memorandum OF support

Empire Justice Memo of Support: Support Access to Education and Training for the Poorest New Yorkers

S.2323 (Montgomery)/A.2471 (Wright)

Amends Social Services Law §§335-a, 336, 336-a & 131-n

This bill provides that four-year college can be counted as part of a public assistance recipient’s work activity, and that where a recipient makes a reasonable and appropriate request to be assigned to a particular activity, that request should, where feasible, be granted.

What S.2323/A.2471 Does:

• Improves Access to Education.  Lack of sufficient education and skills poses a major obstacle to decent paying employment.  Public assistance recipients with increased education are the most likely to leave welfare and get and keep better paying jobs.  Virtually every additional educational milestone, from basic literacy to a college degree, enhances employability.
• Allow Recipient Access to College.  A college degree provides perhaps the single best path off of welfare and out of poverty.  Close to 90% of recipients who attain a college degree leave welfare for the long term. [1]
• Rely on District Discretion.  For its success, this law will depend on the districts conducting quality assessments of individuals’ capacities and needs and determining the most appropriate activities for that person. 

What S.2323/A.2471 Does Not Do:

• Does Not impose new costs on the state or the districts.  While the Assembly has predicted that the bill will have minimal fiscal impact, the NYS Division of Budget and OTDA have projected no fiscal impact.
• Does Not limit local discretion.  With the addition of a four-year college option, districts have one more activity to which recipients can be assigned, and the district’s right to ensure that recipients are assigned only to appropriate activities remains intact.
• Does Not impede the district’s or the state’s ability to meet its participation rates.  The federal government now permits states to count four-year college as a work activity (a change made during the Bush administration).  In addition, S.2323/A.2471 makes clear that the district’s obligation to honor recipient requests is subject to the mandate to meet state and federal participation requirements.

End Note:
[1] Gittell, Schehl, and Fareri, “From Welfare to Independence: The College Option,” Howard Samuels State Management and Policy Center, New York, NY, 1990.  See also Kahn, Butler, Deprez and Polakow (editors), Shut Out: Low-Income Mothers and Higher Education in Post-Welfare America, SUNY Press, Albany, NY (2004).  The book reviews research demonstrating that women who complete two- or four-year college “…work more steadily, find jobs related to their fields of study, earn higher wages, receive more post-employment training, and report higher levels of family well-being.”

06/01/11