SNAP E&T – Building Better Programs https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org Resources for Improving TANF and Related Work Programs Mon, 16 May 2016 19:10:26 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.2 SNAP E&T Monitoring Regulation Comments https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/2016/05/16/snap-et-monitoring-regulation-comments/ Mon, 16 May 2016 18:53:02 +0000 http://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/?p=1399 Sample comments on the interim final rule requiring states to report on outcomes in their SNAP E&T programs.

SNAP E&T Monitoring Regulation Comments

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Questions and Answers on the E&T Pilot Request for Applications: Part 1 https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/2014/10/07/questions-and-answers-on-the-et-pilot-request-for-applications-part-1/ Tue, 07 Oct 2014 15:02:14 +0000 http://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/?p=832 Read more]]> Food and Nutrition Service (FNS)
The compiled questions and answers provide clarification on the requirements and criteria set forth in the Fiscal Year 2015 Pilot Projects to Reduce Dependency and Increase Work Requirements and Work Effort under SNAP Request for Applications (RFA). These questions are based on those received by potential applicants. The responses are not intended to address the merit of proposed projects or the likelihood that a project would be funded. This is the first set in a two part series of questions and answers. It covers eligible applicants, financial requirements, and the independent evaluation. Part 2 will cover questions and answers regarding pilot participants and allowable activities.
Questions and Answers for the E&T Pilot Request for Applications (RFA): Part 1

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Testimony of USDA Secretary on E&T Pilots https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/2014/09/17/testimony-of-usda-secretary-on-et-pilots/ Wed, 17 Sep 2014 18:11:20 +0000 http://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/?p=820 Read more]]> On Wednesday, September 17, USDA Secretary, Tom Vilsack, testified before the House Committee on Agriculture regarding SNAP E&T projects. The SNAP E&T pilot projects will provided funding for programs that to address barriers SNAP participants face to obtaining secure employment with a living wage. According to Secretary Vilsack, they are looking for programs that utilize effective approaches such as, work-based learning strategies like pre-apprenticeships, career pathway systems, and the integrations of basic education with on-the-job-training. He also mentioned that effective programs will require collaboration across multiple state agencies and noted that USDA has aligned with other federal agencies to move “towards [their] mutual goal of helping Americans find jobs and increase their earnings.”

Read Secretary Vilsack’s full testimony

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SNAP Employment & Training Program Pilot https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/2014/09/16/snap-employment-training-program-pilot/ Tue, 16 Sep 2014 15:11:46 +0000 http://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/?p=814 Read more]]> USDA recently released a Request for Applications (RFA) for up to 10 pilot SNAP Employment and Training projects designed to test innovative approaches to increasing employment and earnings.  Authorized by the Agriculture Act of 2014 (the Farm Bill), the pilots aim to identify promising approaches by testing a wide variety of approaches and rigorously evaluating the impact of the pilots on SNAP participants’ earning, employment and self-sufficiency.

Background

While states have operated SNAP E&T programs for years, the scope, quality and type of programs has varied widely.  Little is known about their effectiveness, and whether some approaches are more successful than others in improving the employment outcomes of SNAP participants.   At the same time, it is also unknown whether work and job training programs similar to those operated by other programs, such as TANF cash assistance or under the Workforce Investment Act, would be effective in SNAP given differences between client populations and program requirements.

The Farm Bill authorized $200 million for this effort, and USDA has designated $165 million for the costs of conducting the pilots and $35 million for evaluating the results.  States can also leverage the existing 50/50 federal SNAP E&T matching funds to support the pilots.  State SNAP agencies must apply by Nov. 24, 2014, with proposals selected by February, 2015.  Pilots can run for up to three years with a longer period allotted for evaluating the results.

The pilots will test a variety of employment and training approaches to learn what helps SNAP participants gain employment and increase earnings.

The Farm Bill also requires that the pilots test a wide array of approaches, including those focused on education and training, services for individuals with barriers to employment, rapid attachment to work, and other strategies.  Pilots can target a variety of SNAP participants including individuals with low skills; childless, nondisabled adults; and recipients who are working in very low-wage or part-time jobs. The grants will be distributed across a range of geographic areas, including rural and urban parts of the country.  There will be a rigorous and independent evaluation of each pilot’s results.

To be eligible for a pilot project, a state must agree to participate in the independent evaluation, commit to collaborate with the state’s workforce board and maintain its 2013 SNAP E&T funding level.  In addition, the statute requires that USDA consider whether the state has demonstrated the ability to operate a high quality program, whether the pilot could be replicated in other states and the likelihood of improving the employment and earning of participants.

States have an opportunity to test innovative approaches to providing employment among SNAP participants.

The pilot offers unique and promising approaches for states looking to engage SNAP participants in efforts to improve their employment prospects.  For example pilots may,

  • Provide supportive services to individuals who are already working.  For a parent with children, a lack of child care can be a significant impediment to employment.  A state could subsidize the costs of child care to allow a parent to increase work hours or take a better job that requires more time away from home.
  • Provide supportive services to job searchers.  Research on other assistance programs suggests that job search requirements without other services has a limited impact on employment outcomes.  But some studies indicate that providing supports, such as child care, transportation, and case management that addresses barriers to work can lead to improved outcomes.
  • Offer subsidized employment, where the state provides a subsidy to enable an employer to hire an individual.  This approach has been successfully used in several state TANF programs and is explicitly permitted in the pilot.
  • Engage recipients in training programs designed to lead to higher-paying jobs.

Pilots must adhere to SNAP rules.

While new activities are permitted, the pilots must operate under E&T rules, which exempt people not able to work from being required to participate, provide protections for individuals facing sanctions, and require states to reimburse individuals for the reasonable and necessary costs of participation.   Current rules also require and the RFP emphasizes the need for states proposals to consider how they will assess individuals assigned or volunteering for SNAP E&T and assign those individuals to appropriate activities.  In addition, state must maintain their current level of funding, so the pilots represent an expansion of state training efforts.

FNS has an E&T resource center online:  http://www.fns.usda.gov/employment-and-training-et-resource-center.

For more information, please visit https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/category/snap-et/
or contact Ed Bolen at bolen@cbpp.org.

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SNAP E&T Pilot Request for Applications (RFA & RFP) https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/2014/09/05/snap-et-pilot-request-for-applications-rfa-rfp/ Fri, 05 Sep 2014 21:38:49 +0000 http://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/?p=810 The SNAP E&T Pilot Request for Applications and Request for Proposals are available on the FNS website.

SNAP E&T RFA and RFP

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Abt Policy Brief and White Paper on SNAP E&T Pilots https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/2014/08/01/abt-policy-brief-and-white-paper-on-snap-et-pilots/ Fri, 01 Aug 2014 21:30:01 +0000 http://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/?p=792 Read more]]> Abt Associates has released a policy brief and white paper addressing program design and evaluation issues for the forthcoming SNAP E&T pilots to be funded by the 2014 Farm Bill.

From Abt:
The 2014 Farm Bill (Agriculture Act of 2014, H.R. 2642) includes $200 million for up to 10 three-year pilot projects in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) “to reduce dependency and increase work requirements and work effort.” The Farm Bill also requires an evaluation of these pilot projects. This Policy Brief considers the options for the employment and training program to be funded by the law.

Abt Policy Brief:  SNAP Employment and Training Pilot Projects—Programmatic Strategies to Reduce Dependency and Increase Work Effort

From Abt:
This White Paper considers several issues related to the evaluation of the employment and training pilots: (i) random assignment; (ii) capturing entry effects; (iii) required sample sizes; (iv) data collection; and (v) the interrelation of the pilots and the evaluation.

Abt White Paper:  Evaluation Choices and Challenges for the SNAP E&T Pilot Projects

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CLASP Presents an Overview of SNAP E&T https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/2014/07/24/snap-et-overview-pilots-two-papers-from-clasp/ Thu, 24 Jul 2014 22:04:26 +0000 http://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/?p=772 Read more]]> The Center on Law and Social Policy (CLASP) presents a helpful overview of SNAP Employment and Training (E&T).  This overview describes the E&T program; the different types of funding it offers; the services it can support; and the ways it interacts with the SNAP work activity participation requirements and time limits on benefit receipt by childless adults who are not receiving disability benefits.

SNAP E&T Overview

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An Overview of the SNAP E&T Demonstration Projects and Effective Approaches to Increasing Employment & Earnings https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/2014/06/27/an-overview-of-the-snap-et-demostration-projects-and-effective-approaches-to-increasing-employment-earnings/ Fri, 27 Jun 2014 14:33:24 +0000 http://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/?p=721 Read more]]>

Can SNAP’s Employment and Training (E&T) program provide real avenues to self-sufficiency? The SNAP E&T pilot project authorized in the 2014 Farm Bill has generated interest from states looking to test promising approaches designed to help SNAP participants obtain unsubsidized jobs and raise earnings through the SNAP Employment and Training program. On this webinar, we discuss the intent, scope and details of the pilot project. States considering whether or not to submit a proposal are in the process of identifying promising projects–from existing SNAP E&T components to new approaches permitted under the pilot such as subsidized employment and work supports.  This webinar discusses the intent, scope and details of the pilot project, key implementation issues, the role the rigorous evaluation will play in the pilot and the larger context of existing SNAP E&T programs.

Click here for CBPP SNAP E&T Webinar – Slides (PDF)

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Washington State’s Basic Food Employment and Training Program https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/2014/06/20/washington-states-basic-food-employment-and-training-program/ Fri, 20 Jun 2014 21:46:37 +0000 http://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/?p=706 Read more]]> Here we offer two reports on Washington State’s Basic Food Employment and Training Program

1.
This Seattle Jobs Initiative report details the innovative partnership between government, community college and community-based organization leaders to develop the Washington’s Basic Food Employment & Training (BFET) program.  The program has grown from $150,000 in October 2005 to $29 million today; it expanded from Seattle to all of Washington State, from one community college and a small group of community based organizations to every one of the 34 state colleges and 30 community based organizations.  The program has shown positive results for participants.  Click below to read the report.

Link to report: Washington State’s Basic Food Employment and Training Program (June 2014)

2.
The Center on Law and Social Policy (CLASP) has released a paper that is an overview of the Washington BFET program, which includes “by the numbers,” crucial innovations and challenges faced by the program.

Link to paper: CLASP – Washington State’s Basic Food Employment and Training Program (May 2014)

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NSC’s Federal Training Policy in Brief: SNAP E&T https://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/2014/06/05/nscs-federal-training-policy-in-brief-snap-et/ Thu, 05 Jun 2014 15:51:26 +0000 http://www.buildingbetterprograms.org/?p=696 Read more]]> The National Skills Coalition has published a comprehensive guide of federal training policy.  In February 2012, the NSC added a specific section on SNAP Employment and Training Program policy (Click link below to read section).  The brief details the policy’s background, current legislative status, details funded activities, defines eligibility for SNAP participants, discusses funding and suggests policy recommendations for improving the program.

Click here for NSC’s Training Policy in Brief: SNAP Employment and Training Program (Excerpt, February 2012)

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