CWDA-CSAC Joint Comment to DHHS

County Welfare Directors Association of California California State Association of Counties 925 L Street, Suite 1405 1100 K Street, Suite 101 Sacramento, CA 95814 Sacramento, CA 95814 (916) 443-1749 (916) 327-7500 California Counties TANF Reauthorization Comments The California State Association of Counties (CSAC) and the County Welfare Directors Association of California (CWDA) support the reauthorization of Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF). We urge Congress and the Administration to maintain state and county flexibility to adapt programs to meet local needs and to preserve or increase existing state and federal funding levels. CSAC and CWDA support changes that are designed to improve overall administration, enhance the ability of families to move toward self-reliance, and better align TANF with related programs. Background The 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act (PRWORA) dramatically changed the national welfare system. Millions of people have found employment, and more have left welfare and are retaining their jobs than ever before. Welfare reform is working, and counties have been an integral part of its success by using the new flexibility that PRWORA afforded them to find creative ways to assist families. The work that began in 1996 is not over, however. Initial caseload declines and increases in work participation, though dramatic, should only be seen as initial steps to combating the fundamental ...