00 CS FOR HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 36(HES) 01 Urging the federal Department of Health and Human Services to repeal the 02 "100-hour rule" relating to employment of certain persons receiving AFDC and 03 to replace it with a regulation that will serve as an incentive for AFDC 04 recipients to accept employment of more than 100 hours a month. 05 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 06 WHEREAS aid to families with dependent children (AFDC) includes aid for a child 07 of a parent who is less than fully employed; and 08 WHEREAS the Congress, in 42 U.S.C. 607(a), has allowed the federal Department 09 of Health and Human Services to define the meaning of "unemployed" with respect to the 10 AFDC program; and 11 WHEREAS the federal Department of Health and Human Services, in 45 C.F.R. 12 233.100, defines "unemployed " to mean being employed less than 100 hours per month; and 13 WHEREAS this "100-hour rule," which denies benefits to families where a parent 14 works more than 100 hours in a month, fosters dependency, increases the cost of the program, 01 and wastes state and federal program dollars; and 02 WHEREAS this rule frequently means that AFDC recipients cannot afford to accept 03 any work that would put them over the 100-hour limit even though they would still be less 04 than fully employed; and 05 WHEREAS, because of this rule, families that might work themselves off of AFDC 06 turn down part-time work and stay on AFDC hoping for a job that will pay enough to support 07 them, thereby giving up a source of income that would partially support the family and reduce 08 their AFDC benefits; 09 BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature requests the federal Department 10 of Health and Human Services to repeal the "100-hour rule" in 45 C.F.R. 233.100 and replace 11 it with a regulation that will encourage AFDC recipients to accept employment, regardless of 12 the number of hours worked, remaining eligible for AFDC benefits as long as the amount of 13 their income does not exceed the state's standard of need. 14 COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Bill Clinton, President of the 15 United States; Donna E. Shalala, Secretary of Health and Human Services; and to the 16 Honorable Ted Stevens and the Honorable Frank Murkowski, U.S. Senators, and the 17 Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress.