Bill Clinton: “To the Congress of the United States: I am pleased to transmit for your immediate consideration and enactment the ``Work…”

“To the Congress of the United States: I am pleased to transmit for your immediate consideration and enactment the ``Work and Responsibility Act of 1994.'' It is time to end welfare as we know it and replace it with a system that is based on work and responsibility--a system that will help people help themselves. This legislation reinforces the fundamental values of work, responsibility, family, and community. It rewards work over welfare. It signals that people should not have children until they are ready to support them, and that parents--both parents--who bring children into the world must take responsibility for supporting them. It gives people access to the skills they need and expects work in return. Most important, it will give people back the dignity that comes from work and independence. The cost of the proposal to the Federal Government is estimated at $9.3 billion over 5 years and is fully offset, primarily through reductions in entitlements and without new tax increases. The Work and Responsibility Act of 1994 will replace welfare with work. Under this legislation, welfare will be about a paycheck, not a welfare check. Our approach is based on a simple compact designed to reinforce and reward work. Each recipient will be required to develop a personal employability plan designed to move that individual into the work force as quickly as possible. Support, job training, and child care will be provided to help people move from dependence to independence.…”