Friday, August 31, 2007

Roob's FSSA Management Costs State $10 Million In Lost Funding

Indiana's Family and Social Services Agency failed to meet federal targets for moving welfare recipients into jobs and off public welfare rolls--the only state in the country to fail to meet the target. The state now faces a $10 million penalty in lost funding. The AP's Ken Kusmer writes:

Indiana was the only state that failed to meet its target rate for work participation for families receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. Those rates vary from state to state depending on the size of caseloads and success in reducing them.

Indiana's target rate was 27.1 percent, but it had only 26.7 percent of TANF families participating in work-related activities, which include job training. The 2006 performance compared with a target rate of 33.4 percent in federal fiscal year 2005 and an actual rate of 30.9 percent, according to tables posted on the Web site of the Office of Family Assistance in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

"Indiana's welfare-to-work problems didn't just appear in 2005," FSSA spokesman Marcus Barlow said.

However, tables posted on the Web site indicate that before 2005, Indiana met its target rates every year since at least 2002. Also, since 2005, Indiana has been the only state that has failed to meet the federally set targets for all TANF families participating in work activities.

How many mulligans will FSSA Secretary Mitch Roob be allowed by Gov. Daniels before he's asked to exit the course?

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

"'Indiana's welfare-to-work problems didn't just appear in 2005,' FSSA spokesman Marcus Barlow said."

Good God - could the Daniels administration JUST FOR ONCE take some responsibility for their own challenges and quit dissing everyone who came before them? Mitch Daniels has been governor for 32 months and at some point you'd think that they could move off the "16 year of Democratic hell" message.

It's almost like they just can't help themselves. But I wish they'd try.

jon porter said...

Not about the FSSA, but the pea-shake at 38th and Capitol was vacant last night: all the windows were boarded up, the parking lot empty, and the "Mike's car wash" sign was gone.

Anonymous said...

Tragically, the administration of health/poor benefits to the least among us, who are most vulnerable, has long been mismanaged.

Federal regulations, thicker in volume than the tax code, make the delivery of services cumbersome.

But there is a special place in hell for the Mitch Roobs of the world. Profiting the way they do, and dropping the ball...

It's a very patrician, holier-than-thou attitude, and they ought to be ashamed.

But, they have no shame.

Anonymous said...

....and you wouldn't believe how much worse this would have been had the "New Crew" not taken over!

Anonymous said...

What about Julia Carson's "workfare" program?

That lasted as long as her attention span.

Anonymous said...

So much for "aiming higher" and being on a "hot streak" in job creation.

Anonymous said...

10:15--I'm wiith you, but, the topic was FSSA. Can we focus?

Anonymous said...

I was totally open to Mitch's "new crew" management, and voted for him. But FSSA continues to make me ill with both the attitude, actions, and seemingly focused goal to make the rich corporate contractors richer.

The latest indignity was I was listening to Z. Main, FSSA spokesmodel, on Garrison show (I know, I know, Brose McV was hosting...) yesterday and an elderly, disabled man called with a question needing HELP, with a question about food stamps, and the response from Main was "It's on our website, you can just pop on to the internet should be able to find what you need."

The arrogance of assuming all elderly and disabled, for that matter just everyone, has home high speed internet (most government sites are now going to crash a dinosaur PC with dial-up) and computer that can handle it, or can easily travel to and access a public library with a computer, (this caller was from a rural area) and the knowledge and familiarity to use the internet, is sickening and just illustrates the disconnect with those we put them there to serve.

Anonymous said...

Uh... 10:40,

Yessss, FSSA is the topic. I'll keep it simple for you... Indiana FSSA failed to meet federal targets for moving welfare recipients into jobs and off public welfare rolls. Carson's "workfare" program for the 7th District was supposedly designed get people jobs, thereby removing them from the welfare rolls, thereby meeting FSSA goals for funding. Nice idea; poor execution.

Focus...

Anonymous said...

How can they move people off of welfare when the welfare legislators, Bill Crawford, Glenn Howard and Julia Carson are helping crooks steal the training dollars. It's been going on for years, way before this new administration.

Anonymous said...

Sorry Advance Indiana, can't read you on my lunch hour anymore. The city has filtered out all blog sites.

When you cannot argue with the facts, then limit the speech. It has worked for every dictator in history.