The California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program allows each county to provide cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income families using federal, state, and county funds. Existing law requires that specified CalWORKs eligible individuals who are participating either full-time in an educational activity or part-time in an educational activity and meeting the hourly participation rates based on the number of academic units at a publicly funded postsecondary educational institution and making satisfactory progress receive a standard payment of $175 to $500 per semester or quarter, which may be provided, in whole or in part, in the form of a book voucher, or reimbursement for verified actual expenses for the purpose of paying costs associated with attending the postsecondary educational institution. Existing law prohibits those participants from being required to participate in a job club, a required welfare-to-work activity. Existing law requires an individual who meets certain requirements and who wishes to receive supportive services to sign a welfare-to-work plan, as specified.
SB 768 amends existing law and prohibits those educational activity participants from being required to participate in orientation and appraisal more than once or to participate in welfare-to-work activities to satisfy instructional hours during the semester or quarter breaks. The bill also authorizes CalWORKs-eligible individuals who participate in a full-time or part-time educational activity at a nonprofit postsecondary educational institution to receive the standard payments identified. The bill includes the summer sessions as a quarter for these purposes. The bill provides that an instructional hour shall mean a class time of 50 minutes.
The bill also makes other changes to provisions relating to an individual who wishes to receive supportive services and signs a welfare-to-work plan.
(SB 768 amends Sections 11322.84, 11323.21, and 11325.23 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.)