
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]
[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 23, 2000 and December 4, 2001]
[CITE: 42USC613]

 
                 TITLE 42--THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
 
                       CHAPTER 7--SOCIAL SECURITY
 
 SUBCHAPTER IV--GRANTS TO STATES FOR AID AND SERVICES TO NEEDY FAMILIES 
              WITH CHILDREN AND FOR CHILD-WELFARE SERVICES
 
   Part A--Block Grants to States for Temporary Assistance for Needy 
                                Families
 
Sec. 613. Research, evaluations, and national studies


(a) Research

    The Secretary, directly or through grants, contracts, or interagency 
agreements, shall conduct research on the benefits, effects, and costs 
of operating different State programs funded under this part, including 
time limits relating to eligibility for assistance. The research shall 
include studies on the effects of different programs and the operation 
of such programs on welfare dependency, illegitimacy, teen pregnancy, 
employment rates, child well-being, and any other area the Secretary 
deems appropriate. The Secretary shall also conduct research on the 
costs and benefits of State activities under section 607 of this title.

(b) Development and evaluation of innovative approaches to reducing 
        welfare dependency and increasing child well-being

                           (1) In general

        The Secretary may assist States in developing, and shall 
    evaluate, innovative approaches for reducing welfare dependency and 
    increasing the well-being of minor children living at home with 
    respect to recipients of assistance under programs funded under this 
    part. The Secretary may provide funds for training and technical 
    assistance to carry out the approaches developed pursuant to this 
    paragraph.

                           (2) Evaluations

        In performing the evaluations under paragraph (1), the Secretary 
    shall, to the maximum extent feasible, use random assignment as an 
    evaluation methodology.

(c) Dissemination of information

    The Secretary shall develop innovative methods of disseminating 
information on any research, evaluations, and studies conducted under 
this section, including the facilitation of the sharing of information 
and best practices among States and localities through the use of 
computers and other technologies.

(d) Annual ranking of States and review of most and least successful 
        work programs

                    (1) Annual ranking of States

        The Secretary shall rank annually the States to which grants are 
    paid under section 603 of this title in the order of their success 
    in placing recipients of assistance under the State program funded 
    under this part into long-term private sector jobs, reducing the 
    overall welfare caseload, and, when a practicable method for 
    calculating this information becomes available, diverting 
    individuals from formally applying to the State program and 
    receiving assistance. In ranking States under this subsection, the 
    Secretary shall take into account the average number of minor 
    children living at home in families in the State that have incomes 
    below the poverty line and the amount of funding provided each State 
    for such families.

    (2) Annual review of most and least successful work programs

        The Secretary shall review the programs of the 3 States most 
    recently ranked highest under paragraph (1) and the 3 States most 
    recently ranked lowest under paragraph (1) that provide parents with 
    work experience, assistance in finding employment, and other work 
    preparation activities and support services to enable the families 
    of such parents to leave the program and become self-sufficient.

(e) Annual ranking of States and review of issues relating to out-of-
        wedlock births

                           (1) In general

        The Secretary shall annually rank States to which grants are 
    made under section 603 of this title based on the following ranking 
    factors:

        (A) Absolute out-of-wedlock ratios

            The ratio represented by--
                (i) the total number of out-of-wedlock births in 
            families receiving assistance under the State program under 
            this part in the State for the most recent year for which 
            information is available; over
                (ii) the total number of births in families receiving 
            assistance under the State program under this part in the 
            State for the year.

        (B) Net changes in the out-of-wedlock ratio

            The difference between the ratio described in subparagraph 
        (A) with respect to a State for the most recent year for which 
        such information is available and the ratio with respect to the 
        State for the immediately preceding year.

                          (2) Annual review

        The Secretary shall review the programs of the 5 States most 
    recently ranked highest under paragraph (1) and the 5 States most 
    recently ranked the lowest under paragraph (1).

(f) State-initiated evaluations

    A State shall be eligible to receive funding to evaluate the State 
program funded under this part if--
        (1) the State submits a proposal to the Secretary for the 
    evaluation;
        (2) the Secretary determines that the design and approach of the 
    evaluation is rigorous and is likely to yield information that is 
    credible and will be useful to other States; and
        (3) unless otherwise waived by the Secretary, the State 
    contributes to the cost of the evaluation, from non-Federal sources, 
    an amount equal to at least 10 percent of the cost of the 
    evaluation.

(g) Report on circumstances of certain children and families

                           (1) In general

        Beginning 3 years after August 22, 1996, the Secretary of Health 
    and Human Services shall prepare and submit to the Committees on 
    Ways and Means and on Education and the Workforce of the House of 
    Representatives and to the Committees on Finance and on Labor and 
    Resources of the Senate annual reports that examine in detail the 
    matters described in paragraph (2) with respect to each of the 
    following groups for the period after August 22, 1996:
            (A) Individuals who were children in families that have 
        become ineligible for assistance under a State program funded 
        under this part by reason of having reached a time limit on the 
        provision of such assistance.
            (B) Children born after August 22, 1996, to parents who, at 
        the time of such birth, had not attained 20 years of age.
            (C) Individuals who, after August 22, 1996, became parents 
        before attaining 20 years of age.

                        (2) Matters described

        The matters described in this paragraph are the following:
            (A) The percentage of each group that has dropped out of 
        secondary school (or the equivalent), and the percentage of each 
        group at each level of educational attainment.
            (B) The percentage of each group that is employed.
            (C) The percentage of each group that has been convicted of 
        a crime or has been adjudicated as a delinquent.
            (D) The rate at which the members of each group are born, or 
        have children, out-of-wedlock, and the percentage of each group 
        that is married.
            (E) The percentage of each group that continues to 
        participate in State programs funded under this part.
            (F) The percentage of each group that has health insurance 
        provided by a private entity (broken down by whether the 
        insurance is provided through an employer or otherwise), the 
        percentage that has health insurance provided by an agency of 
        government, and the percentage that does not have health 
        insurance.
            (G) The average income of the families of the members of 
        each group.
            (H) Such other matters as the Secretary deems appropriate.

(h) Funding of studies and demonstrations

                           (1) In general

        Out of any money in the Treasury of the United States not 
    otherwise appropriated, there are appropriated $15,000,000 for each 
    of fiscal years 1997 through 2002 for the purpose of paying--
            (A) the cost of conducting the research described in 
        subsection (a) of this section;
            (B) the cost of developing and evaluating innovative 
        approaches for reducing welfare dependency and increasing the 
        well-being of minor children under subsection (b) of this 
        section;
            (C) the Federal share of any State-initiated study approved 
        under subsection (f) of this section; and
            (D) an amount determined by the Secretary to be necessary to 
        operate and evaluate demonstration projects, relating to this 
        part, that are in effect or approved under section 1315 of this 
        title as of August 22, 1996, and are continued after such date.

                           (2) Allocation

        Of the amount appropriated under paragraph (1) for a fiscal 
    year--
            (A) 50 percent shall be allocated for the purposes described 
        in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1), and
            (B) 50 percent shall be allocated for the purposes described 
        in subparagraphs (C) and (D) of paragraph (1).

             (3) Demonstrations of innovative strategies

        The Secretary may implement and evaluate demonstrations of 
    innovative and promising strategies which--
            (A) provide one-time capital funds to establish, expand, or 
        replicate programs;
            (B) test performance-based grant-to-loan financing in which 
        programs meeting performance targets receive grants while 
        programs not meeting such targets repay funding on a prorated 
        basis; and
            (C) test strategies in multiple States and types of 
        communities.

(i) Child poverty rates

                           (1) In general

        Not later than May 31, 1998, and annually thereafter, the chief 
    executive officer of each State shall submit to the Secretary a 
    statement of the child poverty rate in the State as of August 22, 
    1996, or the date of the most recent prior statement under this 
    paragraph.

              (2) Submission of corrective action plan

        Not later than 90 days after the date a State submits a 
    statement under paragraph (1) which indicates that, as a result of 
    the amendments made by section 103 of the Personal Responsibility 
    and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, the child poverty 
    rate of the State has increased by 5 percent or more since the most 
    recent prior statement under paragraph (1), the State shall prepare 
    and submit to the Secretary a corrective action plan in accordance 
    with paragraph (3).

                        (3) Contents of plan

        A corrective action plan submitted under paragraph (2) shall 
    outline the manner in which the State will reduce the child poverty 
    rate in the State. The plan shall include a description of the 
    actions to be taken by the State under such plan.

                      (4) Compliance with plan

        A State that submits a corrective action plan that the Secretary 
    has found contains the information required by this subsection shall 
    implement the corrective action plan until the State determines that 
    the child poverty rate in the State is less than the lowest child 
    poverty rate on the basis of which the State was required to submit 
    the corrective action plan.

                           (5) Methodology

        The Secretary shall prescribe regulations establishing the 
    methodology by which a State shall determine the child poverty rate 
    in the State. The methodology shall take into account factors 
    including the number of children who receive free or reduced-price 
    lunches, the number of food stamp households, and, to the extent 
    available, county-by-county estimates of children in poverty as 
    determined by the Census Bureau.

(j) Evaluation of welfare-to-work programs

                           (1) Evaluation

        The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor and 
    the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development--
            (A) shall develop a plan to evaluate how grants made under 
        sections 603(a)(5) and 612(a)(3) of this title have been used;
            (B) may evaluate the use of such grants by such grantees as 
        the Secretary deems appropriate, in accordance with an agreement 
        entered into with the grantees after good-faith negotiations; 
        and
            (C) is urged to include the following outcome measures in 
        the plan developed under subparagraph (A):
                (i) Placements in unsubsidized employment, and 
            placements in unsubsidized employment that last for at least 
            6 months.
                (ii) Placements in the private and public sectors.
                (iii) Earnings of individuals who obtain employment.
                (iv) Average expenditures per placement.

                     (2) Reports to the Congress

        (A) In general

            Subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C), the Secretary, in 
        consultation with the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of 
        Housing and Urban Development, shall submit to the Congress 
        reports on the projects funded under section \1\ 603(a)(5) and 
        612(a)(3) of this title and on the evaluations of the projects.
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    \1\ So in original. Probably should be ``sections''.
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        (B) Interim report

            Not later than January 1, 1999, the Secretary shall submit 
        an interim report on the matter described in subparagraph (A).

        (C) Final report

            Not later than January 1, 2001,\2\ (or at a later date, if 
        the Secretary informs the Committees of the Congress with 
        jurisdiction over the subject matter of the report) the 
        Secretary shall submit a final report on the matter described in 
        subparagraph (A).
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    \2\ So in original.
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(Aug. 14, 1935, ch. 531, title IV, Sec. 413, as added Pub. L. 104-193, 
title I, Sec. 103(a)(1), Aug. 22, 1996, 110 Stat. 2153; amended Pub. L. 
105-33, title V, Secs. 5001(f), 5509, 5514(c), Aug. 5, 1997, 111 Stat. 
592, 618, 620; Pub. L. 105-200, title IV, Sec. 410(a), July 16, 1998, 
112 Stat. 673; Pub. L. 106-169, title IV, Sec. 401(c), Dec. 14, 1999, 
113 Stat. 1858.)

                       References in Text

    Section 103 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity 
Reconciliation Act of 1996, referred to in subsec. (i)(2), is section 
103 of Pub. L. 104-193, which enacted this part, amended sections 602, 
603, and 1308 of this title, and repealed provisions formerly set out as 
this part. For complete classification of section 103 to the Code, see 
Tables.


                            Prior Provisions

    A prior section 613, act Aug. 14, 1935, ch. 531, title IV, Sec. 413, 
as added June 9, 1980, Pub. L. 96-265, title IV, Sec. 406(c), 94 Stat. 
467, related to technical assistance for developing management 
information systems, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 104-193, Sec. 103(a)(1), 
as amended by Pub. L. 105-33, title V, Sec. 5514(c), Aug. 5, 1997, 111 
Stat. 620.


                               Amendments

    1999--Subsec. (g)(1). Pub. L. 106-169 made technical amendment to 
reference in original act which appears in text as reference to August 
22, 1996.
    1998--Subsec. (g)(1). Pub. L. 105-200 substituted ``Education and 
the Workforce'' for ``Economic and Educational Opportunities''.
    1997--Pub. L. 105-33, Sec. 5514(c), made technical amendment to 
directory language of Pub. L. 104-193, Sec. 103(a)(1), which enacted 
this section.
    Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 105-33, Sec. 5509(a), inserted ``, directly or 
through grants, contracts, or interagency agreements,'' before ``shall 
conduct'' and substituted ``section 607'' for ``section 609''.
    Subsec. (e)(1). Pub. L. 105-33, Sec. 5509(b), amended heading and 
text of par. (1) generally. Prior to amendment, text read as follows:
    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall annually rank States to which 
grants are made under section 603 of this title based on the following 
ranking factors:
        ``(i) Absolute out-of-wedlock ratios.--The ratio represented 
    by--
            ``(I) the total number of out-of-wedlock births in families 
        receiving assistance under the State program under this part in 
        the State for the most recent fiscal year for which information 
        is available; over
            ``(II) the total number of births in families receiving 
        assistance under the State program under this part in the State 
        for such year.
        ``(ii) Net changes in the out-of-wedlock ratio.--The difference 
    between the ratio described in subparagraph (A)(i) with respect to a 
    State for the most recent fiscal year for which such information is 
    available and the ratio with respect to the State for the 
    immediately preceding year.''
    Subsec. (h)(1)(D). Pub. L. 105-33, Sec. 5509(c), substituted 
``August 22, 1996'' for ``September 30, 1995''.
    Subsec. (i)(1). Pub. L. 105-33, Sec. 5509(d)(1), substituted ``May 
31, 1998'' for ``90 days after August 22, 1996''.
    Subsec. (i)(5). Pub. L. 105-33, Sec. 5509(d)(2), substituted ``, to 
the extent available, county-by-county'' for ``the county-by-county''.
    Subsec. (j). Pub. L. 105-33, Sec. 5001(f), added subsec. (j).


                    Effective Date of 1999 Amendment

    Amendment by Pub. L. 106-169 effective as if included in the 
enactment of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity 
Reconciliation Act of 1996, Pub. L. 104-193, see section 401(q) of Pub. 
L. 106-169, set out as a note under section 602 of this title.


                    Effective Date of 1997 Amendment

    Amendment by section 5509 of Pub. L. 105-33 effective as if included 
in section 103(a) of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity 
Reconciliation Act of 1996, Pub. L. 104-193, at the time such section 
103(a) became law, see section 5518(a) of Pub. L. 105-33, set out as a 
note under section 602 of this title.
    Amendment by section 5514(c) of Pub. L. 105-33 effective as if 
included in the provision of Pub. L. 104-193 amended at the time the 
provision became law, see section 5518(d) of Pub. L. 105-33, set out as 
a note under section 862a of Title 21, Food and Drugs.


                             Effective Date

    Section effective Aug. 22, 1996, with transition rules relating to 
State options to accelerate such date, rules relating to claims, 
actions, and proceedings commenced before such date, rules relating to 
closing out of accounts for terminated or substantially modified 
programs and continuance in office of Assistant Secretary for Family 
Support, and provisions relating to termination of entitlement under 
AFDC program, see section 116 of Pub. L. 104-193, as amended, set out as 
a note under section 601 of this title.


      Coordination of Substance Abuse and Child Protection Services

    Pub. L. 105-89, title IV, Sec. 405, Nov. 19, 1997, 111 Stat. 2135, 
provided that: ``Within 1 year after the date of the enactment of this 
Act [Nov. 19, 1997], the Secretary of Health and Human Services, based 
on information from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 
Administration and the Administration for Children and Families in the 
Department of Health of [sic] Human Services, shall prepare and submit 
to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Finance of the Senate a report which describes the 
extent and scope of the problem of substance abuse in the child welfare 
population, the types of services provided to such population, and the 
outcomes resulting from the provision of such services to such 
population. The report shall include recommendations for any legislation 
that may be needed to improve coordination in providing such services to 
such population.''


  GAO Study of Effect of Family Violence on Need for Public Assistance

    Section 5001(i) of Pub. L. 105-33 provided that:
    ``(1) Study.--The Comptroller General shall conduct a study of the 
effect of family violence on the use of public assistance programs, and 
in particular the extent to which family violence prolongs or increases 
the need for public assistance.
    ``(2) Report.--Within 1 year after the date of the enactment of this 
Act [Aug. 5, 1997], the Comptroller General shall submit to the 
Committees on Ways and Means and Education and the Workforce of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate a 
report that contains the findings of the study required by paragraph 
(1).''


                 Study on Alternative Outcomes Measures

    Section 107 of Pub. L. 104-193, as amended by Pub. L. 105-33, title 
V, Sec. 5511, Aug. 5, 1997, 111 Stat. 619, provided that:
    ``(a) Study.--The Secretary shall, in cooperation with the States, 
study and analyze outcomes measures for evaluating the success of the 
States in moving individuals out of the welfare system through 
employment as an alternative to the minimum participation rates 
described in section 407 of the Social Security Act [section 607 of this 
title]. The study shall include a determination as to whether such 
alternative outcomes measures should be applied on a national or a 
State-by-State basis and a preliminary assessment of the effects of 
section 408(a)(7)(C) of such Act [section 608(a)(7)(C) of this title].
    ``(b) Report.--Not later than September 30, 1998, the Secretary 
shall submit to the Committee on Finance of the Senate and the Committee 
on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives a report containing 
the findings of the study required by subsection (a).''

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 603, 612, 1308 of this 
title.
