basquebromance
Diamond Member
- Nov 26, 2015
- 109,396
- 27,004
- 2,220
- Banned
- #1
When welfare reform first inserted work requirements into our welfare system in 1996, some on the Left predicted doom for America’s most vulnerable families. Patrick Moynihan predicted that we would “find children sleeping on grates, picked up in the morning frozen.” New Jersey Democratic Sen. Frank Lautenberg said that we would see “children begging for money, children begging for food, 8- and 9-year-old prostitutes.” And Ted Kennedy called the bill “legislative child abuse.”
Fortunately, none of those hysterical prognostications came true.
The number of SNAP recipients used to rise during recessions and then quickly fall as the economy recovered. But due to eligibility loopholes instituted under President Barack Obama, that didn’t happen after the most recent recession. A full ten years after the recession ended in 2009, the share of the U.S. population receiving SNAP is 40% higher now than when the recession began in 2007.
There are an estimated 1.3 million jobs currently open in our thriving economy. We, as a nation, can and should do better in moving more Americans to self-sufficiency.
Work requirements have a proven record of success in moving people from welfare to self-sufficiency. In 2015, Maine began enforcing work requirements for food stamps despite partial waiver eligibility. It saw an 80% drop in its work-capable caseload in just three months. Thirteen counties in Alabama saw similar results when they implemented work requirements for food stamps in 2017.
Additionally, the Joint Economic Committee’s Social Capital Project has found that work is a critical source of social capital for struggling communities. Many individuals consider work “a source of meaning and purpose, belonging, pride, friendship, and community.”
Welfare Reform and Upward Mobility Act Can Restart Welfare Reform
Fortunately, none of those hysterical prognostications came true.
The number of SNAP recipients used to rise during recessions and then quickly fall as the economy recovered. But due to eligibility loopholes instituted under President Barack Obama, that didn’t happen after the most recent recession. A full ten years after the recession ended in 2009, the share of the U.S. population receiving SNAP is 40% higher now than when the recession began in 2007.
There are an estimated 1.3 million jobs currently open in our thriving economy. We, as a nation, can and should do better in moving more Americans to self-sufficiency.
Work requirements have a proven record of success in moving people from welfare to self-sufficiency. In 2015, Maine began enforcing work requirements for food stamps despite partial waiver eligibility. It saw an 80% drop in its work-capable caseload in just three months. Thirteen counties in Alabama saw similar results when they implemented work requirements for food stamps in 2017.
Additionally, the Joint Economic Committee’s Social Capital Project has found that work is a critical source of social capital for struggling communities. Many individuals consider work “a source of meaning and purpose, belonging, pride, friendship, and community.”
Welfare Reform and Upward Mobility Act Can Restart Welfare Reform
