Tribes are allowed greater flexibility in regards to work requirements and time limits. States must also meet the percentage requirements and time limits of placing individuals in employment or be penalized by the federal government. This will prove a major challenge for administrators in states with large Indian populations and whose welfare rolls are comprised of large numbers of tribal members who live in rural, high unemployment, poverty areas where jobs are at a premium. Arizona, which has an Indian population of 6 percent that comprises 18 percent of the state's welfare case load, has agreed to provide matching funds to those tribes wishing to run their own programs. The result is less service-delivery headaches to the state and less chance of federal sanctions.
Tribes run their own programs with the necessary financial and management technology.
Both sides are winners. The new welfare reform law has been described by tribal leaders as the strongest recognition of Indian sovereignty since the passage of the Indian reorganization act of 1935. If it is implemented creatively, it will provide another important step for tribal governments in taking their rightful place in the family of governments that make up America.