ADVISORY
FROM THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS

SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES

Herger Announces Field Hearing on
Welfare Reform Success

Congressman Wally Herger (R-CA), Chairman, Subcommittee on Human Resources of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Subcommittee will hold a field hearing on welfare reform success stories.  The hearing will take place on Tuesday, April 2, 2002, in the Rhea Miller Recital Hall, Saginaw Valley State University, 7400 Bay Road, University Center, Michigan, beginning at 11:00 a.m.

In view of the limited time available to hear witnesses, oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only.  Witnesses will include Michigan Governor John Engler as well as former welfare recipients, a welfare caseworker, and an employer who has hired welfare recipients.  However, any individual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a written statement for consideration by the Subcommittee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing.

BACKGROUND:

The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-193), commonly referred to as the 1996 Welfare Reform Law, made dramatic changes in the Federal-State welfare system designed to aid low-income American families.  The law repealed the former Aid to Families with Dependent Children program, and with it the individual entitlement to cash welfare benefits.  In its place, the 1996 legislation created a new Temporary Assistance for Needy Families block grant, which provides fixed funding to States to operate programs designed to achieve several purposes:  (1) provide assistance to needy families, (2) end the dependence of needy parents on government benefits by promoting job preparation, work, and marriage, (3) prevent and reduce the incidence of out-of-wedlock pregnancies, and (4) encourage the formation and maintenance of two-parent families.

National figures point to remarkable progress in combating welfare dependence and poverty since State and Federal welfare reforms were enacted in the mid-1990s.  The number of children living in poverty has dropped by nearly 3 million and the African-American child poverty rate has fallen to a record low; welfare caseloads have fallen by 60 percent nationwide, as nearly 3 million families and 9 million recipients have left welfare; and record numbers of current and former welfare recipients are working. 

In announcing the hearing, Chairman Herger stated: “Welfare reform has been a tremendous success in terms of reducing poverty, ending dependence, and promoting work.  But behind all of the remarkable statistics are millions of families working their way off of welfare and into the mainstream of American life.  This hearing will allow us to hear some personal accounts of how reform has worked in Michigan, which will help set the stage as we prepare to extend and improve the national 1996 welfare reforms in the coming months.”

FOCUS OF THE HEARING:

The Subcommittee will review welfare reform outcomes in Michigan, with a focus on the perspective of former recipients, employers and caseworkers who have been instrumental in the success of the State’s program in terms of reducing poverty, ending dependence, and promoting work.

DETAILS FOR SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN COMMENTS:

Please Note:  Due to the change in House mail policy, any person or organization wishing to submit a written statement for the printed record of the hearing should send it electronically to hearingclerks.waysandmeans@mail.house.gov, along with a fax copy to (202) 225-2610, by the close of business, Tuesday, April 16, 2002.  If those filing written statements, other than invited witnesses, wish to have their statements distributed to the press and interested public at the hearing, they may deliver 150 additional copies for this purpose to the district office of Representative Dave Camp, 135 Ashman Drive, Midland, Michigan 48640, by close of business on Monday, April 1, 2002. 

FORMATTING REQUIREMENTS:

Each statement presented for printing to the Committee by a witness, any written statement or exhibit submitted for the printed record or any written comments in response to a request for written comments must conform to the guidelines listed below.  Any statement or exhibit not in compliance with these guidelines will not be printed, but will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.

1.   Due to the change in House mail policy, all statements and any accompanying exhibits for printing must be submitted electronically to hearingclerks.waysandmeans@mail.house.gov, along with a fax copy to (202) 225-2610, in Word Perfect or MS Word format and MUST NOT exceed a total of 10 pages including attachments.  Witnesses are advised that the Committee will rely on electronic submissions for printing the official hearing record. 

2.  Copies of whole documents submitted as exhibit material will not be accepted for printing.  Instead, exhibit material should be referenced and quoted or paraphrased.  All exhibit material not meeting these specifications will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.

3.  Any statements must include a list of all clients, persons, or organizations on whose behalf the witness appears.  A supplemental sheet must accompany each statement listing the name, company, address, telephone and fax numbers of each witness.

Note: All Committee advisories and news releases are available on the World Wide Web at http://waysandmeans.house.gov.

The Committee seeks to make its facilities accessible to persons with disabilities. If you are in need of special accommodations, please call (202) 225-1721 or (202) 226-3411 TTD/TTY in advance of the event (four business days notice is requested). Questions with regard to special accommodation needs in general (including availability of Committee materials in alternative formats) may be directed to the Committee as noted above.