The People CARE Act would create the People-Centered Assistance Reform Effort Commission (CARE Commission) in the legislative branch to review the federal means-tested welfare system and guide reforms aimed at better integrating programs, easing access to services, and helping beneficiaries move toward self-sufficiency. The Commission would analyze all means-tested programs, recommend consolidations or realignments, explore private or state-level contracting, and propose changes to enable holistic case management and gradual benefit phase-outs to prevent sudden benefit cliffs. It would produce a report within 18 months, including proposed legislative language (the “Commission bill”) and estimated savings, and then terminate when the Commission bill is enacted or at the end of the current Congress. The bill sets up expedited floor procedures in both chambers to accelerate consideration of the Commission bill. In short, the Act shifts from administering a wide array of separate means-tested programs to a centralized, reform-driven process that seeks consolidation, streamlined administration, and a pathway for program participants to increase earnings and eventually exit Federal means-tested benefits.
Key Points
- 1Establishes the CARE Commission, an 8-member body appointed by party leaders in the Senate and House, with rules banning recent lobbyists and a one-month deadline for full appointment.
- 2Creates a comprehensive definition and roster of means-tested welfare programs (cash, medical, food, housing, energy/utilities, education, training, services, child care, and community development) and explicitly excludes Social Security, Medicare, veterans benefits, unemployment and certain injury-related programs, among others.
- 3Directs the Commission to:
- 4- review and identify changes to consolidate or realign programs for efficiency and the purposes in Sec. 2;
- 5- assess potential consolidation with other programs or outsourcing to private entities or states;
- 6- ensure caseworkers can view all programs a family is eligible for and address benefit cliffs with gradual reductions in benefits as incomes rise;
- 7- establish an evaluation system tracking income and employment outcomes; and
- 8- draft the Commission bill with legislative language and estimated outlay savings.
- 9Requires the Commission to hold hearings, request information from federal agencies, use subpoenas if needed, and accept public input via a dedicated website.
- 10Sets expedited legislative procedures for the Commission bill in both the House and Senate, with tight timelines and a fast-track floor process intended to deliver a bill within a short window.
- 11Excludes the Federal Advisory Committee Act from applying to the CARE Commission and contemplates termination upon passage of the Commission bill or the end of the Congress in which the bill was introduced.