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Reach Up Annual Report 2020 5

Number of household members 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9+ Old standard 475 680 891 1064 1247 1372 1589 1769 +170/pp New standard 585 771 1011 1209 1418 1560 1803 2012 +193/pp

Due to this increase, the maximum grant sizes increased as follows5:

Family Size Outside Chittenden County Prior to August, 2019 Outside Chittenden County Beginning August, 2019 Chittenden County Prior to August, 2019 Chittenden County Beginning August, 2019 1 434 489 458 513 2 535 581 560 606 3 640 700 665 725 4 726 798 750 823

Decrease to the Parent’s countable SSI income in the Reach Up Budget Since 2015, the Department has been counting a portion of a parent’s SSI payment as unearned income when determining the family’s monthly benefit amount. On August 1st, 2019, the countable amount of a Parent’s SSI payment as income to determine the Reach Up benefit decreased from $115 to $77.6 This change increased the household’s monthly Reach Up benefit amount, resulting in a $38 increase per month for these families.

Addressing Transportation Obstacles Owning a car is one of the most important factors for economic mobility.7 Every year, the Reach Up program purchases approximately 60 cars through Good News Garage for families across the state to help them obtain or maintain employment. Data show that the transportation barrier for families has been slowly decreasing over the last few years, due in part to the resources devoted to addressing this, and to the case managers’ focus on helping families obtain licenses and pay off fines. An analysis of families who received cars through Reach Up showed higher wages seven months later. For families who were not yet employed when they received a car, they were significantly more likely to get a job than those who did not receive a car. The impacts of car ownership are further reaching than employment, affecting the entire family and offering previously unavailable opportunities. Participants describe a sense of pride when they can pick their children up at school. Kids have access to extracurricular activities, and parents can look for more affordable housing options and better jobs in different areas of the state.

5 If shelter expenses exceed $400 per month outside Chittenden County or $450 in Chittenden County, the grant increases the figures listed by up to $45 per month. 6 Act 72 of 2019, Section E.323.1 7 Evelyn Blumenberg and Gregory Pierce, The Drive to Work: The Relationship between Transportation Access, Housing Assistance, and Employment among Participants in the Welfare to Work Voucher Program, https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0739456X16633501