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Food Stamp Employment and Training (FSET) Program Overview

Get insights into the FSET program that offers employment and training services to eligible food stamp recipients. Discover how it's funded, allocated, and governed, along with details on participants, exemptions, work requirements, and time limits.

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Food Stamp Employment and Training (FSET) Program Overview

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  1. Food Stamp Employment and Training (FSET)Program Overview The Agency for Workforce Innovation July 2006

  2. What is FSET? • Food Stamp Employment and Training (FSET) Program • Provides employment and training services to a small subset of food stamp recipients

  3. How is it funded? • By U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, through DCF • 100% funds • AWI staff & expenses; systems • RWB allocations • State general revenue funds and federal match • 50/50 funds • Contracts • Support services • AWI staff & expenses

  4. How much money is allocated? • FFY 2005/2006 (10/1/05-9/30/06) • Federal (100%) allocation • $7,943,594 • Allocated to RWBs $7,360,190 • 50/50 funds • GR $1,371,483 • Federal match $1,371,483

  5. How is the money allocated? • RWBs receive funds based on share of ABAWDs • Average # of ABAWDs, per county, from DCF • Funds issued in October (Oct. – June) and July (July – Sept.)

  6. What are the governing laws? • The Food Stamp Act of 1977 (as amended) • The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996 • The Balanced Budget Act (BBA) of 1997 • The Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (Farm Bill) • The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) • 273.7 – Work requirements • 273.24 – Time limits for ABAWDs • State Plan

  7. Who is involved? • USDA • DCF • WFI/AWI • RWBs • Service providers • Participants

  8. What does DCF do? • Submits State Plan • Passes funds to AWI • Monitors time limits • Submits federal reports • Determines eligibility • Screens for exemptions, etc. • Completes work registration • Refers participants • Imposes sanctions State level Local level

  9. What do WFI & AWI do? • Identify service delivery areas • Prepare State Plan (with DCF) • Allocate funds to RWBs • Oversee program • Provide guidance and training • Compile participant and financial data for reports • Conduct compliance monitoring • Effective October 1, 2003, FL Legislature provided for the transfer of the program from AWI to RWBs

  10. What do the RWBs do? • Contract out for service delivery • Serve and engage participants • Provide employment assistance • Monitor compliance • Request sanctions if good cause is not determined • Complete data entry

  11. Who are the participants? • Food stamp recipients not determined exempt, etc. by DCF • Able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDs) • Ages 18 through 49 • No dependents • Time limited • Note: The Optional Workfare Program (OWP) serves non-ABAWDs • & ABAWDs

  12. What are exemptions & exceptions? • Examples • Under age 18, or 50 years of age or older • Parent of a member under age 18 • Pregnant • Physically or mentally unfit for employment • Receiving unemployment compensation (UC), or applied for UC as long as meeting UC work requirements

  13. What are the time limits? • 3 out of 36 months • Vulnerable ABAWDs cannot receive food stamps for more than three countable months during any three-year period, unless the individual • Is exempt, • Meets an exception, • Resides in a Labor Surplus Area (LSA), or • Meets ABAWD work requirements

  14. What are the time limits? • Established in 1996 • New 36-month period began December 1, 2005 • Participants can regain eligibility by meeting one of the work requirements in the month prior to re-applying

  15. Who are vulnerable ABAWDs? Food Stamp Recipients ABAWDs Vulnerable ABAWDs

  16. What are Labor Surplus Areas? • Areas with unemployment rate at least 20 percent higher than the national rate • USDA approves waivers • No time limits for ABAWDs residing in these areas • No FSET program services

  17. What are 15% exemptions? • Special exemptions granted to ABAWDs in counties where • FSET programs are not operated • DCF applies exemptions • Small ABAWD caseloads • ABAWDs are not time limited • USDA allocates 15% exemptions to DCF each FFY • FFY 2004/2005 = 35,201

  18. What are the work requirements? • Vulnerable ABAWDs must: • Work 20 hrs/wk (80 hrs/month), or • Participate 20 hrs/wk (80 hrs/month) in a WIA, TAA or education and training program • Combination of above, or • Comply with Work Experience • FS grant/state minimum wage/ABAWDs • If not, the month counts as one of the three, time-limited months

  19. What are the components & activities? • Orientation and Assessment • Work Experience/Self Initiated Work Experience • Up front job search • WE/SIWE • WE/SIWE combined with JS/JST • Education and Training • Education combined with JS/JST • WIA, TAA, etc.

  20. What are the performance reports, measures and standards? • OSST system reports • FSET Entered Employment Rate • Of participants served, the # who gain unsubsidized employment • No standard • Monthly and quarterly

  21. What is a Food Stamp Reimbursement (FSR)? • Support service for transportation, etc. • Currently $25 per FSR • May increase to $40 for FSET effective 10/01/06 • Issued by warrant through DFS • Participants can earn one FSR per month

  22. What is OWP? • Optional Workfare Program • AWI contracts with 3 Boards of County Commissioners • Operates in 5 counties • Serves both ABAWDs and non-ABAWDs • Mandatory activity = Work Experience • Funded from 50/50 funds

  23. How many FSET participants are there? • 16,192 open cases (7/18/06) • ~ 22,382 individuals served per quarter

  24. Where is FSET/OWP operated*? • 40 FSET counties • 5 OWP counties • 13 waived counties • 9 “exempted” counties (15%) ____________________________ 67 * FFY 2005/2006

  25. Where is FSET/OWP operated?

  26. Where can I find more information? • The AWI-FSET web page http://www.floridajobs.org/PDG/fset.html

  27. What if I have questions? • Delores Coachman (850) 245-7411 Delores.Coachman@awi.state.fl.us • Stephanie Kilham (850) 245-7159 Stephanie.Kilham@awi.state.fl.us

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