THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

INTRODUCED BY SONNEY, SAYLOR, DENLINGER, FARRY, PEIFER, S. H. SMITH, TURZAI, BAKER, BARRAR, BEAR, BOYD, BRADFORD, CALTAGIRONE, CLYMER, CREIGHTON, CUTLER, ELLIS, GABLER, GEIST, GINGRICH, GOODMAN, GRELL, GROVE, HENNESSEY, HESS, HICKERNELL, HORNAMAN, HUTCHINSON, KAUFFMAN, M. KELLER, KILLION, KNOWLES, KRIEGER, MAJOR, MARSHALL, MARSICO, METZGAR, MICOZZIE, MILLARD, MILLER, MILNE, MOUL, MURT, OBERLANDER, O'NEILL, PALLONE, PAYTON, PHILLIPS, PICKETT, PYLE, RAPP, REICHLEY, SCAVELLO, SIPTROTH, SWANGER, TALLMAN, THOMAS AND VULAKOVICH, APRIL 29, 2010

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, APRIL 29, 2010  

AN ACT

Amending the act of June 13, 1967 (P.L.31, No.21), entitled "An

act to consolidate, editorially revise, and codify the public

welfare laws of the Commonwealth," further providing for

workfare program.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  Section 405.2 of the act of June 13, 1967

(P.L.31, No.21), known as the Public Welfare Code, amended or

added April 8, 1982 (P.L.231, No.75), June 16, 1994 (P.L.319,

No.49) and June 30, 1995 (P.L.129, No.20), is amended to read:

Section 405.2.  Workfare Program.--(a)  The department shall

enter into cooperative agreements to establish workfare projects

with [departments, agencies or institutions of the Commonwealth

or any political subdivision located within the Commonwealth or

any agency of the Federal Government or department-approved

nonprofit organizations or established for-profit temporary help

organizations for temporary placement with] private, nonprofit

or for-profit employers. Participating for-profit temporary help

organizations shall recover their costs and profit from fees

charged to employers on a voluntary basis. The department shall

assign to these [work] workfare projects cash assistance

recipients who are able to work but have been unable to secure

employment. In instances when workfare projects are not

available for all recipients, priority shall be given to general

assistance recipients for referral to available projects. The

department shall structure the workfare program to permit a

claimant to be matched with a business participating in the

program. The business shall provide recipients participating in

the program with workplace training that provides skill

enhancement from participating employers for up to twenty-four

hours per week for up to six weeks. Upon completion of the

training, recipients must be considered for employment by the

participating employer.

(a.1)  In order to participate in the program, a business

shall certify all of the following to the department:

(1)  that it has open employment positions available;

(2)  that it intends to hire for a position that a claimant

may fill through the program; and

(3)  that it will follow up a claimant's participation in the

program with a performance evaluation of the claimant,

regardless of whether or not the claimant is hired for

employment.

(b)  Every individual who has not received a bona fide offer

of training or employment under section 405.1 shall, as a

condition of continuing eligibility for cash assistance, report

to and work in an available workfare project established under

this section unless such individual is exempt from the

registration requirements of section 405.1. Such individual

shall be required to work that number of hours which when

multiplied by the applicable minimum wage equals the amount of

cash assistance such person receives: Provided, however, That:

(1)  such work shall not exceed forty hours per week; and

(2)  the parent or other caretaker of a child between the

ages of six and fourteen who is personally providing care for

the child with only very brief and infrequent absences from the

child shall not be required to participate in workfare projects

except on days and at times when the child is in school or when

there are adequate day-care arrangements available for the child

at no cost to the recipient.

(c)  Workfare projects established under this section must be

approved by the department. To qualify for approval, a work site

must conform to appropriate health and safety standards. Cash

assistance recipients shall not be assigned to work

opportunities available due to a labor dispute, strike, or

lockout and shall not be assigned to perform work so as to cause

the layoff, downgrading or prevention of return to work of an

available competent employe. Cash assistance recipients shall be

assigned to workfare projects within twenty-five miles of their

place of residence unless the department determines that a

greater distance is not a hardship.

(d)  [A person who without good cause fails or refuses to

accept assignment to and participate in a workfare project shall

be terminated from assistance pursuant to section 432.3]

(Reserved).

(e)  The department shall propose initial rules and

regulations for the administration of this section prior to the

effective date of this section. Neither initial rules and

regulations nor any promulgated thereafter with regard to this

section shall take effect without the approval of the General

Assembly. The department's proposed initial rules and

regulations shall be submitted to, and approved or disapproved

by, the Senate and the House of Representatives in the same

manner as provided for the consideration of reorganization plans

provided for by the act of April 7, 1955 (P.L.23, No.8), known

as the "Reorganization Act of 1955." In the event that the

General Assembly disapproves the proposed rules and regulations,

then the department shall submit new rules and regulations

within thirty days.

(f)  Workmen's compensation insurance premiums shall be the

responsibility of the entity which provides the employment

opportunity.

(g)  An [independent] annual performance evaluation shall be

performed by the department on the [community work experience]

workfare program. A report [on the evaluation] shall be

submitted to the Governor and the General Assembly no later than

[March 31, 1995] July 1 of each year, and shall include, but not

be limited to, the following information:

(1)  The number of persons eligible for and actively

participating in the program.

(2)  A review of the program implementation process,

including the number and type of [community work] workfare 

projects approved by the department, designated by county.

(3)  Problems with achieving broader participation in the

program.

(4)  Program adjustments and resulting program activity.

(5)  An examination of the extent to which public assistance

recipients become employed, especially at the point of program

enrollment and during program participation.

(6)  An examination of the extent to which the existence of a

program requirement appears to discourage employables from

remaining on public assistance.

(7)  [The number of persons who have been disqualified from

cash assistance for noncompliance with the program] (Reserved).

(h)  Within ninety days of the effective date of this

section, the department shall submit to the appropriate Federal

agency a request for any and all waivers of Federal law and

regulations and for other approvals by the Federal Government

necessary for the implementation of the programs established

under this section. It shall be the obligation of the department

to enter into good faith negotiations with the appropriate

Federal authorities and to make every effort to obtain the

necessary Federal waivers and approvals.

Section 2.  This act shall take effect in 60 days.