Keating commits $10 million to address divorces

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Gov. Frank Keating is setting aside $10 million in federal funds to help battle Oklahoma's divorce rate, which is the second-highest in the nation. <br><br>Jerry Regier, secretary

Wednesday, March 22nd 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Gov. Frank Keating is setting aside $10 million in federal funds to help battle Oklahoma's divorce rate, which is the second-highest in the nation.

Jerry Regier, secretary of Health and Human Services, says funds from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program will be used to strengthen marriages and reduce the divorce rate.

Keating, whose goal is to reduce the divorce rate by one-third in the next decade, becomes the first governor in the nation to commit a significant amount of money to fight divorce, Regier said Tuesday.

"Divorce has staggering negative effects, both economically and socially," Keating said. "We cannot continue to ignore its impact. While we have turned our state's focus and attention to reducing divorce, we must now add resources and greater action."

Regier, who heads the Oklahoma Marriage Initiative for Keating and his wife, Cathy, is charged with developing and implementing a strategy to reduce the state's divorce rate. Last year, the Department of Human Services started calculating the incomes of both members of a cohabiting couple when determining eligibility for assistance to remove the financial incentive for couples to live together outside of marriage.

Other components of the state's marriage initiative include:

-- Community covenants joining religious leaders with other officials to reduce the divorce rate.
-- Youth education and prevention programs.
-- Pilot demonstration projects to strengthen couple relationships in high-risk populations.