You asked how much the state spends on programs helping unwed mothers. You also asked whether these programs are tracked to determine the state's “return on investment.” We do not know what you mean by unwed, as it could include women who have never been married exclusively or a larger group including divorced women. The state agencies responding to our request gave us spending amounts for “single parent households.”

We identified programs that we believe assist these families. We believe some of these programs have been evaluated but cannot, at this time, review these evaluations. We will be happy to send you links to the evaluations under separate cover. Additionally, the Connecticut Women's Education and Legal Fund is in the process of evaluating the effectiveness of the various Jobs First Employment Services activities. Its report should be available in June 2008.

SUMMARY

Several state programs could potentially help single parent households. In FY 07, we estimate that the state spent over $ 740 million on these programs. Some of the larger programs, such as welfare (Jobs First) and HUSKY A receive federal reimbursement or block grants to offset state expenditures.

Early evaluations of the state's welfare reform program suggested that families who were engaged in the reform programs were better off than those participating in the older (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) program. More recently, the same evaluators suggested that the Jobs First program's earnings supplement helped families, although the follow-up period reviewed was relatively short. We do not know how these families are doing now, but the state is attempting to track them.

The state's HUSKY health insurance program is credited with reducing the number of uninsured, low-income children. A recent evaluation found that enrolled children were getting more preventive care in 2006 than when the program first began.

STATE SPENDING ON PROGRAMS ASSISTING SINGLE PARENTS

Several state-administered programs assist single parents. These range from cash welfare from the Department of Social Services (DSS)' Temporary Family Assistance (TFA) program to programs that the Children's Trust Fund supports. Table 1 lists the programs that we identified as most likely to assist the target population, an estimate of the percentage of clients served who are single parents, and state expenditures for these programs in FY 07. We attribute all of the expenditures to the target population when the agency has not been able to provide the information, and believe the actual percentage, if known, would be close to 100%.

Table 1: State Spending on Programs Helping Single Parents (FY 07)

[1] Most of the TFA program's funding comes from a federal block grant.

[2] This figure does not include child-only TFA cases.

[3] In general, the state receives $.50 back from the federal government for every $1 spent in the HUSKY A program.

[4] This program has a $1 million expansion planned for FY 09, with an estimated single parent family expenditure of $599,000

[5] DPH provided data representing the number of teenage mothers receiving care in school-based health centers. State spending on all children of single parents receiving care in these centers would be expected to be considerably higher.

PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS

DSS

TFA. This program provides cash assistance to families with children. About 60% of the caseload is exempt from the 21-month time limit and work requirements. Most of its funding comes from the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant.

Child Care Subsidies (Care 4 Kids). This program offers child care assistance to families with incomes between 50% and 70% of area median income. It is administered within available appropriations. Working families receiving TFA benefits and teen parents are two of several priority groups for the subsidy.

Transitionary Rental Assistance. This program offers up to 12 months of rental assistance to families who are living in private housing, transitioning off the TFA program, working at least 12 hours per week, and have income above the TFA benefit. This program is also administered within available DSS resources.

Rental Assistance Program (RAP). RAP offers longer-term subsidies to families whose income is no more than 50% of area median income. The amount of the subsidy is the difference between the tenant contribution (10% of monthly gross income or 40% of adjusted gross income (less a utility allowance) and the contract rent. This program is run within available funds. It currently has a lengthy waiting list.

HUSKY A. The HUSKY A program provides Medicaid-funded health insurance to children and adult caretaker relatives living in households with incomes up to 185% of the federal poverty level ($32,560 annually for a family of three in 2008).

Safety Net Services. These services are available to people who are ineligible for TFA due to time limits and whose income is below the TFA benefit they were receiving before losing eligibility. These benefits are generally available for up to 12 months. Services include clothing, food, employment assistance, and case management.

Transition to Employment Independence. These are transportation programs that help TFA recipients get to work and work-related activities.

Child Support Enforcement. DSS offers child support enforcement services to help low-income families become self sufficient. This is done through obtaining increased financial and medical support from noncustodial parents and establishing paternity for children born out-of-wedlock. The Judicial Department's Support Enforcement Division generally enforces support orders.

STATE'S RETURN ON INVESTMENT

Welfare Reform

The Jobs First program was evaluated several times after the state implemented its second round of welfare reforms in January 1996. The evaluators found that people in the Jobs First program (who were subject to time limits and mandatory work requirement, but received generous earnings disregards, among other policy changes) were more likely than individuals in the control group (Aid to Families with Dependent Children recipients with no time limits and no work requirement) to participate in employment. It also found that earnings in the experimental group were 7 % higher than those for people in the control group. Gains were the biggest among recipients who had the most barriers to work. And Jobs First generated small improvements in the behavior of participants' young children, but it had mixed effects on adolescent children.

The evaluations can be found at www.mdrc.org/publications.

After these initial evaluations, in 2005 Manpower Demonstrations Resource Corporation took another look at the effect that earnings supplements had on employment, earnings, and income for people participating in welfare-to-work programs. The evaluators looked at four states, including Connecticut, which has a very high earnings disregard (100% of federal poverty level). While these supplements increased employment, earnings, and income, their effects varied depending on the supplement's structure. Jobs First families had to stay on welfare to receive the program's earning supplement, and when they left the program they lost both the benefits and the earnings supplement, which may have encouraged a greater work effort to maintain income once benefits ended. The supplement also encouraged some parents to cut back on their work effort, while allowing them to maintain their family's income. This evaluation can be viewed at the above website.

The Connecticut Employment and Training Commission produces report cards on the state's employment and training programs. The latest one, covering FYs 02 to 05, includes outcomes for the Jobs First Employment Services program. It reports that both the percent and number of clients entering employment rose dramatically in program year 04. And over 80% of those employed that year were still working after six months. But weekly wages on entering employment dropped during that period. A copy of the JFES section of the report is attached.

Finally, the Legislative Program Review and Investigation Committee's 2006 study of welfare reform offers additional outcome information. That study can be found at http:www.cga.ct.gov/pri/index.htm

HUSKY

The HUSKY program was created to ensure that the state's low –income children have access to health care. Connecticut Voices for Children has evaluated different aspects of the program for several years. For example, it studies utilization throughout each year to determine whether those children who are enrolled in the program actually get services. The most recent preventive care report (2006) found that two thirds of children enrolled in HUSKY A received well-child care, an increase of almost 15% over the 2005 and 44% increase over 1999.

For links to these and other Voices' studies, go to www.ctkidslink.org

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