Racial Equity and Fair Treatment Act of 2003

Bill: 108-hr-692
Sponsor: Rep. Johnson, Eddie Bernice [D-TX-30]
Introduced: 2003-02-11 in the House
Policy area: Social Welfare
Subjects: Administrative procedure
Administrative remedies
Agriculture and Food
Aid to dependent children
Alcoholism
Aliens
Asian American ethnic groups
Blacks
Block grants
Business cycles
Caregivers
Case management
Cash welfare block grants
Child support
Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
Collection of accounts
Compensatory education
Congress
Congressional reporting requirements
Counseling
Crime and Law Enforcement
Data banks
Day care
Disability evaluation
Disabled
Discrimination
Discrimination in employment
Drug abuse
Drug abuse treatment
Earned income tax credit
Economics and Public Finance
Education
Educational statistics
Electronic data interchange
Electronic mail systems
Elementary and secondary education
Employee training
Energy
Energy assistance for the poor
English language
Evaluation research (Social action programs)
Evidence (Law)
Ex-offenders
Facsimile transmission
Families
Family services
Family violence
Federal aid to child health services
Finance and Financial Sector
Fines (Penalties)
Food relief
Food stamps
Government Operations and Politics
Government paperwork
Government publicity
Government statistics
Governmental investigations
Grants-in-aid
Grievance procedures
Health
Health insurance
Higher education
Hispanic Americans
Homeless
Housing and Community Development
Immigrants
Income statistics
Income tax
Intergovernmental fiscal relations
Internet
Labor and Employment
Labor statistics
Language and languages
Law
Literacy programs
Marriage
Medicaid
Medically uninsured
Mental health services
Mental illness
Minimum wages
Minorities
Native Americans
Nonprofit organizations
Performance measurement
Poor children
Postal service
Poverty
Racial discrimination
Rape
Right of privacy
Science, Technology, Communications
Sex discrimination
Shelters for the homeless
State laws
Student employment
Supplemental security income program
Surveys
Taxation
Telephone
Translating and interpreting
Transportation and Public Works
Unemployment
Victims of crimes
Vocational and technical education
Vocational rehabilitation
Volunteer workers
WIC program
Wages
Welfare eligibility
Welfare recipients
Welfare work participation
Wife abuse
Women

Summary:
action_date: 2003-02-11
text: Racial Equity and Fair Treatment Act of 2003 - Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to States and county applicants to pay the Federal share of the costs of improving the administration of support programs for low-income families with children.
Amends part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) of title IV of the Social Security Act to revise requirements for assessments and work activities for TANF recipients.
Requires: (1) interpretation and translation services in certain cases for TANF recipients; (2) an expedited process for discrimination complaints; (3) provision of notice of rights of TANF recipients; (3) training of TANF program personnel in respecting such rights; (4) standardized sanction process; and (5) opportunity for TANF applicants or recipients to appeal adverse decisions.
Modifies penalties against individuals for violating mandatory work requirements, creating additional exceptions, including those for child care and discrimination.
Prohibits States from diverting potential TANF applicants.
Bans States from penalizing the entire family for the misconduct of one family member.
Amends the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to repeal provisions for denial of assistance and benefits for certain drug-related convictions.
Makes various changes under the TANF program concerning: (1) the five-year time limit on assistance; and (2) treatment of aliens.
Permits participation in English-as-a-second language programs as a work activity.
Prescribes requirements encouraging racial equality.

Legislative actions:
action_date: 2003-03-03
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Human Resources.
action_date: 2003-02-11
text: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
action_date: 2003-02-11
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2003-02-11
text: Introduced in House