ADVISORY
FROM THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS

SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES

Herger Announces Hearing on Welfare Reform Reauthorization Proposals

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 hearing on welfare reform reauthorization proposals.  The hearing will take place on Thursday, April 11, 2002, in the main Committee hearing room 1100 Longworth House Office Building, beginning at 3:00 p.m. 

Oral testimony at this hearing will be from both invited and public witnesses.  Invited witnesses will include representatives of the nation’s governors, State legislators, and State welfare directors.  Also, any individual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a written statement for consideration by the Committee or 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  The law repealed the former Aid to Families with Dependent Children program, and with it the individual entitlement to cash welfare benefits.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 (TANF) 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 healthy 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. 

The TANF program expires on September 30, 2002, requiring Congress to extend the program this year.  In February, President George W. Bush announced his proposal to reauthorize the TANF program and other key features of the 1996 law.  The President’s proposal focuses on increasing participation in work and related activities by those receiving cash assistance in order to better prepare individuals for success after welfare.  Recent statistics from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reveal that 58 percent of adults on welfare are neither working nor participating in education and training activities permitted under the 1996 welfare reform law.

In announcing the hearing, Chairman Herger stated:  “The President has offered a strong proposal to ensure all families who receive welfare benefits gain work experience and training to prepare themselves for life after welfare.  This hearing will give us the opportunity to hear from the Nation’s Governors, State legislators, State welfare administrators, and a host of other community voices about what has worked, the President’s and related proposals, and other ideas for further reform.”

FOCUS OF THE HEARING:

The focus of the hearing is to review welfare reform reauthorization proposals. 

DETAILS FOR SUBMISSIONS OF REQUESTS TO BE HEARD:

Requests to be heard at the hearing must be made by telephone to Traci Altman or Bill Covey at (202) 225-1721 no later than the close of business, Thursday, April 4, 2002.  The telephone request should be followed by a formal written request faxed to Allison Giles, Chief of Staff, Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives, 1102 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515, at (202) 225-2610.  The staff of the Subcommittee on Human Resources will notify by telephone those scheduled to appear as soon as possible after the filing deadline.  Any questions concerning a scheduled appearance should be directed to the Subcommittee on Human Resources staff at (202) 225-1025.

In view of the limited time available to hear witnesses, the Subcommittee may not be able to accommodate all requests to be heard.  Those persons and organizations not scheduled for an oral appearance are encouraged to submit written statements for the record of the hearing.  All persons requesting to be heard, whether they are scheduled for oral testimony or not, will be notified as soon as possible after the filing deadline.

Witnesses scheduled to present oral testimony are required to summarize briefly their written statements in no more than five minutes.  THE FIVE-MINUTE RULE WILL BE STRICTLY ENFORCED.   The full written statement of each witness will be included in the printed record, in accordance with House Rules.

In order to assure the most productive use of the limited amount of time available to question witnesses, all witnesses scheduled to appear before the Committee are required to submit 200 copies, along with an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect or MS Word format, of their prepared statement for review by Members prior to the hearing.  Testimony should arrive at the Subcommittee on Human Resources office, room B-317 Rayburn House Office Building, no later than Tuesday, April 9, 2002, in an open and searchable package 48 hours before the hearing.  The U.S. Capitol Police will refuse sealed-packaged deliveries to all House Office Buildings.  Failure to do so may result in the witness being denied the opportunity to testify in person.

WRITTEN STATEMENTS IN LIEU OF PERSONAL APPEARANCE:

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 23, 2002.  Those filing written statements who wish to have their statements distributed to the press and interested public at the hearing should deliver their 200 copies to the Subcommittee on Human Resources in room B-317 Rayburn House Office Building, in an open and searchable package 48 hours before the hearing.  The U.S. Capitol Police will refuse sealed-packaged deliveries to all House Office Buildings.

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.