CalWORKs

Purpose

California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) is California’s Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Program. CalWORKs provides temporary financial assistance and employment focused services to families with minor children who have income and property below state maximum limits for their family size. There are two major components to CalWORKs:

• Employment assistance
• Financial assistance

Employment Assistance

Welfare-to-Work offers numerous services to assist families become self-sufficient through employment. Eligible adults receiving CalWORKs financial assistance obtain guidance creating a plan to develop opportunities based on their unique skills. CalWORKs incorporates local employers, not-for-profit agencies and education/training resources.

These include:

• Assistance to obtain items needed to become or remain employed
• Child care assistance
• Links to domestic violence services, substance abuse treatment and behavioral health services
• Interview preparation
• Job search assistance
• Learning disabilities screening and evaluation
• On-the-job training
• Transportation assistance
• Vocational development assessment
• Work experience training

Eligibility

CalWORKs Welfare-to-Work participants who meet federal work participation requirements are eligible to receive employment assistance while receiving CalWORKs financial assistance.

Financial Assistance

Families may be eligible if they meet income and property level requirements:

• Two-parent families may be eligible if they are unemployed or underemployed
• Caretaker relatives of a minor may also be eligible to receive assistance
• Income requirements vary based on family size and type of income
• Property that counts towards the limit can be valued at no more than $12,552
• The property limit for a family with a disabled member or member over 60 is $18,829.

Financial Assistance to adults in families is limited to a cumulative of 60 months in California. This is a lifetime limit.