Work Access & Transportation Program: Background
Work Access
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Program Background
In August 1996, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act was signed into law by President William Jefferson Clinton.
In preparation for the task of assisting more than 27,000 families in Cuyahoga County to successfully make the transition from welfare to work, the Cuyahoga County Board of Commissioners adopted the Cuyahoga County Transportation Plan for Welfare Reform in September 1997.
In October 1997, the State of Ohio enacted House Bill 408 replacing the federal entitlement program Aid to Families with Dependent Children, with two new programs: Ohio Works First (OWF) and the Prevention, Retention and Contingency (PRC) program.
House Bill 408 limited the length of time participants may receive OWF cash to thirty-six (36) months, and required adults receiving cash assistance to work or participate in work-related developmental activities for a minimum of thirty (30) hours (for a single parent) and thirty (30) to fifty-five (55) hours (for a couple) per week.
As the implementation of Welfare Reform began, transportation was identified as one of the most significant barriers for transitioning families moving from welfare to work.
In 1998 the plan was updated and the Transportation Working Group was formed to define and implement transportation improvement strategies. The members of the Transportation Working Group included: The Board of County Commissioners; The Cuyahoga County Planning Commission (CPC); Cuyahoga Work & Training (CW&T); The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA or RTA); The City of Cleveland; The Cuyahoga County Engineer's Office; The Federation for Community Planning; and The Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency, (NOACA). Current interagency advisory group members include NOACA, Cuyahoga County Employment & Family Services, GCRTA, and the Cuyahoga County Planning Commission
On June 25, 1999, the Board of County Commissioners partnered with the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority to increase services. Under the agreement RTA took over administration of the County/Goodwill Industries, Inc. Van Pool Program, now known as the Work Access & Transportation Program.
