymakers. Download PDF
• Sep 26, 2003  |  Alan Houseman Civil Legal Aid in the United States: An Overview of the Program in 2003 This paper provides an overview of the current U.S. civil legal aid system; a brief history of legal aid in the United States; the future of the legal aid system, including the evolution of state justice communities, the increased use of the Internet and hotlines in service delivery, and pro se developments; future funding sources; efforts to improve service quality; and other developments affecting civil legal aid. Download PDF
• Sep 11, 2003  |  Elise Richer, Hitomi Kubo, and Abbey Frank Policy Brief: All in One Stop? The Accessibility of Work Support Programs at One-Stop Centers This is the 8-page policy brief based on the report of the same name. Download PDF
• Sep 11, 2003  |  Elise Richer, Hitomi Kubo, and Abbey Frank Report: All in One Stop? The Accessibility of Work Support Programs at One-Stop Centers Under the Workforce Investment Act, all local workforce areas in the U.S. are required to develop a one-stop delivery system that makes an array of federally funded employment programs available at one location. This report is the result of interviews with 33 one-stop directors to examine the level of access to seven work support programs (Earned Income Tax Credit, subsidized child care, food stamps, publicly funded health insurance, cash assistance, child support, and transportation assistance). The report discusses the findings of the survey, innovative techniques for making work supports more accessible, and the barriers to better access. Download PDF
• Aug 29, 2003  |  Heide Spruck Wrigley, Elise Richer, Karin Martinson, Hitomi Kubo, and Julie Strawn Report: The Language of Opportunity: Expanding Employment Prospects for Adults with Limited English Skills This report describes the demographics and economic circumstances of low-income adults with limited English proficiency (LEP) as well as the language and job training services available to them. The authors summarize lessons from scientific evaluation research on employment programs for low-skilled adults and provide recommendations for policy and practice that would increase opportunities for LEP adults to gain access to higher-paying jobs. The appendix includes profiles of several programs that are successfully training and working with LEP adults. Download PDF
• Aug 28, 2003  |  Heide Spruck Wrigley, Elise Richer, Karin Martinson, Hitomi Kubo, and Julie Strawn Policy Brief: The Language of Opportunity: Expanding Employment Prospects for Adults with Limited English Skills This is the 8-page policy brief based on the report of the same name. Download PDF
• Aug 28, 2003  |  Linda Harris WIA Reauthorization Recommendations on Title I Youth Provisions The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 redirected the focus of youth programming from short-term programs to longer comprehensive interventions. Congress is scheduled to reauthorize the WIA legislation by September 30, 2003. The reauthorization of WIA provides the opportunity to define and refine the parameters of this country's youth development system and set the stage for increasing appropriations to a level commensurate with the need. It also provides the opportunity to strengthen the ability of states and local areas to implement comprehensive programs and systems as mandated by the legislation with a priority focus on youth who are disconnected, or most at risk of disconnecting, from the system and supports they need to be productive, self-sufficient, and responsible adults. This paper provides a short summary of reauthorization recommendations related to the youth provisions and includes a separate document that discusses the rationale for each recommendation. Download PDF
• Aug 18, 2003  |  Rachel Schumacher, Kate Irish, and Joan Lombardi Meeting Great Expectations: Integrating Early Education Program Standards in Child Care In order to achieve improved child outcomes, policymakers must invest in improved program standards in child care. This report, part of the Foundation for Child Development's Working Paper Series, examines three strategies in seven states that have integrated program standards into child care by directly tying standards to funding: the delivery of state pre-kindergarten (Georgia, New Jersey, and New York) and Head Start (Ohio, Oklahoma, and Oregon) in child care settings and the use of contracts including required standards with child care providers (California). These states are requiring participating child care providers to meet early education program standards that routinely exceed those required by state child care licensing rules. They are also providing additional monitoring, technical assistance, and fiscal resources to help participating programs meet these standards. Download PDF
• Aug 18, 2003  |  Rachel Schumacher, Kate Irish, Joan Lombardi Policy Brief: Meeting Great Expectations: Integrating Early Education Program Standards in Child Care This is the 8-page policy brief based on the report of the same name. Download PDF
• Aug 18, 2003  |  Christine Grisham and Jodie Levin-Epstein Teen Parents and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families: A Summary of Recent Congressional Action The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program contains two provisions related to minor parents and their families: 1) minor parent recipients are required to participate in education or training and 2) minor parents are required to reside in an approved living situation, typically with a parent or other adult relative. This paper summarizes Congressional action in 2001-2003 related to teen parents and TANF. It also includes actions on second chance (maternity group) home provisions even if they do not amend the TANF statute. Download PDF
• Aug 15, 2003  |  Paula Roberts Recent Federal Guidance on Important Child Support Program Issues In the last few months, the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement has issued a number of important Action Transmittals (ATs) and Policy Information Questions (PIQs), covering a range of child support issues. This document summarizes these ATs and PIQs, which clarify adjustment of child support orders, paternity disestablishment, recoupment of child support overpayments, payments in foreign currency, and private health care coverage for dependents. Download PDF
• Aug 07, 2003 Improving Access to TANF for Teen Parents: Recommendations for Reauthorization This document describes the unintended consequences of the minor parent rules in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program and offers specific recommendations to strengthen the TANF program for teen parents and their children. Nearly 120 national, state, and local organizations have endorsed these recommendations. Download PDF
• Aug 04, 2003  |  Rutledge Q. Hutson Input on Improving Court Oversight of Child Welfare Cases The new Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care is developing recommendations to improve court oversight of child welfare cases and to facilitate better, more timely decisions related to childrens safety, permanence, and well-being. This memo offers three suggestions to the Commission: (1) designate specially trained judges to hear child welfare cases; (2) ensure that everyone involved in the child welfare cases has an opportunity to be heard; and (3) provide comprehensive training to judges, lawyers, guardians ad litem, Court Appointed Special Advocates, and related court personnelnot only about the legal issues involved in child welfare cases, but also about child development, family dynamics, substance abuse, mental health, and domestic violence. Download PDF
• Aug 04, 2003  |  Rutledge Q. Hutson Input on Improving Federal Child Welfare Financing Mechanisms The new Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care is developing recommendations to improve federal financing mechanisms in ways that facilitate faster movement of children from foster care into safe, permanent families and reduce the need to place children in foster care. This memo encourages the Commission to begin by considering a set of questions about the fundamental purposes and goals of the child welfare system. We hope such a big picture analysis will suggest the value of expanding Title IV-E eligibility to cover all children and all child welfare services. The memo also makes recommendations about immediate steps Congress can take, while the Commission deliberates about a broader vision. These interim steps will begin to strengthen the child welfare systems ability to meet the needs of maltreated children. Download PDF
• Jul 24, 2003  |  Julie Strawn Why HEA? Skills and Opportunity This PowerPoint presentation was given at the National Conference of State Legislatures Annual Meeting in San Francisco on July 23, 2003. The presentation covers the changing context for higher education and concludes with how the Higher Education Act can help states respond. Click here to view the document as a PowerPoint file. Download PDF
• Jul 17, 2003  |  Elise Richer Expanding Employment Prospects for Adults with Limited English Skills This presentation, given at National Association for Welfare Research and Statistics 43rd Annual Conference on July 15, 2003, discusses how limited English speakers differ from immigrants in general, why TANF providers or workforce development agencies should be concerned about them, and how this population can best be served. Download PDF
• Jul 16, 2003  |  Elise Richer, Abbey Frank, Mark Greenberg, Steve Savner, and Vicki Turetsky Boom Times a Bust: Declining Employment Among Young Less-Educated Men During the 1990s, employment rates for less-educated young women rose significantly. Less-educated young men, however, did not experience a similar jump in employment rates. In fact, their employment rates remained stagnant during the decade, failing to return to higher rates of prior years. This report explores why these young men are not in the formal labor market and offers potential policies to raise their employment rates. Download PDF
• Jul 03, 2003  |  Nisha Patel and Julie Strawn WIA Reauthorization Recommendations The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) substantially altered the federally funded system for job training and other employment-related services. Federal policy for these services is set out in Title I of WIA, which requires that each of nearly 600 local workforce areas develop and administer a one-stop delivery system with a broad array of employment and training services available to job seekers and employers. In addition, Congress folded into WIA the existing Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA), as Title II of the law. AEFLA, or WIA Title II, is a federal program to assist undereducated or limited English proficient adults or out-of-school youth in improving their skills. Congress is scheduled to reauthorize both titles by September 30, 2003. This paper provides a short summary of reauthorization recommendations for both Title I and II and includes a separate document that discusses the rationale for each recommendation. Download PDF
• Jul 01, 2003  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein and Mark H. Greenberg, Editors Leave No Youth Behind: Opportunities for Congress to Reach Disconnected Youth Too many young people are not on the path toward successful adulthood, and the U.S. has no coherent policy to help these disconnected youth become productive members of society. Estimates of the number of youth who are disconnected or at risk of becoming disconnected range from nearly 3 million to more than 7 million. This report offers recommendations to help disconnected youth in six programs being considered by the 108th Congress for reauthorization: the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act, the Higher Education Act, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, and the Workforce Investment Act. It encourages federal policymakers to look across legislative initiatives to develop an integrated set of policies to address the needs of this population. The report concludes that the nation should commit itself to increase the proportion of young people who at age 25 (1) have a high school diploma and postsecondary degree or credential, (2) are employed in jobs with career advancement possibilities, and (3) are not engaged in adverse risk-taking behaviors. Download PDF
• Jun 30, 2003  |  Hitomi Kubo Comments on the Revised DOL Recipient LEP Guidance These comments, submitted to the Civil Rights Center of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), concern the Revised DOL Recipient Limited English Proficiency Guidance, issued on May 29, 2003. The Guidance offers a needed opportunity to address the gaps in services that currently exist for people who are not fluent in English. These comments express CLASPs general support for the Guidance and offer a few recommendations to consider when finalizing it. Download PDF
• Jun 25, 2003  |  Kate Irish, Rachel Schumacher, and Joan Lombardi Serving Americas Youngest: A Snapshot of Early Head Start Children, Families, Teachers, and Programs in 2002 This policy brief, the third of a series of analyses of Head Start Program Information Report (PIR) data, offers the first detailed examination of Early Head Start PIR data from the most recently available program year, 2001-2002. While Head Start primarily serves low-income preschool children ages 3-5, the Early Head Start program, created in 1995, serves low-income infants and toddlers (birth to age three) and pregnant women. This brief describes the unique features of the Early Head Start program and places them in the context of the overall Head Start program. Download PDF
• Jun 17, 2003  |  Nan Poppe, Julie Strawn, and Karin Martinson Whose Job Is It? Creating Opportunities for Advancement This paper, which is the second chapter in the book Workforce Intermediaries in the 21st Century by Robert P. Giloth (Ed.), examines research on the experiences of low-wage workers in the labor market and on the types of employment and training strategies that have been effective for advancement. The paper concludes with a brief review of the challenges that policy makers and workforce intermediaries face in implementing job advancement strategies and suggests some federal policy changes that could promote success. The book from which this chapter is drawn will be published by Temple University Press in late 2003. Download PDF
• Jun 16, 2003  |  Paula Roberts New Child Support Regulations In February 1999, the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) issued Interim Final Regulations implementing changes contained in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, and the Child Support Performance and Incentive Act of 1998. On May 12, 2003, OCSE responded to public comment on these changes and issued Final Regulations. This document discusses these regulatory changes. Download PDF
• Jun 11, 2003  |  Julie Strawn and Victoria Whistler Preliminary Recommendations on Higher Education Act Reauthorization These comments were submitted to the Office of Postsecondary Education, U.S. Department of Education, regarding the recommendations for reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA). The recommendations are organized around four goals: 1) to help low-income students balance work, family, and school; 2) to help low-income students by meeting a higher share of their financial need; 3) to increase access and persistence in postsecondary by low-income youth and adults; and 4) to recognize the critical workforce development role played by postsecondary institutions by promoting innovation in program content and delivery. Download PDF
• Jun 02, 2003  |  Paula Roberts Failure to Thrive: The Continuing Poor Health of Medical Child Support The state child support enforcement program can better assist the uninsured children under its purview in obtaining coverage. First, it could require a parent with access to coverage to enroll the child and allocate any associated costs for premiums, co-payments, and deductibles between the parents. Second, when neither parent has access to private coverage, the state child support agency can provide information to the custodial parent about public coverage and help the custodial parent enroll the child in such coverage. This paper discusses the obstacles to obtaining dependant coverage in these two ways and provides examples of states that have overcome these obstacles. Download PDF
• May 28, 2003  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Welfare, Women, and Health: The Role of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Women comprise 90 percent of the adult caseload receiving welfare assistance through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. TANFs influence on womens health and well-being is broad and is driven by multiple aspects of the program, including access to health insurance, work requirements and training options, links to health care services, and reproductive health provisions. This issue brief, published by the Kaiser Family Foundation, reflects on lessons learned from recent research on the connection between welfare policies and low-income womens health. For more information on the Kaiser Family Foundations work on Womens Health Policy, please visit: www.kff.org/women. Download PDF
• May 21, 2003  |  Rachel Schumacher Family Support and Parent Involvement in Head Start: What Do Head Start Program Performance Standards Require? Head Start programs provide early childhood education, comprehensive services, and family support to more than 900,000 low-income children and their families. This brief paper describes specific requirements in Head Start Program Performance Standards to involve parents in programs and to provide or link families to support services, and it provides data on family support and involvement in Head Start programs in 2002. Download PDF
• May 20, 2003  |  Paula Roberts Rethinking the Medicaid Child Support Cooperation Requirement In order for low-income, custodial single parents to obtain Medicaid coverage for themselves, they must usually assign to the state any rights they have to private health care coverage and cooperate with the states child support enforcement agency in pursuing that coverage. If they fail to do so, their children can receive Medicaid benefits, but they cannot. This paper describes the Medicaid program and the child support assignment and cooperation requirements as well as the differences between the Medicaid and SCHIP programs in this context. It concludes with the recommendation that the Medicaid child support cooperation requirement be abolished. Download PDF
• May 16, 2003 Reauthorization Issues: The Education/Training Requirement for TANF Teen Parents This six-page fact sheet describes the education/training requirement for unmarried, custodial minor parents in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, summarizes relevant research, and offers recommendations for reauthorization. To view the other fact sheets in this Reauthorization Issues series, visit: http://www.clasp.org/Pubs/Pubs_Health and click on 2001 at the top of the page. Download PDF
• May 16, 2003  |  Rachel Schumacher and Kate Irish Whats New in 2002? A Snapshot of Head Start Children, Families, Teachers, and Programs This year, Congress is scheduled to reauthorize Head Start, a federal-to-local grant program for the provision of early childhood education, comprehensive services, and family support to poor preschool children and their families. This policy brief, the second in a series of analyses of Head Start Program Information Report (PIR) data by CLASP, describes the picture for Head Start children, families, teachers, and programs in the 2001-2002 program year, highlighting new data never gathered before for the PIR. The 2002 PIR data confirm that Head Start serves a diverse population of low-income children and families. Most of these families are working poor, with minimum education levels. These children and families receive a variety of family support and comprehensive services through Head Start and through coordination with available services in their communities. The 2002 PIR data provide helpful contextual information as the reauthorization of Head Start moves forward. Download PDF
• May 15, 2003  |  Rachel Schumacher Promoting the Health of Poor Preschool Children: What Do Federal Head Start Performance Standards Require? Head Start programs provide early childhood education, comprehensive services, and family support to more than 900,000 low-income children and their families. This brief paper describes the specific Head Start requirements for the provision of health screenings, follow-up, and linkages to services to participating children and their families and provides data on health services provided to Head Start children and families in 2002. Download PDF
• May 05, 2003  |  Mark Greenberg and Rachel Schumacher Financing Universal Pre-Kindergarten: Possibilities and Technical Issues for States in Using Funds Under the Child Care and Development Fund and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Block Grant In recent years, states and localities have become increasingly interested in providing universal access to pre-Kindergarten (pre-K). Two principal federal funding streams available to states that are traditionally used for child care under certain conditions may also be used for such an initiative: the Child Care and Development Fund and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families block grant. This report summarizes what is clear and what is unclear about the extent to which each of the funding streams could be used in support of universal pre-K initiatives. Download PDF
• Apr 29, 2003  |  Rutledge Q. Hutson Side-by-Side Comparison of Child Welfare Provisions in Recent TANF Reauthorization Proposals This chart summarizes child welfare provisions in current Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) law and recent TANF reauthorization legislation and proposals. Download File
• Apr 22, 2003  |  Karen Martinson and Julie Strawn Policy Brief: Built to Last: Why Skills Matter for Long-Run Success in Welfare Reform This is the 8-page policy brief based on the report of the same name. Download PDF
• Apr 22, 2003  |  Karin Martinson and Julie Strawn Report: Built to Last: Why Skills Matter for Long-Run Success in Welfare Reform This report and companion policy brief argue that basic skills and educational credentials are critical for labor market success. The report and brief make the case that the current federal welfare law is too restrictive in its allowance of education and training activities and recommends that this be rectified when the welfare law is reauthorized this year. Download PDF
• Apr 08, 2003  |  Nisha Patel, Mark Greenberg, and Steve Savner Side-by-Side Comparison of Work Provisions in Recent TANF Reauthorization Proposals This chart summarizes work provisions in current Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) law and recent TANF reauthorization legislation and proposals. Download PDF
• Apr 08, 2003  |  Paula Roberts Truth and Consequences: Part III. Who Pays When Paternity is Disestablished? This monograph, the third in a three-part series on paternity disestablishment, addresses the fiscal consequences to the child, the parents, and the state if paternity is disestablished. Courts and state legislatures are dealing with the effect of disestablishment on past, present, and future child support obligations. Some are also addressing the circumstances under which a father who has disestablished his paternity may seek to recoup support he has provided to the child. A few states are also providing criminal penalties for those who intentionally establish the paternity of the wrong man. (Case law updated in August 2003.) Download PDF
• Apr 04, 2003  |  Rachel Schumacher, Kate Irish, Mark H. Greenberg Policy Brief: Untapped Potential? How States Contract Directly with Providers to Shore Up Child Care Choices This is the 8-page policy brief based on the report of the same name. Download PDF
• Apr 04, 2003  |  Rachel Schumacher, Kate Irish, and Mark H. Greenberg Report: Untapped Potential? How States Contract Directly with Providers to Shore Up Child Care Choices for Low-Income Families States currently have the flexibility to contract directly with providers to make child care available to low-income families. According to this first national study of state child care contracting policies, states are using contracts to increase the supply of child care in certain high-need areas, to provide child care to special populations, and to improve the quality of child care program standards and services. Although nearly half the states use contracts to shore up child care supply for low-income families, the full potential of contracting has not yet been tapped. Download PDF
• Mar 31, 2003  |  Abbey Frank, Hedieh Rahmanou, and Steve Savner The Workforce Investment Act: A First Look at Participation, Demographics, and Services The first in a series of WIA program updates, this publication provides an initial review of WIA participation data from the first year of the program, July 2000-June 2001, which begins to describe the impact that WIA implementation has had on the countrys workforce development system. The data are organized into four groups: total WIA population, adults, dislocated workers, and youth. The program update concludes with state-by-state tables that further synthesize the data. Download PDF
• Mar 21, 2003  |  Paula Roberts Truth and Consequences: Part II. Questioning the Paternity of Marital Children This monograph, the second of a three-part series, explores the approaches that courts and legislatures are now taking on the issue of paternity disestablishment when marital children are involved. It explores the pros and cons of different approaches and suggests a path that balances some of the legitimate concerns of all parties in this difficult area. (Case law updated in August 2003.) Download PDF
• Mar 10, 2003  |  Rachel Schumacher and Tanya Rakpraja A Snapshot of Head Start Children, Families, Teachers, and Programs: 1997 and 2001 With the federal Head Start program scheduled for reauthorization by Congress in 2003, there is a need to understand what the program and the children and families it serves look like today and how they have changed since the last reauthorization in 1998. This policy brief, the first in a series of analyses of Head Start Program Information Report (PIR) data by CLASP, compares key PIR data from the most recently available program year, 2000-2001, with data from the 1996-1997 program year. Download PDF
• Mar 04, 2003  |  Paula Roberts Truth and Consequences: Part I. Disestablishing the Paternity of Non-Marital Children Since there is little federal guidance on challenging paternity acknowledgements, the issue has been left largely in the hands of state legislatures and courts. In some states, there are detailed procedures for challenging paternity acknowledgments; in other states, there is little or no statutory guidance in this area. Some states have statutory and case law to guide the process of paternity disestablishment when paternity has been adjudicated or presumed, while others offer little guidance. This document reviews the recent statutory and case law in this area and offers recommendations for bringing greater fairness and clarity to the process. (Case law updated in August 2003.) Download PDF
• Jan 29, 2003  |  Rutledge Hutson Policy Brief: A Vision for Eliminating Poverty and Family Violence: Transforming Child Welfare and TANF in El Paso County, Colorado This is the 8-page policy brief based on the report of the same name. Download PDF   |   Additional PDF
• Jan 15, 2003  |  Rutledge Q. Hutson A Vision for Eliminating Poverty and Family Violence: Transforming Child Welfare and TANF in El Paso County, Colorado When El Paso County, Colorado, considered how to bring the work of the child welfare and TANF agencies together, it decided to change its whole way of doing business. This paper examines how El Paso created seamless, family-centered services and offers a set of lessons that can be drawn from El Paso's experience. Download PDF   |   Additional PDF
• Dec 01, 2002  |  Rachel Schumacher, Jennifer Mezey, and Mark Greenberg Analysis of Potential Barriers to Creating Coordinated Absence Policies for Collaborations Between Head Start and CCDF and TANF-Funded Programs This report, commissioned by the Southern Institute on Children and Families, analyzes the statutory and regulatory provisions relevant to child absence policies in Head Start and in child care funded under the Child Care and Development Fund and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families block grants. It discusses some practical considerations for states interested in adopting coordinated absence policies. An appendix provides additional detail about current law and provides examples of current absence policy practices in the Southern states. Download PDF
• Nov 12, 2002  |  Leaders for Justice Advisory Council Leaders for Justice Draft Report: A National Leadership Development Initiative for the Legal Aid Community and the Equal Justice Movement This report from the Leaders for Justice Advisory Council sets forth a vision and plan for developing a collaborative national leadership initiative for the equal justice community. Download PDF
• Oct 25, 2002  |  Paula Roberts If You Don't Know There's a Problem, How Can You Find a Solution? The Need for Notice and Hearing Rights in Child Support Distribution Cases Under federal law, states receive substantial federal funding to provide child support services to single-parent families who request such services. In order to know whether the support has been properly allocated, the custodial parent needs a basic notice describing what was collected, from whom, when, by what means, and how the state distributed the money. If the parent feels that a mistake has been made, the parent needs access to a hearing procedure to dispute the allocation. These fundamental due process rights are granted by the federal constitution as well as federal law and regulation. However, many states follow neither the letter nor the spirit of the law, leaving custodial parents with little or no information about how their child support payments are being handled. States that do not now offer these rights to custodial and non-custodial parents should be encouraged to do so through legislation, administrative advocacy, or court order. The information provided in this paper should enable advocates to follow one of these strategies to obtain these rights for their clients. Download PDF
• Sep 12, 2002  |  Paula Roberts New Office of Child Support Enforcement Policy on Recoupment of Child Support Overpayments In the process of distributing child support payments, mistakes can be made. Sometimes the result is that a custodial parent receives an "overpayment.\" This document discusses the Office of Child Support Enforcement's new guidance on the steps states must take in attempting to retrieve child support overpayments. Download PDF
• Jul 23, 2002  |  Camille D. Holmes, Linda E. Perle, and Alan W. Houseman Race-Based Advocacy: The Role and Responsibility of LSC-Funded Programs This article, from the May-June 2002 issue of Clearinghouse Review: Journal of Poverty Law and Policy focusing on racial justice, discusses the mistaken belief that legal aid programs funded through the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) cannot effectively participate in race-based advocacy. The article examines what LSC-funded programs may do under their regulatory framework and highlights examples of race-based advocacy strategies that help communities of color within the confines of the LSC restrictions. Download PDF
• Jul 23, 2002  |  Alan W. Houseman Racial Justice: The Role of Civil Legal Assistance Featured in the May-June 2002 issue of Clearinghouse Review: Journal of Poverty Law and Policy focusing on racial justice, this article argues that the civil legal aid and state justice communities need to give greater priority and commitment to race-based advocacy. As an introduction to the issue, the article provides some specific examples--from the federal anti-discrimination laws to use to office hiring practices--of how these communities can better pursue racial justice. Download PDF
• Jun 28, 2002  |  Steve Savner, Abbey Frank, Mark Greenberg, Nisha Patel, and Julie Strawn Comments on WIA Reauthorization and Linkages with TANF These comments were submitted to the Department of Labor on June 28, 2002, regarding the reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) and linkages with the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant. The comments suggest changes in WIA to improve access to quality training programs, improve quality of information about program implementation and performance, and improve coordination between WIA and TANF. Download PDF
• Jun 23, 2002  |  Alan Houseman Aggressive Advocacy in Today's Program Environment Remarks by Alan Houseman, Executive Director of CLASP, from the June 23, 2002, NLADA Litigation and Advocacy Directors Conference in Snowbird, Utah. Download PDF
• Jun 11, 2002  |  Nisha Patel and Mark Greenberg Microenterprise Development and Self-Employment for TANF Recipients: State Experiences and Issues in TANF Reauthorization This report discusses how state policies have affected access to and participation in microenterprise training and self-employment for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients involved in the \"Microenterprise Development Initiatives for Welfare-to-Work\" demonstration project, funded by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. In addition, it recommends ways in which TANF law could be changed during reauthorization to encourage, or at least not discourage, states from providing support to microenterprise initiatives. The report is published by the Aspen Institute Microenterprise Fund for Innovation, Effectiveness, Learning and Dissemination. Download PDF
• Jun 03, 2002  |  Nisha Patel, Mark Greenberg, Steve Savner, and Vicki Turetsky Making Ends Meet: Six Programs That Help Working Families and Employers. A Guide for Business Leaders and Policymakers This new report, originally developed for a meeting cosponsored by the Welfare to Work Partnership, provides information on six work support programs: the Earned Income Tax Credit, child care, Food Stamps, health care, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, and child support. It explains how each program promotes financial security for low-income families, as well as employment retention, which benefits both working families and their employers. The guide also describes barriers to program participation for eligible workers and offers resources for business leaders and policymakers about strategies to overcome these barriers. Download PDF
• May 15, 2002  |  CLASP and Community Legal Services, Inc. Every Door Closed: Barriers Facing Parents With Criminal Records Last year, approximately 400,000 mothers and fathers finished serving prison or jail sentences. As these parents struggle to make a fresh start, they will encounter many legal barriers that will make it very difficult for them to successfully care for their children, find work, get safe housing, go to school, access public benefits, or even, for immigrants, stay in the same country as their children. This groundbreaking report, a joint publication of CLASP and Community Legal Services, Inc., of Philadelphia, documents the legal challenges these families face, illustrated by compelling stories of ex-offenders who are frustrated in their attempts to rebuild their lives and families. Download PDF   |   Additional PDF
• May 13, 2002  |  Julie Strawn and Karin Martinson Built to Last: Why Skills Matter for Long-Run Success in Welfare Reform This review of recent research on welfare-to-work strategies shows that the most successful programs have focused on employment but made substantial use of education and training. In particular, the postsecondary education and training appear to be key to obtaining higher-paying jobs. This report has important implications for the current debate over reauthorization of the federal welfare program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). The findings suggest that Congress should encourage states to include quality education and training services in welfare-to-work programs and allow sufficient time for recipients to complete both basic education and skill training. Download PDF
• May 01, 2002  |  Anita Mathur, Judy Reichle, Chuck Wiseley, and Julie Strawn Credentials Count: How California's Community Colleges Help Parents Move from Welfare to Self-Sufficiency This study, conducted by the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office for CLASP, finds that welfare recipients who attend California's community colleges substantially increase earnings and year-round work, with those who obtain credentials benefiting the most. Download PDF
• May 01, 2002  |  Paula Roberts Pursuing Justice: A Strategic Approach to Child Support Arrears in California California is one of the states with a substantial amount of accumulated child support arrears. To address this problem, the state authorized the Urban Institute to analyze the arrears caseload and assess the likelihood of collection. Based on the Urban Institute analysis, CLASP developed this options paper, which describes steps the state might take to collect that which is collectible, prevent similar problems in the future, and develop an adjustment policy for those who can never fully pay. The paper is intended to model the kind of analysis states with similar arrearage problems might undertake. It also provides information current efforts in many states to deal with low-income non-custodial parents. Download PDF
• Apr 01, 2002  |  Janellen Duffy and Jodie Levin-Epstein Add It Up: Teen Parents and Welfare . . . Undercounted, Oversanctioned, Underserved Although teen parents represent only about five percent of the overall Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) caseload, historically about 50 percent of adult welfare recipients began parenting as teens. The 1996 welfare law created special rules for teen parents, generally requiring them to live at home or in supervised settings and to stay in school/training in order to receive benefits. This report, based on a survey of state administrators in 33 states and data on teen mothers from 11 states, finds that teen parents in TANF appear undercounted, untracked, oversanctioned, and underserved. A related study, Knocking on the Door: Barriers to Welfare and Other Assistance for Teen Parents, by the Center for Impact Research in Chicago (www.impactresearch.org), suggests that these rules for minor teen parents are having the unintended consequence of turning away needy teens who are not in school or not living at home, rather than giving them the opportunity to come into compliance. Download PDF
• Jan 01, 2002  |  Sara Davis New Report from OIG Raises Questions About Child Support Distribution A two-page summary of a recent report issued by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) outlining their findings and recommendations concerning the problems many families leaving TANF experience in collecting the child support payments they are entitled to as they transition from welfare to self-sufficiency. The receipt of child support at this time of transition can be crucial as a family strives to become self-sufficient. Download PDF
• Jan 01, 2002  |  Sara Davis The Need for More Aggressive Implementation of Income Withholding Orders Involving Federal Employees A two-page summary of recent report issued by the Office of Inspector General (OIG). The summary describes problems with wage withholding against delinquent federal employees who are employed by HHS as well as the recommendations developed by the OIG to ensure that the children of federal employees receive the timely child support to which they are entitled. Download PDF
• Nov 15, 2001  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Teen Pregnancy Prevention Hearing Submission, House Human Resources Subcommittee This document was submitted for the record regarding the public hearing on Teen Pregnancy Prevention and Welfare that was held on Thursday, November 15, 2001. The hearing was called by Chairman Wally Herger (R-CA) of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Human Resources. Many of the hearing witnesses focused on the abstinence program established in 1996. In CLASP's submission for the record, we concentrate on issues relating to this program. Download PDF
• Nov 01, 2001  |  Naomi Seller TANF and Teen Parents with Disablities Looks at the implications of the welfare law enacted in 1996 for teenage parents with disabilities. While the welfare law prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability through the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, teen parents participating in the program often do not receive the services they need to meet program requirements. Risk factors associated with both teenage pregnancy and disability are analyzed, including lower educational achievement and higher rates of poverty. Recommendations are also provided. Download PDF
• May 15, 2001  |  Paula Roberts An Ounce of Prevention and A Pound of Cure: Developing State Policy on the Payment of Child Support Arrears by Low Income Parents Contains a brief description of state policies and practices that may contribute to the accumulation of unrealistically high support arrears, describes steps states might take to avoid this problem in the future, and provides a framework for deciding how much of already accumulated arrears -- if any -- states might want to forgive. Download PDF
• May 15, 2001  |  Vicki Turetsky Families Participating in the State Child Support Program This is a one-page fact sheet that highlights the importance of child support to low-income families, notes that \"welfare leavers\" are the largest group of families participating in the child support program, describes recent improvements in the program's performance, and cites research linking effective child support programs to reduced poverty, welfare caseloads, divorce rates, nonmarital and teen birth rates, and improved child outcomes such as paternal involvement and educational attainment. Download PDF
• May 15, 2001  |  Paula Roberts Recent Clarification of the Child Support Assignment and Cooperation Obligations of Parents and Children Applying for or Receiving Medicaid Briefly explains a critical distinction between the child support assignment and cooperation requirements applicable to child-only Medicaid households and those applicable to households in which both children and adults seek Medicaid coverage. Download PDF
• May 02, 2001  |  Nisha Patel and Steve Savner Implementation of Individual Training Account Policies Under the Workforce Investment Act: Early Information from Local Areas One of the key features of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) is that WIA-funded training services for adults and dislocated workers must generally be paid for through vouchers called Individual Training Accounts or ITAs. Because many of the decisions about eligibility and priority for training services and about limitations on amounts and durations of ITAs are left to local workforce investment areas, policies have the potential to vary widely by locality. This preliminary report is the first stage of an on-going effort by CLASP to monitor implementation of ITAs. The report provides an overview of the requirements of the law related to training services and early examples of ITA policies that have been developed in local workforce investment areas. Click here for the executive summary of the report. Download PDF
• Apr 01, 2001  |  Rachel Schumacher, Mark Greenberg, and Joan Lombardi State Initiatives to Promote Early Learning: Next Steps in Coordinating Subsidized Child Care, Head Start, and State Prekindergarten States often struggle with two key social goals: the need to promote school readiness for children and the need to support working families given increasing labor force participation among mothers with young children. This paper describes the challenges states face in addressing these issues, responses to these challenges, and recommendations for the future. The findings of the paper are based on examinations of three states with significant experience in developing a major early education initiative and coordination of subsidized child care, Head Start, and state prekindergarten systems. The profiled state initiatives are the Georgia Prekindergarten Program, Massachusetts' Community Partnerships for Children Initiative, and Ohio's state funding of Head Start and expansion of Head Start partnerships with child care programs. Download PDF
• Mar 15, 2001  |  Vicki Turetsky Congress Should Reject \"Bounty Hunter\" Proposals Open Child Support Data This fact sheet describes proposals that would make personal financial data and law enforcement authority used by state child support agencies available to commercial child support collection agencies and other private child support collectors. While the proposal may sound innocuous on the surface, its adoption would be very detrimental to low-income families and raises serious privacy concerns. Download File
• Mar 15, 2001  |  Paula Roberts Final Regulations on Child Support Cooperation and Food Stamp Recipients Examines the provisions and final regulations that include allowing states to impose child support cooperation obligations on noncustodial parents who participate in the Food Stamp Program. It would also permit states to disqualify individuals who are behind in paying their child support from participating in the Food Stamp Program. Download PDF
• Mar 15, 2001  |  Paula Roberts Grievance Procedures for Participants in the Child Support Takes a look at the final regulations on grievance procedures that require every state to provide individual users of the child support (IV-D) system access to a complaint resolution process. This new regulation could be used as the basis for state legislation providing full due process rights to users of the IVD system. Download PDF
• Feb 15, 2001  |  Rachel Schumacher and Mark Greenberg Using TANF for Child Care: A Technical Guide A slide presentation that outlines how federal TANF and state maintenance of effort (MOE) funds can be used to fund child care services, describes trends in use of TANF for child care in 1999 and 2000, and suggests steps toward understanding and accessing TANF funds in a state. Download PDF
• Dec 15, 2000  |  Janellen Duffy Revisiting the Link Between Family Planning and Other Social Services Summarizes the most recent interaction between State Family Planning Agencies (SFPAs) and other state social service providers. This report updates the 1999 CLASP report, Linking Family Planning with Other Social Services. New interactions include reproductive health/family planning outreach efforts that reach low-income parents through Head Start/Early Head Start programs and employers or employment programs. This 46-state review, conducted in partnership with the State Family Planning Administrators, describes the recent use of TANF funds for reproductive health, family planning, and teen parent purposes, some of the ways family planning agencies provide training to other social service providers, new trends in interagency collaboration, and an emerging link between family planning and employment programs. Download PDF
• Nov 15, 2000  |  Nicole Williams Insights from New Reports on State Disbursement Units This is an overview of the reports issued by the Office of Inspector General on states' progress in establishing State Disbursement Units (SDUs). Included are some problems states encountered through the transition to an SDU as well as lessons learned in the process. Download PDF
• Nov 15, 2000  |  Paula Roberts New Studies on Child Support Cooperation Requirements This is an overview of five studies issued by the Department of Health and Human Services, the Office of Inspector General (OIG), on the implementation of the PRWORA changes that deal with child support cooperation and good cause exceptions in the TANF program and a study that deals with those changes in the Medicaid program. (Copies of the OIG reports are available at http://www.dhhs.gov/progorg/oei/.) Download PDF
• Nov 15, 2000  |  Paula Roberts The Performance of the Child Support Enforcement System: Two Points of View This is a discussion of the progress reports issued by the United States Census Bureau and the Office of Child Support Enforcement that describe the state of child support enforcement efforts in this country. Download PDF
• Nov 01, 2000  |  Mark Greenberg Helping Families Keep Their Child Support: The Role of TANF Design Choices When TANF assistance is paid to a family, the family must assign its child support to the state, and, typically, the family receives little or no benefit from the support that has been paid. However, states can act to ensure that families get the benefit of child support paid by nonresident parents. This set of an overheads, from a presentation to TANF and child support administrators at a meeting of the American Public Human Services Association, explains how states can ensure that families benefit from child support. Download PDF
• Oct 15, 2000  |  Paula Roberts, with assistance from Nicole Williams Biology and Beyond: The Case for Passage of the New Uniform Parentage Act This is a description of the provisions of the new UPA that address the paternity of marital children, the paternity of non-marital children, and the need for paternity registries. Parentage in the context of assisted reproduction and surrogacy is also considered. In the conclusion is a section-by-section description of the new UPA. Download PDF
• Oct 01, 2000  |  Paula Roberts Child Support Distribution and Disbursement This is a description of the new \"family first\" distribution and disbursement rules that are designed to get more of the support collected for and to the families leaving welfare. Training materials provided by Vicki Turetsky are available for understanding the new distribution process. Download PDF
• Aug 15, 2000  |  Paula Roberts, with assistance from Steve Jackson Public Benefits Issues in Divorce Cases: A Manual for Lawyers and Paralegals This paper addresses the unique support and property distribution issues that must be resolved when low-income public benefits recipients or potential recipients divorce. This revised manual seeks to guide a lawyer or paralegal through the workings of the federally-funded public assistance programs as they impact low-income clients. Download PDF
• Jul 01, 2000  |  Paula Roberts Child Support Issues for Parents Who Receive Means-Tested Public Assistance This is an article that was first published in Clearinghouse Review that includes critical issues as to whether public assistance is countable as \"income,\" whether a court should impute income to a parent with no countable income, and whether minimum support awards should be established. See also 34 Clearinghouse Rev. 182 (July-August 2000). Download PDF
• Jun 15, 2000  |  Julie Strawn and Karin Martinson Steady Work and Better Jobs: How to Help Low-Income Parents Sustain Employment and Advance in the Workforce Despite the success of many welfare recipients in finding jobs, their wages typically leave them below the poverty level and, for many, the jobs do not last. Julie Strawn of CLASP is the primary author of a new guide written for MDRC, Steady Work and Better Jobs, that brings together best practices and up-to-date research findings to help staff working in TANF, Workforce Investment Act, and other programs to promote steady work and access to better jobs. Download PDF
• Jun 15, 2000  |  Mark Greenberg, Joan Lombardi, and Rachel Schumacher The Child Care and Development Fund: An Overview Provides an explanation of the provisions of the major federal block grant available to states to provide subsidized child care to low-income families and to improve the quality of child care. Download PDF
• Jun 15, 2000  |  Vicki Turetsky What If All the Money Came Home? Takes the position that all child support should be paid to families, even if they receive TANF assistance, and that the TANF assignment requirement should be eliminated. Download PDF
• Jun 01, 2000  |  The Medical Child Support Working Group 21 Million Children's Health: Our Shared Responsibility This report contains 76 recommendations for improving medical support enforcement and access to health care coverage for children eligible to receive child support enforcement services. Read Online   |   Download File
• Mar 15, 2000  |  Vicki Turetsky Kellogg Devolution Initiative Paper -- Realistic Child Support Policies for Low-Income Fathers Identifies strategies states can use to tailor their standard child support practices to fathers with limited ability to pay. These strategies emphasize the importance of encouraging regular child support payments whenever possible, even if those payments are small. The paper covers issues such as pass-through, managing uncollectible arrearages, recognizing two-parent families, and expanding case management. Download PDF
• Feb 15, 2000  |  Julie Strawn Workforce Development for the Unemployed and Low-Wage Workers: The Role of Postsecondary Education This working paper describes key policy issues in access to postsecondary education for the low-income workers and the unemployed. It also provides background on why these issues have taken on new urgency in light of recent developments in federal welfare and workforce development policy. Download PDF
• Jan 15, 2000  |  Rutledge Q. Hutson and Jodie Levin-Epstein Linking Family Planning with Other Social Services: The Perspectives of State Family Planning Administrators Gives a national glimpse at the types of efforts made jointly by state social service agencies and family planning agencies. Important interactions are occurring. For example, in Alaska, the family planning agency developed a curriculum that trains welfare staff to address basic reproductive health issues and make appropriate family planning referral. In Washington, the Medicaid agency contracts with local Title X agencies to have itinerant nurses provide family planning services in 75% of the states welfare offices. The 50-state review, undertaken in partnership with the State Family Planning Administrators (SFPA), explores such topics as inter-agency information dissemination, referral arrangements, staff training, and co-location of services. It identifies which states are using what vehicles for linking family planning through other agencies. Click here for the appendix. Download PDF
• Dec 15, 1999  |  Steve Savner and Clifford M. Johnson Federal Funding Sources for Public Job Creation Initiatives Describes three major federal programs that can provide a financing base for public job creation initiatives serving hard-to-employ welfare recipients and non-custodial parents: the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant, the Welfare-to-Work (WtW) program, and the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). The paper also identifies several other federal programs that can be used to support some components of a public job creation initiative, with particular emphasis on federal housing and transportation programs. Download PDF
• Dec 15, 1999  |  Phyllida Burlingame, Rutledge Hutson, and Jodie Levin-Epstein Making the Link: Pregnancy Prevention and the New Welfare Era Explores alternative mechanisms welfare and other social service agencies might adopt to address a national dilemma: nearly half of all pregnancies in the United States are unintended. Interest in this topic is fueled, in part, by the 1996 welfare law, which seeks to reduce out-of-wedlock births. What steps can welfare and social service agencies take to improve access to and voluntary use of family planning services? Making the Link begins to answer this question by reporting the linkages underway in California, Washington, and Georgia. Making the Link also suggests why states should consider replication or adaptation of these initiatives, what the inherent implementation challenges are, and how to navigate these challenges. Download PDF
• Dec 15, 1999  |  Mark Greenberg and Lisa Plimpton TANF Policies in Nine States: Implications for Microenterprise Initiatives Describes the policies in place in nine states, focusing on key issues likely to affect microenterprise initiatives serving TANF families. The paper summarizes the relevant TANF law and compares state policies in six areas, including work and participation requirements, time limits, treatment of income and assets, and supportive servcies. Download PDF
• Nov 15, 1999  |  Mark Greenberg Developing Policies to Support Microenterprise in the TANF Structure: A Guide to the Law Describes how states can exercise discretion within the TANF block grant structure to provide support for microenterprise. The paper discusses TANF law in eight areas, including use of TANF and state maintenance of effort (MOE) funds, TANF work and participation requirements, and treatment of income and assets. Published by the Aspen Institute. Download PDF
• Oct 15, 1999  |  Paula Roberts Kellogg Devolution Initiative Paper -- Beyond Welfare: The Case for Child Support Assurance This paper addresses the child support assurance approach that can provide a guaranteed child support payment to the family regularly and on time each month. Download PDF
• Oct 15, 1999  |  Vicki Turetsky and Susan Notar Models for Safe Child Support Enforcement Addresses approaches and issues faced by state child support programs in creating safer responses for child support enforcement when the mother is a victim of domestic violence. Download PDF
• Aug 15, 1999  |  Steve Savner Key Implementation Decisions Affecting Low-Income Adults Under the Workforce Investment Act Provides a brief overview of some of the key elements of the new law and how they may affect access to services by low-income adults and describes how to become involved in the new decision-making process at both the state and local levels. Download PDF
• Jul 15, 1999  |  Vicki Turetsky Child Support Trends This paper takes a look at the performance and caseload trends in the child support (IV-D) program for the period 1988 through 1998. These slides show the caseload performance ratios as well as the program expenditures in the child support system. Download File   |   Download Additional
• Jul 15, 1999  |  Paula Roberts Guidance from the Federal Government on Implementation of the Child Support Related Provisions of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 as Amended by the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 and the Child Support Performance and Incentive Act of 1998 Describes the most recent changes in the Action Transmittals and proposed final regulations which have been issued through June 30, 1999, that are relevant to the child support sections of the PRWORA, BBA, and CSPIA. (*This is an update of three earlier versions of this publication, which were issued in January 1998, April 1998, and December 1998). [The latest OCSE Action Transmittals can be found at http://www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/cse/poldoc.htm} Download PDF
• Jun 15, 1999  |  Mark Greenberg and Steve Savner Creating Workforce Development Structures for All Working-Age Adults This is one of a set of articles contained in the National Governors Association publication, Rethinking Income Support for the Working Poor: Perspectives on Unemployment Insurance, Welfare and Work. The full publication can be obtained from the NGA website, at http://st7.yahoo.net/governors/retinsupforw.html. The CLASP contribution argues that the low level of receipt of unemployment insurance (UI) by former welfare recipients, as well as female and low-wage workers generally, suggests significant failings in the current UI system. However, even with modifications to UI eligibility rules, many low-wage workers will likely continue to be ineligible for UI. The article suggests that a new program of temporary, needs-based income assistance and employment services that supplements the UI system could be an important step in providing support for workers between jobs and in helping states moving toward a unified workforce development structure for all working-age adults, and suggests some ways that TANF-related funds could be used in support of such an effort. Download PDF
• Apr 15, 1999  |  Paula Roberts Final TANF Regulations Regarding Child Support Assignment and Cooperation and Distribution of Support Collection Addresses two sets of the many issues of the final TANF regulations: (1) implementation of the child support cooperation requirement and (2) the assignment/distribution of child support collected for families receiving TANF-funded assistance. (These final regulations are found at 64 Federal Register 17720-17931.) Download PDF
• Apr 15, 1999  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Seeking Supervision: State Policy Choices in Implementing the TANF Minor Parent Living Arrangement In order for a minor to receive TANF, she must, with limited exceptions, live with a parent, relative, or guardian. Alternative adult living arrangements are possible and a state can approve a minor to live independently. Fifty states' approaches to the challenges of implementing the rule are summarized. Download PDF
• Apr 15, 1999  |  Julie Strawn with the assistance of Robert Echols Welfare to Work Programs: The Critical Role of Skills Describes the shift from basic education to job search and the benefits and limits of both approaches and then argues for a flexible balanced approach that offers job search, education, job training, and work. This short paper incorporates findings from, and includes new research since the publication of, Beyond Job Search of Basic Education: Rethinking the Role of Skills in Welfare Reform Download PDF
• Mar 15, 1999 Child Support Assurance Bibliography Download PDF
• Mar 15, 1999  |  Paula Roberts Final Federal Regulations on IV-D Case Closure Discusses in detail revised regulations issued by OCSE on March 10, 1999, that will make it easier to close IV-D cases. Also discussed is the relationship between case closure and child support cooperation. Download PDF
• Mar 15, 1999  |  Paula Roberts Final Regulations on Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity Lists the variety of changes states must make in their voluntary paternity acknowledgment programs. Also listed are the serious concerns about the operation of the program. Download PDF
• Mar 01, 1999  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Seeking Safe Haven: How Two States Have Approached the Minor Parent Living Arrangement Rule Illinois and Vermont implemented a minor parent living arrangement policy prior to the 1996 law. Both have policies designed to protect those for whom the living arrangement rule might prove problematic due to abuse at home or other causes. This in-depth exploration is designed to assist those who work on the policy or with teen parents to gain insights into the nuances of implementation from the perspective of two states with experience. Download PDF
• Feb 15, 1999 Abstinence-Unless-Married Education Each year, $50 million in federal funding is made available for abstinence-unless-married programs. States match with more funds- $3 for every $4 of federal funding. Whether the law permits any flexibility to states and localities, new research findings, public opinion polls, and the findings of a national survey of state agencies are summarized. Download PDF
• Feb 15, 1999  |  Paula Roberts Child Support and Children Receiving SSI Provides a summary, a synopsis, and a critique of the newly released GAO report entitled Supplemental Security Income: Increase Receipt and Reporting of Child Support Could Reduce Payments, GAO/HEHS-99-11 Download PDF
• Feb 15, 1999  |  Paula Roberts Money Available for Feasiblity Studies and Demonstration Projects Describes an announcement that $250,000 per year for the next three years is now available from the federal government for CSA feasibility studies as well as implementation of CSA demonstration projects. Download PDF
• Feb 15, 1999  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Open Questions: New Jersey's Family Cap Evaluation New Jersey's research evaluation became controversial when a preliminary version was leaked to the media. The preliminary report found that births decreased but abortions increased. The final version of the research reported the same trends. However, the stories were fundamentally different: the preliminary report suggested that the decline in births was accounted for by the abortions; the final report concluded that for each abortion, 10 births were averted. Among the open questions explored are whether the findings should be viewed as encouraging. Download PDF
• Feb 15, 1999  |  Paula Roberts Setting Support When the Noncustodial Parent is Low Income Describes policies that would make it feasible for low-income parents to establish paternity/reenter their children's lives, if implemented. Download PDF
• Feb 01, 1999  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Two Sides of the Same Coin or a Toss of the Coin? Family Planning Services and Family Cap Implementation The family cap is intended to discourage childbearing among welfare recipients by limiting a familys cash grant. In order for the cap to achieve its intended effect, women receiving welfare need to abstain from sexual activity, contracept, or abort. If contraception is an integral part of helping women avoid the family cap, how can this best be accomplished? Should the two sides of the family cap coin -- contraception and limited cash aid -- be made explicit? Or, should the connection between family planning and family cap be as chancy as a toss of the coin? The experience of one state, Georgia, is detailed for readers in states with a family cap policy. Download PDF
• Dec 15, 1998  |  Vicki Turetsky You Get What You Pay For: How Federal and State Investment Decisions Affect Child Support Performance Concludes that most state child support programs are substantially underfunded and understaffed, and that performance may improve with increased investment. The data confirm the direct connection between performance and resource levels. The data also suggest that the current federal financing structure may encourage some states to underinvest in the program in order to maximize state revenues. State-by-state tables included. Download PDF
• Nov 01, 1998 Emancipated Teen Parents and the TANF Living Arrangement Rules Examines how the teen living arrangement rule in TANF applies to minors who have been legally declared adults. A joint product of CLASP and the National Center for Youth Law. Download PDF
• Oct 01, 1998  |  Paula Roberts and Mark Greenberg New Policy Clarification Affecting Child Support Assignment and Distribution for Recipients of TANF-funded Assistance Explains the background for and policy articulated in a recent Action Transmittal, 98-24, from the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE). The Action Transmittal provides an important clarification about the rules affecting distribution of current child support for families receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) assistance in a form other than direct monetary payments. Finally, this memo summarizes the consequences of receiving TANF cash and non-cash assistance in light of the new Action Transmittal. Download File
• Sep 08, 1998  |  Paula Roberts Federal Guidance on Alternative Penalties Related to Automation Failures A brief summary of the alternative penalties and the qualifications from the latest child support automated systems legislation entitled \"The Child Support Performance and Incentive Act of 1998\"(CSPIA), which established a system of fiscal penalties for states that fail to meet their FSA and/or PRWORA automation requirements. Also describes how the new penalty system will function pursuant to the Action Transmittal 98-22 issued by the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement. Download PDF
• Sep 02, 1998  |  Paula Roberts New GAO Study About Child Support for Families Leaving Welfare A summary of the findings from the released GAO study that examines the possibility that families leaving welfare will actually obtain child support income to either supplement their wages or replace the public benefits lost when the family reaches its TANF time limit. The study suggests that unless there is major improvement in the child support program the majority of families leaving welfare due to time limits will not receive substantial amounts of child support. Download PDF
• Aug 15, 1998  |  Florencia M. Greer and Jodie Levin-Epstein More Than One: Teen Mothers and Subsequent Childbearing Concisely summarizes the policy, research, and program information described more fully in One Out of Every Five. Download PDF
• Aug 01, 1998  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein and Florencia M. Greer One Out of Every Five: Teen Mothers and Subsequent Childbearing This paper examines the phenomenon of second and higher-order births to teenaged mothers. While the trends are improving, these subsequent births account for one out of five teen births. One Out of Every Five describes successful programs around the country that address subsequent births within the teen population; reviews research on the characteristics of - and consequences for - teens who give birth more than once; and consolidates information on related state and local policies. Download PDF
• Aug 01, 1998  |  Vicki Turetsky State Child Support Cooperation and Good Cause: A Preliminary Look at State Policies It takes a look at each states' general requirement to cooperate or to cooperate in good faith as a condition of TANF elibility. Download PDF
• Aug 01, 1998  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein The IRA: Individual Responsiblity Agreements and TANF Family Life Obligations This document seeks to identify family life obligations such as health visits, school, teen living, and child support that are required in individual responsibility agreements used by welfare agencies. This analysis is based upon a review of state documents called "personal responsibility plans" or "personal responsibility agreements." Included is a state-by-state summary of family life obligations in IRAs. Download PDF
• Jul 01, 1998  |  Paula Roberts and Vicki Turetsky New Federal Child Support Legislation on Computer Penalties, Incentive Payments, Medical Support and Other Topics Describes the changes in the new law called the Child Support Performance and Incentive Act of 1998 (CSPIA). Some of these changes will fundamentally affect the operation and financing of state child support programs. Other topics include fiscal sanctions for failure to meet the IV-D program automation requirements; administrative enforcement, and Data Collection. Download PDF
• Apr 15, 1998  |  Julie Strawn Beyond Job Search or Basic Education: Rethinking the Role of Skills in Welfare Reform Examines the research on welfare-to-work programs and finds that neither job search nor basic education alone helps recipients work more or earn more over the long run. Instead, the most effective programs share a balanced approach that places a central focus on employment but with room for skill development and other activities. Hallmarks of successful programs include comprehensive, individualized services, close ties to local employers, intensive schedules, and high expectations for participation. Welfare-to-work programs can help recipients earn higher wages if this goal is made a priority; job training in the classroom or workplace and access to postsecondary education are key components of a higher wage strategy. Training must be made more consistently effective, however, and more accessible to those with low basic skills. Download PDF
• Jan 01, 1998  |  Vicki Turetsky and Andrea Wilson Child Support Caseload Data: Recent Trends CLASP conducted a state-by-state analysis of key program trends in the child support (IV-D) program for the period 1991 through 1995. The study looked at key performance indicators, caseload trends, program expenditures, and staffing ratios. This paper analyzes child support caseload trends during the five-year period. Preliminary 1996 data are also included if available. The analysis is based on data reported by state child support programs to the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) and published in annual reports to Congress. (The full report can be ordered for $7.00 by contacting CLASP.) Download PDF
• Jan 01, 1998  |  Vicki Turetsky Child Support Performance Data: A Five-Year Baseline Examines a variety of performance measures state by state between 1991-1995. Each state's performance is measured against its own performance over time. Among the national findings are that the child support program did not make significant headway during this period although there were small performance gains in paternity establishment and collections in 1995 and 1996. (The full report can be ordered for $7.00 by contacting CLASP.) Download PDF
• Nov 01, 1997  |  Paula Roberts Coordination Between the Child Support and Children's Health Insurance Programs in Order to Obtain Health Insurance Coverage for Children Under the Child Health Insurance Program (CHIP) recently enacted by Congress, states will be able to make health insurance coverage available to a large number of uninsured children. Once they have designed their approach and established their eligibility criteria, states will conduct CHIP outreach/enrollment efforts. Not only does the state's child support enforcement program have records about which children do not have coverage through private insurance or Medicaid, but it also has financial information about parents which would be useful in screening for CHIP eligibility. This document will explain how the child support and CHIP programs can work together. Read Online
• Nov 01, 1997  |  Vicki Turetsky Implementing the Family Violence Option: Lessons from Child Support "Good Cause" Policies In the past, less than one percent of custodial parents receiving AFDC nationwide have claimed good cause. Yet we know that roughly twenty percent of women on welfare are current domestic violence victims, and sixty percent have had violent relationships in their past adult lives. What gives? How can the state's integrate the Family Violence Option (FVO) procedures with the child support cooperation and good cause requirements? What lessons surfaced when the good cause exception was administered and how can the state's learn from this? This document can answer those questions and more. Read Online
• Oct 01, 1997  |  Vicki Turetsky Questions and Answers about State Child Support Computers Congress required states to implement statewide systems by October 1, 1997. How many states made the deadline? What is the sanction for missing the deadline? What is the review process for certification? How much have the state vs. the federal government spent on computer systems? This document will answer these questions and more. Read Online
• Aug 01, 1997  |  Paula Roberts California Child Support Assurance Legislation Outline describes recently enacted welfare reform legislation in California that authorized the creation of up to three (3) Child Support Assurance (CSA) demonstration projects. In these projects, eligible children in families participating in the state's welfare program (CalWORKS ) whose custodial parent has earnings and a child support order would have the option to receive a guaranteed monthly child support payment in lieu of welfare. One of the demonstration projects must be substantially like the New York Child Assistance Program (CAP). The other two can use the CAP model or take a different approach. Below is an outline of the legislation. (AB 1542, art. 5 sections 18241-18247) Read Online
• Aug 01, 1997  |  Jessica Sager and Paula Roberts Keeping Up: State Approaches to Automatic Adjustments in Child Support Orders Under recently passed federal legislation states are still required to have a process for review and modification of IVD orders at least once every three years--without the need for the parents to show a substantial change in circumstances--if one of the parents so requests. States can opt to conduct this review and adjustment on an individual case-by-case basis using their state child support guidelines as they did under prior law. This document is intended to help states decide how to proceed. It builds on work originally done in the 1980's by the National Center on Women and Family Law and updates the analysis through the Summer of 1997. Jessica Sager, a second year student at Yale University Law School, compiled the case law on a state-by-state basis so that officials and advocates can determine what the law in regard to automatic adjustments in their state is. She also provided copies of some statutory approaches, and a current bibliography of readings on the subject. Read Online
• Jun 15, 1997  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Abstinence Education: Room for Interpretation Provides an in-depth review of the law's requirements and potential state flexibility in addressing \"abstinence-only\" education requirements. Reprint of a speech delivered during a national video conference sponsored by the University of Maryland's Welfare Academy. Read Online
• May 01, 1997  |  Mark Greenberg, Paula Roberts, Steve Savner, and Vicki Turetsky Child Support Assurance: A New Opportunity in the Block Grant Structure In recent years, there has been increased interest in the idea of providing families which have a child support order with a guaranteed, minimum monthly child support payment. The basic idea is that when a family has cooperated in establishing the child a noncustodial parent, government should assure that at least a minimum payment is provided to the family each month if the noncustodial parent does not pay sufficient support to reach the assurance level. This document briefly outlines how such a system might look, and how such a system could be developed consistent with applicable requirements of the new federal structure. Read Online
• May 01, 1997  |  Tina Marie Perry and Leslie Anne Argenta Child Support Assurance: Overcoming Political Barriers Provides a general overview of the concept of CSA and discusses strategy for selling CSA to legislators. Read Online
• May 01, 1997  |  Paula Roberts Pursuing Child Support: More Violence? Victims of domestic violence often seek public assistance in order to escape from and/or remain free of this violence. However, in order to be eligible for public assistance, a mother must assign her child support rights to the state. Unless she can claim an exemption, she must also cooperate with the estate in establishing paternity (if that is an issue), obtaining a support order, and enforcing that order. Unfortunately, the pursuit of child support can and often does engender more violence. The result will largely depend on what policies states adopt in the next year. To help advocates develop positions on the issues, this paper begins by describing the child support assignment and cooperation requirements that domestic violence victims had to face under the Aid for Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program. Then it delineates the provisions contained in the recently enacted Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996--federal legislation which abolishes AFDC and creates a new program called Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). Finally, it offers some suggestions for how to approach the issues raised by the new law. Download PDF
• Apr 01, 1997  |  Paula Roberts Improving Health Care Coverage in the Child Support System In America today, there are approximately ten (10) million children who lack health insurance. This publication looks at the steps the child support system could take, within the confines of existing law, to provide and enforce health insurance coverage for more children than it now does. It also looks at strategies to expand the availability of health insurance coverage for children. Read Online
• Jan 01, 1997  |  Vicki Turetsky Child Support Administrative Processes: A Summary of Requirements in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 Summarizes new administrative processes that state child support agencies must have to comply with the new federal law. Includes a set of charts with implementation dates for the new law. Download PDF
• Nov 01, 1996  |  Paula Roberts Family Law Issues and the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 A series of short issue papers, with succinct recommendations for implementing the new law. Topics include cooperation, distribution, fees, paternity establishment, enforcement remedies, administrative process, modification, new-hire reporting, case registries, and collection and disbursement activities. Read Online
• Nov 01, 1996  |  Paula Roberts Implementing Child Support Cooperation Policies Under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 Describes the cooperation provisions in the new law, analyses the interrelationship between TANF and child support programs, and makes detailed recommendations on how states can design more effective information-gathering and cooperation policies. Includes model procedures and a summary of recent state statutes. Read Online
• Oct 01, 1996  |  Vicki Turetsky Analysis of Child Support-Related Provisions in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 Provides a detailed summary of the child support provisions included in new child support legislation. A two-page \"key features\" synopsis is also available. Read Online
• Oct 01, 1996  |  Jodie Levin-Epstein Teen Parent Provisions in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 Describes the provisions in the new law that specifically affect teen parents, such as requirements on residency and that minors stay-in-school. The paper also analyzes provisions that might have significant impact on teens, such as the funding bonus to states that demonstrate the greatest reduction in out-of-wedlock births. Download PDF
• Sep 01, 1996  |  Steve Savner Creating a Work-Based Welfare System Under TANF Reviews the essential components of a work-based system for those who will be successful in finding unsubsidized employment at low-wages and for those who are unable to locate unsubsidized employment despite a good faith effort to do so. Read Online
• Aug 01, 1996  |  Paula Roberts A Guide to Establishing Paternity for Nonmarital Children: Implementing the Provisions of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunities Reconciliation Act of 1996 Helps parents, state officials, community groups, judges, legislators, and policy makers examine their options and design and implement a paternity establishment system which recognizes the realities, meets the requirements of federal law, and reflects wise policy choices. Read Online
• Aug 01, 1996  |  Vicki Turetsky Child Support Computer Systems: A Summary of Current and Proposed Federal Requirements Provides a non-technical analysis of new and ongoing computerization requirements for policymakers, administrators, and advocates trying to understand the basics of computer certification and funding. Includes a chart of computer requirements included in recent child support legislation. Read Online
• Jan 01, 1996  |  Steve Savner Devolution, Workforce Development and Welfare Reform Describes the conflicting themes and provisions of welfare legislation and the job training consolidation bills. A number of key issues are identified and discussed concerning the likely impact of these bills on access to education and training for individuals who receive cash assistance. Read Online