STATE OF ALASKA
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES
DIVISION OF PUBLIC ASSISTANCE
The Alaska Temporary Assistance Program (ATAP) is administered by the State of Alaska, Department of Health and Social Service, Division of Public Assistance under the authority of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 and the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 45 Part 260. On July 1, 1997, Alaska Temporary Assistance replaced the federal Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) and the Jobs Opportunities and Basic Skills (JOBS) programs. The Alaska Temporary Assistance Program (ATAP) is authorized under Alaska Administrative Code, Title 7 Chapter 45.
ATAP is funded with a combination of state general funds and federal Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) block grant.
The goal of ATAP is to move Alaskans from welfare into work so they can support their families and maintain a safety net for those truly in need. The Division of Public Assistance adopted the Work First model to achieve this goal. Work First maintains that any job is a good job and the best way to succeed in the labor market is to join it.
ATAP sets a 60 month life time limit for clients to self-sufficiency.
PURPOSE:
The overall purpose of Work Services is to assist ATAP clients to obtain a job, a better job and a better life. A "Work First" philosophy drives all the supports and services clients receive from Work Services Providers (WSP's) - - the contracted service providers and the Division of Public Assistance (DPA) that provide case management, job coaching, structured work search, job referrals and other employment services to ATAP clients.
PRINCIPLES:
There is no one way to help clients get a job and exit ATAP, so there is considerable variation in how services are delivered to clients under the Work First model. However, the following principles are a guide to ensure the services provided by Work Services staff achieve the best possible outcome for ATAP families.
Work is always better than welfare.
Work is the foundation for a better life. Welfare provides only temporary, inadequate financial support. A job is the beginning, a better job is the next step, and a better life is the ultimate goal. Even low wage work will provide a better opportunity for advancement than welfare ever can.
Time-Limited Benefits demand urgency in client services.
Clients have a lifetime limit of five years of public assistance to cover any and all periods of family crises or stretches of unemployment. Every month that a client receives benefits is one they won't have the option of using when they may need it in the future. The time-limited nature of assistance demands that processes and activities designed to serve temporary assistance clients reflect the urgency introduced by time limits. Good work services case management is critical to honoring the urgency of the mission. It keeps clients from falling through the cracks by ensuring that effective plans are developed, necessary supports are provided and activities are assigned so that clients use their time to quickly achieve self-sufficiency.
A focus on client strengths and accountability creates a high expectation and high performance environment.
Overall, the focus needs to be more on what clients can do than on what they can't do. From the initial contact, clients need to understand that they are expected to become self-sufficient and that they have a limited amount of time to do so. Clients are held strictly accountable for participating and doing all they can to progress in their plans. Failure to participate or progress without good cause will result in a reduction in or loss of their benefits.
A focus on program strengths and accountability creates a high expectation and high performance environment for you.
Clients are not the only ones challenged to make progress under a performance-based system. A continuous improvement approach is a critical part of program accountability and performance as well. While clients are held accountable for making progress in their Family Self-Sufficiency Plans (FSSP), work services providers are held accountable for ensuring that policies, procedures and services are client-centered, support performance expectations and promote positive outcomes for clients.
Every client can become more self-sufficient.
A high expectations environment does not mean that every single client will move into full-time work. However, it does assume that every single client will become more self-sufficient as they participate in work services activities. There will be clients with formidable barriers and some of these challenges may be beyond the scope of a Work First approach to address. A relentless focus on what the client can do, rather than an exhaustive analysis of all the things the client can't do, will help ensure that every client moves as far as possible toward self-sufficiency.
Local ownership and collaborative approaches create better results for clients.
DPA recognizes that what works well in one area or office may not be the best approach in another. The more local service providers and DPA staff work together to create the best approach for each area and each client, the better their performance outcomes. Collaboration is a tool to achieve better results for clients. While DPA is responsible for providing specific benefits for a time-limited period to eligible Alaskans, these same Alaskans are likely to remain in their communities past the five-year limit. The pressing question is whether they will remain as families needing continued assistance (with no clear source for such help) or as families who have achieved a level of self-sufficiency through work.
ACHIEVING SELF-SUFFICIENCY
Program definition of Self-Sufficiency:
An ATAP household achieves a level of earnings that exceeds the ATAP income and payment standards (ATAP Addendum 2); or
An ATAP household voluntarily closes their case with earnings; or
An ATAP client is approved for Social Security benefits.
Exit planning starts at intake:
Every interaction with your client should be focused on achieving a permanent exit from ATAP.
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