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Home My WebLink AboutMINUTES - 08032004 - C.55 FHS # 19 ,• Contra TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Costa_., FROM: FAMILY AND HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE ,- "iCounty DATE: AUGUST 3, 2004 e,550 SUBJECT: CALWORKSIWELFARE TO WORK PROGRAM REPORT SPECIFIC REQUEST($)OR RECOMMENDATION(S)&BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION Recommendation: ACCEPT the attached report on the update of the CalWORKs/Welfare to Work Program, Fiscal impact: None Background: Since the implementation of the Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF) program in Contra Costa County in March 1998, the Employment and Human Services Department Workforce Services Bureau has been submitting annual status reports on the operation of the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, which is California's TANF program. The report outlines the accomplishments of the Workforce Services Bureau for the period May 2003 through April 2004. Declining caseloads and challenges in serving "multi-barriered" clients have been consistent themes in previous reports. Last year's report showed the first increase in the average monthly CalWORKs caseload, and during this period the trend has continued with a 10.3% increase in caseload. Although the economy has stabilized, the same level of increase is projected for the coming year. The report is divided in to three sections. The first part describes the primary CalWORKs programs and services, including caseload statistics for the last year. The second part provides an overview of specific accomplishments and achievements in the CalWORKs program and the One-stop Centers operated under the Workforce Investment Act(W€A)with the third section describing upcoming challenges in the current year. 8004OW69 94 ATTACHMENT: YES SIG URE: RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE APPROVE OTHER t SIGNATURE(S): Rk DeSAULNIER w ..... I JgHN GlOIA ACTION()F BOARD ON �` t�✓ sirt �+i'r.>,, .. APPROVE AS RECOMMENDEDMrR- "' VOTE OF SUPERVISORS I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE UNANIMOUS (ABSENT � � ' ° 'c _ ) AND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN AND ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE BOARD AYES: NOES: OF SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN. ABSENT: ABSTAIN: ATTESTED JOHN SWEET CLERK OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISO � AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR Contact Person: Dorothy Sansoe(5-1009) CC: CAO EHSD , BY: r r? / ✓ ' _---a1 DUTY REPORT #: FAMLYAND H"N SEROCES C MA : T°}E OF r,14E BOARD OF SUPERVISORS �+..: ;...-3: Y Y ,.f'e�.. a..�+;' b�or .,, f:,.•4: ".':�` , ..r .1 4.. S 3'4. :3i'�,f-':,.3 r 3. �., JUL2004 Employment&Human Services Department CaIWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update Table of Contents EXECUTIVESUMMARY........................................................................................................................................3 INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................................................5 PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS AND CASELOAD...............................................................................................6 ♦ CALWORKs TANF(TEMPORARY ASSISTANCE TO NEEDY FAMILIES).......................................................6 ♦ CALWORKs/WELFARE-To-WORK...............................................................................................................9 ♦ CALWORKs CHILD CARE BLOCK GRANT...................................................................................................10 ♦ CAL-LEARN.................................................................................................................................................12 ♦ ONE-STOP BUSINESS AND CAREER CENTERS.,.... ....-......_.......___ ... ........ .......12 PERFORMANCE INDICATORS/ACHIEVEMENTS.....................................................................................14 ♦ HOUSING ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS................................... _....:...................,..............,..............,.................14 ♦ TRANSPORTATION SERVICES AND PROGRAMS.............................................................................................15 ♦ DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SERVICES ................................................................<......................,...,.......................17 ♦ CLIENT SERVICE SUCCESS AT THE ONE-STOP BUSINESS AND CAREER.CENTERS......................................18 ♦ ONE-STOP BUSINESS AND CAREER CENTER SERVICES TO EMPLOYERS....................................................20 ♦ LEARNING DISABILITIES SCREENING............................................................................................................21 ♦ PROJECT CLEAN SLATE..................................................................................................................................22 ♦ WELFARE-TO-WORK OUTREACH SERVICES.................................................................................................23 ♦ ELECTRONIC BENEFITS TRANSFER(EBT)....................................................................................................24 ♦ SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH(SAMHWORKS)...................................................................24 ♦ IMPLEMENTATION OF QUARTERLY RREPORTING AND PROSPECTIVE BUDGETING....................................25 ♦ .TOB PLACEMENTS...........................................................................................................................................25 ♦ AVERAGE HOURLY WAGE AND AVERAGE WEEKLY NUMBER OF HOURS AT WORK............. ........ ........27 ♦ WORK PARTICIPATION RATE(WPR)............................................................................................................29 ♦ CALWORKs CASES WITH EARNINGS...... ........ ........___............._......-....... ........ ....29 ♦ GRANT SAVINGS ............................................................................................................................................30 ♦ EXITS DUE TO EMPLOYMENT.......................................................................................................................30 ♦ DIVERSION PAYMENT'S..................................................................................................................................32 ♦ TRACKING PARTICIPANTS WHO APPLY FOR CASH AID................................................................................32 CRITICAL SERVICE DELIVERY ISSUES AND CHALLENGES...............................................................34 ♦ UNCERTAIN CALWORKS BUDGET, LOSS OF FUNDING AND REDUCTION IN SERVICES...........................34 ♦ CALWORKs COST OFLIVING ADJUSTMENT.,......... ...____............ ...............-............... ............. ......_35 ♦ GOVERNOR'S PROPOSED CALWORKs POLICY CHANGES..........................................................................35 ♦ TANF REAUTHORIZATION..............................<...........................................................................................,.35 ♦ SERVING CLIENTS WITH DISABILITIES..........................................................................................................36 ♦ SERVICE Di-,LIVERY AND STAFFING CHALLENGES.......................................................................................36 ♦ JOB DEVELOPMENT,JOB RETENTION AND CAREER ADVANCEMENT.........................................................37 ♦ TIMING OUT CALWORKs ADULTS(TOA)..................................................................................................37 ♦ CALWINIMPLEMENTATION-...........-..........-............. .........___........... ................... ............................ ...38 ♦ WIA REAUTHORIZATION ACTIVITIES AND RESPONSE TO A NEW ONE STOP OPERATOR REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL(RFP).....................................................................................................................................................39 July 12,2004 1 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update Tables and Charts Table 1 Breakdown of CoIWORKs Caseload as of March 2004........ ...... 7 Table Average Monthly CoIWORKs Caseload by Calendar Year- Comparison with BASSC Counties..... ...........t-................... ....;.... ....;....;--;_7 Table 3 Comparisons of Total ColWORKs Applications by Calenor Year with BASSCCounties-....... ......... ...... ...... ........ ........ ...... .......... .....:.........-;.---:--....8 Table 4 Comparisons of Total CoIWORKs Applications and Average Monthly ColWORKs Caseload- Percent Change from 2002 to 2003.... ....;....--9 Table 5 Child Care Payments-EHSD Child Core Units.....-.... ......... ......;'-- 11 Table Stage 2 and Stage 3 Child Care Payments PACE and Child Core Council for April 2004............ ............... ............. ......... ........t.... ....z.... ....:-, 11 Table STAND!Statistics for the Period 717103-4130104-....... 17 Table 8 One-Stop Universal Customers and Usage.,,::....,,.................. ... 18 Table 9 One-Stop Client Enrollments by Program(July 7, 2003-April 30 2004)................................. ....................... ....t--....z.-T... 18 Table 10 WIA Performance Outcomes(Final PY2002-03),-.,....t--......:111-111 19 Table 11 Comparisons of Performance Measures for WIA Adults........ ........ 19 Table 72 Comparisons of Performance Measures for WIA Dislocated Workers..... ................................--........ ...... ....... ....... .........t....:.......- 20 Table 13 Learning Disabilities Referrals...........---...................... .......... ....--:... 22 Table 14 Outreach Referrals..............-.............. ...... ...... ....-........ ....... 23 Table 15 Top Four Reasons for Failing to Cooperate... ....... ....... ........ 23 Table 16 SAMHWORKS Referrals,,,............. ...... .............. ...... .....-......................... 25 Table 17 Average Hourly Wage, Hours Worked, Monthly income ... ...-...- 28 Table 18 Wage Ranges................. ................. ............. ....--......... ....... ....- 28 Table 19 Cases with Earnings......-I............................. ......... ........... ....;-.... .... 29 Table 20 Length of Time Off Aid at Application,.... .... ....-......... ......... ...... ....32 Table 21 Reasons for Applying for Aid........... ........---.......-..... ........ ................33 Table 22 Funding Sources Comparison for Prior and Current Fiscal Year,::34 Chart 1 CalWORKs Average Monthly Caseload by Calendar Year--,.... 6 Chart 2 Tap Ten Welfare-to-Work Activities for April 2004............ ...........t......110 Chart 3 Comparison of Job Placements with BASSC Counties for Calendar Year2003..... ........................ ......... ....... ...... .........----......-........26 Chart 4 Job Placements as a Percentage of the Total CaIWORKs WtW Participants........ ...... ...-.... .... .............. .......................................................i......27 Chart 5 Earnings Reported and Grant Savings on CalWORKs Cases......,.,,30 Chart 6 Exits from Cash Aid Due to Employment-........ .......... 31 Chart 7 Comparision with BASSC Counties of Exits from Cash Ad Due to Employment.... ......... ...... ........................................... ................. 31 July 12,2004 2 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update EXECUTIVE SUMMARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: This Executive Summary is intended as a synopsis of the major issues, trends, sniffs, and challenges coming from the information contained in this report. Most significant changes or trends from the retort data are: • The CaIWORKS caseload is no longer in decline, but has increased approximately 10%since May 2003. • While our CaIWORKs caseload is increasing, the number of clients with a WtW requirement has dropped by 4°lam. • The number of ColWORKs applicants has significantly escalated over the last three years- a total of 23,3%since calendar year 2000. • A larger percentage of new Cal`AIORKs applicants (49%) have never previously been on aid. • Family separation is now the single largest cited reason for why individuals apply for aid, with relocation being second, and job loss third. • We are seeing an increase in the number of mental health/substance abuse referrals. • A larger percentage of CalWORKs clients reaching their 60-month time limit have qualified for clock extenders and exemptions than was anticipated, • Our clients are earning the highest average hourly wage of $9.57 since implementation of CalWORKs, and we achieved the highest number of job placements in comparison to the other Bay Area counties, What these trends1changes indicate to us: Our most vulnerable families and workforce are impacted for a longer period in a poor economy and do not receive an early benefit from a recovering economy. This is evidenced by the fact that we are: • experiencing a high number of applicants, many of whom have not been on aid before; and, • caseload growth July 12,2004 3 Employment&Human Services Department CaiWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update An increasing percentage of our clients are not readily employable and have multiple barriers. This increase is evidenced by the fact that we have: • more clients than were expected qualifying for time exemptions and clock extenders; and, • an increase in referrals for mental health/substance abuse treatment; and, • four percent(4%)fewer clients with a Welfare-to-Work requirement; and, • decreased grant savings and earnings Those of our clients who are employable and working are still economically vulnerable and in need of employment and other support services to achieve economic sufficiency and family stability, This is evidenced by the fact that: • fifty-on (519'x) of CalWORKs clients are returning to aid primarily due to family separation and job loss; and, • working clients are still earning below poverty level Our Torp Challenges for Proarom Year 2004-05: With diminished funding, increasing caseloads and less staff, we will be challenged to: • Manage existing staffing levels, and maximize and leverage remaining resources to ensure quality and timely services to our clients • Implement in a timely fashion all required program and service delivery changes necessitated by the budget downsizing, and by state and federal policy and regulatory changes (e,g„ the Governor's CaIWORKs policy changes, COLA changes, etc.) • Continue to engage in the planning, development, and rollout of new service delivery approaches and systems such as CaIWIN • Take on any other major, additional tasks such as responding to the Workforce Development Board's One Stop Operator competitive RFP for 2004-05, or transition the system to a new Operator and Direct Service Provider(s) July 12,2004 4 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update INTRODUCTION -- --- --------This report report outlines the accomplishments of the Department's Workforce Services Bureau for the period of May 2003 through April 2004, Our accomplishments continue to be a result of the Department's line workers, supervisors, managers and support staff coming together as a team to provide quality services, As has been requested by your Committee in the past and where data was available from reliable sources, we have included comparisons of our County's performance with that of other Bay Area counties and counties of similar allocations. We hope you find this information of interest and value, Since the implementation of the Temporary Ad to Needy Families (TANF) program in the County in March of 1948, the Employment and Human Services Department's Workforce Services Bureau has been submitting annual status report's on our operation of the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CaIWORKs) program which is California's TANF program. Declining caseloads and challenges in serving "multi-barriered" clients have been consistent themes in these previous reports. Last year's report showed the first increase, albeit slight, in our average monthly CalWORKs caseload; and, since this report, another 103% increase was experienced in our caseload, Although the economy has stabilized, we project this same level of increase for PY 2004-0& Some of the major challenges we referenced in last year's report have been recently implemented, such as the Quarterly Reporting/Prospective Budgeting process which significantly changes how our clients report and how we treat the report data for ongoing eligibility, We are now in the planning and implementation phase for CaIWIN with these activities escalating in PY 2004-05 given the project's start-up date in August 2005, TANF Reauthorization, still pending since October 2000, is expected to be finalized after the November elections, H,R, 4 was finally debated in the Senate the week of March 30, 2004 However, the Senate was unable to reach agreement on amendments, and the bili was pulled from the Senate Floor. This report is divided into three sections. The first part describes our primary CclWORKs programs and services including caseload sizes for the last year. The second part provides on overview of specific accomplishments and achievements in our CalWORKs program and the Cane-Step Centers operated under the Workforce Investment Act (WA), The third section describes upcoming challenges in the year to come: July 12,204 5 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS AND CASELOAD ♦ CaiWORKs TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) CaIWORKs TANIF provides cash assistance to families with children who are needy because of the absence, incapacity, unemployment, or death of one or more parents, Time on aid is limited to 60 months, The upward trend in the average monthly caseload as noted in last year's report continues into calendar year 2004. The average monthly caseload for calendar year 2003 is 10.3% higher than the previous year. We are projecting a minimum 7.9%increase in the caseload for FY 2004-05 as well, Chart 1 CalWORKs Average Monthly Caseload by Calendar Year 14,0001..... ......... ......... . ........... ......... .. ............ 2,535 12,000 ` 0,625 10,000 8,000 •s---�7,997 7,615 6,374 7,033 6,000- 4.000 ,000 4.000 2,000 ; I I. i 1 0 1998 1899 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 Calendar Year Source:Contra Costa County EHSD Discoverer Report CWPO30 Ca1WOPK Case Numbers As indicated in Table 1, the caseload for March 2004 was 7,864, The Safety Net cases show a 90% increase from last year's report. These are the timed out adult (TOA) cases in which the children only are aided, The 909/o increase is reflective of the growing number of our CalWORKS/WtW adults who are reaching their 60- month time limit and who are no longer eligible for aid. The Child Only (Non- WtW) caseload continues to show a steady decline since 2001 when these cases comprised 34%of the total caseload. July 12,2004 6 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Werk Update Table 1 Breakdown of CaIWORKs Caseload as of March 2004 aw . � �► ---- Number Welfare-to-Work. One Parent Family 4,289 54.54% Two Parent Family 450 5,72% Parent in Home and not aided(Non-citizen,fleeing 773 9.83% felon,fraud sanctioned safety Not One Parent Family 302 3,84% Two Parent Family 39 .50°/a Child Only(Non-W" 2,011 25,57% TOTAL 7,81114 100,0100/0 Source: Contra Costa County EHSD Discoverer Report CWP030 CaiWORKS Case Numbers Table 2 below is provided for comparative purposes and reflects average monthly caseload numbers and changes from calendar year 2002 to calendar year 2003 for several ether California counties including the Bay Area Social Services Consortium (BASSC) counties, The Statewide CaiWORKs/WtW caseload reflects an overall increase of 4.5%, All Bay Area counties showed an average monthly caseload increase in 2003, Table 2 /average Monthly CaIWORKs Caseload by Calendar Year-Comparison with BASSC Counties Calendar Year Calendar Year Change sr 2003 Statewide 432,317 451,697 4.57 San Mateo 1,467 2,026, 38.1% San Benito 445 557: 25.1% Santa Clara 10,048 12,1471 213.9°I. Santa Cruz — — 1,357 1>624 19,7°I° Marin 643 759 18.1%:: Sonoma — - 1,969 2,259 ]4.8°I.? Napa 339 388 14.3°!.11 Alameda 14,403 16,295 13.1% Soolano 3,257 3,663 12.5°/. Contra Costa 6,374 7,033 10.36/6 Monterey 3,771 4,145 9.9% Stanisiaus 7,387 8,096 9.61/o San Francisco 5,511, 5,887 6.89/. Source: California Department of Social Services(CUSS)CW 237(Line 12) July 12,20U 7 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Weifore-To-Work Update From July 2003 through May 2004 a total of $ $46,755,266' in CaIWORKs cash payments was made on all CalWORKs cases, This equates to an average monthly payment of $5112 per case. In addition to the approximate $46.7 million cash payments made this past program year (through May), we paid out approximately $1 million in ancillary services and over $2.2 million for transportation services3, The number of CalWORKs applications continues to increase, as has been the case in the lost several years, However, the rate of the increase has slowed, From calendar year 2002 to calendar year 2003, total applications taken increased by 3.4% as compared to 10.3% from calendar year 2001 to 2002. This may reflect the static unemployment rate for Contra Costa County. From 2001 to 2002, the average monthly unemployment rate increased from 3.2% to 5,29x, For 2003 and for the current year, the average monthly unemployment has remained at 5,4%. Table 3 Comparisons of Total ColWORKs Applications by Calendar Year with BASSC Counties F Calendar Year Calendar Year %Change 2002 2003 ,Statewide 453,327 476,201 5.0% Monterey 6,695 7,543 12.711/o Santa Clara 15,871 17,538 10.50 San Benito 760 832, 9.5%1 Stanislaus 9,051 9,797:: Santa Cruz 2.1321 2,295 7.6%:: San Mateo 4,097: 4,380 6.9% ,San Francisco 4,319 4,547 5.3% ::Sonoma 3,205 3,330 3.9% ,Napa 896 930 3.8% Contra Costa 8,131 8,406 3.4% Marin 840 8601 2.4% Alameda 13,337 13,436 0.7% Solan 5,804 5,742, -1.1% Source: California Department of Social Services(CRSS)CW 237(Line 2) Source: CA800 State Claim 213ased on average number of cases active in the month @ 8,318(CA237 State Caseload Report)and average total monthly payments of$4,250,479 3 Source:Contra Costa County EHSD Discoverer Report VVWP027 July 1.2,2304 8 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update The following chart is a composite of the two foregoing tables in comparing Contra Costa with other counties: Table 4 Comparisons of Total CaIWORKs Applications and Average Monthly CoIWORKS Caseload-Percent Change from 2002 to 2003 . Monthly i - ..d Statewide 5.0% ! statewide 4,5% i Monterey 12.7% 1 San Mateo 38.1% Santa Clara 10.5% San Benito 25.1% San Benito 9.5% Santa Clara 20.9% Stanislaus 8.2% Santa Cruz 19.7% Santa Cruz 7.6% Marin 18.1% San Mateo 6.9% Sonoma 14.8% San Francisco 5.31/6 Napa 14.3% Sonoma 3.9% Alameda 13.1% Napa 3.80/0 Solano 12.5% Contra Costa 3.496 Contra Costa 10.30/0 Marin 2.4% Monterey 9.9% Alameda 0.7% Stanislaus 9.6% Solan -i.1% San Francisco 6.8% Source: Author's composite of the two previous charts ♦ CoIW'ORKs1Welfdre-T6-Wdrk The CalWORKs Welfare-to-Work program includes education, training, employment, and supportive services such as childcare and transportation to CalWORKs recipients, Education and training services include job club/job search activities, job development, vocational skills training, and work experience. These services provide participants with necessary skills and support to overcome barriers to employment, With few exceptions, all CalWORKs, adults must meet Welfare-to-Work (WtW) requirements, As the caseload has declined steadily since January 1998, so has the number of adults with a MW requirement. As of May 1, 2004, there were 3,469 CalWORKs adults, of whom 2,483 have a WtW requirement4. Although the average monthly CalWORKs caseload has increased 3% from 2002, the adults with a WtW requirement decreased 4�e. This decrease in the adults with a MW requirement is Indicative of the increase in the number of adults with multiple barriers to employment. 4 Source:CCC EHSD Discoverer Report WWPt754. July 12,20G4 9 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update In April 2004, adults with a WtW requirement were enrolled in 33 different activities with unsubsidized employment accounting for 26,6% of the work activities. The following Chart provides the breakdown for the top ten work activities. Chart2 Top Ten Welfare-to-Work Activities for April 2004 ENGLISH AS SECOND i 1.8% LANGUAGE CAL LEARN EDUCATION 2.$% SUPERVSD JOB SEARCH i 3.61 ORIENTATION 4.3% y MENTAL HEALTH SERVIC d A.5% I LEARNING DISASI TY SERVICES5'Oo i JOB CLUB 6.0% I ASSESSMENT4.7% VOCATIONAL TRAINING 15,5 UNSUBSDiZED EMPLOYM 26,6% -------- 0.0% 5.0% 10.0% 16.0% 20.0% 25.0% 30.0% Source: Contra Costa County EHSD Discoverer Report WWP051.Participant-Work Acflvitles ♦ CalWORKs Child Care Block Grant The purpose of the Child Care Block Grant program is to provide subsidized child care and a wide range of child care options for eligible CaIWORKs children and families living in Contra Costa County, The three stages of CaIW©RKS Child Care are described below; Stade 1 is administered by the California Department of Social Services through the County Social Services Departments, and begins when a participant enters CalWORKs. The Department administers Stage i Child Care, Stage 2 is administered by the California Department of Education (CDE) through the Alternative Payment Program (APR), CalWORKs families are transferred into Stage 2 when they have stabilized in employment (and any other related activities) and have found a child care arrangement that July 12,2004 10 Employment&Human Services Department C aIWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update allows them to fulfill these obligations. CaIWORK5 families are eligible to continue to receive Stage 2 child care for up to 24 months after they leave aid. Stage 2 Child Care is administered in the County by all three Alternative Payment Programs - the Department's APP, the Child Care Council's APP, and PACE-APP. Stage 3 is also administered by CDE, and in Contra Costa County by the Child Care Council and PACE. Families move to this stage when they have exhausted their two-year time limit for child care and continue to meet the CDE needy family eligibility criteria. In April 2004, the Departments specialized child care units, one in each District office, made Stage 1 and Stage 2 child care supportive services payments totaling $892,480, This represents 1,015 families with 1,691 children, a 7% increase in the number of families served. The chart below provides a comparison of the total child care payments and number of families and children served with children and families served in past periods, Table 5 Child Care Payments-EHSLD Child Care Units e Period Monthly Poyment #of Children4 rnffies March 1999 $ 725.884 1,734 996 June 1999 $ 961,350 2, 268 1,299 September 1999 $1,182,371 2,370 1,413 May 2000 $1,128,820 2,432 1,422 April 2001 $ 914,070 2,092 1,119 April 2002 $ 868,452 1,841 996 April 2003 $ 822,023 1,702 941 April 2004 $ 892,480 1,641 1,0315 Source: Contra Costa County EHSD Discover Reports CCP025 and 26 in addition to the above child care payments, in April 2004 the Child Care Council and PACE paid over $13 million for Stage 2 and Stage 3 Child Care, Table 6 Stage 2 and Stage 3 Child Care Payments PACE and Child Care Council for April 2004 4 JIM E : 1' 1� $YYT t1 3 ... ... .. p}yt��p}2 {�1Q7qq ] 3 T 7 j2: : I3 Rdc3sJl.?f" Ci2S; 1r6: . PACE STAGE 2.:: 1 al v2 2142 137 23,3.5 i d"011 795 372 - Source: Child Care Council and PACE July 12,2004 11 Employment&Human Services Department CaWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update ♦ Cal-Learn The Cal-Learn program provides services to CalWORKs pregnant and parenting teens. The goal of the program is to keep teen parents in school until they graduate or to get teen parents back in school for their high school diploma or OED. Teens are eligible to Cal-Learn beginning at any age, providing the teen is pregnant or has a child, Eligibility is also extended to teen fathers who are CalWORKs participants and have a born child. In March 2004 1085 teen parents participated in the Cal-Learn program, which is relatively the same number of teen parents who have been served in Cal-Learn over the past several years. Statewide, over 8,5006 teen parents participated in Cal-Learn. The Department contracts with East Bay Perinatal Council for the operation of the Cal-Learn program. ♦ One Stop Business and Career Centers Since the implementation of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) in July 2000, the Contra Costa One Stop Consortium has been designated the Operator and Direct Services provider for the four Business and Career Centers which comprise the County's One Stop system, The One Stop service delivery system is the primary mechanism for the coordinated delivery of WIA client services. The concept of the One Stop is to integrate the numerous employment and training programs into a single, customer-friendly set of services and governance structures. The integration of programs through the One Stop System includes the Department's Welfare-to-Work and CalWORKs services. The Consortium is comprised of the nine (9) legislatively mandated partners with the Department's Workforce Services Bureau the designated lead. The One Stop Centers provide intensive assessment and job placement assistance, workshops, labor market information, direct training and support, and self-access services for job seekers in the Center's Resource Rooms, Universal job seekers are served at the One Stops as well as those individuals enrolled in WIA and in CalWORKs, A total of 682 WIA adults and dislocated worker clients received services from July 1, 2003 through April 30, 2004, with 8,893 universal jab seekers also receiving services. 5 Source:California Department of Social Services STAT 45 report for March 2004 Line 3. 6 Source:California Department of Social Services STAT 45 report for March 2004 Line 3. July 112,2004 12 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update Services to the employer and business community are also provided through the One Stop system, Employee outreach, screening, and recruitment activities are conducted, including development and placement of job orders, referral and brokering of regional and local services to the employer/business community, and rapid response assistance, Over 1,700 businesses received services through the One Stops during the last year, As a mandated partner and as the lead agency of the Consortium, the Workforce Services Bureau of the Department functionally supervises the Consortium staff, provides CaIWORKs-funded case managers and job developers, and provides other Department-funded support to the One Stop system. July 12,2004 13 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Werk Update PERFORMANCE OS ACHIEVEMENTS Overviews of performance and data in this section are provided in the following program and service areas: Housing Assistance Programs ♦ Transportation Services and Programs ♦ Domestic Violence Services ♦ Client Service Success at the One Stop Business and Career Centers ♦ One Stop Business and Career Center Services to Employers ♦ Learning Disabilities Screening ♦ Project Clean Slate ♦ Welfare-to-Work Outreach Services r Electronic Benefits Transfer(EBT) Substance Abuse and Mental Health (SAMHWORKS)Services Implementation of Quarterly Reporting and Prospective Budgeting Job Placements Average Hourly Wage and Average Weekly Number of Hours at Work Work Participation Rate(WPR) ♦ CalWORKs Cases with Earnings ♦ CalWORKs Grant Savings ♦ Exits Due to Employment ♦ Diversion Payments ♦ Tracking Participants Who Apply for Cash Aid ♦ Housing Assistance Programs As part of the Department's budget balancing efforts, a number of discretionary programs/activities were reduced and in some cases eliminated, In last year's report we indicated that four of the Department's seven funded housing programs would be eliminated in FY 2003-04 due to the loss of TANF Incentive funds. Those programs were the Housing Information and Referral Service; Tenant Housing Counseling Services; Housing Assistance Grant; and the First Time Homebuyer Grant programs. The Department continues to fund, at reduced budgets, three housing assistance programs described as follows: 1. The Relocation Grant Program is a $1,500, once-in-a-lifetime program for qualified participants who have obtained a job or received a documented offer of employment, and need to move closer to work, child care, or public transportation. Families living in temporary situations that are employed and in need of permanent housing are also eligible. The relocation subsidy may be used for moving expenses, such as July 12,2004 14 Employment&Human Services Department CoWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update moving truck rental, and utility and security deposits. The program, which began on October 1, 2001 and is administered by the Department, has served 51 clients as of May 28, 2004 at an average grant of $1,390. 2. The Emergency Assistance Grant Program is a $1,500, once-in-a-lifetime program to prevent the loss of housing due to financial hardship, not for lease violations, This assistance covers up to two months of rent arrearages or $1,500, whichever is less. The program which is administered directly by the Department began on February 1, 2902, and has served 11 families at an average grant of $1,325. 3. The Transitional Support Grant urogram is a $1,500, once-in-a-lifetime program for eligible families exiting publicly-funded transitional housing programs to access permanent housing (including the cost of moving). This program, operated directly by the Department, became operational on February 1, 2002. As of May 28, 2004, the program has served 5 families at$1,500 per grant. ♦ Transportation Services and Programs Because the lack of or accessibility to transportation presents formidable barriers to employment for our clients, we have continued several transportation programs as described below. 1. Children's Transportation Project provides transportation (buses) to school or child care for the children of CalWORKs clients, This service is designed to help remove the transportation barrier CalWORKs clients face while employed or in training by directly transporting their children to school or child care, This contracted bus program expanded countywide in September of 2001, providing for eight (8) vehicles operating from 6:00 a.m. until 6;00 p.m., Monday through Friday; four in West County, one in Central County, and three in East County. However, due to budget reductions for FY 2004-05, the number of vehicles has been reduced from 8 to 5 by eliminating 2 vehicles in West County and 1 in East County. The reductions will impact 11-13 families primarily in West County, The Children's Transportation Project is operated through a contract with MV Transportation, Inc. An average of 100 children are being transported to school or child care on a daily basis. With the reduction in vehicles, we anticipate that we will be able to serve approximately 65 children per day. 2. "Rides To Success" or RTS Project provides same-day, demand-response, employment-related transportation service for CalWORKs participants, The project was implemented in September 2001, July 12,2004 15 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Werk Update The primary purpose of the program is to assist clients with immediate, short-term transportation solutions for interviews, employment, and training, until they can transition to a longer-term solution (transit, car pool, vanpool, or personal automobile). The RTS shuttles also provide a feeder service to existing transit lines for clients residing at a distance from fixed route service, The secondary purpose of the program is to provide emergency transportation once the client's long-term transportation solution has been implemented. Due to funding cutbacks, in FY 200304 Rides to Success has reduced from running 5 vehicles countywide during peak weekday hours to running 4 vehicles. In addition, weekend and evening services have been eliminated. In spite of these reductions, this service continues to provide an average of 700 to 800 rides per month for CaIWORKs participants. This service also provides employment-related rides to WIA clients at the One Stop Business and Career Centers and to foster youth involved in the Independent Living Skills Program. Like the Children's Transportation Project, Rides to Success has been operated under contract with MV Transportation, Inc. 3. KEYS Auto Loan Program. The KEYS Auto Loan Program is the latest in an effort to develop a menu of options for case managers to use in selecting the most appropriate employment transportation choice for participants. KEYS is an acronym for "Keeping Employment Equals Your Success." The first KEYS loans were approved in January 2003, and as of June 1, 2004, 23 participants have received auto loans. The KEYS Auto Loan Program provides low interest auto loans to help CalWORKs participants, including those on retention services, to purchase a vehicle, The maximum dollar loan amount is $4,000 with a two-year term, This auto loan program targets those participants for whom an automobile is the only practical means of transportation to employment, and who would otherwise not be able to obtain an auto loan. A Loan Review Committee using several criteria, the most important being the participant's ability to repay the loan, evaluates loan applications, Participants who are selected to receive an auto loan are assisted in the selection of a vehicle to purchase, and are required to complete a personal budgeting session and a short course on automobile maintenance responsibilities. Selected vehicles must pass an auto diagnostic test and be approved by the Auto Loan Coordinator, The KEYS Auto Loan Program operates as a partnership between EHSD and the Contra Costa Federal Credit Union (FCU). EHSD has deposited funds in an account with Contra Costa FCU to serve as a loan guarantee in the event a loan defaults. July 12,2004 16 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update The KEYS Auto Loan Program is also supported by a "LIFT" (Low-income Flexible Transportation) Grant through the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, The LIFT Grant increased the size of the KEYS loan guarantee fund and pays a portion of the Auto Loan Coordinator's salary, Initial results from follow-up surveys of the recipients of KEYS Auto Loans indicate that owning a reliable car has enabled them to stabilize their employment and improve the quality of their family life, The first recipient to pay off her loan stated that her income increased by over $3 per hour while participating in KEYS. Domestic Violence Services Because issues surrounding domestic abuse present significant barriers for our clients, in 20101 we entered into a formal contract with STAND! to provide for full- time, on-site domestic Violence liaisons at each of the department's four district offices. The STAND! liaisons continue to provide direct domestic violence intervention and safety services to our clients as well as capacity building, technical assistance and consultation to our staff: The liaisons assist with assessments, as appropriate, and give presentations on domestic violence at client orientations and job clubs. Through STANDI's services, staff has become more sensitive to domestic violence issues and are better able to identify clients who qualify for Welfare-to- Work waivers because of domestic violence in their lives. For the current program year, STAND! has consulted with 649 clients in addition to making presentations in Job Club and at Orlientatlon. Table 7 STAND!Statistics for the Period 711103-4130104 East, s and West County Number of Client Consultations 649 Total Staff Consultations 553 Total Presentations 115 Total Number of Job Club Presentations 32 Job Club Participants 440 Orientations 90 Orientation Pcxrticloants 771 juiy 12,2004 17 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update ♦ Client Service Success at the One Stop Business and Career Centers The One Stop Centers continue to achieve noteworthy success. Much of this success is attributable to collaboration and direction of the core partners comprising the Contra Costa One Stop Consortium, the hard work and dedication of the One Stop Center staff, and the leadership of the Contra Costa County Workforce Development Board, While the table below reflects a slight decrease in April of 2004 from the previous year in the average number of new universal customers served, it is important to note that this number is derived from the EASTBAYWorks SmartWare tracking system. The figure does not include the new universal clients served at Contra Costa County's new offillate site, the EDD Pleasant Hill office, as the site has not yet been connected to SmartWare. If the new universal clients served at the Pleasant Hill affiliate site were included, the April 2004 number would be higher than the 986 customers reflected for April 2003, Table 8 One Stop Universal Customers and Usage --------------------------- April April April 2002 20031 .2004 1 Change ------------ Average# of New universai customers per 786 986 890 -10% month Average One Stop Usage 1,267 1,848 1,957 6% per Week source: Contra Costa county EHSD As of April 2004, over 8,900 job seekers accessed services through the One Stops,and total customer visits through April 2004 exceeded 78,326. The following chart represents the successful achievement of client enrollments for WIA adults and Dislocated Workers. This chart compares the actual number of client enrollments(as of April 30, 2004)to planned April goals, Table 9 One Stop Client Enrollments by Program (April 2004) Actual %of A ci�al�td-- Number Planned April Planned Client Enrollment by Program Enrolled Enrollments Annual Goal— --------------------------------- WIA Adults 164 178 92% WIA Dislocated Workers 163 135 121% TOTAL 327 313 104% source:Contra Costa County EHSD Juiy 12,2004 18 Employment&human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update The success of the One Stop Business and Career Center system is also determined to the degree the eight (8) WIA-established Department of Labor Performance Measures are met, The following information reflects the most recent information received from the State Employment Development Department (EDD) on our success in meeting and exceeding these performance measures. Table 10 WIA Performance Outcomes(Final PY 2002-U3) ----------------- Negotiated Actual Wofker Measure Pefformance Pettorrrwnco Group Level --Leve'l Entered Adults 71% 84.7% Exceeded Employment Dislocated 7 i% Rate Workers 86.0% Exceeded Adults 81% 83.3% Exceeded Retention Rote Dislocated $8% $$. '% Met Workers Eamings Adults $3,666 $4,044 Exceeded Replacement ment in Six Dislocated 88% monftWorkers 81.50/0 Met Employment& Adults 50% 56.7% Exceeded— Cr a entiat Attainment Dislocated 45 0 Workers 49.3% Exceeded Source: Workforce investment Act Annual Deport Note: "Met"means an Actual Performance Level of 80%or higher of the Negotiated Performance Level Below is a comparison of the primary U, S. Department of Labor performance measure outcomes for counties with similar dollar allocations. Table 11 Comparisons of Performance Measures for WIA Adults WIA Entered A . Retention County Served county ------ Rate County Rate Contra Costa 454 Contra Costa 84.7% Santa Cruz 86.7°k City of Oakland 370 i Alameda 81,4% Solano 84.710 i Santa Cruz 348 Santa Cruz 761% Contra Costa 83.3% I Aameda 306 Solano 74.3% I City of Oakland 74,7% Solano 202 City of Oakland 72.5% Alameda 73.7% ?uly 12,2004 19 Employment&Human Services Department CaIWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update Table 12 Comparisons of Performance Measures for WIA Dislocated Workers ----------------------------------------------- Workers Employmont R . - - '« San Mateo 854 Contra Costa 86.0% City of Oakland 91.2% Santa Cruz 505 San Mateo 85.x?% Solano 792% City of Oakland 366 i Solano 82.8% Contra Costa 85.90/0 Contra Costa 348 City of Oakland 81.91/6 N.Valley Consortium 75.3% N.Valley Consortium 276 i N.Valley Consortium 80.2% Santa Cruz 85.6% Solano 216 Santa Cruz 79.29 San Mateo 89.2% ♦ One Stop Business and Career Center Services to Employers Services to the business/employer community at and through the One Stop Center system were developed and commenced in program year 2001-2002. The Business Services Team comprised of the Consortium's Business Service Representatives, CalWORKS ,lob Developers and the CaIWORKs Business Services Manager offer basic and customized workforce solutions for businesses and organizations throughout Contra Costa County, The primary charge of the Business Services Team is to deliver the 14 core business services as called for under the County's WIA strategic plan. Our employer services target the two primary categories of business service/resource, and staffing assistance. Our Business Service Representatives are responsible for business services/resource and the job development team is responsible for staffing assistance. Business Service/Resources includes business consultation, business-to-business referrals, workshops and seminars for the business person, Labor Market Information, permit and licensing information, conference and meeting space, customized training programs, economic development, financing resources, and, of course, free resource information in many categories. Staffing Assistance includes promotion of job openings, personalized recruitment events, tax credit and hiring incentive assistance, expansion, attraction and retention services, and providing interviewing facilities. Over 1,700 employers have received business services over the past year. These employers fell into the nine (9) industry clusters of professional/scientific and technical, transportation/warehousing, education, accommodation and food service, retail, health care, finance/insurance/real estate, administrative support and information, and personal care/repair services and nonprofits July 12,200-4 20 Employment&Human Services department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update Some of the companies using our services include but are not limited to Sizzler, HydroChem, Safeway, Kelly Services, Dynamic Office Solutions, Comcast, Contra Costa Newspaper, UPS, YMCA Eldercare, Loomis, Tony Roma's, World Financial, P.G.&E„ Grace Bakery, Brinks Armored Car, Diversified Personnel, Los Medanos College, Randstad, Placement Pros, Nightingale Nursing, Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Resource Pius, Sojourne, Macy's, and various retail stores. We have also formed a partnership with the Contra Costa Times. The CaIWORKs Job Developers have responded to over 800 employers. We have streamlined distribution lists to ensure that postings make it to all 14 One- Stops, our partners, local CBOs, and other contacts as requested. The job developers work closely with CalWORKs clients providing guidance on job requirements and expectations, and providing mock interviews, On a limited basis they provide paper and direct employee/employer screenings. • Recruitments: Job Developers have setup and arranged approximately 75 employee recruitments over the past year. Many of the companies are repeat users of our One Stop System because they are satisfied with the job seekers that show up and apply. Recruitments may range from small (10 applicants) to large (over 100), Larger recruitments have seen companies using our services for several days, The business staff and partners provide full support to these events making them pleasurable for the job seeker and the employer. The CalWORKs job developers also assist with job fairs. • Collaborations: The CalWORKs job developers additionally network with our partnering CBOs to share Job leads and presentations as requested. We have assisted John Swett High School with their senior interviewing day, responded to requests from Sojourne for their youth, supported North Richmond Youthbuild, and more. We have a special partnership with the Concord Police Department. Victims of domestic violence are referred to one contact on our team. The coils are responded to immediateiy and the women receive one-on-one job placement assistance, Some are CoIWORKs and some are universal clients. We have a special project with Concord Police Department called MUEVAS. This group targets Spanish-speaking women and meets monthly to provide employment information and other support information. s Learning Disabilities Screening Since implementing Learning disabilities Screenings in April of 2002, ail CalWORKs Welfare-to-Work participants agreeing to be screened have received this service, We continue to offer this service to all new CaIWORKs applicants, These learning need screenings are invaluable for staff to better identify barriers and develop self-sufficiency plans most suitable for our clients. Since implementing Learning Disabilities Screening, 3,681 CalWORKs participants have received this services July;2,2iN, 21 Employment&Human Services Department CaIWORKS/Welfare-To-Work Update Those clients preliminarily determined through the screenings to have a learning disability are referred to one of the Bureau's Assessment and Intensive Services (AIS) Units where a Senior Employment Specialist (Social Worker) completes a more thorough assessment and evaluation, Clients are then referred to a licensed practitioner for further evaluation. Of the 3,681 CaIWORKs participants who were screened, approximately 32% were found to have a possible learning disability and were referred to the AIS Unit, For those clients determined to have a special learning need, various service providers Q,e, the Adult Schools and private, non-profit or for-profit organizations) are under contract to provide further diagnostic testing, assessments, and education, Rubicon and ARC are also under contract to provide supported work and specialized job placements, CalWORKs participants who are confirmed to have learning needs may also have their Welfare-to-Work time clocks and plans adjusted to accommodate their individual situations, Table 13 Learning Disabilities Referrals '♦ y Agreed to be Screening Exempt from District Screened Pending Screening Refused Total AN770CH 1,669 15 357 605 2,646 BAYPOINT 60 0 10 21 91 HERCULES 487 9 293 526 1,315 MARTINEZ 818 21 258 197 1,294 NORTH RICHMOND 39 1 1 20 61 RICHMOND 608 18 49 375 1,050 District Total 3,681 65 705 953 6,457 Source: Contra Costa County FSHD Discoverer Report W WP018 Future reports will reflect annualized comparisons of clients screened for disabilities including the type of activities in which these clients are engaged. ♦ Project Clean Slate Because past criminal records can be formidable barriers to the employment and career advancement of our clients, Project Clean Slate was implemented on September 1, 2001 as a contracted service with the Public Defenders Office. Project Clean Slate assists our CoIWORKS clients (as well as both the County and City of Richmond's WIA clients) in reducing or expunging past criminal records or convictions, For calendar year 2003, 104 participants benefited from this service. july 12,2004 22 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Weifare-To-Work Update ♦ Welfare-to-Work Outreach Services Our Outreach Services Units continue to make home visits/contacts with clients when the clients are in danger of being sanctioned for non-cooperation with Welfare-to-Work requirements. The Outreach Units are located in the Antioch, Martinez and Richmond District offices. The Outreach Units continue to have an impressive cooperation rate for participants. Since January 2000 when Outreach began, 89% of the participants, on the average„ have agreed to cooperate after meeting with one of our Outreach workers. Table 14 Outreach Deferrals Numberof ,. Numberi Percent who Numberof Participants ♦i....e.i to refused to ;• _v...•-to 1��me Period Referrals Contacted cooperate cooperate cp�!P 2070 1,980 1,346 1,085 258 81% 2007 3,2997 1,625 1,409 216 87% 2002 3,757 1,958 1,771 187 900/0 2003 3,336 1:843 1,743 100 959'0 Jan-Mar 2004 851 413 372 41 90%, TOTAL 13,221 7,185 6,383 802 89% Source:Contra Costa County EHSD internal Report At the point of outreach, we gather statistics on the reasons why clients are not cooperating with their Welfare-to-Work requirements: These findings have been used to assist us in modifying and enhancing our service delivery operations in order to remove barriers to cooperation and employment. Table 15 Top Four Reasons for Failing to Cooperate 20M Child Care Issues 18.0 20:13 Miscellaneous reasons 169 Participant already working 15.2 Other Good Cause*for not 15.5 c000eratlna discovered. Medical/Physical problem 14.9 Already Working 15.4 Miscellaneous reasons 12.1 Medical/Physical Issues 11.5 2001 Other Good Cause*for not19.0 Jan-Mar Miscellaneous reasons 18.3 i-nnr'Arr4ffnn rflCr`rw grAri iL004 Other Good cause*for not 15:3 Participant already working 18.0 cooceratina discovered. Miscellaneous reasons 15.0 Medical/Physical Issues 14.0 Medical/Physical problem 13.7 Already Working 11,4 2002 Participant already working 18,8 j Medical Physical problem 16.0 Miscellaneous reasons 15.0 Child Care Issues 11.8 Source: Contra costa County EHSD internal Report July 12,M, 23 Employment&Human Services Department CaIWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update Miscellaneous reasons, other good cause for not cooperating, medical/physical issues, and the client is working continue to be the major reasons for non- cooperation. Miscellaneous reasons include: only aided child will turn 18 and case will be closed; the other parent in the home is meeting the required work participation hours; the participant has moved out of county or out of state; the participant forgot she had a scheduled appointment with her Employment Specialist. Other good cause for not cooperating includes: death of a family member; sick child to care for; participant is incarcerated; participant has legal problems that require community service; attending to child's behavior problems with the school or the juvenile system. ♦ Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) Implemented in December 2002, Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) issues cash benefits and food stamps electronically to a client's personalized account. Clients access their cash and food stamps using a debit card which looks identical to an ATM card, Approximately 98% of our current CaIWORKs clients receive their benefits through EBT. Remoteness is the only acceptable exemption from EBT, As of May 2004, there were 231 businesses countywide that accepted the EBT card. Businesses include Safeway, Albertson's, Walgreen's, Quik Stops and local markets in addition to U,S. Post Offices, Clients can also access their benefits through 520 ATMs throughout the county. r Substance Abuse and Mental Health (SAMHWORKS) Services We continue to refer participants to the SAMHWORKS (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services for CalWORKs) program which is operated by the Health Department through various individual service providers. SAMHWORKS referrals are now primarily new applicants to CalWORKs and applicants who are referred as a result of the Learning Disabilities Screening, Additionally, many of our CalWORKs clients access and receive SAMHWORKS services other than by direct staff referral, In calendar year 2003, referrals increased 61% averaging 51 referrals per month. This trend continues into calendar year 2004 with monthly referrals at 55. In last year's report we projected the increase in referrals for 2003 and we believed that the increase was due to our full implementation of the Learning Disabilities Screening, We have found that many of our clients with special learning needs are also diagnosed with a mental health or substance abuse issue. We are also seeing an increasing number of CalWORKs clients with mental health and/or substance abuse related barriers to employment. July 12,2004 24 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update Table 16 SANtHWORKS Referrals %w o - .a- 4 Calendar Year 2;� 1,031 86 Calendar Year 2001 528 44 Calendar Year 2002 377 31 Calendar Year 2003 604 51 January-March 2004 166 55 Source-Heath Services SAMHWORKS Quarterly report ♦ Implementation of Quarterly Deporting and Prospective Budgeting Quarterly Reporting/Prospective Budgeting (QR/PB) was successfully implemented in June 2004. QR/PB drastically alters how and when clients report changes and how their monthly cash grants and food stamps are calculated. Under QR/PB, clients send in one income report per quarter rather than monthly, Except for some specific instances, most changes need only be reported on the quarterly income report, The Eligibility Worker uses the information from the quarterly report to prospectively determine the cash grant for the following three months, Given that QR/PB regulations prevent the Eligibility Worker from acting on changes that clients report other than through the Quarterly Report and that there is a delay in taking action on formally reported information until the following quarter, we expect QR/PB will have an impact on our overall performance outcomes, As such, we will closely monitor our performance to determine the degree and type of performance impact, s Jona Placements In addition to individual case management, CalWORKs participants receive employment and job placement services through Job Club and Job Search and through our job developers and business services at the One Stops, With necessary budget constraints in PY 2004-05, we are required to recommend the discontinuance of CaIWORKs-funded job development/retention services (as a discretionary service) which are provided by our job developers, Our goal is to leverage available WIA funds to continue to support these efforts, The following chart, Chart 3, is provided for comparative purposes and reflects all Bay Area CaIWORKs/WtW 2003 job placements by individual county, Particularly noteworthy are the numbers of job placements achieved during this period for Contra Costa County. We actually achieved the highest placement July.2,2W4 25 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update rate based on the number of job placements as a percent of the total caseload. Future reports will reflect a comparison of counties' job placements as a percent of their total CoIWORKS/WtW caseload, Chart 3 Comparisons of Job Placements with BASSC Counties for Calendar Year 2003 .................. San B-110 Q 38 Napa �..'.''..'..�.'.. 123 San Mateo 219 Merin 287 Monterey : 556 !i i Santa Ctuz }:: :C: 562 SWto<[>a f.:: ::.):::?::Swww:is :i::::i::::i::iiii::?:iiiYi::jT 6W Sen=ranci� 787 sdano s: :<: 742 � Alameda ;;: 2,143 i Staniafaue <: . SS• 2 1 74 ....•. Contra Costa . 2 346 Santa^f 631 ..afa 2 0 567 1,000 1,500 2,CO 2.500 3,000 .tali Placements for 20M Source:WTM5 and W1W25A CRSS Monthly Reports for 200.3. In past reports, job placements as a percent of WtW CaIWORKs participants were declining steadily which was interpreted as further evidence that the CaIWORKs caseload is increasingly multi-barriered. With this report, the trend is somewhat stabilizing with an actual increase of 19,604 from the period September through December 2003, We will continue to track job placements to determine if this trend will continue and if it is an indication that the economy is improving, providing a strengthened job market for our clients. July 12,2004 26 .................................................... Employment&Human Services Department CaWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update Chart 4 Job Placements as a Percentage of the Total CalWORKs WtW Participants 7000 T 30.00% Z t 6000 - 25.00% Q. 5000 -- 20.00% 5t CC 4000 -- 0 15.00% 3000 - 0 10.00% 2000 -- 1000 5.000/0 E as 0FL 0.00% -0 0 SZ, C6 C3 C� S�' O(Y 10111 0 0 11=11111 Total Number of CaIWORK WTW Participants ---*--Job Placements as%of CalWORKS Participants Source:Contra Costa County EHSD Composite Uscoverer Reports Average Hourly Wage and Average Weekly Number of Hours at Work For the period June 2003 through May 2004, Ca1WORKs participants, at job placement, averaged 29.29 hours per week and earned on average of $9.57 per hour (equates to $1,214 per month'). This represents the highest earnings yet achieved by out Co[WORKs clients. The monthly average income based on the average hours per week at work continues to be below the U.S. poverty threshold of $1,3068 per month for the 29.29 hours per week x $9.57 per hour x 4.33 =$1,213.72 per month.If the participant is working 40 hours per week the average monthly Income is$1,657.52 per month,which is above the U.S.Poverty Threshold, 8 U.S,Department of Health and Human Services,Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation,The 2004NHS Poverty Guidelines February '14,2004 http://cispe,os.dhhs.gov/poverty/03poverty,htm July 12,2004 27 Employment&Human Services Department CaIWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update typical CaIWORKs family consisting of a single parent and two children. The California Budget Project estimates that a single parent family (one adult and two children) needs to earn $29.809 per hour to achieve a modest standard of living in the Bay Area. Our continuing challenge, with shrinking resources, is to place participants in jobs with career advancement and with a potential for increased earnings. Moving participants to self-sufficiency, not just to a job, requires more intensive case management and follow-up employment services. Unfortunately job placement, retention, and follow-up services are a few of the only discretionary services provided for under CaIWORKs. With our reduced budget for the 2004-05 program year, we are required to reduce these services and establish stronger and more formal linkages with other resources and agencies/systems providing these job enhancements, Table 17 Average Hourly Wage, Hours Worked, Monthly income Average Weekly Average Average Number of Hours Monthly Time Period Hourly Wo ge at Work Incom ----------- ----------- August 7 999-December 7 999 $795 29,22 $1,006 January 2000-May 2000 $8.18 29,71 $1,052 June 2000-May 2001 $8,65 30.67 $1,149 June 200 7 -May 2002 $9.10 31,48 $1,240 June 2002-May 2003 $9,19 30.02 $1,191 June 2003-May 2004 $9.57 29,29 $1,214 Source: CCC EHSD Discoverer Report WWP006,job Piacernen7A_verage wage The distribution of job placements by wage range has been fairly consistent since September 2000. In calendar year 2002 there was a significant shift to job placements in the $7.00 to $9.99 per hour range with a correlating decrease in the lower end jobs. For calendar year 2003, there is a slight drop for this wage range, CaIWORKs families continue to have considerable economic ground to traverse to reach self-sufficiency, Table 18 Wage Ranges Calendar Calendar Calendar as Range Year 2001 Year 2W2 Year20031 ----- $6.991Hour or Less 23% 14% 15% $ZOO to $9.991Hour 44% 51% 491/6 $7 0.00 to$17-99IHour 18% 17% 190/0 $72.00/Hour or More 14% 18% 17% Source: CCC EHSD Discoverer Report VAIVWP003,Job Placements Wage Ranges. Making Ends Meet: How Much Does it Cost to Raise a family in California",California-Budget Proiect On-line posting,October 2003,<http://www.cbp.org> July 12,2004 28 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update s Work Participation mate (WPR) The WPR is a federal mandate requiring a certain percentage of our families to meet minimum weekly work hours, As of October 2001, 50% of our one-parent families should be working or in some other approved work activity for 30 hours per week, and 909o' of our two-parent families should be working or in some other approved work activity for 35 hours per week, We are currently meeting our mandated WPR target when the State's methodology for applying the caseload reduction creditSO is applied to our actual average monthly WPR rate for One-Parent households (with no active child under the age of b) and to our Two-Parent households: Meeting the WPR continues to be a challenge for us and other Counties, ♦ GaiWORKs uses with Earnings As of April 1, 2004, 1,066 families or 16.05% of all CayWORKs families have earnings, The current rate for two-parent families is 44,88% or 202 families. For the period June 2003 through April 2004, our CalWORKs families reported earnings in excess of $13:500,000. Table 19 ':uses with Earnings ------------ a • CorWORKs . .f All Two-Parent CaIWORKs Families with CaIWORKsTwo-parent - • itNTH Earnin9SFamilies --- Families December 1998 3,202 27,40% 609 53.42010 July 1999 2,898 273% 550 55.3% December 7999 2,903 30,98% 482 64,70% May 2000 2,711 2975% 427 55,59% May 200 7 1,909 25.13% 325 65% May 2002 1,494 20b6010 266 59.78% May 2003 1,329 18.02% 191 41.61% April 2004 1,066 16,0510 202 44.88`36 Source: Cont;a Costa County EHSD Discoverer Report CWPO24 Cases with Earnings and Grant Savings For the month of April 2004, our CalWORKs families reported total earnings of $1,113,22411. With a larger percentage of hard-to-serve participants, fewer CalWORKs clients with WtW requirements, and the stabilization of the job placement rate, there has been a correlate decrease in overall CalWORKs earnings. 10 The Work Participation Rate targets are a set number.Federal regulations allow for a reduction in the WPR target based on a reduction in the Mate's caseload.This calculation is made at the State and Federal level.It recognizes that as the caseloads decline,we will have a higher percentage of hard to serve participants. 1 Source:Contra Costa County EHSD Discoverer Report CWP00l. .my 12,2004 29 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update ♦ CaIWORKs Grant Savings For the period June 2003 through April 2004, our total grant savings were $3,720,192, a 31/o decrease from lost year's report and an average monthly grant savings decrease of 3% to $338,199. In last year's report we showed a 25% decrease from 2002 to 2003. Although the grant savings continue to show a decrease, 30/o is significantly lower than the percent decrease reported lost year. The slight decrease in grant savings from last year (but not at the level of the preceding year's decrease) is in all likelihood indicative of the increase in the caseload, the leveling of job placements, and decreased earnings, As with all the previous performance measures, we will continue to monitor grant savings for 2004-05, Chart 5 Earnings Reported and Grant Savings on CoIWORKs Cases $8,000A0 T*--------------------------------------------------------- --------------- ....... ..... $7,000,000 - $6,000,000 - $5,000,0"00 - $4,000,000 - $3,000,000 - $2,000,0"00 - $1,000,000 WO e (P QP P (P 0� 3.0 spl��Jb o� 15) A- =I Earnings reported —4-"Grant Swings Source:Contra Costa County EHSD Discoverer Report CWPO24 Cases with Earnings and Grant Savings Exits Due to Employment Although we are now experiencing an increase in our Cc1WORKs caseload, there has been a decrease in the number of clients with a Welfare-to-Work requirement, We expect this trend to continue and for exits due to employment to fluctuate generally within the some levels as reflected in the chart below. It is important to note that only those clients exiting due to employment of which our staff has been formally notified are included in this performance indicator. There are many situations where a participant is discontinued from cash old for some other reason, such as failing to meet a Welfare-to-Work requirement or not July 12,2004 30 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Weffore-To-Work Update sending in the income report when, in fact, the participant was working, We estimate that a significant number of families leave aid each month because they have obtained employment, Statistics from our Outreach Units indicate that 11.4% of participants who failed to cooperate with their WtW requirement and were in danger of being sanctioned were already working. Chart 6 Exits from Cash Aid Due to Employment 600 - 520 450 X. 411 402 400 ... .... .... .... .... .... ..... ..... .... .... _:i... a... .... 340 335 315 303 299 310 313 316 :X' xx. ..X ... ... ... .. .... .... .... .... .... .... ... ... ... ... .... ... .. ... ... ... ... ... .. .... .... .... .... .... .... ... 20^ .... .... ... ... ... .. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .. .... ... ... ... ... .. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .... ... .. .. .. ... .. ... .... ... ... ... ... ... .. .. .. .... .... .... ... .... .... ... ... .. ..... .. ... ... ... ... .. .. ... ... ... .... ... ... ... .... ... ... .. .. .... ... ... .. ... .... ... ... ....... ... 01 113� Cie Source-,Contra Costa County Discoverer-Report CWPO22 Exits Due to Employment Future reports will reflect exits due to employment as a percentage of the total caseload. As indicated in the chart below, compared to other BASSC Counties, we ranked fifth in the number of exits due to employment in calendar year 2003. Future reports for comparisons with other counties will reflect exits due to employment as a percentage of the total caseload, Chart 7 Comporlson with BASSC Counties of Exits from Cash Aid Due to Employment . ..... _._,........I ...................... .................... ................................................................................... -San Benito 61 Napa M75 Marin =88 Monterey 339 San Mateo 4J 5 St anislaus P74 Sonoma .",...... .............. 806 Santa Cruz 1,093 Contra Costa r ............ 1,123 San Franclace ...... 1,277 Ala moda ................ M3 1,666 Solano ...... ..... .11,804 Santa Clara 2,139 0 500 1,000 1,500 2,000 2,600 Exits due to Employment for Calendar Year 2003 Source:WT 26 and VVrW25A CIDSS Monthly Reports for 2003, July 12,2004 31 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update * Diversion Payments The Diversion Program offers a single lump sum payment to otherwise eligible CalWORKs families to stabilize each individual family's situation and to help these families avoid coming on aid. Emergency housing accounts for 77%12 of Diversion payments, From May 2003 through April 2004, 31 cases were diverted at Intake at an amount totaling$33,251.81, or an average of$1,072.64 per case. * Tracking Participants Who Apply for Cash Aid Since April 2000, we have been gathering monthly statistics on reasons people apply for cash aid. For calendar year 2003, data was gathered for 3,974 applicants. Forty-nine percent (49%) of the applicants had never been on aid before, and 511/o (2,027) had been on aid in the past 36 months. The percentage of applicants never on aid before continues to increase while the percentage of applicants who are off of old 12 months or less is decreasing. A breakdown of the 2,027 applicants' length of time off of old before re- application is as follows: Table 20 Length of Time Off Aid at Application - .. Year TIME OFF OF AID 2001 2002 2003 -------------- Never on aid 42.73% 45.53% 49.12% Off old for less than 12 months 45.36% 40.83/a 36.411% Off aid more than 12 months but less than 24 9.03/O 10.51% 8.48% month Off old more than 24 month but less than 36 2XV/6 3.13% 3.9916 months. TOTAL ioo.w/. 100.00% 100.00/* Source: Contra Costa County EHSDF internal Report-Tracking Reasons for Aid 12 Source:CCC EHSD Discoverer Report CWP206, Diversion Statistical Report. July 12,2004 32 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORM/Welfare-To-Werk Update We track 40 possible reasons for applying for aid, The top three reasons are: Table 21 Reasons for Applying for Aid - o REASON FOR APPLYING FOR CASH ASSISTANCE 2001 2002 2003 Family Separation 15.96% 18.12% 21.25% Job loss 26.27% 16.590ic 16.67% Relocation to Contra Costa from other 17.80% 19.000/0 20,01% counties states and countries Source: Contra Costa County EHSDF Internal Report-Tracking Reasons for Ad 'dote:"Examples of the other 35 reasons Include:Illness,filed for other benefits and awaifsng approval;UIB or SDI is exhausted;death of caretaker. Family separation, job loss, and relocation continue to be the top three reasons for applying for aid. Job loss, which was the primary reason for applying for aid in 2001, was the third top reason in 2003 perhaps indicative of the upturn in the economy. However, family separation continues to increase since 2001 and was the primary reason for applicants applying for aid in 2003. We believe that economic security fosters stronger families and expect that as the economy improves families would not have the added strain of financial hardships and would be better able to remain intact. The data above questions that assumption and leads us to believe that it is necessary to explore and provide family strengthening interventions as diversions/preventions to family separation and additional financial hardship, July 12,2004 33 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update ITCAL SERVICE DELIVERY ISSUES AND CHALLENGES ♦ Uncertain CoIWORKs Budget, Lass of Funding and Reduction in Services At the writing of this report, the current budgetary situation for FY 2004-05 remains uncertain and the State budget has not yet been adopted, However, given the budget situation at the local level and what we expect will happen at the State level, we have proposed reductions in CalWORKs discretionary programs and in programs where there is a county dollar overmatch, While all of the proposed reductions impact clients, our approach in reducing discretionary and overmatch programs was to look at areas that would be the least impactive to clients. Table 22 Funding Sources Comparison for Prior and Current Fiscal Year ---- Source FY------------------- Expected r2004105 % Change Ca1W0 RKs Allocation $ 43,051,837 $ 43,643,453 1.390 TANF Incentives $ 0 $ 0 0,0% WIA $ 2,433,705 $ 1,002,535* -58,8% TOTAL $ 45,485,542 $ 44,645,988 -1.8% * WIA budget for FY2004-05 is for July 1,2004 through December 31, 2004 due to the RFP issued by Workforce Development Board. The Bureau/Department will continue to be engaged in the following major projects and activities in the coming program year, These activities and projects will require considerable time and will have a significant impact on current operations, during a period of considerably less funding and staff resources, ♦ CalWORKs Cost of Living Adjustments ♦ Implementing the Governor's Proposed CaIWORKs Policy Changes ♦ TANF Reauthorization activities + Continuing to Serve Clients with Disabilities a Ongoing Service Delivery and Staffing Challenges ♦ Reducing Job Development, ,lob Retention and Career Advancement in CalWORKs ♦ Continuing Actions to Time Out CalWORKs Adults (TOA) ♦ Planning and Implementation of CaIWIN ♦ WIA Reauthorization and Response to the Workforce Development Board's One Stop Operator Request for Proposal (RFP) As in past years, we will continue to be involved in ongoing budgetary and service planning sessions, which include evaluation of our contracted services, our staffing levels and service delivery system, and services to clients. July 72,2004 34 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update We have been specifically monitoring staffing levels and filling only those positions with essential functions, We have been evaluating our contract services and client supportive services from an effectiveness and budgetary standpoint. These efforts have also encompassed the identification of other existing grant or new funding sources as well as investigating existing and new opportunities for collaboration as a means to leverage our dwindling resources. a CaIWORKs Cost of Living Adjustments The May Revise suspended CalWORKs Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA)for July 2004 and October 2004 and further proposed a 51Y. reduction in CalWORKs cash grants. Also pending is the October 2003 COLA, which is being litigated, The outcome of this litigation may require us to go back to identify who was on aid in October 2003 and make the retroactive COLA increase. ♦ Governor's Proposed CalWORKs Policy Changes The Governor's May Revise budget includes several CalWORKs program changes that on the face are intended to save cash aid but will, in reality, result in additional work for staff, The changes include; • Requiring proof of job search at intake as a condition of granting cash aid • Ensuring clients are participating in 20 hours of core work activities a week within 60 days of being granted cash aid • Applying an additional 259' grant reduction for sanctioned adults who do not comply with their Welfare-to-Work activities within 30 days of being sanctioned • Reducing Safety Net grants by 25% when the timing out adult is not employed s TANF Reauthorization TANF Reauthorization which was to have occurred in October 2002 is still pending. Congress has extended the current TANF legislation through September 2004, H,R, 4 was passed in the House in 2003, and S. 5 was introduced in February 2003. S:5 remains in committee, The issues of most concern with this proposed legislation continue to be; • requiring participants to be engaged in Welfare-to-Work activities for a total of 40 hours per week(an increase from the existing standard of 32) • requiring that 24 of the 40 hours be in a direct work activity • increasing the Work Participation Rate over a five year period from 50% to 70%for all families • limiting vocational training to 12 months • maintaining the 60-month life time limit .idy 12,2004 35 Employment&Human Services Department CaiWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update ♦ Serving Clients with Disabilities Research from across the country and our own experience suggest that some of our hard-to-serve participants have learning needs or other disabilities that require special attention in order for these participants to succeed under Ca€WORKS. As described in the previous section of this report, the Department has initiated Learning Disabilities Screening for our CalWORKs clients, and has developed and contracted a special services delivery system to assist those clients determined to have special needs. Because many of our learning needs clients also have a mental health or substance abuse issue, we are exploring the further expansion of the SAMHWORKS funds to provide enhanced services to clients with both learning disabilities and mental health issues. This will encompass our clients who have both a mental health and a learning disability issue who have also been determined unable to work. ♦ Service Delivery and Staffing Challenges Since September 2002, the CaIWORKs staff experienced two downsizings, which severely hampered levels of service to clients as well as staff's ability to effectively manage workloads. These staffing reductions caused shifts in caseloads and staff program reassignments which required training. Support and line staff and supervisor positions were reduced as well. The 2004-05 proposed staffing budget level for the Bureau reflects an approximate 2.3% decrease from our second quarter 2003-04 Bureau operational staffing level and does not reflect the minimum additional projected caseload growth of 3% in 2004-05. With additional reduced staff and with no opportunity for staff growth, we are further challenged to provide timely and quality services, The number and extent of program and system changes to occur in 2004-05 and the estimated 12`3'4 staff vacancy rate attributable to those staff that are off work at any one time due to illness, vacation, medical leave, or other leaves of absence further exacerbate this situation. This decrease in staff and projected increase in caseload will have the following impacts; • Risk of increase to the Food Stamp error rate • Decrease in quality and level of services o Inability to process and grant applications in a timely fashion o Inability to process overpayments when cases are discontinued o Inability to effectively monitor quality of work o Inability to cover caseloads and Intake which will result in more involuntary transfers that will further impact staff morale and work efficiency o Less time the Employment Specialist will be able to spend on a participant to move them from welfare to work July 12,2004 36 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update • Impacts on our ability to effectively roll out new or changed program policies and service delivery approaches for CalWORKs and \A/#W which include; • Full implementation of Quarterly Reporting and Prospective Budgeting o Plan and roll out of CaIW1N o New TANF Reauthorization requirements (e.g, increased work participation hours., higher work participation rates) a CalWORKs policy changes proposed by the Governor Q Maintenance of acceptable Work Participation Rates.. • Increase in the "38" Medl-Cal caseload • Audit and monitoring exceptions • Decreased capability to allow staff to participate in training, conferences, staff development and other professional development activities, • Disruption of facility moves and build outs planned in 2004-05 and consolidation of functions ♦ Deductions In Job Development, Job Retention and Career Advancement Job development, job retention: and career advancement are a few of the only discretionary services under the CaIWORKs/WtW program: As such and because of the tight fiscal situation at both the State and local levels, these services have been slated for reduction and/or elimination in PY 2004-05, Although these services have been proposed for PY 2004-05 reduction/elimination, we are hopeful to maintain a minimal level of job development/retention support through the Ca!WORKs/WtW program, while building more formal linkages with the One Stop Business and Career Center system.. Building such linkages will allow for easier access of our CalWORKs clients as a WIA--targeted client group (public assistance recipients) while allowing a continuity of necessary support services. We expect to formalize and increase the referral of our CalWORKs clients to the One Stops and other agencies providing job retention and support services. * Timing Out CaIWORKs Adults JOA) CalWORKs adults began reaching their 60-month CalWORKs lifetime limit in December 2002, In these cases, the adult is removed from the CalWORKs cash grant, and the children continue to be granted. The adult continues to be eligible for Food Stamps and Medi-Cal, but based on existing County policy, is not eligible for General Assistance. These cases are referred to as Safety Net cases. July 12,2004 37 Employment&Human Services Department CalWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update In previous reports, we anticipated over 600 adults would time out during calendar year 2003 of both TANF and CaIWORKs. We revised that estimate after implementing the Child Support Buy Back regulations, which adjusted an individual's time clock. In calendar year 2003, we adjusted the time clocks of 1,656 individuals for a total of 6,048 months added back. This averages about 4 months per person. In addition to the child support buy back, 1,199 individuals were granted exemptions that stopped their ColWORKs time clocks. What we are finding with our timing-out clients thus for is that a greater number than originally expected are receiving exemptions or buybacks thereby extending their duration of aid beyond 60 months. Consequently, fewer numbers are actually .,timing out" than were originally expected. Our challenge is to continue to review cases for exemptions, take the necessary actions to make extensions, and provide ongoing services to these clients prior to their actual timing out, Clients who will be timing out or have already timed out will be further impacted by the Governor's proposal to reduce the CaIWORKs grant for the children by 25% if the timed out adult is not employed, This will challenge us further to make these determinations and take the necessary action to reduce the grant, and most importantly, to provide the necessary referrals and linkages of our clients to other community resources and employment supports. Staff continues to be involved with preparations for CaIWIN which is a computer system that will replace the following current automated data collection systems; • CDS(Case Data System)which has been used since the late 1970's • GIS(GAIN Information System) • Pegasys-the General Assistance automated system CaIWIN will impact CaIWORKs, Food Stamps, Medi-Cal, and General Assistance. Preparing for implementation and actually implementing the system is a huge undertaking for the entire Department with far-reaching implications. At a minimum, it requires a detailed documentation of all our current business models and a determination of what organizational, staff, system. and services delivery changes are needed in the business models to implement the system. CoIWIN will impact almost every facet of services delivery, particularly how we are organized to process applications for CaIWORKs, Food Stamps, Medi-Cal, and General Assistance. Implementation is set for August 2005. .July 12,2004 38 Employment&Human Services Department CaiWORKs/Welfare-To-Work Update VMA Reauthorization Activities and Response to New One Strip Operator Request for Proposal (RFP) WIA was scheduled for reauthorization in 2003. H, R, 1261 is the current WIA reauthorization legislation which was passed by the House on May 8: 2003, and was sent to Conference Committee on June 3, 2004. H. R. 1261 calls for a mandatory TANF contribution, but does not propose TANS as a mandatory partner on the Workforce Development Board, it also stipulates public assistance recipients as a secondary or additional priority service group. Other general issues requiring clarification include proposed performance measures, funding, flexibility(state versus local areas), and resource sharing. Additionally, since July 1, 2000, the One Step Operator Consortium, with the Workforce Services Bureau serving as the lead, has operated the four One Stop Centers as the designated One Stop Operator, In June 2004, the Workforce Development Board issued an RFP to competitively solicit its 2004-06 One Stop Operator, The Workforce Services Bureau staff along with our eight (8) Consortium partner agencies will be working concertedly over the next six-week period to fully respond to the RI=P solicitation. With all the other budgetary and program policy changes and issues facing the Bureau, this RFP solicitation further challenges us during a particularly critical time. .July 12,2004 39