Harsh sanctions for families on welfare

author : Welfare Rights Organizing Coalition topic : poverty | Welfare Rights Olympia

On March 1, 2007 thirty-one families with children living in poverty lost their welfare grants. Thus begins the most mean-spirited welfare reform policy this state has yet known: full family sanction. It means the end of a cash grant for families receiving welfare assistance who are perceived as not following the rules for WorkFirst. A steady flow of families will face full family sanction in the next 6 months, and as many as 1,269 may lose their cash income.

Many parents report being sanctioned due to caseworker error, miscommunication or barriers outside their control that prevent their participation. DSHS's own study of 500 families in sanction in 2005 showed that nearly half of the sanctioned families had transportation barriers, nearly a third had no childcare or medical issues that prevented them from participating.

When Governor Gregoire asked DSHS to audit their sanction cases and cure the illegal or unfair sanctions last year, more than half had their full benefits restored; the number of families in sanction went from 2,660 in January 2006 to 1,279 in July 2006. Unfortunately the sanction numbers are rising and few parents or advocate trust that the Governor's Statewide Review Panel, made up of three former DSHS employees, is going to provide the unbiased oversight needed to prevent families who should not be in sanction from losing their benefits. To learn more, visit:

Full Family Sanction: Faces and Voices From the Welfare Zone an exhibit of photos and audio stories from from Washington families facing welfare cuts. Bryce's Barbershop, 118 4th Avenue. The exhibit will be available for the month of March during barbershop hours, roughly Tuesday - Friday 10-ish to 5:00 pm, and Saturday mornings.

If you are a parent facing sanction and need to know your rights, please contact us!

Welfare Rights Organizing Coalition

701 Franklin Street SE

Olympia, WA 98501

(360)352-9716

toll free (866)343-9716

http://www.wroc.org

http://www.myspace.com/olywroc