WASHINGTON – Congressman Tom Reed is throwing his support behind the Preserving the Welfare Work Requirement and TANF Extension Act of 2013. The legislation ensures that work requirements remain a central part of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program and prohibits the Administration from waiving work requirements for welfare recipients. The bill also extends the TANF program through December 31, 2013.
After voting for the extension, Chautauqua County’s congressman said that Work activities like on-the-job-training, vocational training, community service, and education in a job field are central to lifting families and communities from poverty. He added that by waiving the requirements that welfare recipients engage in these types of work activities, the Administration is discouraging recipients from gaining the valuable skills needed to gain meaningful employment to help their families.
Current welfare requirements encourage T-A-N-F recipients to engage in full or part-time employment, education and training. But in July 2012, the Obama Administration’s Department of Health and Human Services announced it would seek to eliminate the requirement that welfare recipients be preparing for or engaging in work.
Speaking on the House Floor in support of the bill, Reed said work requirements empower the unemployed and underemployed with the skill sets and resources necessary to decrease welfare dependency and provide for their families.
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