Meeting “Our” Two-Parent Participation Rate

1. Meeting “Our” Two-Parent Participation Rate Regional Conference Call September 7, 2006

2. Why is There so Much Emphasis on the Two-Parent Rate Now? • Not a requirement in the past • Not previously included in our all-families rate • How will their inclusion affect this rate • Lots of unknowns (issues with reporting, current rate, etc.) • Requirement is much higher and harder to meet than the all-families requirement

3. Participation Rate Requirement • 90% for two-parent families • Caseload reduction credit will apply, however, the amount of the credit is not known at this time • Requirement could be as high as 60% after caseload reduction credit is applied

4. How do we Look Today? • Approximately 850 two-parent (family) cases in the FLORIDA System • Approximately 2050 two-parent (individual) cases open in OSST • DCF estimates our current two-parent rate to be between 30-35%

5. Minimum Hours Required • Average of at least 35 hours per week • Minimum of 30 hours required in core activities • If less than 30 hours in core activities, none of the hours will count, even if the family participated 35 hours per week • Either parent, or both parents may participate to meet the required hours

6. Minimum Hours Required • Combined average of at least 55 hours per week, if receiving federally funded child care, and neither parent is disabled • Minimum of 50 hours required in core activities • Both parents must participate • Neither parent can be required or allowed to participate more than 40 hours per week

7. Requirements for Two-Parent Families with Teen Parents • Married teens, or single teen heads-of-household will count in the numerator if they: • Maintain satisfactory attendance at a secondary school (high school) or in a GED program, or • Participate in Education Directly Related to Employment for an average of at least 20 hours per week

8. Calculating the Two-Parent Rate Two-parent families participating the minimum number of hours required Two-parent families receiving TCA, minus sanctioned families, if they have not been sanctioned for more than 3 months in the previous 12 months

9. Two-Parent Families with a Disabled Parent • If one parent is disabled, the family is not included in the two-parent calculation • HHS did not define “disabled” • AWI/DCF/WFI currently trying to define disabled for this purpose

10. All-Families Rate • Two-parent families will be included in the all-families rate effective 10/1/06 • Currently excluded • The all-families hours standard applies • 30 hours required, of which a minimum of 20 must be in core activities

11. Penalties for Not Meeting the Two-Parent Participation Rate • Penalty will be proportional to the size of our two-parent caseload in relation to the total caseload • In addition, if we fail to meet either rate, the TANF MOE requirement would be raised from $368.4 million per year to $392.9 million, an increase of $24.5 million per year

12. Core Activities • Unsubsidized Employment • Subsidized Private and Public Sector Employment • On-the-Job Training • Work Experience • Job Search and Job Readiness • Community Service Programs • Vocational Educational Training • Providing Child Care

13. Core-Plus Activities • No credit received unless combined with 30/50 hours in core activities • Job Skills training directly related to employment • Education directly related to employment for those without a high school diploma or GED • Satisfactory attendance at a secondary school or in a GED program

14. Documentation and JPRs • Hours must be documented and entered on the JPR screen timely • Hours on JPR screen must match the documentation received • Too many hours are being changed on the JPR screens after being reported to HHS • Don’t change hours unless they are being changed from zero after receiving documentation • Hours greater than zero should not be entered until documentation is received

15. Anticipated Changes • Work Experience and Community Service • Include Food Stamps in the calculation of hours required for Work Experience as we currently do for CWEP • Considered to be meeting the core requirement (30 or 50 hrs) if the maximum allowable hours obtained from the calculation are completed • Based on Fair Labor Standards Act

16. Anticipated Changes • Credit for holidays and excused absences for unpaid work activities • State must identify holidays in our Work Verification Plan • Excused absences for a maximum of 10 additional days in a 12-month period, not to exceed two per month • Individual must have been scheduled to participate in the work activity for the period of the absence

17. Working with the “Family” Rather Than Two Separate Individuals • Schedule both parents for Orientation at the same time • Develop a family self-sufficiency plan that involves both parents • Have the same career manager working with both parents • Specialized caseloads that include only two-parent families

18. Things to Consider When Working with Two-Parent Households • Encourage both parents to attend follow-up appointments to share successes and ensure that both are on the same page • Remind them that if one parent fails to participate without good cause the resulting sanction will affect the entire household • They should be working toward the same goal—family self-sufficiency

19. Things to Consider When Working with Two-Parent Households • Look for signs of trouble • If one dominates/controls the conversation and decisions about activities the other will or will not do, there may be an issue • Be sensitive to possible domestic violence issues • Meet privately at times to allow each parent time to discuss issues freely in a private and secure environment

20. Coding/Interface Issues • Cases are not always identified correctly • DCF is working to correct these issues • Interface issues • AWI is working to identify these and make corrections

21. Coding/Interface Issues • Alerts • If an exemption alert is received, check FLORIDA to make sure the case is “exempted” • Sometimes a “to-do” states that a case “became exempt”, but the terminology interpreted by the interface program is not the same as “exempt”

22. Changes Needed in OSST • Suggestions for OSST changes related to two-parent cases • Another two-parent designation to indicate two-parent families in the system • Receive the two individuals as one family rather than two cases • Indicator on the JPR screen to identify receipt of federally funded childcare that could be used to determine participation requirement • 35 or 55 hours?

23. Best Practices • Regions--discuss processes currently in place that other regions might want to replicate • What is working and not working? • What changes do you anticipate making?