CUOMO ANNOUNCES
INNOVATIVE WELFARE-TO-WORK DEMONSTRATION
TARGETING PUBLIC HOUSING RESIDENTS IN SEVEN CITIES

The project, called Jobs-Plus, is a partnership between the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Rockefeller Foundation and the Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation (MDRC), with additional financial support of the Surdna Foundation. Jobs-Plus is being launched in Baltimore; Chattanooga, TN; Cleveland; Dayton, OH; Los Angeles; St. Paul, MN; and Seattle, WA.

"I've been to a lot of public housing developments, and I've never once had a person ask me to help them get a welfare check. They want a paycheck," said Cuomo. "People want the chance to find a job and realize the pride and dignity of work."

The Jobs-Plus program will put in place at one or two public housing developments in each city intensive, employment-focused programs targeting every able-bodied, working-age welfare recipient. Jobs-Plus will build a strong collaboration among public housing residents, the private sector, public housing authorities, Mayors and agencies including local welfare departments, the education and training community, social service agencies and community redevelopment officials.

Cuomo said that residents of urban public housing are among the most likely of Americans to be welfare-dependent. In some urban public housing communities, 70 percent of the adults are welfare recipients, while typically fewer than 10 to 20 percent of public housing residents are currently employed.

While the Jobs-Plus program implemented in each city will be locally-designed, with residents playing a central role in designing and managing elements of the program, each project must include three broad program elements:

• Work incentives - Tangible incentives for residents to go to work and increase their incomes, implemented through reforms in state welfare law and/or changes in the rent rules for public housing developments.

• State-of-the-art strategies - Implementation of the most effective employment training, placement and retention strategies serving all adult residents of a targeted development.

• Transformation of the "culture" of the community - Engaging residents, public and non-profit agencies and the private sector to create a public housing community that actively promotes and supports work among working-age residents.

The Jobs-Plus initiative is being funded by a $1.5 million grant from the Rockefeller Foundation, $400,000 from the Surdna Foundation and $5 million in federal funds under HUD's Moving to Work initiative.

The Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation (MDRC), a nonprofit organization that is a leader in the evaluation of employment and welfare-to-work strategies, will receive funding to provide technical assistance and evaluation of the success of efforts in the seven cities. In addition, each housing authority will receive a $200,000 grant -- to be matched at least 2-to-1 at the local level -- for the direct costs of Jobs-Plus implementation and research activities.

CITY-BY-CITY SPECIFICS:

CHATTANOOGA -- Development: Harriet Tubman Partners: Chattanooga Housing Authority; City of Chattanooga; Harriet Tubman Resident Management Corporation; Tennessee Department of Human Services; Southeast Tennessee Private Industry Council; Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga, Inc.; Kandy Kastle Child Development Center; Chattanooga Marriott; Chattanooga State Technical Community College; Tennessee Department of Employment Security; College of Health and Human Services, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga; Special Transit Services; Volunteer Center of Chattanooga,Inc.; Human Services Department Head Start

CLEVELAND -- Development: Woodhill Homes Partners: Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA); Department of Entitlement/Employment Services; Woodhill Homes Local Advisory Council; Cleveland Public Schools/Adult and Continued Education; Cuyahoga Community College/Metro; John Carroll University; Progressive Action Council; Federation for Community Planning; Partnership for a Safer Cleveland; Regional Transit System; and Alcohol & Drug Addiction Board of Cuyahoga County

DAYTON -- Development: DeSoto Bass Courts Partners: Dayton Metropolitan Housing Authority; DeSoto Bass Courts Resident Council; Montgomery County Department of Human Services; Dayton Job Corps; Dayton Public Schools; Dayton Urban League; Dayton Foundation; Greater Dayton Private Industry Council; Miami Valley Child Development Centers; Miami Valley Regional Transit Authority

LOS ANGELES -- Developments: Imperial Courts and William Mead Homes Selected Partners: Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA); Resident Advisory Council Officers of Imperial Courts and William Mead Homes; Department of Public Social Services - GAIN; Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles; The Community Development Department of the City of Los Angeles; Los Angeles Unified School District/Division of Adult and Career Education; Chrysalis, a non-profit economic development agency

ST. PAUL -- Development: Mt. Airy Homes Selected Partners: St. Paul Housing Authority; Mayor Norm Coleman and the Office of the Mayor; Mt. Airy Residents Council; Ramsey County Community Human Services Department; the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation; the McKnight Foundation; St. Paul Public Schools Adult Basic Education Program and Center for Employment and Training; Hmong American Partnership; Workforce Development Center; St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce; AmeriCorps*VISTA; Port Authority of the City of St. Paul, the St. Paul Companies, Inc.; Mt. Airy Early Childhood Family Education; Head Start

SEATTLE -- Development: Rainier Vista Garden Community Partners: Seattle Housing Authority; Rainier Vista Residents; State of Washington Department of Social and Health Services; City of Seattle Office of Economic Development; Seattle-King County Private Industry Council; Center for Career Alternatives; Washington Works; the Refugee Women's Alliance; Neighborhood House