본고에서는 미국의 TANF(Temporary Assistance to Needy Families)에 대하여 살펴보았다. 1935년 루즈벨트 대통령의 주도 하에 입법된 사회보장법(Social Security Act)에 근거를 두고 있는 미국의 공공부조와 관련한 복지정책은 1996년 클린턴 대통령 주도 하에 개혁을 단행하였는데, 그 주된 내용은 종전의 소득지원형 공공부조 정책에 입각한 AFDC(Aid to Families with Dependent Children)를 근로능력 있는 수급권자에 대한 경제적 자립을 주된 목표로 하는 내용인 TANF 제도로 바꾼 것이다. 단순한 현금지급만으로는 수급권자들의 자립에 크게 기여하지 못하고 복지에의 장기의존을 불러일으켰다는 반성에서 비롯된 미국의 TANF 프로그램은 한마디로 근로연계 복지정책이다. 근로능력이 있는 수급권자에게는 수급의 조건으로 근로를 요구하고 이러한 근로요건을 충족하지 아니한 수급권자에게는복지혜택을 감면시킬 수 있도록 하는 한편, 기간제한규정을 두고 있다. TANF 실시이후 그성과에 대하여 논의는 있으나, 대체로 수급건수와 인원이 줄었고 결과적으로 수급권자의자립을 촉진하는 데에 일정 부분 기여하였다고 평가된다. 이러한 미국의 복지개혁은 우리에게도 시사하는 바가 크다. 현재 TANF와 유사한 우리의 공공부조제도로는 국민기초생활보장법 상의 생계급여, 자활급여 등이 있고, 이외에는 한부모가족지원법 상의 자립촉진수당 등이 있지만, 이 제도들은 TANF와 같이 적극적인 근로연계복지제도의 기능을 하지는못하고 있다. 사회보장기본법에서 명시하고 있듯이, 우리의 공공부조도 TANF와 마찬가지로 근로능력 있는 수급권자에 대하여는 자립을 목표로 하여야 한다. 이러한 목표를 달성하려면, 현금지급 위주로 단순히 소득을 보전하는 데에만 주력하는 종전의 방식에서 벗어나 개별 맞춤형 자립지원복지제도를 지향하여야 한다. 이하 본고에서는 근로능력을 갖춘수급권자의 자립을 보다 적극적으로 지원한다는 관점에서 향후 우리의 공공부조관련 복지입법의 몇 가지 개선방향을 제언하였다.
In this paper I have reviewed TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) of the U.S.A., which was implemented with the enactment of the PRWOA (’Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996’) by the Clinton Administration. The Clinton Administration legislated the PRWOA in 1996, thus implementing the welfare reform initiated by the Reagan Administration. Under the PRWOA, the poverty fighting system on the federal scale was changed from AFDC (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) to TANF. The welfare reform of the U.S.A. was mainly prompted by the considerations that the AFDC, the traditional federal public-aid system for needy families since the Roosevelt Administration of 1935, could not contribute to growing beneficiaries’ ability for self support, but rather somewhat encouraged their dependency for long term welfare receipt. During the period of 1965 to 1992 the number of children under the age of 18 has decreased by 5.5 percent, while the number of the beneficiary children under 18 has tripled during the same period of time. Also, a 27 percent increase in the number of the AFDC caseloads between 1990 and 1994 pushed the AFDC under more strict scrutiny. TANF is a joint federal and state program to support low-income families. It enforces work requirements for welfare recipients able to work, thus the beneficiaries must work within 24months after coming on assistance, and failure to participate in work requirements can result in a reduction or termination of benefits to the family. There is also time limit of maximum five years of assistance for each family under the TANF. After the implementation of TANF, there was a conspicuous reduction both in the number of caseloads and recipients. The U.S. transfer of the welfare programs has much to imply on our future legislation of the poverty combating laws. According to the ‘National Basic Living Security Act’, poor families receive livelihood benefits, self-support benefits, medical benefits, educational benefits, and other forms of necessary services. Among them livelihood benefits and self-support benefits can be compared with the TANF program of the U.S.A. During the last decade we expanded livelihood benefits and self-support benefits in the amount of cash assisted to the poor families, but the two benefits were not integrated and systemized with each other in terms of encouraging self sufficiency. Another form of cash benefit, which is similar to the TANF program, is the self sufficiency support for single parent of age under 24 of the ‘Single Parent Family Welfare Act’. However, the amount is only 100,000 Korean Won per month, and the beneficiary is confined to single parent under 24. In addition to that, a beneficiary of the livelihood benefits of the ‘National Basic Living Security Act’ is excluded from the category of the self sufficiency support beneficiaries of the ‘Single Parent Family Welfare Act’. According to the article 3 of the ‘Framework Act on Social Security’, “public aid” means a system that, for citizens who are unable to maintain a living or have difficulties in living, guarantees the minimum standard of living and supports their independence under the responsibility of the State or a local government. As is clearly stated in the ‘Framework Act on Social Security’, our goal of public aid is no different from that of the welfare reform of the U.S.A. To promote the self support of the beneficiaries, we need to mandate work conditions for the eligibility of the livelihood benefits, and make a system integrating livelihood benefits and self-support benefits under the ‘National Basic Living Security Act’, just as implemented in the TANF program. Also, I would like to suggest some proper readjustment of the benefits in the form of mere cash support, and application of more diverse welfare services in-kind benefits, e.g. food stamps, housing benefits, medical benefits, child care and other educational and support activities to the specific needs of beneficiaries. With more concrete and specific support for each of the beneficiaries with working capacities, I hope the future public aid will help push more people across the poverty line. To be able to customize self-support oriented public aid, we need more specialized personnel in the social welfare area. Therefore, it is needed to establish a cooperative welfare system between the public and private sectors, as well as recruit more specialists in the welfare area of the government side.