'Lifesaver' Job Funds at Risk for Low-Income Women

By Sharon Johnson

WeNews senior correspondent

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

A federal program to create jobs for low-income people during the recession could run out if Congress doesn't extend it by Aug. 9. Leading congressional champion Jim McDermott says women in particular could be hurt if Congress doesn't act.

Jim McDermott (WOMENSENEWS)--A $5 billion federal stimulus program that has created more than 200,000 jobs for low-income women and men struggling to support their children during the worst recession in seven decades will vanish Sept. 30, unless Congress acts to extend funding before it adjourns for its summer recess Aug. 9.

"The extension in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program (TANF) has been a lifesaver for vulnerable single moms and other low-income parents who are struggling to put food on the table in an economy where there are five unemployed people for every job opening," Jan McKeel, executive director of the Columbia-based South Central Tennessee Workforce Alliance, a nonprofit organization that has administered the program in parts of Tennessee, said in a phone interview.

A one-year, $2.5 billion extension passed the House in May, but was filibustered in the Senate. The latest version, which is included in the Unemployment Compensation Extension Act, has ignited a firestorm over whether the extension is necessary.

Democrats led by Washington State Rep. Jim McDermott, chair of the Income Security and Family Support subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee, support the extension because 15 million Americans are still out of work. The Congressional Budget Office recently predicted that in 2011--four years after the recession began--unemployment is expected to average 9.5 percent.

Many states have used the emergency funds to operate child care programs threatened by state budget cuts.

"These subsides help parents place their children in appropriate child care settings," McDermott said in a recent phone interview. "Without them, parents may be forced to reduce their work hours or worse, quit their jobs, which might have a devastating effect on their household income and the overall economy. Other parents may have to leave their children in a potentially unsafe or low-quality setting, so that they are able to continue to go to work to put food on the table. These are prospects that no parent should have to face."

Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia, the Republican whip, opposes the extension as it gives states "incentives to keep able-bodied people on the welfare rolls."

September May Be Too Late

Congress will return to Washington Sept. 10, but that may be too late to save the program. Unlike the federal government, all states but Vermont are required to balance their budgets. The states face a $140 billion shortfall for the year ahead--fiscal year 2011--which began July1.

"Without a continuing federal commitment to keep this program running for an extended period, many states will be unable to continue these services on their own," said McDermott. "Many low-income Americans, particularly women, may lose their jobs if they are subsidized through the program, while others are at risk of losing other important work supports such as child care assistance."

If the federal government fails to provide more funds, Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, a Republican, has threatened to reduce the number of families receiving TANF assistance in the coming months. Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger plans to eliminate the jobs program in 2011, even though it has created positions for over 20,000 people in almost all of California's 52 counties.

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