Fedcap is an out-of-state contractor that profits from a contract to run ASPIRE (the training and education part of the TANF program), but Fedcap is failing Maine families. Fedcap has failed to deliver consistent, real support to families seeking good jobs, and hurt their chances for a secure future. This week, Maine Equal Justice and our partners at Hardy Wolf & Downing helped two Maine women file a lawsuit against Fedcap to hold them accountable.

Susan and Sara both started the ASPIRE program with career goals and families to support. They wanted jobs with reliable hours and good pay, and to be able to spend plenty of time with their young kids. And both women decided they wanted a college degree to help them get there. Fedcap was supposed to support them as they pursued their goals–with help for the cost of childcare, transportation, books, and other necessities while they were in school.

But Fedcap put barriers up instead of taking them down. As Susan (pictured at right) has described it, Fedcap made her jump through hoops to get the support she asked for–the time it took to meet Fedcap’s demands was time she couldn’t spend studying or being with her kids, and by the time she got the help, it was often too late. Even though many Fedcap employees wanted to help, Susan said they were working in a program that seemed designed to keep her stuck.

Sara (pictured at left) told us, “I was sold a fantasy and made to believe that Fedcap would help me succeed in reaching the goals that I had for my future. In reality what I wanted for my future was not even a consideration. Every step that I tried to take to better my future for my children and I was met with even more obstacles at the hands of Fedcap. Fedcap went against their own rules and policies at my expense. They were negligent and worked with a one-size-fits-all attitude expecting every participant to be a robot and a number in their system. They did not give me information imperative to my success and made me follow guidelines that were incorrect causing significant mental and physical strain on me.”

We can learn from these problems with Fedcap to make sure all Maine families can count on economic security programs when times are tough. Susan and Sara are bringing this case forward to call Fedcap out for the hell it has put Maine parents through and to push for improving the ASPIRE program for the future. When parents truly have support to reach their goals, their kids and families benefit, and those benefits ripple into their communities and Maine's economy.

The State of Maine is reviewing new bids for a contractor to run ASPIRE until 2031. Now is the right time for Maine people, including ASPIRE participants and Maine taxpayers, to insist on accountability and change.

As Sara says, “I am not alone. There are many people who have faced the same terrible mistreatment that I have. This cannot go unnoticed and cannot be allowed to be continued. A professional agency whose main purpose is to help individuals in need cannot be left to continue to conduct business with such malice. They need to be held accountable for all the pain and suffering they have caused, and changes need to be made to ensure this never happens again.”

Susan and Sara know that many families have suffered anonymously under Fedcap, and they are choosing to share their own stories and file this lawsuit so that Maine can make a change. If you’d like to share your story or any words of support with them you can share them via this link! 

Fedcap works for all of us, and it should be doing a better job of helping Maine families achieve economic security. Thank you for supporting these Maine families in challenging Fedcap’s terrible record, and for all you have helped to do over the years to improve how Maine supports families with low incomes!