WASHINGTON, D.C. - Income Security and Family Support Subcommittee Chairman Jim McDermott (D-WA), delivered the following statement today at a Ways and Means Subcommittee hearing examining the role of education and training in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program:
“The purpose of today’s hearing is to discuss the role that education and training can play in helping TANF recipients find and retain good jobs.
“Statistics tell us that the every completion of a degree, starting with a high school diploma, increases employment and wage levels, while reducing poverty. This effect has been growing over time given the premium on skills that our global economy increasingly demands. So if the mission of TANF is to promote work and reduce poverty, education and training must be better integrated into the program.
“There are currently efforts in some States, as we will hear today, to provide opportunities for TANF recipients to increase their skills. Such efforts could be expanded if the current mantra of the TANF program changed from “work first" to “work best" - meaning finding the best path to sustainable employment for each TANF recipient based on their needs and abilities. For some, this may be immediately moving into a job. For others, it may mean first engaging in training and education so they can become more employable.
“The current high rate of unemployment actually increases the rationale for expanded training and education opportunities. Since it is harder for many TANF recipients to quickly enter the labor market, it makes sense to use the time to increase their skills and thus their future employability.
“I assume we will hear at least two arguments today against increasing educational opportunities for TANF recipients. First, it may be suggested that training and education doesn’t work for welfare recipients. At its core, this argument is based on the assumption that education is good for everyone, except the very poor.
“The truth is that education and training programs can work to improve employment outcomes when provided to TANF recipients who are squarely focused on obtaining specific degrees or certificates that increase their chance of securing employment and of receiving a higher wage.
“The second argument we may hear is that TANF recipients don’t deserve an opportunity to go into an education and training program. This reasoning comes from those who think that welfare recipients don’t really want to work, and that education or training is just a dodge to avoid employment.
“The first fact that dispels this myth is the TANF benefit itself. The median TANF benefit in this country ($424 a month) gets a family of three to less than one-third of the poverty level. This is not a lifestyle that anyone wants. In fact, even if education was more available for TANF recipients, many would still forgo skills building for immediate low-wage employment (if they can find it) because they are so desperate for more income to raise their children.
“But the most compelling refutation of this ideology comes from TANF recipients themselves. You only have to hear them speak for a few minutes to start to understand the struggles they fight through every single day to create a better life for their family. They desperately want to succeed, and they are willing to work to the bone to make it happen. If we help them succeed, we will see a reduction in government benefits and an increase in government revenues as they receive less assistance and pay more taxes. And even more importantly, the American dream will be realized not only for them, but for their children as well. I hope that is a goal for which we might find some consensus."
