Which Way, L.A.?

Five Years of Welfare Reform and LA County

It's been five years since President Clinton signed the welfare reform act that requires those on welfare to go to work within five years. Across California, monthly social service caseloads had dropped 55 percent by the end of last year and more families were benefiting from regular work, thanks to the program known as CalWorks. But does moving off the dole mean moving out of poverty? We consider the pride and pitfalls of welfare reform with leaders of LA County's welfare-to-work program and the L.A. Coalition to End Hunger and Homelessness. (Managing editor Kyle McKinnon guest hosts.) Newsmaker: Arson at Palomar Residential Hotel in Hollywood - Los Angeles fire investigators say that last week's fatal fire at the Palomar Residential Hotel in Hollywood was the work of an arsonist. LA Fire Department Chief William Bamattre, says that 40 gallons of gas were used to start the fire which blocked residents' access to hallways and resulted in the death of two people. Reporter's Notebook: 85 New Cases of Syphilis Reported in LA - LA County said it had stemmed last year's outbreak of syphilis, but 85 new cases this year suggest the apparent erosion of safe-sex practices. Dr. John Schunhoff, chief of operations for the LA County Department of Public Health, traces the increase to gay men, many of them HIV-active.