JOBS and Case Management: Developments in 10 States

The Family Support Act of 1988, hailed as landmark welfare reform legislation (Rovner, 1988), seeks to increase the economic self-sufficiency of families that receive Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) through increased levels of child support enforcement and a new welfare-to-work program that provides education, training, and employment services to recipients. The Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training (JOBS) program, which replaced the Work Incentive program, is the major vehicle by which the act seeks to increase the economic self-sufficiency of AFDC recipients. The JOBS legislation attempts to transform the public welfare system from one that emphasizes income support and fiscal accuracy to one that emphasizes the delivery of services: "States are struggling to get welfare officials to act more like social workers and less like accountants" (Kosterlitz, 1989, p. 2493). This shift in emphasis is reflected in the legislation's provisions for education, training, and employment-related services as well as for case management services to JOBS participants and their children. JOBS is an ambitious piece of legislation and presents both challenges and opportunities to the state and local governments charged with its implementation. To track the implementation of JOBS, a three-year, 10-state study is being undertaken (anticipated completion date is August 1994) that focuses on the major provisions of the legislation as well as state funding and political leadership, which directly influence the program's implementation. This article presents findings from the larger study (Hagen & Lurie, 1992) on states' provisions for case management services in implementing JOBS. We examined states' models of case management and the functions assigned to case managers. Legislation JOBS is designed "to assure that needy families with children obtain the education, training, and employment that will help them avoid long-term welfare dependence" (Family Support Act of 1988, 42 U.S.C. 681 (a)). Primary responsibility for JOBS rests with each state's welfare agency, which must offer educational activities, job skills training, job readiness activities, job development, and job placement, as well as at least two of the following: group and individual job searches, on-the-job training, work supplementation, and community work experience. States could implement JOBS in July 1989 and were required to do so by October 1990. To assist states in financing their programs, federal matching funds have been increased significantly, rising from $800 million in 1990 to $1.3 billion in 1995 (42 U.S.C. 603 (k)(2)). In a significant departure from previous welfare legislation, mothers with children ages three and older are required to participate in the JOBS program if child care is available. At a state's option, participation may be required of mothers with children ages one year and older. Mothers younger than 20 years of age who have not completed high school or its equivalent are required to participate in educational activities regardless of their children's ages. States must guarantee child care if it is necessary for an adult recipient to participate in the JOBS program. The legislation has also mandated overall participation rates for the states' JOBS programs: 7 percent of the eligible caseload must participate in 1990 and 20 percent in 1995. The legislation requires that 55 percent of the JOBS funds be spent on recipients who are or are likely to become long-term welfare recipients. (For more-complete analyses of the Family Support Act of 1988, see Abramovitz, 1988; Chilman, 1992; Hagen, 1992; Miller, 1989; Nichols-Casebolt & McClure, 1989.) States have the option of including case management services for JOBS participants and their children. Services may be provided to both the participant and her family, and expenditures for case management services are eligible for federal matching funds at 60 percent or the state's Medicaid matching rate (which ranges from 50 percent to 80 percent), whichever is higher. …