SENATE MEMORIAL 111

53rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2017

INTRODUCED BY

Gerald Ortiz y Pino

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THAT THE HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT CONVENE A TASK FORCE THAT INCLUDES REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT, WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS DEPARTMENT, CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES DEPARTMENT, ADVOCATES AND COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS REPRESENTING NEW MEXICO FAMILIES WHO PARTICIPATE IN THE TEMPORARY ASSISTANCE FOR NEEDY FAMILIES PROGRAM.

     WHEREAS, the temporary assistance for needy families program is an important source of cash assistance for New Mexico families with some of the lowest incomes in the state; and

     WHEREAS, one-fifth of the children whose families receive temporary assistance for needy families services are under one year of age, and more than one-half of the children whose families receive temporary assistance for needy families services are under the age of five; and

     WHEREAS, fewer than five percent of families who receive temporary assistance for needy families services receive assistance with child care costs, despite the fact that receipt of temporary assistance for needy families deems recipients as top-priority applicants for child care assistance; and

     WHEREAS, twenty-nine percent of families who receive temporary assistance for needy families services have a head of household who has not completed high school or received an equivalent degree; and

     WHEREAS, the majority of projected job openings in New Mexico will require some college education, yet only six percent of New Mexicans who participate in the temporary assistance for needy families program have more than a high school education; and

     WHEREAS, research shows that one of the main reasons families fall into or remain in poverty is the lack of education credentials and job skills, which present barriers to getting jobs that pay family-sustaining wages and enable families to transition out of the program; and

     WHEREAS, the workforce solutions department administers programming established pursuant to the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act in New Mexico that is designed to improve the state's workforce systems and help New Mexicans with significant barriers to employment, like many adults who participate in the temporary assistance for needy families program, to secure family-sustaining jobs and careers; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico has started to develop a statewide career pathways framework in the health field and has the opportunity to sustain and expand this work by leveraging the temporary assistance for needy families program and federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act funding sources; and

     WHEREAS, the human services department plans to transfer administration of work-related requirements in the temporary assistance for needy families program to the workforce solutions department;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the human services department be requested to partner with the workforce solutions department, the children, youth and families department, advocates and community-based organizations representing New Mexico families who participate in the temporary assistance for needy families program to form a task force to lead the effort of:

          A. determining outcome measures and reporting requirements that would better inform policymakers on the effectiveness of the temporary assistance for needy families program and on ways to better align the program with the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act;

          B. identifying evidence-based employment, education, job training and career pathways opportunities that will meet the employment needs of temporary assistance for needy families program-eligible families and the workforce needs of employers in the state;

          C. identifying state agency and legislative actions that will increase access to support services that support employment and self-sufficiency for program participants, including child care assistance, transportation assistance and housing assistance; and

          D. planning for the successful transfer of the administration of the work-related components of the temporary assistance for needy families program from the human services department to the workforce solutions department; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the human services department be requested to track progress of the task force and report to the legislative health and human services committee and the legislative finance committee concerning its progress and recommendations in the fall of 2017 and 2018; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the governor, the secretary of human services, the secretary of workforce solutions and the secretary of children, youth and families.

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