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Teen Pregnancy Prevention Hearing Committee on Ways TEEN PREGNANCY PREVENTION HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES OF THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED SEVENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION NOVEMBER 15, 2001 Serial No. 107–48 Printed for the use of the Committee on Ways and Means ( U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 77–054 WASHINGTON : 2002 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2250 Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate 11-MAY-2000 04:27 Apr 03, 2002 Jkt 077954 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 E:\HR\OC\B054.XXX pfrm01 PsN: B054 COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS BILL THOMAS, California, Chairman PHILIP M. CRANE, Illinois CHARLES B. RANGEL, New York E. CLAY SHAW, JR., Florida FORTNEY PETE STARK, California NANCY L. JOHNSON, Connecticut ROBERT T. MATSUI, California AMO HOUGHTON, New York WILLIAM J. COYNE, Pennsylvania WALLY HERGER, California SANDER M. LEVIN, Michigan JIM MCCRERY, Louisiana BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland DAVE CAMP, Michigan JIM MCDERMOTT, Washington JIM RAMSTAD, Minnesota GERALD D. KLECZKA, Wisconsin JIM NUSSLE, Iowa JOHN LEWIS, Georgia SAM JOHNSON, Texas RICHARD E. NEAL, Massachusetts JENNIFER DUNN, Washington MICHAEL R. MCNULTY, New York MAC COLLINS, Georgia WILLIAM J. JEFFERSON, Louisiana ROB PORTMAN, Ohio JOHN S. TANNER, Tennessee PHIL ENGLISH, Pennsylvania XAVIER BECERRA, California WES WATKINS, Oklahoma KAREN L. THURMAN, Florida J.D. HAYWORTH, Arizona LLOYD DOGGETT, Texas JERRY WELLER, Illinois EARL POMEROY, North Dakota KENNY C. HULSHOF, Missouri SCOTT MCINNIS, Colorado RON LEWIS, Kentucky MARK FOLEY, Florida KEVIN BRADY, Texas PAUL RYAN, Wisconsin ALLISON GILES, Chief of Staff JANICE MAYS, Minority Chief Counsel SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES WALLY HERGER, California, Chairman NANCY L. JOHNSON, Connecticut BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland WES WATKINS, Oklahoma FORTNEY PETE STARK, California SCOTT MCINNIS, Colorado SANDER M. LEVIN, Michigan JIM MCCRERY, Louisiana JIM MCDERMOTT, Washington DAVE CAMP, Michigan LLOYD DOGGETT, Texas PHIL ENGLISH, Pennsylvania RON LEWIS, Kentucky Pursuant to clause 2(e)(4) of Rule XI of the Rules of the House, public hearing records of the Committee on Ways and Means are also published in electronic form. The printed hearing record remains the official version. Because electronic submissions are used to prepare both printed and electronic versions of the hearing record, the process of converting between various electronic formats may introduce unintentional errors or omissions. Such occur- rences are inherent in the current publication process and should diminish as the process is further refined. ii VerDate 11-MAY-2000 04:27 Apr 03, 2002 Jkt 077954 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 0486 Sfmt 0486 E:\HR\OC\B054.XXX pfrm01 PsN: B054 C O N T E N T S Page Advisory of November 8, 2001, announcing the hearing ...................................... 2 WITNESSES U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Hon. Bobby P. Jindal, Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation ............................................. 7 Best Friends Foundation, Elayne G. Bennett ....................................................... 38 Greater New Britain Teen Pregnancy Prevention, Inc., RoseAnne Bilodeau ..... 62 Maynard, Rebecca A., University of Pennsylvania ............................................... 55 Medical Institute for Sexual Health, Joe S. McIlhaney, Jr., M.D ....................... 65 National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, Sarah S. Brown ...................... 46 Virginia Department of Health, Abstinence Education Initiative, Gale E. Grant ..................................................................................................................... 33 SUBMISSIONS FOR THE RECORD Abstinence Educators’ Network, Inc., Mason, OH, Melanie Howell, statement 96 Alan Guttmacher Institute, New York, NY, Jacqueline E. Darroch, letter ........ 98 Center for Law and Social Policy, Jodie Levin-Epstien, letter and attachment 100 Educational Guidance Institute, Front Royal, VA, Onalee McGraw, statement 103 Friends First, Longmont, CO, Lisa A. Rue, letter and attachments ................... 107 Green, Bob and Peggy, Cape Canaveral, FL, statement ...................................... 108 National Abstinence Clearinghouse, Sioux Falls, SD, Leslee J. Unruh, state- ment ...................................................................................................................... 108 National Organization on Adolescent Pregnancy, Parenting and Prevention, Inc., Mary Martha Wilson, letter and attachment ............................................ 112 New Mexico GRADS, Roswell, NM, Kathy Van Pelt, letter ................................. 116 Pennsylvania Coalition to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, Harrisburg, PA, state- ment ...................................................................................................................... 116 Project Reality, Glenview, IL: Kathleen M. Sullivan, statement .................................................................... 120 Statement .......................................................................................................... 120 REACH (Responsibility Education for Abstinence, Character & Health), Arca- num, OH, statement ............................................................................................ 121 Wood, William, Charlotte, NC, statement ............................................................. 125 (III) VerDate 11-MAY-2000 04:27 Apr 03, 2002 Jkt 077954 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 0486 E:\HR\OC\B054.XXX pfrm01 PsN: B054 VerDate 11-MAY-2000 04:27 Apr 03, 2002 Jkt 077954 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 0486 E:\HR\OC\B054.XXX pfrm01 PsN: B054 TEEN PREGNANCY PREVENTION THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2001 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS, SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES, Washington, DC. The Subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 10:00 a.m., in room B–318, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Wally Herger [Chair- man of the Subcommittee] presiding. [The advisory announcing the hearing follows:] (1) VerDate 11-MAY-2000 04:27 Apr 03, 2002 Jkt 077954 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 E:\HR\OC\B054.XXX pfrm01 PsN: B054 2 ADVISORY FROM THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: (202) 225–1025 November 8, 2001 No. HR–9 Herger Announces Hearing on Teen Pregnancy Prevention Congressman Wally Herger (R–CA), Chairman, Subcommittee on Human Re- sources of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Sub- committee will hold a hearing on national progress in reducing teen pregnancy and related issues as the Subcommittee prepares for reauthorization next year of key features of the 1996 welfare reform law. The hearing will take place on Thurs- day, November 15, 2001, in room B–318 Rayburn House Office Building, be- ginning at 10:00 a.m. In view of the limited time available to hear witnesses, oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only. Witnesses will include representatives of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, program administrators, re- searchers, and other experts in pregnancy prevention strategies. However, any indi- vidual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a written statement for consideration by the Committee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing. BACKGROUND: The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (P.L. 104–193), commonly referred to as the 1996 welfare reform law, made dra- matic changes in the Federal-State welfare system designed to aid low-income American families. The law repealed the former Aid to Families with Dependent Children program, and with it the individual entitlement to cash welfare benefits. In its place, the 1996 legislation created a new Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant that provides fixed funding to States to operate pro- grams designed to achieve several purposes: (1) provide assistance to needy families, (2) end the dependence of needy parents on government benefits by promoting job preparation, work, and marriage, (3) prevent and reduce the incidence of out-of-wed- lock pregnancies, and (4) encourage the formation and maintenance of two-parent families. In addition to a basic program orientation toward preventing teen and other out- of-wedlock pregnancies as a key method of combating long-term welfare dependence, the law includes several specific provisions designed to address this issue, including: (1) the provision of $250 million in abstinence education funding, (2) permission for States to limit cash welfare for unmarried teen parents, and (3) the requirement that teens be in school and living at home or with an adult in order to receive as- sistance. States also are authorized to use block grant funds to provide, or assist in locating, adult-supervised living arrangements, such as second-chance homes, for teen mothers. In announcing the hearing, Chairman Herger stated: ‘‘Teen pregnancy cuts short the teen parents’ opportunities to build a promising future, and puts their child at a fundamental disadvantage in so many ways. It means years of dependence for many struggling young families, which is a cycle that has repeated itself too often in recent generations. It is easy to see why preventing and reducing the incidence of teen pregnancy is absolutely critical to progress on welfare reform. I look forward VerDate 11-MAY-2000 04:27
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