Governor Signs Welfare Reform Bill in Wisconsin
Gov. Tommy Thompson signed a law Thursday that makes Wisconsin the first state to require parents on welfare to work or get job training in exchange for aid.
“We are lifting the gate that trapped generations of families in a well of despair and dependency,” said Thompson, chairman of the National Governors’ Assn. and a leading advocate of welfare reform.
The new program, called Wisconsin Works, or W-2, would replace Aid to Families With Dependent Children. The law is scheduled to take effect statewide by the fall of 1997, assuming Thompson gets approval from Congress to use AFDC money for the program. After two consecutive years, or a lifetime total of five years, W-2 participants are dropped from the program.
Counties and private agencies would work with the welfare recipients to match them to jobs. The state expects nearly 8,000 to find unsubsidized jobs paying an average of $5.99 an hour. An estimated 26,600 would take subsidized community service jobs at $3.19 an hour and 13,300 would receive transitional jobs paying $2.98 an hour.
Child care and health care benefits would be provided, depending on income.
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