SALT's Year 2010 Federal Legislative Priorities

TANF Emergency Fund Extension:  SALT supports the protections of the social safety net provided for in the Promoting American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act of 2010 (H.R. 4213). This bill is a critical, probably "last chance" for an extension of the TANF emergency contingency fund and for the capitalization of the National Housing Trust Fund (NHTF). Even if you acted earlier, please send an email directly to your Representative and Senators. Let your Representatives know that you strongly support this bill (H.R. 4213) to extend benefits to those who are long-term unemployed, assist with health insurance through COBRA and TANF and the NHTF.

TANF Welfare Ban Opt Out:

H.R.3053

Title: To amend the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to repeal the denial to drug felons of eligibility for benefits under the program of temporary assistance for needy families.

 Sponsor: Rep Carson, Andre [IN-7] (introduced 6/25/2009)

Cosponsors (6)

Latest Major Action: 6/25/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

COSPONSORS(6), ALPHABETICAL [followed by Cosponsors withdrawn]: (Sort: by date)

Rep Davis, Danny K. [IL-7] - 6/25/2009          Rep Ellison, Keith [MN-5] - 6/25/2009

Rep Hastings, Alcee L. [FL-23] - 6/25/2009   Rep Lee, Barbara [CA-9] - 7/7/2009

 Rep Lewis, John [GA-5] - 6/25/2009              Rep Norton, Eleanor Holmes [DC] - 6/25/2009

**********************************

Supporting Transitional Assistance for Drug Offenders

TANF Welfare Ban Opt Out:  The Issue.  Since the 1996 Welfare Reform Act , anyone convicted of a drug felony has been banned from ever receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), also known as Welfare, or Food Stamps.  States have the option to opt-out of or modify this lifetime ban, but many have not.  To date, 15 states have maintained the federal ban, and 23 have modified the ban in some way, such as lifting it for food stamps but maintaining the lifetime ban on TANF benefits, or only applying it to specific drug felonies.  While we do not support drug use and understand why the federal government is concerned about the sale, distribution and use of illicit drugs, we feel very strongly that those who have already been punished for a crime and have served their time in prison must have assistance in reentering society.  TANF and Food Stamps offer badly needed assistance to those who are trying to begin a new life, and they should be made available to all those who need them.

v      Many people do not come out of prison "job-ready," and require substance abuse treatment, education, or job training before they can find sufficient employment.  TANF and food stamps help them during this critical time.

v      While it is true that the children of felons can still receive TANF and food stamps, these usually go towards helping with family costs, and the children and parents will be better served if assistance is given to each member of the family.  Family support is crucial in stopping recidivism rates, and the government should make every effort to make it easier for families to stay together, rather than making the returning parent a burden.

v      No other kind of felon is prohibited from receiving TANF or Food Stamps after incarceration.  All those who have paid their debt to society and been punished for their crime should be allowed the same opportunity to rebuild their lives. 

v      Those who are reentering society are badly in need of services in order to prevent recidivism. According to a 2006 Zogby poll, over 70% of Americans believe that there should be state funded rehabilitative services available to prisoners both during and after incarceration.  TANF and food stamps provide badly needed basic services and valuable nutrition during a former prisoners' most vulnerable time.

Recommendations. 

We urge Congress to remove the lifetime ban on TANF and Food Stamps for those who have been convicted of a drug felony.  This unfairly puts a lifetime punishment on one class of criminal, an increases recidivism by making it more difficult for prisoners to access services and provide for their families when they leave prison.  Providing these services will support families, decrease recidivism, and provide assistance to those trying to rebuild their lives.

If you have any questions or would like further information, please contact John Horejsi, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

**************************************

Legislative Update - January 14, 2009

The first session of the 111th Congress is underway. Here is information on the issues that you, along with SALT, have advocated for.

President Obama Signs SCHIP Bill:

On February 4, the President signed into law (P.L. 111-003) legislation to reauthorize and expand the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The law expands the program for an additional four and a half years and will provide coverage to an estimated four million currently uninsured children. The package of reforms to SCHIP includes: Provisions to reduce SCHIP enrollment barriers by creating incentives for states to adopt presumptive eligibility, 12-month continuous enrollment, and other simplifications. Coverage to legal immigrant children and pregnant women under Medicaid and SCHIP. Under current law, a five year eligibility bar prevents legal immigrants from gaining access to these important health care programs. Improved access to dental and mental health care for SCHIP recipients. $100M grant to improve outreach and enrollment. SCHIP provides health coverage to children in families that earn too much to qualify for Medicaid, but not enough to afford health coverage in the general market.

SALT supports reauthorizing the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).

The current economic crisis makes this an especially critical time to increase SCHIP funding as more and more children lose health care coverage when their parents become unemployed or simply can not afford to pay for coverage. Now, more than ever, strengthening and expanding health care coverage for children must be a top priority. SALT supports making children a priority and expanding SCHIP with the following provisions: .

 Extend SCHIP for over four years, raising funding levels to allow states to sustain existing children's enrollment and extending coverage to approximately four million more low-income uninsured children; . Reduce SCHIP enrollment barriers through the creation of incentives for states to adopt presumptive eligibility, 12-month continuous enrollment, and other methods to streamline the enrollment process; . Improve access to dental care and mental health coverage for SCHIP recipients; . Include the "Immigrant Children's Health Improvement Act" (ICHIA) within the reauthorization legislation.

ICHIA would give states the option of receiving federal matching funds to cover legal immigrant children and pregnant women under Medicaid and SCHIP. The current five year eligibility bar has further increased racial and ethnic health disparities among children in our society, and it is critical that the bar be lifted immediately; and . SCHIP should ensure states cover all pregnant women and their unborn children.

SALT supports swift passage of this legislation will ensure a healthy future of Virginia's children. SALT urges passage of these policy improvements to SCHIP to protect our children's future.

************************

Child Tax Credit Improvement Enacted in Financial Rescue Bill Improvement in the Child Tax Credit that will help 13 million low-income children is signed into law.in October 2008.

***********************

Housing

National Affordable Housing Trust Fund (NHTF) In October, the House passed legislation authorizing the National Housing Trust Fund. Earlier in the year they had passed the mechanisms to allow for its funding. On Dec. 18, Senator John Kerry introduced a partner bill in the Senate with bipartisan support. During 2008, NETWORK and others will continue work to pass necessary legislation in the Senate.

**************************

Immigration

Perhaps immigration is the most disappointing issue faced by NETWORK in 2007. At the beginning of 2007 the popular wisdom was that we would get the McCain/Kennedy bill from 2006 through the Senate and then have rough sledding in the House. We did not adequately factor in the reluctance of Senators to vote for that bill when they knew that the House would not make it more restrictive. As a consequence, despite two valiant attempts to pass comprehensive immigration reform in the Senate, nothing was accomplished. All sides are now reverting to piecemeal attempts to move the issue forward. NETWORK continues to make comprehensive immigration reform a key issue, especially in the 2008 election.

***************

Living Wage 

Early in 2007 both chambers of Congress raised the federal minimum wage, to take effect over a two year period which began on July 24, 2007. This is still far from a living wage for families in most parts of the nation. Legislation is being prepared for introduction in 2009, which would raise the base and index the amount.

*******************

SCHIP Update

Yesterday the US Senate passed a fairly straightforward extension of SCHIP through March 2009. The bill includes funds to avoid expected state shortfalls. Unfortunately, the bill is silent on the CMS August directive, which effectively caps SCHIP at 250% of poverty and thus forces some states to scale back their programs and also significantly limits states' ability to expand coverage. The House is expected to pass the same legislation today.

This result is far from what we had hoped for and what we thought we would see this summer. But because of our work, SCHIP is now a household name, and poll after poll show that people throughout the country believe it should be supported and bolstered. We will get past this disappointing year and will continue to work until we succeed in securing a strong SCHIP reauthorization bill that supports the millions of children and families upon who rely on Medicaid and SCHIP.

So for now, we’ll turn our attention to the Virginia legislative session to obtain the eligibility increase in the FAMIS Moms program and support other initiatives to improve access to health services for Virginia’s low income and vulnerable populations.

****************************

SALT Advocates--Celebrate a Fair Wage campaign milestone when Congress approved the first federal wage hike in a decade. The House approved a measure 348-73, raising the federally mandated hourly pay from $5.15 to $7.25 in three stages over two years. The increase was part of a domestic spending package. The Senate passed it overwhelmingly, 80-14.

This long-overdue wage increase will bring millions of America’s hardest-working families closer to making ends meet. Thanks to all for your work to see the minimum wage return to a salary that can sustain a working family.

With SALT Appreciation for your support and good work. john

*****************************************

Excerpted from http://www.ncpd.org/
TANF Reauthorization

TANF Must Address the Needs of Families with Disabilities

Each year the number of people with disabilities increases. In February of 2003 charts from the International Center for Disability Information indicated the number of individuals in the United States experiencing the loss of one or more "essential life functions" to be approximately 58,038,500.

The Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) in replacing Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) institutionalized a "work first" approach to poor families with a lifetime limit on cash assistance. This mechanism places a particularly harsh economic hardship on families with disabled children and/or adults. This reality tends to be hidden to many policy and advocacy entities due to lack of awareness of the significant number of people with disabilities living in "welfare" families.

Almost half of the households of single mothers receiving TANF have a disability or a disabled child.
In 8% of these households there is a child who has a disability.
In 13% of these families both mother and a child are disabled.
In 25% of these households, only the mother is disabled.
In other words, in 38% of these single parent homes, the mother is disabled.

1996 welfare reform legislation resulted in more stringent definitions of disabilities for children, resulting in the elimination of those with less severe disabilities from the cash assistance programs under the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program upon which such families previously depended.

States were allowed to exempt up to 20% of their caseload from the "work first" and time limits of TANF for families with disabilities;

However, states with such exemptions do not routinely have policies in place to exempt these families from the lifetime cash limit.

SIPP (Survey of Income & Program Participation) data indicates that 13% of all families with children under 18 include at least one child with a disability. However, variations in income have significant impact upon the prevalence of disabled children in families.

Families with incomes less than two times the poverty level are 50% more likely that families with more adequate household income to include a child with a disability.

Families living on welfare are twice as likely to have a child with a disability.

Disabilities are more prevalent among low-income single mothers.

Among low income single mothers
29% have some disability.
17% have a severe disability
Among single mothers receiving TANF:
38% have some disability - 2 times more than among higher income families.
25% have a severe disability - almost 5 times more than among higher income families.

Women who work outside the home are three times more likely to develop a disability-related illness than men, according to the Health Insurance Association of America. The anticipated increase in the numbers of mothers with disabilities who are major care takers of children must be addressed.

For more information send email to John Horejsi at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it