730-4          HOURS OF PARTICIPATION

To help the participant reach their goal of independence from Temporary Assistance, begin planning for participation using 40 hours per week.  Combining work activities, up to a maximum of 40 hours per week, makes the participant's time most productive and increase the chances for early paid employment.  

The 40 hour/week schedule mirrors the work place expectations most self-sufficient families meet daily.  Mandatory Temporary Assistance participants must prepare themselves to meet this work place expectation in order to become independent from Temporary Assistance.

Evaluation of the family's situation may lead to a determination that less than 40 hours per week is appropriate.  Each family's unique situation must be considered.  The evaluation should take into consideration whether child care is available, appropriateness of shift work, educational and medical needs, ages of the children, and whether domestic violence is an issue for the family.

When calculating their actual hours of work participation, include the time participants spend participating in the activity and time spent at lunch and other approved breaks that briefly interrupt the activity.  Do not include time the participant spends commuting between home and the assigned work activities, or time the participant spends transporting a child to or from a child care providers

Participants assigned to Vocational Training and Education activities often complete additional hours of study outside class.  Add out-of-class study time to the participant's actual hours of participation.  To give a participant study time credit, contact the provider and obtain documentation of the number of out-of-class study hours expected of their students.  

Schools that offer basic education and high school completion typically follow State regulated school holidays and short breaks lasting less than three calendar weeks.  Include breaks (other than summer vacation) and recognize holidays as days of participation.

Minimum Attendance Hours

In order for their participation to count, participants who reside in a single parent Temporary Assistance family must attend the following minimum number of hours per week of all combined work activities, averaged over the course of a calendar month:

The total combined participation of adults in two-parent families must average a minimum of 35 hours per week.  If a two-parent family receives a PASS Parents Achieving Self-Sufficiency child care subsidy, their combined total participation must average a minimum of 55 hours per week.

No minimum weekly or monthly number of attendance hours applies to single parents under age 20 who participate in High School or GED General Equivalency Diploma Preparation.  Their participation in these activities counts toward the target if they meet standards of adequate levels of school attendance.