Amendment ID: S3018-491-R1

Redraft Amendment 491

Pilot to Help Working Families Mitigate the Effects of the Cliff Effect

Messrs. Lesser, Gomez, Cronin and Eldridge, Ms. Gobi, Ms. DiZoglio, Mr. O'Connor, Ms. Comerford, Messrs. Velis and Timilty, Ms. Rausch, Messrs. Fattman, Lewis and Pacheco and Ms. Lovely move that the proposed new text be amended in section 2A, by inserting after item xxxx-xxxx the following item:-

"xxxx-xxxx   For a pilot program to mitigate cliff effects for 100 participants from across the commonwealth who have been receiving public benefits for not more than 12 consecutive months at the time of application into said pilot program; provided, that participants in the pilot program must be eligible for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit; provided further, that the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts, Inc. and Working Cities Group, in collaboration with the department of transitional assistance, shall assign department case managers to oversee and assist families or individuals who apply or are already receiving public assistance in order to maximize their benefits and prepare for the decrease of benefits as their employment income increases; provided further, that the Working Cities Group shall provide coaching, mentoring, financial wellness training, cliff effect preparation training and other services to pilot participants; provided further, that the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts, Inc., in partnership with the department, shall develop the pilot program that serves a demographically and geographically representative sample of individuals and families receiving transitional assistance; provided further, the department shall collaborate with all appropriate agencies when developing the pilot program; provided further, that the pilot program shall run for not less than 3 years beginning in fiscal year 2023; provided further, that the pilot program shall test a model that facilitates, encourages and supports participants to enter, reenter and remain in the workforce; provided further, that the department shall determine the base income amount that shall be paid to each family or individual that participates in the program; provided further, that for the duration of their participation in the pilot program, participants shall receive an additional benefit from the department of transitional assistance, which shall be equal to the difference between any decrease in transitional assistance and any increase in earned income to ensure that the income of the participant shall be not less than the said base income amount;  provided further, that if the participant successfully transitions off public assistance during or at the end of the pilot program, said participant shall continue to receive counseling services and technical support services and be monitored for data collection purposes; provided further, that if the department determines that a participant has successfully moved into the workforce during or at the end of the pilot program, the commonwealth shall award said participant a match equal to 20 per cent of the base, not to exceed an amount of $10,000; provided further, that for the duration of the pilot program, the department shall coordinate with the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts, Inc. to provide 2 intensive case managers with the primary responsibility of overseeing the progress of the pilot participants; provided further, that the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts, Inc., the department and the intensive case managers shall utilize shared resources of the Working Cities Group employer partners, staff members, mentors and volunteers in order to maximize the effectiveness of the pilot program; provided further, that in partnership with the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts, Inc. and the department, a third party evaluator will be retained to provide the legislature with an annual report on the program’s efficiency and impact not later than January 31 for each year the program is in effect; provided further, that said report shall include, but not be limited to: (i) the number of participants; (ii) the number of participants who entered the workforce; (iii) the amount of yearly income each participant earned; (iv) the hourly wage rate of each participant including a record of all salary increases over each year; (v) the dollar amount of all monies that incurred to the state in years 1 to 3, inclusive; and (vi) all records of participants entering or exiting the workforce, including reasons for exiting; and provided further, that no later than July 31, 2025, the department shall file the report with the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate, the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities………………….………………….$1,000,000"