Understanding CalWORKs - California Center for Research on ...

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Congress under ARRA. In FY 2010-11, the estimateincreases to $6.6 billion. 10In FY 2009-10, <strong>CalWORKs</strong> recipients are expected to be23.1 percent of all Food Stamp recipients in <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong>. 11MEDI-CALIn <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong>, the federal Medicaid program is administeredas the <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong> Medical Assistance Program (Medi-Cal),which provides health care services to <strong>CalWORKs</strong> recipientsand other qualified low-income persons. Medi-Cal is themain source of health care insurance <strong>for</strong> 6.7 million<strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong>ns, drawing $27 billion in federal funds into thestate’s health care system during FY 2008-09. 12 The programis administered by the <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong> Department of HealthCare Services, which sets eligibility, benefit, providerpayment, and beneficiary cost-sharing levels. At the locallevel, county health and social services departments conducteligibility determinations and oversee enrollment andrecertification. Medi-Cal is funded equally by state andfederal funds.Federal law (under Section 1931(b) of the Social SecurityAct) requires states to provide Medicaid coverage <strong>for</strong> needyfamilies participating in TANF programs. In <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong>,as long as families are on <strong>CalWORKs</strong> they are eligible<strong>for</strong> Medi-Cal.Families discontinued from <strong>CalWORKs</strong> as a result of excessearned income may receive Transitional Medi-Cal (TMC)<strong>for</strong> 6 months. At that time, if the family’s income is below185 percent of the federal poverty level, they are eligible toreceive an additional 6 months of Medi-Cal through theTMC program. If their income is above the 185 percentthreshold, they can no longer receive TMC, but they mayqualify <strong>for</strong> other Medi-Cal programs (e.g., the Medi-CalShare-of-Cost program, where recipients must pay a share ofcost or deductible).In FY 2008-09, <strong>CalWORKs</strong> recipients comprised 16 percentof total Medi-Cal enrollment. 13WORKFORCE INVESTMENT ACTThe U.S. Department of Labor and the <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong>Employment Development Department (EDD) fund andadminister the Work<strong>for</strong>ce Investment Act (WIA), which canhelp <strong>CalWORKs</strong> recipients secure and retain jobs.The federal Work<strong>for</strong>ce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA)aimed to consolidate and re<strong>for</strong>m federal laws governing jobtraining, adult education, and vocational rehabilitationprograms. WIA gives priority <strong>for</strong> intensive training andservices to recipients of public assistance and other lowincomeindividuals, but is available to all adults, dislocatedworkers, and low-income youth with employment barriers.In <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong>, EDD administers the WIA Title I programunder the policy guidance of the <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong> Work<strong>for</strong>ceInvestment Board. At the local level, the program isadministered by Local Work<strong>for</strong>ce Investment Boards(LWIBs). Local boards make funding allocation decisionsand have significant discretion. Some counties co-locateLWIBs and county social services departments, while othersmanage LWIBs and county welfare in the same department.WIA services in <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong> are also delivered throughOne-Stop Career <strong>Center</strong>s, which provide a full range of jobsearch and placement assistance, skills assessments, groupand individual counseling, case management, training, andeducation services <strong>for</strong> job seekers. One-Stop Career <strong>Center</strong>salso offer employer services and business assistance.EDUCATION ANDTRAINING PROGRAMSEducation is an important element of the <strong>CalWORKs</strong>program. Many adults in <strong>CalWORKs</strong> families have limitededucation or work experience, limited literacy and languageskills, and/or insufficient training <strong>for</strong> jobs available in thecommunity. Nearly one-third of <strong>CalWORKs</strong> heads ofhousehold (31 percent) have a primary language other thanEnglish, 14 50 percent of the adults on <strong>CalWORKs</strong> havecompleted 11th grade or less, and only 32 percent have ahigh school diploma (see page 33). 15Local educational institutions offer <strong>CalWORKs</strong> teens andadults a variety of educational programs:• Adult education programs provide English as a SecondLanguage, high school equivalency, Adult BasicEducation, vocational education, remedial andoccupational education, and training support services.• The K-12 educational system serves <strong>CalWORKs</strong> highschool-age recipients in the Cal-Learn program.• Regional Occupational Programs provide occupationaland on-the-job training and job placement services.• Community colleges provide case management,employment-focused courses, job training, basicskills training, remedial classes, work study, and jobplacement. Community colleges design programs to fitthe 12-month federal limit on vocational education.• Four-year colleges (University of <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong> and<strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong> State University) provide education/degreeprograms, work study, and job placement.• Miscellaneous training programs through communitybasedorganizations provide work experience, on-thejobtraining, and language-specific services.28 www.ccrwf.org
<strong>CalWORKs</strong> recipients may be referred to education ortraining in one of four ways:• self-referral through a self-initiated program (SIP), wherethe participant is already enrolled on the date of their<strong>CalWORKs</strong> appraisal appointment (see page 22);• job search referral, where the participant is identifiedearly in the <strong>CalWORKs</strong> process as needing basiceducation;• following a comprehensive assessment after job search; or• as an element of post-employment job retention services.CHILD WELFARE SERVICESThe Child Welfare Services (CWS) program is administeredby the counties and supervised by CDSS. CWS programsprovide services to prevent child abuse and neglect;investigate reports of maltreatment and remove childrenfrom abusive or negative home environments; provideservices and supports to families so that children may remainin or return to their home safely; and secure alternativehomes, including foster care and adoption, <strong>for</strong> children whocannot be returned to their home.Based on data provided by CDSS,* from July 2007 toDecember 2008, 5.3 percent of the more than 1 millionchildren on <strong>CalWORKs</strong> were also in the child welfaresystem. 16 During this same period, 26.5 percent of thenearly 210,000 children in the CWS program were also<strong>CalWORKs</strong> recipients. 17The overlap of clients in <strong>CalWORKs</strong> and CWS hasprompted the state and many <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong> counties to explorehow these dual-system, high-risk clients and their familiescan be served in a more coordinated fashion. The ef<strong>for</strong>t atcoordination aims to utilize TANF as a primary preventionprogram and child welfare as an anti-poverty program byfocusing on self-sufficiency ef<strong>for</strong>ts, with emphasis on:• improving methods to coordinate case plans;• identifying additional and more flexible funding;• configuring in<strong>for</strong>mation systems to match clients indifferent programs; andCHILD SUPPORT COLLECTIONSAND ENFORCEMENTBoth federal and state welfare re<strong>for</strong>m laws imposeadditional requirements on welfare families in order toincrease child support collections on behalf of familiesapplying <strong>for</strong> or receiving <strong>CalWORKs</strong>. If a <strong>CalWORKs</strong>family includes a child whose natural or adoptive parent isnot living with the child, the county social services officewill make a referral to the local child support agency, unlessgood cause (e.g., fear of reprisal from an abuser) is claimedby the applicant/recipient.Local child support agencies provide necessary child supporten<strong>for</strong>cement services, including establishing paternity,establishing and en<strong>for</strong>cing a support obligation, andcollecting and distributing support payments. Unless theapplicant or recipient has good cause, he or she is requiredto cooperate with the local child support agency to collectchild support payments from absent parents as a conditionof eligibility <strong>for</strong> <strong>CalWORKs</strong>. Child support paymentscollected from non-custodial parents of children in a<strong>CalWORKs</strong> family are retained by the state to offset the costof providing aid, with the exception of the first $50 collectedeach month, which is passed on to the <strong>CalWORKs</strong> family.Linkages: <strong>CalWORKs</strong> and Child WelfareCollaboration to Improve OutcomesThe Linkages project seeks to improve collaborationbetween the <strong>CalWORKs</strong> and child welfare systems.Currently implemented in 32 of <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong>’s 58counties, the program coordinates individualizedservices to families served by the two systems.Counties are required to develop protocols thatenhance communication and case coordinationbetween social workers and <strong>CalWORKs</strong> eligibility/Welfare-to-Work staff, while reducing bureaucraticburdens <strong>for</strong> families.For more in<strong>for</strong>mation, go to:http://www.cfpic.org/linkages/linkages_001.htm• addressing the organizational change issues that arisewhen workers in different bureaucracies collaborate.* The <strong>CalWORKs</strong> child population of 1,043,369 unduplicated child records were extracted <strong>for</strong> the 18-month period between July 2007 andDecember 2008 (where the child is on <strong>CalWORKs</strong> <strong>for</strong> at least one month during the period). For the same period, 209,961 open child welfare caseswith <strong>Cali<strong>for</strong>nia</strong> jurisdiction were identified in CWS/CMS. Based on these populations, 55,707 children were successfully matched between thesystems.www.ccrwf.org29
Page 2: Kate Karpilow, Ph.D.Executive Direc
Page 7 and 8: Family FormationTANF includes polic
Page 9 and 10: Child-Only CasesChild-only cases ar
Page 11 and 12: THE CALIFORNIAPROGRAMTwo recent wav
Page 13 and 14: Table 2: Region 1 CountiesAlamedaCo
Page 15 and 16: Table 4: Comparison of Federal and
Page 17 and 18: • age 60 or older;• disabled;
Page 19 and 20: When a family, without good cause,*
Page 21 and 22: PUBLIC AND PRIVATE AGENCIESCounties
Page 23 and 24: local One-Stop employment centers,
Page 25 and 26: Plans include:• activities and se
Page 27 and 28: CalWORKs legislati
Page 32 and 33: MENTAL HEALTH ANDSUBSTANCE ABUSE SE
Page 34 and 35: PROFILE OF CalWORKs</strong
Page 36 and 37: Other Issues Among CalWORKs
Page 38 and 39: CalWORKs Grant Cut
Page 40 and 41: CHILDREN and SERVICESIncrease in Ch
Page 42 and 43: 13 Ibid.14 Califor<
Page 44: About CCRWFThe Cali

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