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30 <br />• Seek legislation to allow use of school buses for transportation in off hours and/or to allow <br />approved Work First participants to ride school buses to central pick -up point or to workplace <br />if it is on bus route <br />• Address the need for child care services during non - traditional hours and for sick children <br />including paying a shift or service differential for people who provide these services <br />• Provide subsidized in -home care for sick children or dependent adults <br />• Develop Work First cooperative where participants provide child care for each other, <br />especially sick <br />• Explore leasing existing child care facilities for non - traditional hours care <br />• Locate a funding source for start-up loans for people who want to start their own child care <br />program and who will reserve spaces for children of Work first recipients <br />• Provide funding to help more child care homes become licensed, registered and accredited <br />• Partner with Chambers of Commerce to encourage employers to develop family friendly <br />workplace policies; e.g. family leave for both parents, sick leave used for sick child leave, <br />flexible work hours, etc. <br />• Advocate for a % of low and moderate income housing units in new developments to allow <br />for self - employment <br />• Advocate for Family Self- Sufficiency Programs in federal assisted housing <br />• Review the rent structure at public housing and to consider capping rents in public housing <br />• Develop and implement a plan to expand the number of housing providers that accept Section <br />8 certificate or vouchers for Work First participants or graduates <br />• Provide rent subsidies for Work First participants who are otherwise successful <br />• Develop program with local builders, Habitat for Humanity and/or high school home building <br />classes to adopt an apartment or house program to renovate run down dwellings at cost of <br />supplies if the owner will rent to Work First recipients or graduates at no more than 30 % of <br />their take home pay <br />• Expand efforts to reach all people who are eligible for Medicaid, especially under any new <br />programs that would expand Medicaid eligibility <br />• Develop a County sponsored HMO to provide medical coverage and services for families <br />who are under- employed and no longer receive Medicaid <br />• Match existing health insurance programs with Work First participants <br />• Work with UNC and other area employers to provide health insurance coverage for anyone <br />working 20 hours or more <br />• Endorse and lobby state and federal elected officials for mental health parity under existing <br />health plans <br />• Advocate for a living wage income for all Orange County residents employed in private or <br />public sector jobs <br />• Provide a one time lump sum grant (scholarship) to families when they transition off Work <br />First <br />• Provide necessary supports for people who work in low wage jobs that do not provide <br />income adequate for economic self sufficiency such as: rent and wage subsidies, child care <br />subsidies and added subsidies for child care during non - traditional hours <br />C. Special Populations - Teen Parents <br />Believing that teen parents have a particular potential for success, Orange County citizens are <br />choosing to place special emphasis on this population. Our goal is to identify all the teen parents <br />29 <br />