Trump Admin: �Work� Only Way Forward for
Food Stamps
The Trump administration unveiled its 2018
Farm Bill Wednesday, and it emphasizes a work
requirement for those who receive government
assistance with food stamps.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture released
a four-page document Wednesday, and among
its goals is a work initiative aimed at getting
more able-bodied adults to work or enroll
in job-training programs.
The hope is, of course, to make people less
dependent on government assistance.
The document called for supporting work �as
the pathway to self-sufficiency, well-being
and economic mobility for individuals and
families� who are on the Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program, otherwise known as food
stamps.
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue told reporters
at a farm near Mifflintown, Pennsylvania,
that it is necessary to discourage a lifestyle
predicated upon government dependence.
�It�s evident that there are able-bodied
adults without dependents who are on the food
stamp program, who we believe it is in their
best interests, and their families� best
interests, to move into an independent lifestyle,�
Perdue said, according to Bloomberg News.
�During the last downturn, it became a lifestyle
for some people.
We don�t want it to become permanent,�
he added.
Perdue said that creating a federal law requiring
able-bodied adults work to receive assistance
would save the government billions of dollars.
Indeed, it would.
According to the Center on Budget and Policy
Priorities, the federal government spent about
$73 billion on SNAP benefits in fiscal year
2016.
Several states have already passed legislation
that require recipients to work if they want
to receive government benefits.
And unsurprisingly, it works.
States that have reformed their welfare systems
to include work requirements have seen the
number of recipients drop significantly.
Of course, this means that there are plenty
of able-bodied people who abuse the system,
and will continue to do so until they are
kicked off and forced to work for a living.
If they can work, they should work.
The USDA document did not specify how existing
laws would change or whether the government
would cut funding for the program, but it
is good to see that the federal government
is looking to put an end to fraud.
This is good news for working Americans who
have seen their tax dollars abused by welfare
leeches.
What do you think about this farm bill?
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