As the Senate and House seek compromise to iron out differences in the welfare-reform bills they passed, advocates for the poor and state officials are heralding a "new day" for welfare in America.
What kind of day it is depends on who's asked."They are quite willing to do away with one of the most important programs out there that protect dependent children," said Deeda Seed, JEDI (Justice and Economic Dignity for) Women. "Welfare is 1 percent of the federal budget. In many ways, it's a sad day for all of us."
"We feel excited about it because we think the Senate bill gave us increased flexibility and more money for child care," said Mason Bishop, legislative coordinator for the Office of Family Support, which administers welfare programs. "We believe as we move forward with SPED (Utah's Single Parent Employment Demonstration welfare-reform project) and other ideas we are working on, we can help the clients off welfare in the state of Utah."
Both sides agree on two things: Welfare needs reform. And states will be more able to design workable welfare packages, to be funded by block grants to the states, if the compromise leans toward the more generous Senate bill.
The Senate included an extra $3 billion for child care, told states they have to continue to contribute 80 percent of what they now put into welfare and reduced the budget by $60 billion over seven years, based on 1994 figures.
The House cut $102 billion, barred benefits for teen mothers, put a family-size cap on grants and said states can decide whether to contribute. Gov. Mike Leavitt recently said reform will only work if Utah funds its share.
"The results are going to be devastating," said Seed. "We're not doing anything in this whole effort to help people move off welfare and stay off it. And there's no recognition of the fact that most women exit the welfare system fairly quickly. Some do return, but not because they're deadbeats. It's because they're getting jobs that pay so poorly. Part-time, temporary, bottom-of-the-ladder kinds of jobs.
"Welfare reform is incredibly complex. But instead of credible policymaking, welfare reform has become a political hot button that people press when they want to get folks riled up."
"Welfare absolutely needed to be reformed. But Utah (with SPED) showed how to do that," said Shirley Weathers of Utah Issues.
"It's a very good thing the Senate had an opportunity to address it after the House took action. The Senate took a much more positive approach than the House in terms of dealing with clients, understanding their needs and concerns and barriers. It did a better job of addressing the need of Utah and other states to be able to make their own programatic decisions by removing various punitive, restrictive, prescriptive mandates the House put in," she said.
"But what has happened here is very significant and very troubling. The deficit did not have to be eliminated using welfare programs. State flexibility did not rest on block granting at smaller amounts for those programs. That was a decision made by Congress . . . We think it will make some very difficult decisions and activities for single-parent families with children on welfare harder if all the services they need to get out of poverty aren't available."
But Kerry Steadman, director of Development in the Office of Planning and Budget, believes that Utah is ready to meet the challenge. And because welfare rolls are at a five-year low, the fact that budgets are based on 1994 figures doesn't bother him.
In preparing for welfare reform, he said, Utah is "far and away ahead. It appears to us we're going to be OK with the funding."
That will depend, he agreed, on the additional money for child care. "I don't know if it's enough, but at least it's recognition of the importance."
"I think Utah will have its mettle tested. So much is going to come back to the states," said Rosalind McGee, director of Utah Children. "I'm deeply concerned. . . . Even if the economy remains good in Utah, the work and child-care provisions are terribly underfunded so a great burden will fall on the state.
"We're in for a tough time. Utah Children will certainly be watching to see who's for kids."