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Q&A
Council Member Ayala questions DSS officials on cash assistance work requirements and childcare vouchers
1:26:45
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175 sec
Council Member Diana I. Ayala inquires about the reinstatement of mandatory work requirements for cash assistance clients and its impact on childcare voucher demand. Commissioner Molly Wasow Park and HRA Administrator Scott French provide details on the phased implementation of work requirements and the projected increase in childcare voucher utilization.
- Work requirements for cash assistance clients were restarted in early April, with a phased approach for existing clients extending through the end of 2025.
- Childcare voucher utilization is expected to increase from the current 27,000 to about 63,000 over the next year and a half.
- The increase in voucher demand is attributed to a larger caseload compared to pre-COVID levels and changes in state eligibility rules for mandatory vouchers.
Diana I. Ayala
1:26:45
I'm trying to just jump through some of these more important questions.
1:26:50
ACS stated that the city is facing a $1,000,000,000 deficit in funding for child care vouchers through the end of next federal fiscal year.
1:26:58
As a result of the deficit last week, ACS has paused new family enrollment into the program, instead placing families on a wait list.
1:27:05
The agency has indicated that growth in both population and state mandated rate increases for childcare vouchers are the drivers of the funding deficit and that they anticipate a significant uptick in cash assistance clients utilizing vouchers due to the reinstitution of work requirements.
1:27:21
When did HRA resume the mandatory work requirements for cash assistance clients and was this immediately applicable to all clients on cash assistance or was there a phase in over a period of time?
Molly Wasow Park
1:27:33
So we are in the very earliest days of rolling rerolling out this federally mandated work requirements.
1:27:41
It has really just begun, so no, it was not implemented across the board, but I'm gonna ask Administrator French to give some more detail.
1:27:49
Sure.
Scott French
1:27:50
Thank you, Commissioner.
1:27:51
So yes, at the very April, we restarted the mandatory engagement work requirements for cash assistance clients.
1:27:59
So what that means right now is for all new applicants, during their application process and the interview, they will be assessed for their employability, and if they're deemed to be employable, we'll connect them to the appropriate services we have, whether it's our career services programs, for individuals looking for workforce development, for individuals who may have a medical or mental health barrier to employment, we'll connect them to our We Care program.
1:28:24
For existing clients, we've started the process of calling them back in, but that will roll out actually through the end of twenty twenty five.
1:28:32
So it is a phased approach that we're taking.
1:28:34
Most cases and individuals will be engaged during their renewal period when they have to do an interview.
1:28:40
We will determine if they're still deemed employable, and they will then get referred as appropriate to the right services.
1:28:46
So it's very much a phased in approach.
1:28:49
As part of that, right, we will see an uptick in the utilization of child care vouchers as we are
Diana I. Ayala
1:28:54
We will, but have we started to see that?
Scott French
1:28:56
We've just begun, so we have not begun.
1:28:59
Right now, there are about 27,000 child care vouchers being utilized over the next sort of year and a half.
1:29:08
So we'll see that number steadily increase to when we'll see a hit a sort of plateau of probably around 63,000 vouchers that will be That is higher than our pre COVID number for a couple of different reasons.
1:29:24
One, our caseload is larger than it was in 2019 and early twenty twenty, as well as there were some state changes to childcare eligibility for those eligible to mandatory vouchers where they will be able to retain childcare for longer than they had prior.