Implementing the SNAP Pilot Projects to Reduce Dependency and - PDF document

Implementing the SNAP Pilot Projects to Reduce Dependency and Increase Work Levels University of Maryland School of Public Policy and the Secretary’s Innovation Group Hosted by Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. April 10, 2014 Washington, D.C. Panelists Douglas Besharov, Professor , University of Maryland School of Public Policy; Senior Fellow, Atlantic Council Reggie Bicha, Executive Director , Colorado Department of Human Services; President , APHSA, Board of Directors Lee Bowes, CEO , America Works Deborah Carroll, Administrator , D.C. Department of Human Services Clarence Carter, Director, Arizona Department of Economic Security Stacy Dean, Vice President for Food Assistance Policy , Center on Budget and Policy Priorities Robert Doar, Morgridge Fellow in Poverty Studies , American Enterprise Institute; former Commissioner , NYC Human Resources Administration Richard Hendra, Senior Associate , Low-Wage Workers and Communities Policy Area, MDRC Moira Johnston, Chief, SNAP Program Design Branch, Food and Nutrition Service, USDA

Jacob Klerman, Principal Associate/Scientist , Social and Economic Policy, Abt Associates Kathy Link, Food Stamp Program Manager , Utah Department of Workforce Services Brandon Lipps, Counsel & Senior Professional Staff , U.S. House Committee on Agriculture Richard Lucas, Deputy Associate Administrator , Office of Policy Support, Food and Nutrition Service, USDA Sheena McConnell, Senior Fellow , Mathematica Policy Research Chad Poppell, Chief of Staff , Florida Department of Economic Opportunity Howard Rolston, Principal Associate , Abt Associates Peter Schochet, Senior Fellow and Senior Economist , Mathematica Lisa Shelton, Minority Professional Staff , U.S. House Committee on Agriculture David Stillman, Assistant Secretary for the Economic Services Administration, Washington State Department of Social and Health Services Larry Temple, Executive Director , Texas Workforce Commission Jason Turner, Executive Director , Secretary's Innovation Group Welcome and Introductions Doug Besharov: Good morning, I am Doug Besharov. Welcome to this session. We are at Mathematica Policy Research, in Washington, D.C. Thank you to Scott Cody and his associates at MPR for hosting us. We have a full, jam-packed event today. We started off thinking that there would be three to five states that would want to attend. We have around ten states represented in the room, and many more in the webinar. This is an ecumenical group with representatives from States, advocacy organizations, research organizations and other research firms. I will turn it over to Jason Turner for a brief introduction before proceeding with the program. Jason Turner: Thank you very much Doug, and thank you to everyone here for attending. I am the Executive Director of the Secretary’s Innovation Group, or SIG. Our group is made up of seventeen activist state human service secretaries from around the country. We share an interest in economic self-sufficiency for our recipients. We focus on solutions which are oriented through limited government. We began this project making a proposal that my colleague Maura Corrigan, the Director of Michigan Human Services Department, produced along with the Secretaries from Kansas, South Carolina, and Louisiana in our group. We made a proposal for a food stamp work demonstration program, which was initially defeated in the House, but it ended up being a part of the Farm Bill that was signed into law, leading us to today, where we have the opportunity to discuss the implementation of its provisions. Immediately to my right is Maura Corrigan. She is the Secretary from Michigan, as I mentioned before. Robert Doar, one of our members, is newly at the American Enterprise Institute. Before that, he was the Commissioner of Human Resources under Mayor Bloomberg in New York City. 2

Clarence Carter is the Secretary from Arizona. He will be speaking about an interesting project; in his state they have to merge funding streams while maintaining a common work orientation. Next is Kathy Link. She is in charge of Utah’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP/Food Stamps). Utah has an interesting program that is a low-cost solution for maximizing //??touching of each individual. She will be talking about that as well. Chad Poppell is the representative from Florida, and his boss regrets not being able to make the event. He will be talking about innovations in Florida relating to maximizing work. Larry Temple is our member from the great state of Texas. He is the Executive Director of the Texas Workforce Commission. Larry is also the SIG’s leader of the Workforce Directors, an ancillary group to our Human Services. He is the longest serving state labor secretary in the country. We also have in attendance Aaron Fichtner, the Deputy Commissioner of New Jersey’s Department of Labor and Workforce Development. We thank all the secretaries for attending. With that, I am going to turn it over to Reggie. Doug Besharov: Let me introduce Reggie Bicha. He is, besides being the Executive Director of Colorado Department of Human Services, the President of the Board of Directors and Council Member of the American Public Human Services Association (APHSA). The reason I wanted to bring that up is because Larry Goolsby, who is also from APHSA, and Reggie helped us to organize this event. This is, indeed, a collaboration between all of us who are interested in improving the Food Stamp and SNAP program. Reggie Bicha: Good morning everyone. Thank you very much for including APHSA in this event. It is terribly important that we come together and make sure that we maximize this great opportunity through the SNAP demonstration project. Jason and Doug, we appreciate your leadership and partnership in getting the demonstration projects passed through Congress and making sure that we are successful. At APHSA, we have been focusing really intensely for the past few years on how the entire human services system can become more effective and efficient in doing what all of us as administrators, customers, and taxpayers, alike, need and expect it to do. Our initiative to accomplish this transformation of human services is called Pathways. In it, we call for a system that is integrated, outcomes-focused, preventative and accountable for meaningful and long-term results. We want to see far greater impact in four outcome areas: stronger families and communities, healthier families and communities, sustained well-being for children and youth, and achieving gainful employment and independence. It seems to me that politician after politician, both Democrats and Republicans, have used the saying “The best social program is a good paying job.” I think that all of us at APHSA feel very strongly about the premise of that statement. I am delighted that this conversation is taking place and I am glad to see so many of my fellow HS commissioners here. We have several other leaders of APHSA joining us here today. David Stillman is a member of the APHSA Board and will be speaking later today from the state of Washington. Clarence Carter, David Berns and Larry Temple are all members of our State 3