In addition, Federally-recognized Tribes and Alaska Native organizations that were Tribal Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training (JOBS) program grantees under the former Aid to Families with Dependant Children (AFDC) program are eligible to administer Native Employment Works (NEW) grants. NEW program grants support work activities and other employment and training services. During NEW Program Year (PY) 2005-2006 (July 1, 2005 – June 30, 2006), there were 78 NEW grantees.

Each eligible Tribe or Alaska Native organization that wants to administer its own TANF program must submit a Tribal TANF Family Assistance Plan (TFAP) to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for review and approval. Although no specific format is required, a TFAP must contain elements specified in the law and regulations such as: how Tribes will promote work, the stability and health of families, work activities and support services, time-limited assistance, sanctions for non-compliance with work requirements, and personal responsibility. Unlike State TANF plans, which are reviewed to certify only that they are complete, Tribal TANF plans must be approved by HHS.

Tribes administering their own TANF program have great flexibility in program design and implementation. They can define elements of their programs such as: the service area, service population (e.g., all Indian families in the service area or only enrolled members of the Tribe), time limits, benefits and services, the definition of "family," eligibility criteria, and work and work activities. Tribes have the ability to establish, through negotiation with HHS, program work participation rate targets and required work hours. Also, they can establish what benefits and services will be available and develop their own strategies for achieving program goals, including how to help recipients move off welfare and become self-sufficient.

An important factor in successful administration of Tribal programs has been communication, collaboration, and coordination with States and locally-administered programs. In addition, Tribes can enter into partnerships with States and local governments to ensure that Tribal families continue to receive the support services necessary to become self-sufficient, such as food stamps and Medicaid. Additional relationships are being forged and existing ones are being strengthened. Research conducted by the Washington University School of Social Work and funded by HHS found that Tribal TANF implementation on reservations has "strengthened coordination, communication, and collaboration at all levels – among Tribal social service providers, between Tribes and States, and Tribes and the Federal government."

In addition to serving their own on or near-reservation populations, and where applicable those of coalition partners, several programs also are serving significant non-reservation Indian populations in adjacent urban, suburban and rural areas. For example, the Torres Martinez TANF Consortium is serving the non-reservation Indian population of Los Angeles County and near-reservation towns in Riverside County, the Owens Valley Career Development Center Program is serving the non-reservation Indian population of three counties, the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California is serving the non-reservation Indian population of three counties in California and one county in Nevada, the California Tribal Partnership is serving the non-reservation Indian population in seven counties, and the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe in Minnesota is serving the non-reservation Indian population in nine counties. The number of approved Tribal TANF Programs from FY 2004 through FY 2006 is displayed in Figure A.

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American Indian and Alaska Native families not served by Tribal TANF programs continue to be served by State TANF programs. In FY 2006, State governments served almost 24,000 American Indian families.

Table 11:1 in the Appendix shows grant amounts allocated to American Indian entities for the TANF and NEW programs in FY 2006. The TANF amount allocated/approved differs slightly from the grants awarded because for one tribe the amount awarded was a prorated portion of the approved annual Tribal TANF grant. This prorating occurred because this tribe’s Tribal TANF program was not operational for the full fiscal year. The full-year (not prorated) amount of grants allocated/approved for the 52 approved Tribal TANF programs was $166,763,960. The amount of the approved grants is based on American Indian families served under State AFDC programs in FY 1994 in the Tribal grantee’s service area.

Table 11:2 in the Appendix shows the Tribal TANF programs, the number of Tribes served, the date the program started, the Federal grant amount, the estimated monthly caseload in FY 1994 (the caseload which was used to establish the funding level for the Tribe’s Family Assistance Grant), and indicates the receipt or non-receipt of State matching funds.

Table 11:3 in the Appendix shows the number of American Indian families served by State TANF programs from FY 2004 through FY 2006. Figure B illustrates the national trend over that period of time. These figures do not include the number of families served by Tribal TANF programs.

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Figure C indicates that of the 11,198 Tribal TANF families reported in FY 2005 (the most recent year for which detailed data is available), 6,989, or 62.4 percent were single parent families and 2,615 or 23.4 percent were child-only cases.

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Tables 11:4 through 11:9 in the Appendix provide general Tribal TANF characteristics data for the Tribes reporting. Data reported for FY 2005 are summarized below.

Table 11:4 in the appendix shows that 48 percent of adult TANF recipients were reported as engaged in work activities. Although this percentage is based on an unduplicated number of adults, some of the participants were engaged in more than one work activity. Within this limitation, Table 11:4 also shows that slightly more than 21 percent of these adults were working in unsubsidized employment, while about eight percent had unpaid work experience and that 52 percent were involved in other activities.

Table 11:5 in the Appendix shows that, of the total 9,991 adult TANF recipients reported, 40 percent met the work requirements. An additional 17 percent were exempt from work, and about eight percent were either disregarded or deemed working. Table 11:6 in the Appendix shows that almost 83 percent of the adult TANF recipients were the heads of their households, and slightly less than 13 percent were the spouse of the head of the household. Table 11:7 in the Appendix shows that about 62 percent of families were single parent families, 23 percent were child only families, and 14 percent were two parent families. Table 11:8 in the Appendix shows that about 29 percent of the children were less than five years old.

Table 11:9 shows the work participation rates achieved for each Tribe from FY 2003 through FY 2005. Each Tribe has negotiated with HHS to determine what activities will count toward their participation rates and to determine whether they will be measured according to a one-parent rate, two-parent rate, and/or an all family rate. HHS and the Tribes then established individual targets of performance for these measures. Table 11:10 shows the details of the negotiated work participation rates and hourly work requirements for FY 2005

The statutory purpose of the NEW program is to make work activities available to grantee service populations. The NEW program complements TANF programs by preparing participants for employment and self-sufficiency, and helping them find unsubsidized employment. While NEW programs are not required to serve TANF participants, the majority of NEW participants are Tribal TANF or State TANF participants. Thus NEW is an important partner with both Tribal and State TANF programs within the TANF initiative.

The NEW program was authorized by Section 412(a)(2) of the Social Security Act, as amended by the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA). It is authorized through September 30, 2010, under the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. The NEW program began July 1, 1997, replacing the Tribal JOBS program. Federal regulations for the NEW program are found in 45 CFR Part 287.

By law, eligibility to administer NEW programs is limited to Federally-recognized Tribes, Alaska Native organizations, and Tribal consortia that operated JOBS programs in FY 1995. As of June 30, 2006, there were 78 NEW grantees, 26 of which also operated Tribal TANF programs.

Annual NEW program amounts are set by law at the FY 1994 Tribal JOBS funding levels for each eligible Tribe/Tribal organization. In each of PY 2004-2005 and PY 2005-2006, a total of $7,558,020 was awarded to NEW grantees.

NEW programs provide work activities, supportive services, and job retention services to help clients prepare for and obtain permanent, unsubsidized employment. NEW grantees have the flexibility to design their programs to meet their needs, to select their service population and service area, and to determine the work activities and related services they will provide, consistent with statutory and regulatory requirements. In designing their NEW programs, Tribes consider the unique economic and social conditions in their communities and the needs of individual clients. Clients generally have low levels of education and job skills, and often face serious shortages of job opportunities and lack of support services such as transportation and child care. Some clients have additional barriers to employment, including substance abuse and domestic violence issues. Working with related programs, NEW programs help Tribes address these problems, bridge service gaps, and provide coordinated employment, training, and related services. Primary coordination linkages are with Tribal and State TANF programs, other employment and training programs (for example, the Department of Labor’s Workforce Investment Act program), Head Start and child care programs, other Tribal programs, Tribal and other colleges, and local businesses.

NEW work activities include (but are not limited to):

• Educational activities, including GED preparation and remedial, vocational, post-secondary, and alternative education.
• Training and job readiness activities, including job skills training, job readiness training, on-the-job training (OJT), entrepreneurial training, and management training.
• Employment activities, including work experience, job search, job development and placement, community work experience, community service programs, and unsubsidized and subsidized public and private sector employment.

NEW program supportive and job retention services are work and family self-sufficiency related services that enable a client to participate in the program or to obtain or retain employment. These services include transportation, child care, counseling, medical services, and other services such as providing eyeglasses, tools/gear, and uniforms and other clothing needed for jobs. NEW program activities also may include labor/job market assessments, job creation, and economic development leading to job creation.

Seventy-eight Indian Tribes, Alaska Native organizations, and Tribal consortia operated NEW programs during PY 2004-2005 (July 1, 2004 – June 30, 2005) and PY 2005-2006 (July 1, 2005 – June 30, 2006). Of the 78 NEW grantees, 28 grantees included their PY 2004-2005 NEW funds in demonstration projects under Pub. L. 102-477, the Indian Employment, Training, and Related Services Demonstration Act of 1992, and 30 grantees included their PY 2005-2006 NEW funds in Pub. L. 102-477 projects. These grantees reported to the lead agency for Pub. L. 102-477 projects, the Department of the Interior. The remaining NEW grantees did not include their NEW funding under a Pub. L. 102-477 project. These grantees reported directly to HHS on their NEW programs.

Tables 11:11 through 11:14 in the Appendix contain data reported for PY 2004-2005 and PY 2005-2006 by the NEW grantees that did not include their NEW programs in Pub. L. 102-477 projects. Separate tables are included for each of these program years. Data reported by grantees for PY 2005-2006 are summarized below.

In PY 2005-2006, 48 of the 78 NEW grantees did not include NEW in a 102-477 project. For PY 2005 -2006, Appendix Table 11:11 (PY 2005-2006) indicates that these 48 grantees served a total of 5,225 participants. Of these clients, about 59.2 percent (3,095 clients) were adult females, 27.3 percent (1,426 clients) were adult males, 9 percent (471 clients) were females under age 21, and 4.5 percent (233 clients) were males under age 21.

Most NEW program participants also received TANF assistance. Appendix Table 11:12 (PY 2005-2006) shows that 71.1 percent of NEW participants (3,716 clients) also received TANF cash assistance and/or other TANF services through Tribal or State TANF programs.

Appendix Table 11:12 (PY 2005-2006) shows that about 21.7 percent of NEW program participants (1,132 clients) completed the program by entering unsubsidized employment. Of those who entered unsubsidized employment, 55.7 percent (631 clients) were TANF recipients.

The most frequently provided NEW program work activities were classroom training/education, job search, and work experience, as reported in Appendix Table 11:13 (PY 2005-2006). In PY 2005-2006, 37.6 percent of participants (1,967 clients) participated in classroom training/ education, 36.2 percent (1,892 clients) engaged in job search, and 32 percent (1,672 clients) participated in work experience.

Appendix Table 11:14 (PY 2005-2006) shows that the most frequently provided supportive and job retention service was transportation. About 39.4 percent of participants (1,786 clients) received transportation assistance through the NEW program. Figure D contains a breakdown of the supportive and job retention services provided by NEW programs in PY 2005-2006.

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Tribes participating in Pub. L. 102-477 projects did not report separate data on the NEW program. Instead, they reported combined data for all of the programs included in their Pub. L. 102-477 projects to the Department of the Interior.

NEW programs coordinated education, training, work experience, job search, and job referral with other Tribal programs and with local educational institutions and employers. They provided intensive case management, behavioral, health, and financial management counseling, and life skills training. Many Tribes with NEW programs located training, employment, and social services in "one-stop" centers where staff assessed clients’ needs and then provided targeted activities and services to meet those needs. Information/resource/technology centers and learning centers containing resource materials, classrooms, and computer labs provided job preparation and job search services, including individual needs assessments, case management, and classroom instruction.

Many NEW grantees helped clients achieve educational goals to prepare for employment, such as receiving their General Education Degree (GED) or Associate of Arts degree (AA). Grantees provided basic education and GED preparation classes and enrolled clients in nearby colleges, including Tribal colleges, where clients took courses in nursing, child care, teaching, accounting, business, management, etc. Grantees helped clients take vocational courses to pursue careers as certified nursing assistants, office workers, fire fighters, forestry workers, auto mechanics, machinists, plumbers, electricians, cooking/catering/food service workers/providers, tourism and casino workers, bus drivers, and construction workers.

NEW programs established on-the-job training and work experience placements for clients and helped them locate and apply for permanent employment. They helped clients prepare to run small arts and crafts, woodcutting, and fishing businesses. They provided vans and other transportation assistance such as vouchers and bus tickets to enable clients to attend classes, training, and work experience, and to help with job search. They helped clients purchase eyeglasses, clothing, and tools/gear needed for employment, and they helped clients pay costs for job-related tests and licenses. They provided child care and other needed supportive and job retention services, and they operated programs and made referrals to help clients overcome barriers including substance abuse and domestic violence. They coordinated with, and referred clients to, other providers of supportive and job retention services.

Lack of jobs is a major problem for NEW programs, which typically are located on isolated, rural reservations. However, 12 of the non-102-477 grantees were able to place 50 percent or more of their NEW clients in permanent, unsubsidized employment in both PY 2004-2005 and PY 2005-2006.


Appendix