1144-S AMH ORCU TAYL 36

SHB 1144 - H AMD 0242 Adopted 2-19-02

By Representative Orcutt

     Strike everything after the enacting clause and insert the following:

ASec. 1.  RCW 74.08A.270 and 1997 c 58 s 314 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Good cause reasons for failure to participate in WorkFirst program components include:(( (1) ))(a) Situations where the recipient is a parent or other relative personally providing care for a child under the age of six years, and formal or informal child care, or day care for an incapacitated individual living in the same home as a dependent child, is necessary for an individual to participate or continue participation in the program or accept employment, and such care is not available, and the department fails to provide such care; or (((2) until June 30, 1999, if))(b) the recipient is a parent with a child under the age of one year, except that at the time a child reaches the age of three months, the recipient is required to participate in one of the following for up to twenty hours per week:

(i) Instruction or training which has the purpose of improving parenting skills or child well-being; or

(ii) Preemployment or job readiness training; or

(iii) Course study leading to a high school diploma or GED.

(2) Nothing in this section shall prevent a recipient from participating fully in the WorkFirst program on a voluntary basis.  A recipient who chooses to participate fully in the WorkFirst program shall be considered to be fulfilling the requirements of this section.

(3) For any recipient who claims a good cause reason for failure to participate in the WorkFirst program based on the fact that the recipient has a child under the age of one year, the department shall, within existing resources, conduct an assessment of the recipient within ninety days and before a job search component is initiated in order to determine if the recipient has any specific service needs or employment barriers.   The assessment may include identifying the need for substance abuse treatment, mental health treatment or domestic violence services, and shall be used in developing the recipient=s individual responsibility plan. 

(4) A parent may only receive ((this)) the exemption ((for a total of twelve months, which may be consecutive or nonconsecutive; or (3) after June 30, 1999, if the recipient is a parent with a child under three months of age))under subsection (1)(b) one time, for one child.@

EFFECT: Requires Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients with a child over three months of age and who are using the good cause exemption for a child under one year of age to participate, for up to 20 hours per week, in parenting and child well-being classes, preemployment or job readiness training or course work leading to a high school diploma or GED.  Allows recipients with a child under the age of one who could use the good cause exemption to participate fully in WorkFirst on a voluntary basis.  Requires the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS), working within existing resources, to conduct an assessment of the recipient within 90 days and before the initiation of a job search component to determine if the recipient has any specific service needs or barriers to employment.