Census Report says Recession Taking Toll on Families, More Receiving Assistance

By |

A new report from the U.S. Census Bureau says that the number of American families receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funding has increased by more than 20 percent since 2006. The findings from the report state that in 2009 the rate of families in the United States participating in the federal welfare program surged from 3.8 percent in 2006 to 4.8 just three years later. The report, entitled “Comparing Program Participation of TANF and non-TANF Families Before and During a Time of Recession,” compared data collected in Sept. 2006 and Aug. 2009 to assess the effects of the economic downturn on families with children under the age of 18 in the United States.

DHS Commissioner Presents Budget Cuts To Joint House, Senate Committee

By |

Georgia’s Department of Human Services Commissioner Clyde Reese III has joined in the chorus of agency chiefs outlining for lawmakers the challenges ahead for state agencies charged with keeping children safe amid the most recent wave of massive budget cuts. His 30-minute presentation Thursday [view it here] before members of the joint House and Senate appropriations committee comes on the heels of new Governor Nathan Deal’s announcement last week that all state agency budgets on average will be slashed by four percent during the remainder of the fiscal year ending in June. In his first state-of-the-state address, Governor Deal also warned that another seven percent decrease should be expected for fiscal year 2012. Newly appointed Department of Juvenile Justice Commissioner Amy Howell presented her planned cuts before the same committee on Tuesday. Reese tells JJIE.org that the budget shortfalls will undoubtedly make work tougher for his agency, which oversees the Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS), Aging Services Division (DAS), Child Support Services Division (DCSS) and Residential Child Care Office (RCC).