The New W-2 RFP Would Be a Great Place to Start

The chief argument used against Governor Walker during the recall campaign was that he had polarized the political process, making it far more difficult for people with different opinions to work together to address commonly shared goals. In the aftermath of the election, the Governor and others have said repeatedly that they will work harder to find common ground and reduce the polarization.

Because it is in the best interest of the children and families of our state, I hope that the talk of a less partisan and polarized approach to policymaking will materialize, and I would like to offer a suggestion about where it could start. The Walker Administration should pull back on the plans they have been rushing into place to change how the Wisconsin Works (W-2) program is administered.Simply slowing down that process for implementing a new regional system of W-2 administration would be a welcome signal that the Governor and his department Secretaries are open to outside voices. The Department of Children and Families (DCF) simply needs to reach out to the Wisconsin Counties Association and give counties and their human service departments a meaningful opportunity to meet with DCF and try to find common ground on how to improve administration of W-2.

Since the inception of W-2 in the 1990s, counties have had the choice of whether they want to administer the program locally or contract with private companies for those services. Many counties are very concerned that the changes that are rapidly being advanced by DCF will deny them the opportunity to continue to administer this important safety net program. At a press conference in the Capitol late last week, the Wisconsin Counties Association and others (including WCCF) called on DCF to simply slow the process down and meet with county representatives to explore options for W-2 administration that don’t cut all of the counties out of the picture.

Even though it might be easier for counties to give up administration of W-2, many counties want to hold onto it. One reason for that is that they agree with the model initially advocated by Governor Thompson that people should apply for W-2 at the same place that houses the local job center.   Another concern of many counties is that they want to be sure that W-2 is administered well because other county programs have to pick up the pieces if W-2 doesn’t do an adequate job of serving needy families. As WCCF communications director Bob Jacobson said at the press conference:

“A key point to remember about W-2 is that it is not an entitlement program. The local agencies that administer W-2 have a lot of discretion in approving or denying W-2 work placements. Shifting those decisions to private, for-profit agencies puts the decision-making into the hands of private entities that aren’t accountable to local voters. When those decisions are flawed and produce bad outcomes, it’s the county taxpayers who are left to pick up the tab.”  (See also WCCF’s June 1 press release.)

During the budget process, counties raised concerns about a plan to regionalize and privatize the intake for BadgerCare and Food Share.  State officials agreed then to meet with the counties, and the subsequent discussions and compromises significantly improved the changes that were ultimately adopted in the budget bill. There is no good reason I can think of not to have similar discussions about the plans to change administration of W-2.

W-2 administration is not a partisan issue.  Counties are merely seeking to preserve an uncontroversial option that has been part of W-2 since Governor Thompson developed the program.  Governor Walker should view this as an opportunity to show that he’s willing to listen to opposing viewpoints and find common ground.

Ken Taylor
WCCF Executive Director