Welfare Reform Act of 1994

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Title I: Work Requirements for Welfare Recipients

Title II: Promotion of Marriage and Social Responsibility

Subtitle A: Welfare Benefits

Subtitle B: Grants for Assistance to Children

Born Out-of-Wedlock

Subtitle C: Tax Credit for Certain Low-Income Families

Subtitle D: Expansion of Abstinence Education

Title III: Child Support Enforcement

Title IV: Specific Reforms in Welfare Spending

Title V: State Options and Miscellaneous Provisions

Title VI: Capping the Aggregate Growth of Welfare Spending

Welfare Reform Act of 1994 - Title I: Work Requirements for Welfare Recipients - Amends Part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) (AFDC) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) to require each State, as a condition of participation in the AFDC program, to establish a workfare and dependency reduction program meeting specified requirements.

(Sec. 101) Sets forth program participation requirements for parents in the AFDC unemployed parent program and certain noncustodial parents, including a specified mix of weekly community work service and job search activities or benefits to wages program participation. Specifies participation requirements for each adult AFDC recipient in a single-adult family.

Requires States to establish: (1) a community work service program under which a participating individual shall work for a public or nonprofit private sector organization; and (2) a benefits to wages program under which an individual shall work for a qualified private employer whom the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) shall pay a wage subsidy on behalf of such individual equal to the amount of AFDC allotment and the cash value of food stamp benefits the individual would otherwise receive.

Sets forth penalties (including allotment reductions and eligibility denials) for individuals, including noncustodial parents, who fail to meet participation requirements.

Prohibits participating organizations or entities from replacing any employed workers with participating AFDC individuals.

Specifies payments to States for welfare and dependency reduction programs.

Requires State plans to require custodial parents under 19 years old who have not successfully completed a high-school education to participate in an educational activity, either a high-school diploma or equivalency degree program or other training or work activities.

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for advance payments of the earned income tax credit to employees in a benefits to wages program.

(Sec. 102) Amends the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to deny food stamp eligibility to any able-bodied individual belonging to a household otherwise eligible for food stamps if that individual has not performed at least 32 hours of work on behalf of a State or local government, through a program established by that government, during the preceding month.

(Sec. 103) Specifies job search requirements for AFDC applicants and recipients with children over five years old.

Title II: Promotion of Marriage and Social Responsibility - Subtitle A: Welfare Benefits - Declares the sense of the Congress that: (1) marriage is the foundation of a successful society; and (2) in view of specified negative consequences of out-of-wedlock birth on the child, the mother, and society, the reduction of such births is an important government interest.

(Sec. 201) Amends SSA title IV Part A (AFDC) and the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to require State plans and State food stamp agencies, respectively, with specified exceptions, to deny AFDC payments for a child born to any unmarried individual under 26 (or later age, if the State so determines). Allows such payments if the child is legally adopted or if the child's custodian marries an individual who assumes lawful paternity or permanent legal guardianship and financial responsibility for the child.

Amends the United States Housing Act of 1937 to require public housing contracts to provide for denial of housing and rental assistance in the same circumstances.

(Sec. 202) Amends SSA title IV Part A (AFDC) and the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to require similar denial of benefits with respect to any additional children born while the custodial parent was receiving assistance.

(Sec. 203) Amends SSA title IV Part A (AFDC) to require reductions in AFDC payments to a family where a child has been born for whom paternity has not been established. Provides for such payments, notwithstanding such denial policy, for a child of up to four months old if some identifying information on the putative father is provided.

Subtitle B: Grants for Assistance to Children Born Out-Of-Wedlock - Amends SSA title IV Part A (AFDC) to provide for grants to States for programs to discourage out-of-wedlock births and to care for children born out-of-wedlock. Allows the use of such funds to: (1) establish or expand out-of-wedlock pregnancy reduction programs; (2) promote adoption; (3) establish and operate orphanages; and (4) establish and operate closely supervised residential group homes for unwed mothers.

(Sec. 211) Prohibits payments to: (1) parents of out-of-wedlock children; or (2) such children if parent and child live in any conventional residential or community setting, including a relative's household or a household headed by the custodial parent.

Subtitle C: Tax Credit for Certain Low-Income Families - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an additional earned income tax credit for a married individual who: (1) has lived together with his or her spouse at all times during the marriage during the taxable year; and (2) has earned at least $8,500 in income for such year.

Subtitle D: Expansion of Abstinence Education - Directs the HHS Secretary to make grants to States and public and private entities to establish educational programs beginning in the sixth grade or later that emphasize the social, psychological, and health gains to be derived from abstaining from sexual activity while unmarried. Authorizes appropriations.

Title III: Child Support Enforcement - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to establish a system for the reporting of information relating to child support obligations of employees, including mandatory reporting of such information on W-4 forms.

(Sec. 302) Amends SSA title IV Part A (AFDC) to require State agencies to: (1) maintain child support order registries; (2) make all pertinent State records accessible to any agency of any other State through the Interstate Locate Network; (3) give custodial parents access to State parent locator services to aid in establishment and enforcement of child support obligations against noncustodial parents; and (4) give noncustodial parents access to such services to aid in establishment of visitation rights.

(Sec. 303) Provides for expansion of the Parent Locator Service.

Directs the HHS Secretary to establish an Interstate Locate Network linking the Parent Locator Service and all State databases. Requires regulations governing information sharing among States, within States, and between the States and the Parent Locator Service.

(Sec. 304) Amends SSA title IV Part A (AFDC) to require States to have laws requiring employers to withhold child support pursuant to uniform income withholding orders.

(Sec. 305) Requires the responsible unit within HHS to develop: (1) a uniform abstract of a child support order containing specified terms for use by all State courts; and (2) procedures providing for voluntary establishment or acknowledgement of paternity.

(Sec. 306) Waives the application and genetic testing fees for any individual receiving child support collection or paternity determination services who has been denied AFDC, food stamp, and housing assistance under this Act.

Title IV: Specific Reforms in Welfare Spending - Amends the National School Lunch Act to reduce the income eligibility guidelines for reduced price lunches from 185 to 130 percent of the applicable family-size nonfarm income levels.

(Sec. 402) Repeals the Mickey Leland Childhood Hunger Relief Act. Applies the Food Stamp Act of 1977 as if the Mickey Leland Childhood Hunger Relief Act had not been enacted.

(Sec. 403) Amends the Revenue Reconciliation Act of 1993 to repeal the mandates and authorities for empowerment zones and enterprise communities.

(Sec. 404) Amends SSA title IV Part A (AFDC) to reduce by 25 percent monthly benefits to AFDC families who also receive public housing benefits.

(Sec. 405) Repeals the Davis-Bacon Act (which requires Federal contractors and subcontractors to pay prevailing wages).

(Sec. 406) Reduces the authorization of appropriations for social services block grants for each fiscal year after FY 1994.

(Sec. 407) Limits specified welfare benefits, currently available to aliens, to U.S. citizens only.

Declares that it is the policy of the Congress that States and local educational agencies should not be required to provide a free public elementary or secondary education to any individual who is not a U.S. citizen, a lawful resident alien, or an alien permanently residing in the United States under color of law. Requires a State or local educational agency to notify the Attorney General whenever it learns of a public school child who does not belong to any such category. Requires immediate deportation proceedings against such child.

(Sec. 408) Amends SSA title XVI (Supplemental Security Income (SSI) for the Aged, Blind, and Disabled) to direct the HHS Secretary to issue vouchers in lieu of cash benefits to each eligible child under 18 to cover the cost of certain medical expenses.

(Sec. 409) Requires an eligibility review during the year after the 18th birthday of any individual receiving disability benefits.

(Sec. 410) Requires a specified reduction of the authorization of appropriations for low-income home energy assistance for any fiscal year.

Title V: State Options and Miscellaneous Provisions - Amends SSA title IV Part A (AFDC), the Food Stamp Act of 1977, and the United States Housing Act of 1937 to allow States the option to: (1) place a time limit on AFDC, food stamp, and housing assistance to any individual; and (2) apply that time limit to any household moving to a State from another State with such a time limit.

(Sec. 502) Amends SSA title IV Part A (AFDC) to give a State the option to treat interstate immigrants under the AFDC benefit rules of their former State.

(Sec. 503) Directs the Secretary of Labor, in cooperation with the States, to conduct ongoing evaluations of Federal and State job training programs. Authorizes appropriations.

(Sec. 504) Amends specified parts of the Social Security Act, the Food Stamp Act of 1977, and the United States Housing Act of 1937 to require safeguards and information exchange among law enforcement agencies to ensure that fugitive felons and probation and parole violators do not receive Medicaid, AFDC benefits, food stamps, SSI, or housing assistance. Requires public housing agencies to furnish Federal, State or local law enforcement agencies, upon request, the current address of any assistance recipient identified as a fugitive felon or probation or parole violator.

Title VI: Capping the Aggregate Growth of Welfare Spending - Specifies FY 1995 through 1996 and subsequent fiscal year caps on Federal spending on certain welfare programs.

(Sec. 602) Directs the HHS Secretary to make welfare block grants to the States for aid to low-income households. Prohibits the use of such funds for abortions or for any counseling related to abortion. Sets forth general work, job search, and training requirements for aid recipients, as well as certain participation requirements for States. Denies cash or direct food assistance to young unwed parents as under title II of this Act, or to noncitizens, fugitive felons, or probation or parole violators.

(Sec. 603) Terminates funding and State obligations under specified cash, medical, housing, energy, education, jobs and training, social services, and low-income community aid welfare programs as of the end of FY 1994.

(Sec. 604) Dedicates to deficit reduction all Federal savings under the spending cap mandated by this title. Requires the adjustment of the present discretionary spending caps for the net increase in discretionary spending that results from the creation of the welfare block grant as a replacement for current welfare entitlement programs.

(Sec. 605) Sets forth special rules, upon termination of the AFDC program, with respect to grants for assistance to children born out-of-wedlock.

(Sec. 606) Amends SSA title XIX (Medicaid) with respect to Medicaid eligibility criteria after enactment of this Act. Authorizes States to request a waiver to simplify such criteria. Requires the HHS Secretary to review and approve such requests only if Federal Medicaid expenditures will not be increased as a result.