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ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT Meeting Date: November 2, 2006 Action Agenda Item No. 5- l SUBJECT: Work First Pilot Funds DEPARTMENT: Social Services PUBLIC HEARING: (Y /N) No ATTACHMENT(S): Grant Proposal Grant Award Letter INFORMATION CONTACT: Nancy Coston, 245 -2802 Gwen Price, 245 -2885 PURPOSE: To accept grant funds available to operate Work First pilots. BACKGROUND: The North Carolina General Assembly appropriated some of the available Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds to support local pilot projects to enhance the participation rates of Work First recipients. Changes in federal rules are expected to make it difficult for local agencies to meet the required federal participation rates. The pilot projects must be used in a way to increase these participation rates. Participation rates are determined by the number of recipients who complete 30 hours per week of allowable activities. Most of the allowable activities are short term training, community work experience, on- the -job training, employment or subsidized employment. Orange County is not currently meeting the required 50% participation rate for all parents who are not either disabled or have a child younger than the age of one. As the number of recipients has declined it has become more difficult for the agency to meet the federal requirements since many of the current recipients have complex issues and multiple barriers to employment. At the joint work session with the Social Services Board on September 14, 2006, the Board of County Commissioners indicated that the agency could apply for these funds. There is no local match required and if the pilot project is meeting its stated goals, then the funds can be continued for two more years. The deadline to submit proposals was on October 6, 2006, and a proposal requesting $270,838 in grant funds was submitted by Social Services on that date. Social Services has been approved to receive funds to increase its on-the-job training components with employers, to provide job coaches for targeted participants, to provide work incentives for successful participants and to provide subsidized employment opportunities. Funding is available through Fiscal Year 2008 -2009 for these projects.