ASSEMBLY, No. 756
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 1996 SESSION
By Assemblywomen BUONO and FARRAGHER
An Act concerning the Family Development Initiative, amending P.L.1991, c.523 and supplementing chapter 6 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 6 of P.L.1991, c.523 (C.44:10-24) is amended to read as follows:
6. A recipient who without good cause fails or refuses to enroll and actively participate in the program, which includes failure to comply, or make a good faith effort to comply, with the requirements set forth in the family plan established for the participant and the participant's family under the program, and which further includes failure to attend or make a good faith effort to achieve satisfactory academic progress in educational or vocational training classes under the program, including classes in four-year and community colleges, according to rules and regulations adopted by the commissioner, in consultation with the Commissioner of Education and the [Chancellor of] Chairman of the Commission on Higher Education, shall thereupon, as determined by the commissioner, be subject to a reduction in benefits of at least 20%, or shall become ineligible for benefits for a period of at least 90 days. The period of ineligibility shall commence at the end of the current benefit period, and at the end of the period the recipient shall again become eligible for benefits, if the recipient complies with all requirements of the program as determined by the commissioner or shows a willingness to do so. For a subsequent failure or refusal to enroll and actively participate in the program without good cause, the recipient may be subject to a termination of benefits.
(cf: P.L.1991, c.523, s.6)
2. Section 7 of P.L.1991, c.523 (C.44:10-25) is amended to read as follows:
7. a. Services shall be provided to each participant in the program according to a family plan which includes a written contract. The contract shall be written in English or Spanish, according to the participant's needs. The contract shall be signed by the participant and a program representative who shall act as a case manager, advocate and broker of services for the participant and the participant's family, and shall set forth the specific mutual obligations of the participant and the program and a detailed plan for the participant and the participant's family. The contract, in addition to stipulating any other obligations on the part of the participant, shall specifically require a recipient to: supply documentation that the recipient's preschool child has received all immunizations required under regulations adopted by the Department of Health; supply documentation that the recipient's school-age child under age 16 regularly attends school, and that the recipient participates in the school's educator-parent development association if the recipient resides in a school district designated by the Commissioner of Education pursuant to section 3 of P.L. , c. (C. )(pending before the Legislature as this bill); and complete a program of instructional classes in parenting and conflict resolution offered by the program or agencies with which the program contracts. The program representative shall regularly monitor compliance with these requirements. The family plan and contract, which shall explicitly state the services that the program will provide to the participant, shall be reviewed by both the participant and the program representative at least once a year and may be revised from time to time according to the needs of the participant, the participant's family and the program.
The commissioner may also establish by regulation a requirement that a recipient participate in the parent-teacher association at the recipient's child's school, as part of a recipient's family plan, according to guidelines adopted by the commissioner.
b. The services to be provided under the program shall include, but not be limited to: job development and placement in full-time permanent jobs, preferably in the private sector; counseling and vocational assessment; intensive remedial education, including instruction in English-as-a-second language; financial and other assistance for higher education, including four-year and community colleges, and for post secondary vocational training programs; job search assistance; community work experience; employment skills training focused on a specific job; and on-the-job training in an employment setting.
c. The program shall be designed to ensure that each participant and member of the participant's family, as age appropriate, has attained the equivalent of a high school degree, before assigning that person to a vocational-related activity under the program. The commissioner may exempt a participant or member of the participant's family from this requirement if the commissioner determines that: based upon an assessment of the person's ability and aptitude, the person lacks a reasonable prospect of being able to successfully complete the academic requirements of a high school or equivalency program of study, in which case the commissioner shall refer the person to an alternative educational program as appropriate; or the person is gainfully employed or engaged in a job search or job training activity, in which case the program representative acting pursuant to the provisions of subsection a. of this section shall review the person's progress on a quarterly basis to assess whether the person's exemption from this requirement should continue.
d. The program shall assign one or more persons in each county which is participating in the program to be responsible, on a full-time basis, for job development for persons who have completed their educational or training activities under the program, with an emphasis on finding and creating permanent full-time unsubsidized jobs, preferably in the private sector, which offer wages and benefits that are adequate to support recipients and their families.
e. The commissioner, in consultation with the Commissioners of Commerce and Economic Development and Labor, and with the private industry councils established pursuant to section 18 of P.L.1989, c.293 (C.34:15C-15), shall develop a program to recruit private sector employers in each county to offer employment to persons who have completed their educational or training activities under the program.
f. The commissioner, in consultation with the [Chancellor of] Chairman of the Commission on Higher Education and the Commissioner of Education, shall, within the limits of available funds, provide financial assistance through the New Jersey Educational Opportunity Fund established pursuant to P.L.1968, c.142 (C.18A:71-28 et seq.) and other State student assistance programs, in an amount sufficient to cover all tuition and educational expenses, to each program participant or other family member who has been accepted into an institution of higher education, including public four-year colleges and community colleges, or a post secondary vocational training program, according to standards established by the commissioner.
g. The program shall provide supportive services to a program participant as a last resort when no other source is available therefor and when these services are included in the family plan. The supportive services shall include, but not be limited to, one or more of the following:
(1) day care services for the participant's child, to be provided for up to one year if the participant becomes ineligible for financial assistance under P.L.1959, c.86 (C.44:10-1 et seq.) as a result of earned income and to be purchased through a voucher issued to the participant by the program, which may be used to obtain care at a State licensed child care center or school age child care program, or at a family day care home approved by the department, that accepts the voucher, or to be provided through an alternative child care arrangement agreed to by the participant and the program representative acting pursuant to the provisions of subsection a. of this section;
(2) transportation services, to be provided directly by the program or through an allowance or other means of subsidy by which the participant may purchase transportation; and
(3) health insurance coverage, to be provided by a participant's employer, or through a continuation of Medicaid benefits pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.) for up to two years if the participant becomes ineligible for financial assistance under P.L.1959, c.86 (C.44:10-1 et seq.) as a result of earned income; or health care services to be provided by a school-based health care program.
(cf: P.L.1991, c.523, s.7)
3. (New section) a. The Commissioner of Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Human Services, shall establish the Educator-Parent Development Component of the Family Development Initiative established pursuant to the "Family Development Act," P.L.1991, c.523 (C.44:10-19 et seq.), to be known as the FDI Educator-Parent Development Program.
The Commissioner of Education shall designate three school districts to participate in the program, one each in the three counties with the largest number of recipients of aid to families with dependent children benefits pursuant to P.L.1959, c.86 (C.44:10-1 et seq.). Each school within the three school districts selected shall establish an educator-parent development association, which is to provide the parents of its students with training which will assist them to participate in their children's educational experience.
The association shall offer training programs which emphasize parental involvement in school-related issues and interaction between parents, teachers and administrators, and which provide guidance to ensure that each parent communicates with his child's teacher regarding the child's academic performance, reviews and comments on each school report card issued for that child, makes a reasonable effort to ensure the child's timely completion of homework assignments, and otherwise participates in school-related activities which will further the child's education. The Commissioner of Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Human Services, shall establish guidelines for parental education involvement to effectuate the purposes of this section.
b. The Commissioner of Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Human Services, shall report to the Governor and the Legislature no later than one year after the implementation of the FDI Educator-Parent Development Program on the results of the program and shall include with that report any recommendations for expanding the program to cover additional school districts.
4. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill amends the "Family Development Act," P.L.1991, c.523 (C.44:10-19 et seq.) to provide additional requirements for recipients of aid to families with dependent children (AFDC) benefits who are participating in the Family Development Initiative (FDI), the program established as New Jersey's JOBS (job opportunities and basic skills training) program under that law.
Under the FDI program, participants establish a family plan which includes a written contract stipulating the services to be provided to participants and their families, and the reciprocal obligations of participants and their families. This bill sets forth certain specific obligations on the part of FDI participants who are receiving AFDC benefits, in addition to any which are already included in their family plan pursuant to P.L.1991, c.523 and the rules and regulations adopted by the Commissioner of Human Services.
Specifically, an AFDC recipient must:
∙ ensure that the recipient's preschool child receives all immunizations required by the Department of Health;
∙ furnish documentation of school attendance by a school-age child under age 16, and participate in the school's educator-parent development association established pursuant to this bill, as appropriate; and
∙ complete a program of parenting and conflict resolution classes offered by the FDI program or agencies with which the program contracts.
The FDI program representative who acts as a case manager for the FDI participant and the participant's family is responsible for monitoring compliance with these requirements.
The bill requires the Commissioner of Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Human Services, to establish the FDI Educator-Parent Development Program. The Commissioner of Education shall designate three school districts to participate in the program, one each in the three counties with the largest number of AFDC recipients. Each school within the three school districts selected shall establish an educator-parent development association, which is to provide parents with training which will help them to participate in their children's educational experience.
The requirements to be imposed upon AFDC recipients under this bill are designed to meet a number of important objectives: reduce health care costs for preventable childhood diseases, improve the health and education of AFDC-recipient children, reduce truancy and teenage crime, and strengthen AFDC-recipient families, thereby creating the conditions for a more responsible, productive, hopeful outlook on the part of this population as it strives for economic self-sufficiency.
Strengthens requirements for AFDC recipients as part of the family plan for participants under the Family Development Initiative.