Welfare Reform: Rural TANF Programs Have Developed Many Strategies to Address Rural Challenges
Published: 2004-09-10T00:00:00

Fast Facts:

Highlights:
section_title: Why GAO Did This Study
paragraphs: About 49 million people, or 17 percent of the country's total population, live in rural communities, and 18 states have at least a third of their population in rural areas. Rural areas often have less favorable employment conditions than urban areas and have fewer public transportation options to help people get to and from work. Given these conditions and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program's emphasis on moving recipients into jobs and on the path toward self-sufficiency, some have questioned how welfare reform is working in rural areas. To inform discussions of these concerns, GAO is reporting on (1) the size and distribution of the rural TANF caseload and how the caseload's size has changed over time, (2) the challenges and strengths that rural TANF programs have in implementing welfare reform, (3) the strategies being used to address these challenges, and (4) what the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is doing to help rural areas address these challenges. To obtain this information, we used multiple methodologies, including analysis of county-level caseload data, as well as site visits, a review of studies on welfare reform in rural areas, and numerous interviews with caseworkers, government officials and other experts.
section_title: What GAO Found
paragraphs: According to our analysis of 48 states, about 293,000 families living in rural counties received TANF cash assistance during an average month in 2003. Rural TANF families are about 14 percent of all TANF families, but the rural portion of individual states' TANF caseload ranges from 0.02 percent to 77 percent. Rural TANF families are concentrated in counties with disadvantaged conditions, including high unemployment and low median income. Since 1997, when welfare reform was implemented nationally, rural and urban TANF caseloads have declined by about the same amount--44 percent--when all reporting states' counties are aggregated. The rural TANF caseworkers and service providers at sites we visited reported that transportation difficulties, job shortages, low wages, and lack of services, especially child care, challenged their efforts to help clients become employed and move toward self-sufficiency. However, they also cited strengths, including collaboration and personal attention to clients. To address the challenges they face, the rural TANF programs we visited have employed a variety of strategies including nontraditional methods of connecting clients with services and cooperative arrangements that leverage resources. Some of the strategies adopted by rural TANF agencies take a more targeted approach, working to overcome one particular challenge or set of challenges that clients face, especially in the areas of transportation, employment, and child care. The Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Children and Families has undertaken several efforts that could assist TANF programs and recipients in rural areas. These include rural conferences, a demonstration project, technical assistance to rural programs, and a rural task force with representatives from different programs, including TANF. Plans are under way for an Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) initiative targeting rural TANF recipients.

section_title: Letter
paragraphs: About 49 million people—17 percent of the country’s total population— live in rural America, and 18 states have at least one-third of their  population in rural areas. In general, rural areas have less favorable  employment conditions—fewer employers, fewer job options, and higher  average unemployment rates—than urban areas. Also, rural areas usually  do not have the type of public transportation often available in urban areas  to help people get to and from work. Welfare reform, which was  implemented nationally through the Temporary Assistance for Needy  Families (TANF) block grant program, emphasizes the need for welfare  recipients to gain employment and move toward self-sufficiency. Given the  conditions in rural areas that could affect TANF recipients’ abilities to get  a job and go to work, some have questioned how welfare reform is  working in rural areas.
Because of your interest in rural areas, you asked us to study welfare  reform in these areas. This report presents information on (1) the size of  the rural TANF caseload (that is, the number of families receiving monthly  cash assistance), how that caseload is distributed, and how the caseload’s  size has changed over time; (2) the challenges and strengths that rural  TANF programs have in implementing welfare reform; (3) the strategies  being used to address these challenges; and (4) what the Department of  Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Administration for Children and  Families (ACF) is doing to help rural areas address these challenges.
To learn about the rural TANF caseload, we collected and analyzed  county-level caseload data, which we determined were of an acceptable  reliability to use, from 48 states. Appendix I provides additional  information on the scope and methodology of our TANF caseload data  analysis. To learn about the challenges and strengths of rural TANF  programs in implementing welfare reform and about the strategies being  used to address these challenges, we visited TANF caseworkers or service  providers in one or more rural counties in nine states: Arkansas, Kentucky,  Minnesota, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina,  Virginia, and West Virginia. We selected locations to visit according to a  combination of factors—their implementation of interesting strategies to  address rural challenges for welfare reform, their high percentage of the  population living in rural areas, and geographic diversity considerations. In  three locations, we met with TANF clients to learn about the challenges  they face in rural areas. We augmented our site visits with a review of  studies on welfare reform in rural areas. We did not conduct site visits in  urban areas and, therefore, do not address urban areas’ challenges,  strengths, or strategies for implementing welfare reform. To learn what  ACF is doing to help rural areas address challenges in implementing  welfare reform, we interviewed ACF officials and reviewed documents  they provided or that we obtained from their Web sites. We performed our  work from June 2003 through July 2004 in accordance with generally  accepted government auditing standards.
subsections: section_title: Background
paragraphs: The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of  1996 (PRWORA) established the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families  program, often referred to as welfare reform because it fundamentally  changed welfare policies. TANF has a goal of promoting work and helping  welfare recipients move toward self-sufficiency. It also established work  requirements for welfare recipients and set a limit of 60 months on the  amount of time recipients can receive cash assistance.
Under TANF, states receive a family assistance block grant from the  federal government that they can use to provide monthly cash assistance  payments to families as well as to finance services for TANF clients or  other low-income people to support their efforts to work. States can also  combine their TANF funds with state funds and those from other federal  programs that finance services such as child care, transportation, and  training. States have flexibility to set their TANF policies, such as to define  the specific activities that count toward the TANF work requirements and  to set the number of months—up to a maximum of 60—for the cash  assistance time limit. Further, states have flexibility in how they  administer TANF; they can set policies at the state level or they can allow  counties to set their own policies. The U.S. Department of Health and  Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families administers the  TANF block grant program and monitors states’ performance, such as  whether states meet the targets for the percentage of TANF recipients who  meet the work requirements. States’ federal TANF funding can be reduced  if they do not meet the federally set targets.
Welfare caseloads declined dramatically in the years following welfare  reform. Researchers have identified various factors that may have  contributed to the caseload decline, such as welfare reform-related policy  changes and economic growth, but there is no consensus about the extent  to which the different factors contributed to the decline. Welfare caseload  changes are only one element to consider in assessing how well welfare  reform is working. Some of the other information that is needed for such  an assessment includes what happened to families who left welfare,  whether former welfare recipients are working and moving toward self- sufficiency, and whether those who continue to rely on welfare, including  hard-to-serve clients, are getting the services they need to help them leave  welfare.
Rural areas of the nation are diverse. The economic conditions, the  characteristics of the population, and the geography differ from one rural  area to another. For example, a rural area can be a retirement location on  a coast, a coal-mining community in the mountains, or an agricultural  community on a plain. A common characteristic of rural areas is relatively  low population density. There are numerous definitions of what is meant  by “rural.” The one used in this report was developed by the Office of  Management and Budget and is based on a classification of counties as  either metropolitan or nonmetropolitan. Metropolitan counties include  both central counties with a large urbanized area and outlying counties  that are economically tied to the central counties and display a level of  “metropolitan character” based on population density, urbanization, and  population growth. Counties that do not qualify as metropolitan are  classified as nonmetropolitan. We refer to the metropolitan counties as  “urban” and the nonmetropolitan counties as “rural.” Of the 3,141 counties  in the United States, 2,052 are classified as rural.
section_title: The Rural TANF Caseload Is About 14 Percent of the National Caseload, Is Concentrated in Economically Disadvantaged Counties, and Has Declined at About the Same Rate as the Urban Caseload
paragraphs: Rural TANF families constitute about 14 percent of the total TANF  monthly caseload for the 48 states covered by our study combined.  However, when states are looked at individually, the rural portion of the  TANF caseload ranges from 0.02 percent to 77 percent. Rural TANF  families are not distributed evenly across rural America but are  concentrated in counties that tend to have poor economic conditions.  Finally, following national implementation of welfare reform, rural  counties, as a group, had caseload declines similar to those experienced  by urban counties. Yet in some states, there were substantial differences  between rural and urban counties’ caseload changes.
subsections: section_title: TANF Families Living in Rural Counties Are About 14 Percent of the National Caseload but Form a Larger Percentage in Most Individual States
paragraphs: In 2003, during an average month, about 293,000 families living in rural  counties received cash assistance under TANF programs of the combined  48 states included in our analysis. (Three of the 48 states—the District of  Columbia, New Jersey, and Rhode Island—do not have any rural counties  and therefore do not have any TANF families living in rural counties.) The  293,000 families composed about 14 percent of the total number of TANF  families in the 48 states. About 18 percent of families in the general  population live in rural counties in the 48 states; therefore, TANF families  are slightly less concentrated in rural counties in these combined states  than is the general population. This is also indicated by the fact that   2.4 percent of all rural families received TANF cash assistance in the   48 states in 2003, compared with 3.1 percent of urban families.
Looking at states individually, the percentage of TANF families living in  rural counties ranged from 0.02 percent in Massachusetts to 77 percent in  South Dakota. The median for the 48 states was 26.6 percent. The rural  TANF percentage for all 48 states combined—14 percent—is much lower  than the median because several highly populated states with large TANF  populations, most notably California and New York, have a very low  percentage of TANF families living in rural counties. Figure 1 shows, for  each state, the percentage of the state’s TANF families who live in rural  counties as well as the percentage who live in urban counties.
When we compared, for each state, the percentage of the TANF families  living in rural counties with the percentage of all families living in rural  counties, we found that for most states, the two were very similar.
However, there were several exceptions. For example, South Dakota has a  higher proportion of rural TANF families than would be expected   (77 percent of TANF families live in rural counties, compared with   58 percent of all families), and Nebraska has a lower proportion than  would be expected (32 percent of TANF families live in rural counties,  compared with 46 percent of all families). See appendix III for more  information on individual states and their rural TANF caseload  characteristics.
section_title: Rural TANF Families Are Concentrated in Relatively Few Counties That Tend to Have Poor Economic Conditions
paragraphs: The distribution of TANF families is uneven across rural counties, with  some rural counties having very low numbers of TANF families and others  having high numbers relative to all the counties’ families. We found that  about 150,000 (51 percent) of the about 293,000 TANF families living in  rural counties live in only a quarter of the rural counties in the 48 states  covered by our study. These counties have on average about 4.7 percent of  all their families receiving TANF. On the other hand, the quarter of rural  counties with the lowest proportion of TANF families have a total of only  about 14,000 (4.9 percent) TANF families and, on average, only about   0.6 percent of all their families on TANF.
To determine how counties with different proportions of their families on  TANF compared, we looked at demographic and socioeconomic indicators  for the counties. We grouped rural counties according to the proportion of   all their families on TANF and compared the counties with a high  proportion of families receiving TANF to those with a low proportion. We  found significantly worse socioeconomic conditions in the counties with a  high proportion of all families receiving TANF. For example, counties with  a high proportion of all families receiving TANF had, on average,  significantly higher unemployment, lower median incomes, and  proportionately more people without high school diplomas. See appendix  II for more specific information about how different groups of counties  compared. Figure 2 shows the location of the rural counties with the  highest proportion of families on TANF.
section_title: Nationally, Rural and Urban TANF Caseloads Have Declined Similarly, with Some Distinct Exceptions in Some States
paragraphs: Rural and urban counties experienced about the same amount of caseload  decline between 1997 and 2003.  Specifically, the number of families, on  average per month, receiving TANF cash assistance in rural counties in the  40 states covered by our analysis decreased by 43.9 percent, and urban  counties had a 44.1 percent caseload decrease. However, as shown in  figure 3, rural TANF caseloads declined somewhat more than urban  caseloads from 1997 to 2001.
The rural and urban caseloads in many states declined by about the same  percentage over the 1997-2003 period. However, for other states, there  were substantial differences between the percentage of caseload decline  in rural areas and that in urban areas, as shown in figure 4.
To determine how counties with different levels of caseload size changes  compare, we looked at socioeconomic indicators for the counties.  Although it might be expected that counties with the greatest declines in  caseload would have the most favorable socioeconomic conditions, we did  not find that. We found that counties with the least caseload decreases  had, on average, somewhat more favorable socioeconomic conditions,  such as lower unemployment rates, higher median incomes, and  proportionately fewer people without high school diplomas than counties  with the greatest caseload decreases. Also, counties with the lowest  caseload decreases had, on average, greater increases in unemployment  rates and greater population growth than counties with higher caseload  decreases. See appendix II for more specific information about how  counties with different amounts of caseload change compared.
section_title: Rural Areas Present TANF Clients with Shortages in Jobs and Services but Also Foster Program Collaboration and Personal Attention to Clients
paragraphs: Several studies and our own site visits indicate that transportation  shortages, fewer jobs, low wages, and a scarcity of ancillary services are  common challenges to welfare reform in rural areas. In some economically  depressed areas, other problems, such as very low education levels, are  additional challenges to welfare reform. On the other hand, rural areas  have strengths in implementing welfare reform in that they foster  collaboration and personal attention to clients.
subsections: section_title: Lack of Transportation Limits Access to Jobs and Services
paragraphs: During our site visits, we found that for some TANF clients, transportation  may be the primary obstacle to becoming or remaining employed. For  example, a caseworker in Logan County, West Virginia, said that it is not  uncommon for clients to say that if they had transportation, they would  not need to be on TANF. She also said she had several clients for whom  she could find jobs immediately if they had transportation to get there.
Transportation is a fundamental challenge for rural TANF recipients. Many  cannot afford to own and operate a reliable private vehicle, and public  transportation to get to and from training, services, and work is often not  available. A 2001 Urban Institute study looking at welfare reform in   12 rural locations in four states, for example, found that public  transportation was seldom available. Caseworkers and service providers  in some counties that we visited said that their counties have very limited  bus service, such as a bus that operates in the main town but not outside  it. Also, these buses generally had limited schedules and were not  available at night. Others said there were no bus systems with set routes  although vans were available to give people rides. For example, in Harnett  County, North Carolina, a caseworker said that the local transportation  agency was very cooperative in arranging pickups for clients but that the  service was expensive. In Duplin County, North Carolina, a caseworker  said that clients could call a van service for rides, but the appointment has  to be set up several days in advance. In Coahoma County, Mississippi, we  heard that the bus route spans a 50-mile radius, and those who choose to  use it may have to allot two or three hours to get to work.
The lack of valid driver’s licenses was identified by several caseworkers  and service providers as a problem for many clients. Clients may lack a  driver’s license either because they had never had one or because the  license was suspended or revoked because of unpaid fines, no insurance,  or driving under the influence of alcohol. Some caseworkers said that  suspended driver’s licenses could be an insurmountable problem because  of the high fees for reinstating them. The Court Clerk in Memphis,  Tennessee, who performed a review of unpaid traffic fines, said that the  average amount owed by people in Memphis with a suspended driver’s  license was $1,500 to $2,000.
section_title: Few Available Jobs and Low Wages Hinder Movement toward Self- Sufficiency
paragraphs: Rural areas are reported to have average earnings levels 25 to 30 percent  lower than those in urban areas, and their unemployment rates are higher,  on average, than those of urban areas. Rural areas also have less variety in  the types of jobs available. In our site visits, we found a consensus among  rural TANF caseworkers that a shortage of jobs and the low wages paid by  available jobs pose a challenge to their efforts to help clients meet TANF  work participation requirements and find employment that will help them  become self-sufficient. A study of welfare reform in selected persistently  poor rural areas in four states found that in many of the counties studied,  “there were simply very few jobs to be had.”
Caseworkers and service providers we interviewed also reported that their  clients tend to have little work experience and low education levels,  making them less competitive in the job market. In several areas,  caseworkers and service providers said that workers that had previously  been employed but who had been laid off were more likely to be hired for  the few jobs available than were TANF clients. Several caseworkers also  said they had some clients who could not find employment in the county  because they had “burned their bridges” with every employer in town.  Others noted that having a bad experience with one employer in a rural  community could earn someone a bad reputation with all prospective  employers because information about people spreads easily.
Studies looking at the earnings of current or former TANF clients have  found low earnings in rural areas. The Urban Institute study of 12 rural  locations in four states found that all locations reported that most jobs  obtained by welfare recipients paid minimum wage and that few jobs  offered opportunities for advancement. A study by Mathematica  comparing earnings of current or former TANF clients in rural and urban  areas in Nebraska found that earnings were much lower in rural areas than  in urban areas. In addition, a 1999 study comparing selected urban and  rural areas of Virginia found that the rural areas had a disproportionate  number of women who were working but still lived below the poverty  level.
On the other hand, the welfare reform-related studies that have looked at  employment in rural areas present a more positive picture. Of the two that  used national samples to compare employment of single mothers in rural  and urban areas, one found that single mothers in rural areas were just  about as likely to be working as those in urban areas, and the other found  that single mothers in rural areas were more likely to be working than  those in urban areas. The above-mentioned Mathematica study found that  TANF clients living in rural areas in Nebraska were more likely to be  employed than those in Nebraska’s urban areas.
section_title: Shortages in Child Care and Other Services Create Difficulties in Addressing Clients’ Employment Barriers
paragraphs: “Lower population densities in rural areas make it more difficult to  support some specialized services,” according to an analysis of research  on welfare reform in rural areas that cited specialized education and job  training, formal paid child care, and mental health services as being less  available in rural areas. Caseworkers we met with also identified  shortages in services as a problem that makes it difficult for TANF clients  to address their barriers to working such as not having someone to care  for their children, not meeting the basic education requirements for most  jobs, having mental health issues that make keeping a job unlikely, and  missing teeth or having other unattractive and unhealthy dental problems.  In our site visits, caseworkers and service providers recounted different  shortages in services from county to county, but they echoed much of the  research literature:    Child care. A lack of child care centers, infant and toddler care, or  child care on nights and weekends was a commonly cited shortage  identified in rural areas we visited. However, in two counties, we heard  that there was a sufficient number of child care centers. A study that  looked at welfare reform in selected persistently poor counties in four  states found that finding reliable child care was a major barrier to  employment for welfare recipients, that most recipients relied  primarily on family and friends for child care, and that this type of child  care was not always reliable. Case studies of seven communities in  Iowa found that “many low-income rural residents experience  continuing problems in securing adequate and affordable care for their  children,” that “child-care centers are a rarity in rural communities,”  and that “most recipients rely on home day care providers or relatives  to care for their children.”
Education services. Few options for adult basic education (ABE) and  general equivalency diploma (GED) classes was identified as a problem  in some areas. For example, in Dickenson, Virginia, the only adult basic  education class meets one evening a week, and GED classes geared  toward people with learning disabilities are not available. However,  caseworkers in counties with community colleges often said that there  was adequate availability of GED classes.
Mental health services. In some areas, we heard there were long  waits for mental health services and drug treatment programs were not  available.
Dentists. In some counties, service providers and TANF clients  identified the lack of dentists who accept Medicaid as a severe  problem.
section_title: Other Issues Hamper Employment Potential for Clients in Some Economically Depressed Areas
paragraphs: In some of the more economically depressed areas that we visited,  caseworkers stressed that they often had a high prevalence of hard-to- serve clients with severe problems. These problems include very low  education levels, many clients claiming disabilities, and family and  personal problems.
Very low education levels. In several areas, caseworkers mentioned  that they had illiterate clients and clients with only a grammar school  education. Caseworkers in Harlan County, Kentucky, and southwestern  Virginia said this problem was acute in their areas. These caseworkers  linked low education levels to the fact that, in the past, an education  was not needed for a man to get a well-paying job in the areas’ coal  mines. Also, it was a commonly held view that women did not need an  education to stay home and take care of the family. For almost all  available jobs, people with very limited educations will be  automatically disqualified, according to caseworkers and service  providers we spoke with. Also, caseworkers said that they must require  the clients to meet TANF work requirements, even if the clients cannot  qualify for any available paying jobs with their current lack of  education. Further, such clients need a GED to become employable,  but attaining one can take years when the clients start off at the  grammar school level.
Clients claiming disabilities. In two areas we visited—Harlan  County, Kentucky, and southwestern Virginia—caseworkers said they  have many clients who believe they are too disabled to work. The  caseworkers said that while some of these clients might be able to  qualify for disability payments from the Social Security Administration,  others will not qualify and will remain on TANF.
Family and personal problems. A family background of welfare  dependence, families who oppose women working outside the home,  domestic violence, and substance abuse were identified as significant  problems in some rural areas. In several areas, caseworkers and  service providers mentioned that many of their clients come from  families who were welfare-dependent and did not convey a work ethic  to their children. In Harlan County, Kentucky, and southwestern  Virginia, caseworkers and service providers said that some of their  clients come from families who believe women belong in the home and  who oppose the clients going to work. They also said that domestic  violence is common among their clients. For example, caseworkers in  southwestern Virginia said they had had clients who had been beaten  by their husbands when they attempted to work outside the home to  meet TANF work requirements. Caseworkers also mentioned  substance abuse as a common problem among clients in several areas  we visited.
section_title: Rural TANF Programs Foster Collaboration and Personal Attention from Caseworkers
paragraphs: Caseworkers and service providers cited strengths that their areas have in  implementing welfare reform that they associate with the rural  environment.
Collaboration. Caseworkers and service providers said that the  limited resources available in rural areas force people to work together  to solve problems. They also said they often have personal contacts  with employers and other community resources that provide a  foundation for trust and can lead to job placements and other  strategies to help clients. Also, caseworkers and service providers from  different programs and agencies often get to know each other and can  call each other directly, without going through another bureaucratic  level, to get help in solving a client’s problem. A report on the results of  case studies in 12 rural counties in four states stated that the “positive  attitude, resourcefulness, and resilience of the rural communities we  visited are the most notable aspects of welfare reform implementation  we observed.” This study also found “flexibility of local caseworkers  and other service providers in making alliances.”
Staff attention and knowledge. Caseworkers in some rural areas  expressed the view that they can give their clients more personal  attention than their urban counterparts can offer because of a smaller  caseload. However, caseworkers in other rural areas did not believe  they had fewer clients than caseworkers in urban areas. Some  caseworkers said they had considerable knowledge about their clients,  which is helpful in addressing the clients’ problems. For example, one  caseworker said she had insight into some of her clients’ lives because,  at one time, their grandmothers and mothers had also been her clients.  Authors of a study of welfare reform in Nebraska suggested that “rural  case managers may be more successful at engaging their clients” in the  TANF employment program because they found that rural clients were  more likely than urban clients to participate in the program.
section_title: Rural TANF Programs Transport Services to Clients and Leverage Resources to Provide Mentoring, Transportation, Job, and Child Care Assistance
paragraphs: The rural TANF programs we visited have devised many ways to bring  services to distant clients, and they have tended to leverage their  resources by collaborating with one another and with community  institutions, focusing effort as they did so on helping clients surmount  rural shortages in transportation, child care, and jobs.
subsections: section_title: Rural Programs Devised Modes of Service Delivery That Transcend Geography
paragraphs: The rural TANF programs we visited have bridged distances to TANF  clients with a variety of approaches ranging from bringing instructors and  equipment to them to using technology to enable clients to access services  without leaving home.
Virtual social services. The Work Central Career Advancement  Center in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, is a call center that equips  social workers with telephones and sophisticated computer systems in  an attempt to help former TANF clients and other low-income people  achieve economic self-sufficiency. According to a state TANF official,  the strategy has reduced the rate of return to TANF cash assistance in  this area of the state—8 percent for Work Central’s customers  compared with 15 percent for the state’s other former TANF clients.  Work Central’s social workers, or customer service representatives,  spend their days on the telephone with low-income people in 11 rural  counties in eastern North Carolina providing specific information, such  as job openings, or helping customers solve problems and develop  plans for improving their economic situation. The representatives place  regular follow-up calls to customers and will also connect them to  service providers—staying on the phone if needed. The representatives  use numerous computer tools, including an electronic case  management system with information on past and current benefits  received by the customers. Also, a geographic software program  depicts the customer’s area and identifies nearby service providers,  employers, and other area customers who might be incorporated into  the customer’s support system, such as in carpooling or babysitting.  The representatives also have Internet links to service providers that  detail hours of operation and locations.
Itinerant courses and instructors. A few of the rural TANF offices  we visited sponsor training programs with traveling instructors. That is,  courses may not be held in the same location year-round, but may be  offered in more than one location over the course of the year to  maximize clients’ opportunity to enroll. To accommodate clients  throughout a large New Hampshire county, for example, a 3-week life  skills course was held alternately in the north and south sections.  Another New Hampshire TANF program offered GED courses in  different areas around the county.
Workforce mobile lab. To give low-income residents access to  computer training, a technical college in northeastern Arkansas  outfitted a van with computers and transported it to various program  sites throughout the county. A community development organization  enlisted the van to conduct online self-guided training courses for  participants. TANF clients were offered a pre-employment training  curriculum, choosing from topics that included substantive GED  preparation, skills assessments, and soft skills instruction.
Distance learning by videoconference. In New Mexico, community  college courses have been available to TANF clients by  videoconference at several area high schools. According to staff,  telecommunication has made it possible for many of the program’s  single mothers to take classes without having to drive 100 miles round  trip from remote locations.
Bringing services into clients’ homes. Some programs we visited  have sent counselors out to visit with clients in their homes,  particularly when they do not have transportation. For example, the  state of New Hampshire has contracted with a nonprofit organization  to provide in-home counseling services for its hardest-to-serve TANF  clients—individuals who demonstrate evidence of mental illness,  substance abuse, or domestic violence. The home visits are conducted  over a 90-day period on a flexible schedule that includes nonbusiness  hours to accommodate family needs.
section_title: Rural TANF Programs Have Leveraged Their Resources through Collaboration and Partnerships
paragraphs: Partnerships and collaboration were a common practice for many of the  rurally situated programs we studied. From state to state and agency to  agency, caseworkers described collaborative arrangements between TANF  offices and other government agencies, nonprofit service providers,  educational institutions, private sector employers, and neighboring  counties. These partnerships ranged from loose, ad hoc affiliations to, in  one instance, a group of counties’ Departments of Social Services joining  together to create a nonprofit entity to help TANF clients become  employed. According to those we interviewed, the collaborations helped  leverage local resources and spawned new strategies.
Other service providers. Many of the rural TANF officials we visited  explained that they convene regular meetings with other social service  providers in their local areas to share ideas as well as information  about community and program developments. For instance, TANF  officials from Nicollet County in south central Minnesota said their  eligibility and employment counselors participate in both monthly and  quarterly meetings where ABE staff, public health officials, child  protective services, and the local housing authority are all represented.  Caseworkers and service providers cited these gatherings as a key  component in building rapport with one another, learning about what  partner agencies are doing, and fostering collective brainstorming  sessions for solving difficult problems. The call center (Work Central)  in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, partnered with the state employment  agency and, as a result, receives advance updated job listings, which  allows Work Central’s customer service representatives to call their  customers about suitable job openings the day before the listings are  made available to the general public, according to Work Central  administrators.
TANF programs in neighboring counties. In 1998, the Departments  of Social Services in eight jurisdictions in southwest Virginia with high  unemployment joined together to create a nonprofit organization to  help TANF clients become employed. The organization, called  Occupational Enterprises, Inc. (OEI), started with a $750,000 grant of  welfare-to-work dollars from the state of Virginia and has since applied  for and received numerous grants from governmental and private  sources to finance its operations. OEI uses its grants to provide  employment services for all TANF clients in the welfare reform  program in the eight jurisdictions. By applying for grants on behalf of  the combined population of all the participating rural counties, OEI   can qualify for much larger funding amounts than it would if it were  working with only one rural county. OEI managers believe that by  covering many counties, they greatly reduce administrative expenses  and can provide far more services than could be provided if each  county were operating independently. This occurs because all locations  benefit from the development of one program, and duplication of effort  is avoided. Also, more staff people are available to collaboratively solve  problems and support one another when needed. Further, instead of  needing a staff person in each county who can provide a service or  program, one or two staff can specialize and serve all locations.  Recently, three additional jurisdictions have joined the original eight to  be part of the OEI consortium.
Community colleges. Often, service providers named their local  community college as yet another key partner in the network of service  providers working to assist TANF clients in finding work and becoming  self-sufficient. The counties we visited in Mississippi and New Mexico,  for instance, had designated the local community college as the  contract provider of TANF workforce training services. In fact,  Mississippi’s governor was so pleased with the job placement rates of  local community colleges that he proposed giving the community  college system oversight of Workforce Investment Act (WIA) programs  statewide.
WIA collaboration. WIA and TANF programs in Logan County, West  Virginia, worked together to establish driver’s education courses, using  WIA funds, for welfare and workforce clients who had never obtained a  license. New Hampshire officials took a similar approach, allocating a  portion of their WIA funding to provide specialized computer training  for TANF clients.
A local bank. The Work Central Advancement Center in Rocky Mount,  North Carolina, partnered with a local bank to offer bank accounts to  Work Central customers in an effort to save customers the exorbitant  fees charged by independent check-cashing services. Unlike a typical  checking account, these accounts provide debit cards only and require  that sufficient funds be available in order for a withdrawal to be made,  thus eliminating the possibility of bounced checks, which Work Central  learned had been at the root of many customers’ problems with banks  in the past.
In addition to the partnerships described here, program officials also  described other collaborative arrangements, namely partnerships centered  on employment and transportation that are described in other sections of  this report.
section_title: Rural Programs Have Collaborated with Others to Provide Mentoring for TANF Clients
paragraphs: A number of rural TANF programs have provided TANF clients with more  informal support from their communities in the form of mentors drawn  from work sites, church congregations, or the community at large.  According to officials we spoke with, the mentors offer advice and serve  as role models, particularly for clients with a family history of welfare who  lack experience in the workplace.
Mentoring in New Mexico. Building on a state-level partnership  between the New Mexico Aging and Long Term Care Department and  the Department of Human Services, the state of New Mexico launched  the Golden Opportunities for Lifelong Development (GOLD) Mentoring  Program in 2000. Capitalizing on the state’s sizable population of  retired residents, the GOLD Mentoring Program pairs retirees with  TANF clients in the same community, in hopes that mentors will fill  gaps in caseworker service delivery and develop a level of rapport with  clients that is not always possible for caseworkers, given the  competing demands on their time. Mentors coach clients in a variety of  contexts, including family and interpersonal relationships, pre- employment preparation and job search activities, as well as in clients’  interactions with other government entities. For example, mentors told  us that it was not uncommon for mentors to accompany clients to  court appearances or for mentors to intercede on behalf of clients  trying to navigate various government benefit systems.
Mentoring in Forrest City, Arkansas. A community development  corporation in Forrest City, Arkansas, operates a mentoring program  for TANF clients that relies on unpaid volunteers from the community.  Known as PREP, which stands for People Realizing Employment  Possibilities, this program constitutes the support component of a local  subsidized employment initiative. Specifically, the mentoring program  was created to help TANF clients facilitate workplace problem solving  and to provide a model of appropriate workplace norms and behaviors  during subsidized job training arrangements with area employers.  Mentors meet with clients about once a week to gauge progress and  help resolve issues that have arisen. Although mentors do not  necessarily work at the same location as their assigned clients,  cognizant staff told us that mentors occasionally make workplace visits  to clients’ work sites.
Employer-based mentoring in southern Minnesota. During the late  1990s, staff from a 10-county region in the southeastern part of  Minnesota partnered to develop an employer-based mentoring program  intended to help TANF clients acclimate to new work environments  and deal constructively with conflicts to avoid termination, and to help  area employers improve retention. The program trained mentors in  conflict avoidance and resolution strategies and paired them with new  hires. Although the primary goal of the program was to provide support  for TANF clients entering the workforce, the service was made  available to all new employees hired by a participating employer. By  targeting all new employees, the program avoided identifying or  possibly stigmatizing TANF clients in the workplace and also provided  more of an incentive for employers to participate. All told, the program  trained approximately 1,200 mentors in 475 organizations, some of  which experienced marked improvements in their retention rates  during that time. For example, one nursing home that employed a  considerable number of TANF clients was concerned about its high  staff attrition rates. After implementing the mentoring program, staff  turnover at the nursing home dropped from 60 percent to 4 percent and  eventually stabilized at about 20 percent, according to program staff.
section_title: Rural TANF Strategies Have Targeted Shortages in Transportation, Jobs, and Child Care
paragraphs: The rural TANF programs that we visited had focused a substantial  amount of their efforts on remedying at least one of three shortages they  said prevented many TANF clients from finding or keeping employment— transportation, job options, and child care. In each area, they had tailored  services to meet particular needs and were grooming clients for the  particular opportunities that existed in their local markets. Some  placement programs sought to remedy skill deficiencies to make clients  more marketable, while others targeted the area employers, developing  industry-specific training modules, outreach initiatives, and economic  incentives in hopes of parlaying those relationships into jobs for TANF  clients. Research suggests that training programs designed to reflect the  needs of the local labor market tend to result in positive outcomes for  participating clients.
subsections: section_title: Expanded Transportation Options
paragraphs: Rural TANF programs had implemented a variety of initiatives, ranging  from private vehicle programs to dedicated transport vans to helping  individuals acquire or regain their driver’s licenses.
Donated car programs. A number of the rural program officials we  spoke with advocated private vehicle ownership programs as the best  solution to the transportation problems that affect many rural TANF  clients. Specifically, supporters of private vehicle ownership contend  that mass transit options can be insufficient and unreliable in rural  areas and argue that to guarantee regular work attendance, clients  must own their own cars. The Good News Garage, a nonprofit  organization founded in Vermont but adapted in other parts of the  country, has been a pioneer in this area, soliciting donated cars,  evaluating and refurbishing them, and then placing them in the hands  of TANF clients for a nominal fee. Because this program relies on  donated, rather than purchased, cars, TANF clients in New Hampshire,  for example, are only required to pay a fixed price of $1,100, which  may be paid by TANF or another benefit program, to partially cover  the cost of refurbishing. Other variations on the Good News Garage  concept require participants to enter into a lease agreement, where the  purchaser agrees to pay a fixed monthly fee over a set period, at the  end of which clients in good standing are given the title to the car.  Most of these programs provide some type of support to client  participants in the form of car repair clinics, referrals to modestly  priced garages, even subsidies for insurance or repairs. The program  administrators we spoke with cited a number of positive outcomes  associated with private vehicle ownership: In the case of Good News  Garage, program officials asserted that 75 percent of the TANF  recipients who received vehicles subsequently left the welfare rolls.  Further, a study examining the impact of Vermont’s Good News  Garage program on the earned income of participating TANF clients  found that average incomes for participating clients rose $220 per  month after they had been outfitted with a vehicle.
Car loan programs. Other car programs seek not only to provide  clients with vehicles, but also to help them raise their credit ratings in  the process. Specifically, some programs focus on helping clients  obtain new cars or finance newer vehicles through low-cost loans with  generous repayment terms. For instance, in New Hampshire, a program  called Wheels-to-Work offers a tax credit to dealerships in return for  donations of high-quality used cars that can then be sold to low-income  families for about half the cars’ appraised value. Because the average  cost to the client of these cars is around $3,300, requiring most clients  to obtain loans, Wheels-to-Work also serves as a mediator between  clients and lenders. In Minnesota, a consortium of counties in the south  central portion of the state received funding to launch a similar car  loan program for TANF clients. In this instance, the consortium used  the funding not to purchase or repair cars, but to establish a loan  guarantee fund that facilitated the development of relationships with  two area banks on the condition that the car program would guarantee  25 percent of any defaulted loan. In addition to mediating between the  bank and the loan applicant, staff affiliated with the car loan program  also counseled applicants on consumer credit issues, provided  insurance referrals, and established relationships with area car dealers.  Although staff operated as mediators between the client and the lender,  the program required clients to choose a preferred lender and act as  the primary point of contact. By requiring clients to take loans and  interact with the bank holding the loan, the program sought to improve  clients’ credit ratings, financial literacy, and confidence in dealing with  financial institutions. According to officials overseeing the program,  less than 30 percent of participating car owners defaulted on their  loans.
Van, bus, and other dedicated transportation systems. Instead of  allocating resources for private vehicle ownership programs, some of  the rural TANF programs we visited elected to subsidize clients’ use of  existing transportation systems, sponsor their own van transport  service, or create reciprocal agreements with other social service  programs already providing transportation (e.g., Head Start). For  example, Logan County, West Virginia, and Coahoma County,  Mississippi, provide vouchers for clients to use the local fixed route  bus system. Other localities have chosen to sponsor their own van  services, but the distances separating relatively small numbers of  clients drives up the cost of van services. For instance, according to  one official in St. Francis County, Arkansas, the price of these services  in his area was as high as $2,000 per client per month. One West  Virginia county suffering from limited public transportation partnered  with the local Head Start program to secure the use of its van for TANF  client transport when Head Start was not in session.
Obtaining or reinstating driver’s licenses. To address the issue of  clients who had never been licensed to drive, the local TANF program  in Logan County, West Virginia, partnered with Workforce Investment  Board staff from the same locality to offer driver’s education courses to  their respective service populations. To help TANF clients deal with  large unpaid traffic tickets and avoid having their driver’s licenses  suspended, program officials in Coahoma County, Mississippi, are  exploring the possibility of working with local authorities to develop an  incremental payment program for TANF clients. This initiative will be  modeled after a program operated by the City Court Clerk’s Office in  Memphis, Tennessee. Although the Memphis program does not  specifically target the TANF population, the goal is the same: to  provide residents in danger of facing license suspensions because of  unpaid fines an opportunity to establish an arrangement allowing them  to make incremental payments and pay down those fines over time.  According to the program’s administrator, the incremental payment  program has dramatically reduced the number of outstanding or  inactive traffic fines and boosted the city’s traffic fine revenue from   $4 million to approximately $14 million annually.
section_title: Job Development, Job Training, and Tailored Employment Assessments
paragraphs: Rural TANF programs we visited have developed a variety of approaches  to find employment opportunities for TANF clients, to provide training  that will make TANF clients more marketable to area employers, and to  assess clients’ skills and barriers to employment.
Job development. In several counties we visited, one or more staff  had been given the responsibility of developing and maintaining  contacts with employers so that when the employers had job openings,  they would give TANF clients the opportunity to fill the openings. Also,  caseworkers in several counties said they sometimes set up subsidized  employment arrangements for clients. That is, the welfare program  would pay all or part of a client’s salary for a given period of time to  encourage employers to give the clients a chance to learn the job and  prove themselves good employees. Several caseworkers said that  subsidized employment frequently turned into permanent  (unsubsidized) jobs for clients. Also, caseworkers in some areas said  they had set up unpaid job opportunities for clients to help them build  work experience. In southwest Virginia, OEI established workspaces  in two local manufacturing plants where their clients receive on-the- job training and perform unpaid work under the supervision of plant  management. Under this arrangement, plant management agrees to  forgive clients’ mistakes and absences. Also, clients who turn out to be  successful workers get priority for hiring at the plants. OEI has also  established a downtown ceramics shop and store for Appalachian  crafts where TANF clients work, unpaid, to learn what is expected of  them in the workplace and to develop work experience that can help  them obtain and retain paid employment.
Skill-based training. Some of the TANF programs we visited offered  skill- or industry-specific training programs designed to help clients  develop skills relevant to a particular local employer or industry. For  example, administrators affiliated with the local community college in  Coahoma County, Mississippi, formed a partnership with a large local  casino-hotel complex, one of the few employers in the county with a  need for low-skilled workers. Community college officials, working in  conjunction with casino personnel, developed a curriculum to teach  TANF clients relevant hospitality skills including housekeeping, valet,  security, and cashier services. The casino also funded the construction  of a mock hotel room in one of the classrooms at the college to give  students an opportunity for firsthand experience in chemical safety and  other housekeeping protocol. Instructors monitor students’ progress  and refer job-ready participants to hiring personnel at the casino.  According to staff at the community college, TANF clients feel that  participants in the training program have a better chance of being hired  by the casino than do those who submit an application independent of  the program. Casino officials also said that the retention rate for those  referrals tends to be considerably higher than the industry standard.
To encourage a local manufacturer to employ TANF clients, program  officials in northern New Hampshire’s Coos County invited the  employer to assist in designing a 10-week course for TANF clients that  would impart the skills necessary for assembling prefabricated  modular homes. When the corporate catalyst for the project began to  experience financial difficulties and was forced to temporarily suspend  hiring, program officials explained that some of the clients who  participated in the training were hired by other employers who could  capitalize on their new skills. A local TANF agency in Goodhue County,  Minnesota, also emphasizes practical skills and helped the local  community college develop a short-term welding course that covered  the fundamentals and laid the groundwork for participants interested  in pursuing certification.
Certified computer training courses. At least two of the states we  visited also sponsored computer training for TANF clients culminating  in industry-recognized certification. For instance, New Hampshire’s  TANF program gives some clients the opportunity to enroll in an  intensive 14-week computer training course designed and certified by  Microsoft. Curriculum topics include word processing, spreadsheets,  and presentation software. Program officials in one New Hampshire  county told us that among its first cohort of graduates from the  computer training program, all but one had left TANF at the time of our  interview. In Coahoma County, Mississippi, TANF recipients can  participate in 4-week computer training certification courses consisting  of instruction in the basic use of computer hardware, software,  networks, and the Internet.
Microenterprise. In some of the New Mexico communities we visited,  weak economies and job scarcity prompted program officials to pursue  microenterprise ventures (also known as self-employment) as a viable  alternative for TANF clients seeking work. Specifically, an  Albuquerque-based nonprofit specializing in training and technical  assistance for small business start-ups developed a training program  specifically for TANF clients interested in starting their own  businesses. Microenterprise staff provide TANF clients with consulting  expertise as well as financial literacy training and other instruction in  basic business principles. In addition, the group also maintains an  online marketplace for clients to sell their products. The group has  assisted TANF clients in launching a wide array of businesses, from  arts and crafts to landscaping and child care.
Scheduling accommodations. In the state of West Virginia, TANF  officials have structured a 6-week life skills and pre-employment  training course for TANF clients such that each week constitutes a  discrete module not dependent upon other modules to be  understandable. This allows TANF clients to enroll at the beginning of  any week, rather than having to wait several weeks for the course to  begin again. In addition, the stand-alone format of West Virginia’s  training makes it possible for clients to enroll and obtain credit for  individual modules as their schedules allow. In Harnett County, North  Carolina, enrollees in GED classes have the option of performing the  preparation work in a classroom environment or of engaging in more  individualized self-paced learning.
Comprehensive screening and assessment. OEI, a nonprofit  organization that performs employment services for TANF clients from  11 counties in southwest Virginia, developed an assessment tool and  process for all new clients. The assessment, which is managed by a  licensed clinical social worker and registered nurse, screens for a  number of problems that the OEI staff believe are very common among  clients in their area, such as learning disabilities, domestic violence,  substance abuse, and physical and mental health problems. The  assessment also evaluates clients’ educational attainment; legal, family,  and employment histories; transportation and child care needs; skills;  and employment goals. The results of the assessment provide the  foundation for decisions about appropriate activities for promoting  individual employment and self-sufficiency as well as client aptitudes  for various types of work.
Screening to assist clients claiming disabilities. Program officials  in Harlan County, Kentucky, employ a “good cause” specialist, a  dedicated caseworker responsible for visiting clients who claim either  to have disabilities severe enough to prevent them from working or to  have primary caregiver responsibility for a family member with a  disability. The visits to clients’ homes are intended to give the  caseworker an opportunity to assess clients’ living situations firsthand,  learn more about the clients’ claimed disabilities, and identify any  activities the clients are already doing that might be parlayed into  countable work activities. For example, program officials in Harlan  County noted that on a number of occasions, the good cause  specialist’s visit to a client’s home uncovered existing child or elderly  care arrangements with the potential to be expanded into small  businesses that would not only count toward the work requirements  but also could further clients’ self-sufficiency goals. Staff members  related one anecdote where a TANF client had claimed a medical  exemption as a result of responsibilities stemming from the care of her  disabled mother, rather than a medical condition of her own. Staff  members were able to arrange day care for the client’s mother, and the  client was able to return to work.
section_title: Increased Child Care
paragraphs: To produce a larger, more stable, better-trained corps of child care  providers, child care administrators in some local communities have  mounted child care initiatives to help meet community needs.
Building capacity among current child care providers. As part of a  short-term pilot program in Harlan County, Kentucky, the local child  care referral group partnered with Early Head Start staff to expand the  number of openings for infants and toddler-age children. To  accomplish that goal, a dedicated staff member developed lesson plans  and a curriculum that provided a foundation for certification. In the  state of Kentucky, certified providers are allowed to care for more  children than uncertified providers and also qualify for larger per child  state subsidy payments. Staff launched the program by visiting current  providers in their homes to share certification information and deliver  safety equipment such as cabinet latches, fire extinguishers, and safety  gates. In addition, the initiative’s primary point person also hosted  periodic discussion groups that were conducted at a central location.
Although the pilot program was only funded for 1 year, program  administrators told us that approximately 15 of the original 20  participants maintain their certification, and an additional 2 have gone  on to receive advanced certification allowing them to care for up to   12 children in their homes. They credited the initiative for giving rise to  Harlan County’s first child care slots open to infants and toddlers. In  addition, one staff member mentioned that the training and subsequent  increase in income shifted perceptions among participating child care  providers, prompting them to view child care as a profession rather  than as a temporary measure for generating additional household  income. Program officials went on to say that in their experience,  another benefit of increasing the number of home-based child care  slots stemmed from the ability and willingness of in-home child care  providers in their community to offer after-hours care, a service that  center-based facilities had not succeeded in doing.
Recruiting new providers. In a remote St. Francis County, Arkansas  community, human services staff coordinated with child care  specialists from Little Rock to increase the availability of child care in  the area. Staff utilized church networks and storefronts to heighten  community awareness about the need for child care providers and  followed up with an informational session for interested community  members. After attending the informational session, potential providers  were directed to enroll in licensing training. As a supplement to the  licensing curriculum, staff spearheading the recruiting effort also  partnered with the Small Business Administration’s local office to offer  a voluntary 6-week business planning component. Ultimately, the  outreach program yielded four or five new child care providers.
section_title: HHS Has Several Initiatives That Could Benefit Rural TANF Programs
paragraphs: HHS’s Administration for Children and Families has planned and  undertaken several initiatives that could assist TANF programs and TANF  families in rural areas. Several ACF offices with different responsibilities  are involved in these initiatives.
Conferences addressing rural TANF issues. In September 2003, ACF  and the Department of Labor jointly sponsored a 2-day rural conference  for one of ACF’s 10 regional offices. The conference was designed to  improve service delivery to families in rural areas by offering rural service  providers an opportunity to discuss strategies for addressing challenges.  Collaboration with community partners was emphasized. Officials from   9 counties across 5 states participated in the conference. ACF sponsored  similar conferences in 1999 and 2000 that were geared toward sharing  rural welfare-to-work strategies. Approximately 11 states and 4 regions  were represented at each year’s conference. Topics covered at these  conferences included transportation strategies, child care strategies, and  economic and community development.
Demonstration projects. ACF’s Office of Planning, Research, and  Evaluation is currently sponsoring a demonstration project to evaluate the  effectiveness of welfare-to-work strategies being used in rural areas of  Illinois and Nebraska. These two states are testing different approaches to  addressing employment barriers common in rural places. For example, the  Illinois Future Steps program offers intensive, employment-focused case  management including job placement assistance and postemployment  support assistance. Future Steps staff support and monitor clients’  progress closely through regular meetings and home visits. The second  program, Building Nebraska Families, focuses on improving the basic life  skills of hard-to-employ people so they can participate in job search and  job training activities, as well as address personal and family barriers to  self-sufficiency. Educational services are provided mainly through home  visits and cover subjects such as household management, parenting, and  decision making. A complete evaluation of the effectiveness of these  interventions will be available in 2007.
Technical assistance to TANF programs. ACF’s Office of Family  Assistance (OFA), which is responsible for administering the TANF block  grant, provides technical assistance to TANF programs. One means  through which technical assistance is provided is the Welfare Peer  Technical Assistance Network. The purpose of the network, which was  started in 2000, is to provide technical assistance and facilitate information  exchanges among states, counties, and community-based organizations  about promising practices and lessons learned in implementing welfare  reform. The network provides technical assistance in response to specific  requests from state or local TANF programs. If the technical assistance  involves a site visit or teleconference, usually only the programs that  requested the assistance are included. However, other interested parties  may be included. Summaries and results of these meetings or conference  calls are posted on ACF’s Web site. Three of the nine technical assistance  events that occurred during January through June of 2004 were focused on  rural TANF programs. One such event was a teleconference among six  states to discuss approaches to developing work experience sites in tribal  and nontribal rural areas.
Promoting use of the Earned Income Tax Credit. ACF is also  planning an expansion of an initiative designed to increase the number of  low-income families in the Mississippi Delta region that claim the Earned  Income Tax Credit (EITC).  The follow-on strategy is expected to focus  more on rural areas. While not yet implemented because of funding  constraints, an expansion of the Delta EITC initiative would train  volunteers from local universities and community colleges to prepare tax  returns for rural low-income families and ensure that they apply for the  EITC. The initiative would specifically target those families in the Delta  region that have recently left TANF. To accomplish this, the agency plans  to collaborate with the Internal Revenue Service, universities and  community colleges, as well as private companies.
ACF’s Rural Initiative Task Force. As a part of HHS’s agencywide  initiative to strengthen rural families and communities, ACF has  established a rural task force to bring together ACF officials from across  the different ACF programs, including TANF. Officials in both  headquarters and regional offices participate in monthly meetings of the  Rural Task Force and discuss rural concerns and share strategies. One  activity the task force is undertaking is the development of a rural e-mail  Listserv in order to improve communication between ACF and rural  entities. The rural Listserv would provide a firm source of communication  between ACF and rural partners and share information such as training  opportunities, grant opportunities, technical assistance, and other issues  of concern to rural areas.
section_title: Concluding Observations
paragraphs: Rural counties shared in the nation’s dramatic declines in TANF caseloads  that followed national implementation of welfare reform. However, these  national caseload declines do not necessarily mean that welfare reform  has been successful or that conditions are not challenging welfare reform  in rural areas. First, changes in the number of all families are likely to  affect the number of TANF families, and the number of all families in rural  areas is growing at a lower rate than that of urban areas. Therefore,  without other offsetting factors, rural areas’ TANF caseloads should be  expected to decline more (or grow less), proportionately, than urban  areas’ caseloads. Second, data on caseload declines do not reveal whether  those who left the caseload are employed and moving toward self- sufficiency, which are essential pieces of information for assessing the  success of welfare reform. Third, many rural areas have experienced  significant caseload declines but still have a high proportion of their  families receiving TANF. Whether TANF recipients in these communities  will be able to find jobs and become self-sufficient depends, in part, on the  conditions in the communities where they live, such as the availability of  jobs, transportation, child care, and dental and medical care. The  disadvantaged socioeconomic conditions in these communities are likely  to pose challenges to the clients’ ability to leave TANF and become self- sufficient. Rural TANF programs we visited have developed some  strategies to help them address the challenges their clients face, but the  challenges continue.
ACF has paid attention to rural areas in its administration of the federal  TANF block grant and has several efforts under way, such as its rural  demonstration study and its rural task force, that should be helpful in  addressing rural challenges. ACF can build upon these efforts by  continuing to look for ways to support rural TANF programs and by  continuing to support activities like the Mississippi Delta EITC initiative  and the creation of a rural e-mail Listserv that could help spread the word  about interesting strategies being used in rural areas.
section_title: Agency Comments and Our Evaluation
paragraphs: We provided a draft of this report to HHS for its review. A copy of HHS’  response is in appendix IV. In its response, HHS said the report was  informative and did not disagree with any of the findings. HHS noted that  ACF has undertaken several activities focused on rural TANF, as cited in  the report.  Further, HHS said it plans to establish a link to the final report  on its Welfare Peer Technical Assistance Network Web page to facilitate  rural TANF providers’ access to the report. HHS also provided technical  comments on the draft, and in response to these comments, we made  changes where appropriate.
As agreed with your offices, unless you publicly announce its contents  earlier, we plan no further distribution of this report until 30 days after its  issue date. At that time we will send copies of this report to appropriate  congressional committees and other interested parties. We will also make  copies available to others on request. In addition, the report will be  available at no charge on GAO’s Web site at http://www.gao.gov.
If you have any questions concerning this report, please contact me or  Clarita Mrena at (202) 512-7215. See appendix V for other contributors to  this report.
section_title: Appendix I: Scope and Methodology of TANF Caseload Data Analysis
paragraphs: To address questions about the rural Temporary Assistance for Needy  Families (TANF) caseload, we collected and analyzed county-level TANF  caseload data from states. Below are details about these data and the  analysis.
Time period covered by caseload data. We obtained average monthly  caseload data for the years 1997 through 2003. These data show the  number of families who received cash assistance, on average, during the  months of each year. Average monthly caseload is calculated by adding  the caseload for each month of the year and dividing by the number of  months. For some states, for some years, (primarily 1997 and 2003), the  caseload data we obtained are for fewer than 12 months of the year. For  most states, the data are for the calendar year, but for some states (noted  in app. III) the data are for the state fiscal year.
Number of states covered by analysis.  Different states were used for  the different analyses included in the report.
Analysis of 2003 rural and urban TANF caseload data (used to  determine the percentage of TANF families living in rural areas) covers  48 states, including the District of Columbia. The states not covered are  Arizona, Delaware, and Wisconsin because we were not able to obtain  reliable caseload data from these states in time for our analysis.
Analysis of 2003 rural only TANF caseload data (used in figs. 1 and   2 and table 1 of app. II) covers 45 states—all states from which we  were able to obtain reliable caseload data, except the District of  Columbia, New Jersey, and Rhode Island, which do not have rural  counties.
Analysis of rural and urban caseload changes for the period 1997  through 2003 (used in fig. 3) covers 37 states that provided reliable  caseload data for each of those 7 years—California, Colorado, District  of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas,  Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana,  Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North  Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South  Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia,  Washington, and Wyoming.
Analysis of rural caseload changes for the years 1997 to 2003 (used in  fig. 4 and table 2 of app. II) covers 37 states that provided reliable  caseload data for the years 1997 and 2003 and that have rural  counties—California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho,  Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland,  Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New  Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma,  Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah,  Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
Types of cases included in caseload data. The cases included in our  data are families in states’ welfare programs, including families who  received cash assistance paid for with TANF funds and families whose  cash assistance was paid for with state maintenance-of-effort (MOE)  dollars required by the TANF block grant. Some states have moved  families from a program paid for with TANF dollars to one paid for with  MOE dollars, and we included such families in our data in order to get a  complete picture of the rural welfare caseload and how it has changed  over time. In the report, we refer to all the cases in our data as TANF  cases. A small number of cases from tribal TANF programs may be  included in some states’ data, but generally, cases from tribal TANF  programs are not included in our data.
Data reliability check. To check the reliability of the data we collected  from states, we compared the TANF caseload data we collected from each  state (a combined total for all counties in a state) with ACF’s statewide  caseload data for the years 1997-2003. When we found significant  differences between the two sets of data, we identified reasons that would  account for the differences. When we were unable to account for the  differences, we excluded from our analysis the data for the year or years  for which there were unaccountable differences.
Demographic and socioeconomic data. In our analysis, we used data on  county demographics and socioeconomic characteristics, such as  population, unemployment rates, and median income. The U.S.  Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service (ERS) provided  data for our analysis that it compiled from the Bureau of the Census and  the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In addition, ERS provided data that it  developed on counties’ classifications that we used to determine whether  counties were rural or urban.  In order to determine the proportion of the  general population receiving TANF cash assistance, we divided 2003 TANF  caseload data (TANF families) by 2000 Census data on the number of  families in each county.  We estimate that our resulting percentage is, on  average, biased upward by about 0.1 percentage point.
section_title: Appendix II: Comparisons of Demographic and Socioeconomic Characteristics of Counties with Different TANF Characteristics
paragraphs: To determine how counties with different TANF caseload characteristics  compared, we put counties into four groups and looked at the  demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of each group. Table 1  shows the characteristics of groups of counties with different proportions  of the population receiving TANF. Table 2 shows the characteristics of  groups of counties with different degrees of TANF caseload change from  1997 to 2003.
section_title: Appendix III: TANF Caseload Data by State
paragraphs: CY 2003 TANF  caseload as a  percentage of  number of all  3.2.
We did not obtain data from Arizona.
Colorado data include families receiving diversion payments, as well as families receiving monthly  cash assistance.
We did not obtain data from Delaware.
District of Columbia caseload data were obtained from ACF.
Minnesota data include some families (about 10 percent of the total caseload) who are no longer  receiving cash assistance but are receiving federally funded food assistance. According to a  Minnesota official, Minnesota has integrated food assistance into its welfare program, and some  families in the program who have begun working are no longer eligible for cash payments but are  eligible for food assistance.
Montana data are for state fiscal year.
Nevada data are for state fiscal year.
Texas data are for state fiscal year.
West Virginia data are for state fiscal year.
Wyoming data for two counties, Northern Arapaho and East Shoshone, are not included because  changes in caseload over the period would largely be attributable to movement from state- to tribal- run programs rather than participants moving off TANF.
section_title: Appendix IV: Comments from the Department of Health and Human Services
section_title: Appendix V: GAO Contacts and Staff Acknowledgments
subsections: section_title: GAO Contacts
section_title: Staff Acknowledgments
paragraphs: In addition to those named above, Kenneth Adams, Tiffany Boiman, Amy  Buck, Cindy Decker, Lise Levie, Angela Miles, Jerry Sandau, and Jay Smale  made key contributions to this report.
section_title: Bibliography
paragraphs: Bosley, Sarah, and Bradford Mills. How Welfare Reform Impacts Non- metropolitan and Metropolitan Counties in Virginia. Rural Development  Program for Community Vitality. Virginia Tech, September 1999.
Burwick, Andrew, Vinita Jethwani, and Alicia Meckstroth. Implementing  Welfare-to-Work Programs in Rural Places: Lessons from the Rural  Welfare-to-Work Strategies Demonstration Evaluation. Mathematica  Policy Research, Inc., April 2004.
Duncan, Greg, Leslie Whitener, and Bruce Weber. “Lessons Learned:  Welfare Reform and Food Assistance in Rural America.” In Rural  Dimensions of Welfare Reform, edited by Bruce A. Weber, Greg J.  Duncan, and Leslie A. Whitener, 455-470. Kalamazoo, Michigan: W. E.  Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, 2002.
Fletcher, Cynthia Needles, Jan Flora, Barbara Gaddis, Mary Winter and  Jacquelyn Litt. “Small Towns and Welfare Reform: Iowa Case Studies of  Families and Communities.” In Rural Dimensions of Welfare Reform,  edited by Bruce A. Weber, Greg J. Duncan, and Leslie A. Whitener, 201-229.  Kalamazoo, Michigan: W. E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research,  2002.
Friedman, Pamela. Transportation Needs in Rural Communities. Rural  Assistance Center, March 2004.  http://www.raconline.org/info_guides/transportation/issuenote.html  Gibbs, Robert M. “Rural Labor Markets in an Era of Welfare Reform”. In  Rural Dimensions of Welfare Reform, edited by Bruce A. Weber, Greg J.  Duncan, and Leslie A. Whitener, 51-75. Kalamazoo, Michigan: W. E. Upjohn  Institute for Employment Research, 2002.
Harvey, Mark, Gene F. Summers, Kathleen Pickering, and Patricia  Richards. “The Short-Term Impacts of Welfare Reform in Persistently Poor  Rural Areas.” In Rural Dimensions of Welfare Reform, edited by Bruce A.  Weber, Greg J. Duncan, and Leslie A. Whitener, 375-409. Kalamazoo,  Michigan: W. E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, 2002.
Lerman, Robert, Amy-Ellen Duke, and Jesse Valente. Do Income Support  Levels and Work Incentives Differ between Rural and Urban Areas?  Washington, D.C.: The Urban Institute, 1999.
Lerman, Robert I., Signe-Mary McKernan, and Nancy Pindus. “Welfare  Reforms and Employment of Single Mothers: Are Rural Areas Keeping  Pace?” Rural America 16 (2001): 22-27.
Lichter, Daniel T., and Leif Jensen. “Poverty and Welfare among Rural  Female-Headed Families.” Rural America 16 (2001): 28-35.
Lucas, Marilyn T., and Charles F. Nicholson. “Subsidized Vehicle  Acquisition and Earned Income in the Transition from Welfare to Work.”  Transportation 30 (2003): 483-501.
Pindus, Nancy M. Implementing Welfare Reform in Rural Communities.  Economic Research Service (Urban Institute) Feb. 2001.
Ponza, Michael, Alicia Meckstroth, and Jennifer Faerber. Employment  Experiences and Challenges among Urban and Rural Welfare Clients in  Nebraska. Mathematica, August 2002.
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section_title: Related GAO Products
paragraphs: Welfare Reform: Information on TANF Balances. GAO-03-1094.  Washington, D.C.: September 8, 2003.
Welfare Reform: Information on Changing Labor Market and State  Fiscal Conditions. GAO-03-977. Washington, D.C.: July 15, 2003.
Transportation-Disadvantaged Populations: Some Coordination Efforts  Among Programs Providing Transportation Services, but Obstacles  Persist. GAO-03-697. Washington, D.C.: June 30, 2003.
Child Care: Recent State Policy Changes Affecting the Availability of  Assistance for Low-Income Families. GAO-03-588. Washington, D.C.: May  5, 2003.
Welfare Reform: Job Access Program Improves Local Service  Coordination, but Evaluation Should be Completed. GAO-03-204.  Washington, D.C.: December 6, 2002.
Child Care: States Exercise Flexibility in Setting Reimbursement Rates  and Providing Access for Low-Income Children. GAO-02-894.  Washington, D.C.: September 18, 2002.
Welfare Reform: With TANF Flexibility, States Vary in How They  Implement Work Requirements and Time Limits. GAO-02-770.  Washington, D.C.: July 5, 2002.
Workforce Investment Act: States and Localities Increasingly Coordinate  Services for TANF Clients, but Better Information Needed on Effective  Approaches. GAO-02-696. Washington, D.C.: July 3, 2002.
Welfare Reform: States Provide TANF-Funded Work Support Services to  Many Low-Income Families Who Do Not Receive Cash Assistance.   GAO-02-615T. Washington, D.C.: April 10, 2002.
Welfare Reform: States Provide TANF-Funded Services to Many Low- Income Families Who Do Not Receive Cash Assistance. GAO-02-564.  Washington, D.C.: April 5, 2002.
Human Services Integration: Results of a GAO Cosponsored Conference  on Modernizing Information Systems. GAO-02-121. Washington, D.C.:  January 31, 2002.
Means-Tested Programs: Determining Financial Eligibility Is  Cumbersome and Can Be Simplified. GAO-02-58. Washington, D.C.:  November 2, 2001.
Welfare Reform: Challenges in Maintaining a Federal-State Fiscal  Partnership. GAO-01-828. Washington, D.C.: August 10, 2001.
Welfare Reform: Moving Hard-to-Employ Recipients into the  Workforce. GAO-01-368. Washington, D.C.: March 15, 2001.
Welfare Reform: Improving State Automated Systems Requires  Coordinated Federal Effort. GAO/HEHS-00-48. Washington, D.C.: April 27,  2000.
Domestic Violence: Prevalence and Implications for Employment among  Welfare Recipients. GAO/HEHS-99-12. Washington, D.C.: November 24,  1998.