Republicans Reexamining Work Rules in Clinton-Era Assistance Program

A ‘Now Hiring’ sign is displayed outside a Jiffy Lube location in Los Angeles, Calif., on Feb. 2, 2023. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images

Social workers told a subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee that work requirements in the Temporary Aid for Need Families (TANF) program doesn’t fully capture everything a client is doing to pull themselves out of poverty.

“You can job search for 86 hours in a month, but it doesn’t measure what the customer is achieving,” said Shakirah Francis, a social work supervisor from Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. “It’s just a number.”