Employment and training for those receiving assistance

It is the mandate of the General Assembly that the welfare system in South Carolina be restructured to assist families in poverty to become socially and economically independent. It is the purpose and goal of this legislation to establish the reform of the welfare system as a critical priority for the State and all of its agencies. Cooperation and innovation within and among all state agencies is necessary for the achievement of this goal. The office of the governor shall designate the lead agency for purposes of coordination and the avoidance, where practical, of duplication of services. The State Department of Social Services is mandated to fundamentally change its economic services operation to emphasize employment and training with a minor welfare component. To that end, the department shall expand its employment and training program statewide and shall, to the extent possible, coordinate with the existing resources of other state agencies when they are available and it is cost efficient to do so. The agency shall assist welfare recipients to maximize their strengths and abilities to become gainfully employed. Welfare assistance must be provided as a stipend to a family unit as long as there is satisfactory participation in required employment and training activities.