Author: Ed Lazere

November 12th Forum Will Highlight the Voices of DC TANF Families

Posted on by Ed Lazere

Some 16,000 DC families — including one in three children in the city — rely on Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) for cash assistance, job readiness training, and support services.  A successful TANF program is critical to DC’s future. Yet too often, DC’s TANF families say they do not get the support they need to move from welfare to work.

A new report on DC’s TANF program by the DC Fiscal Policy Institute and SOME, Inc (So Others Might Eat) will be released at a forum on Thursday, November 12, from 9:30 to 11:00 a.m.  (Light refreshments will be available starting at 9:00.)

The new report, Voices for Change: Perspectives on Strengthening Welfare-to-Work from DC TANF Recipients, is based on focus groups with DC TANF families.  Attendees will learn directly from low-income families — most of them headed by women — about what they need to address barriers to becoming employed.  The report focuses on three areas:

  • The limited access to meaningful employment services for TANF recipients.
  • Problems in assessing and referring TANF parents to supportive services such as domestic violence and substance abuse.
  • The inadequacy of DC’s cash assistance benefits to enable families to meet even basic needs.

The forum will feature a video of DC TANF recipients discussing their experiences with the program and a Q&A with a panel including: 

  • Councilmember Tommy Wells (Ward 6), Chair of the Committee on Human Services
  • Clarence Carter, Director, DC Department of Human Services (invited)
  • A former TANF recipient
  • Peter Edelman, Georgetown Law School
  • Donna Pavetti, national welfare expert at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

Please RSVP to Tina Marshall at marshall@cbpp.org or 202-408-1080.

Stepping Stones Research Briefing sneak peek: How is the recession impacting the poor in D.C.?

Posted on by Ed Lazere

When I was honored with an invitation to speak at the Stepping Stones Research Briefing, no one told me I’d have to figure out what I was going to talk about a week in advance (so that I could write a preview for this blog).

How unfair is that?

Of course, it was good to push me to start thinking about what I would share from the DC Fiscal Policy Institute’s recent research —what things are likely to be most interesting and relevant to you all.

So here is a preview of what you will hear from me on May 20.

I will start by exploring some recent economic indicators for the District of Columbia, including food stamp caseloads and unemployment. They are rising sharply, of course, which means poverty is on the rise, too.

The bad economic news this year comes on the heels of an “economic recovery,” during which poverty failed to decline in DC.  In fact, the number of poor residents rose through much of the early 2000s, even though the city was gaining jobs and residents and the real estate market was booming.

I will then talk about two pieces of upcoming DCFPI research. 

One focuses on the demographics of poor D.C. residents.  Not surprisingly, women-headed families with children face high poverty rates and represent a large share of D.C.’s low-income population, which means that D.C. cannot tackle poverty successfully without focusing on this group.  Our research finds that many of these single women with children are not working but that even when they have a job — even a full-time job — they earn so little that many remain poor.

A second DCFPI research project is based on focus groups we held last year with DC TANF recipients. Those conversations revealed that DC’s TANF cash benefits are inadequate to meet even the bare necessities, that the program’s employment preparation services or generally poor quality, and that TANF recipients have limited access to services that address personal barriers, despite policies on paper that suggest these services are available.

I look forward to seeing you all on Wednesday at the 2009 Stepping Stones Research Briefing!

Please R.S.V.P. here.

Then help us spread the word. We have an Event, "2009 Stepping Stones Research Briefing," on Facebook. We’re also on Twitter @TheWomensFndtn.

Ed Lazere is the Executive Director of the DC Fiscal Policy Institute.