FORUM
Cutting off food
assistance to
the poor?
Really??
There
have been a
lot of cold
and heartless
acts commit-.
ted by North
Carolina
political lead
pre in rpppnt
Rob
Schofield
Guest
Columnist
Vio 111 X V Will
years that were directed against people in
need. The decision to tear down the state's
middle-of-the-pack unemployment insur
ance system and the ongoing refusal to
expand Medicaid under the Affordable
Care Act stand out, of course.
The former imposed what were likely
the biggest cuts in unemployment insur
ance in U.S. history and the latter literally
causes scores of premature deaths each
month in North Carolina amongst the hun
dreds of thousands who remain uninsured.
But when it comes down to just the
plain old spiteful and contemptuous treat
ment of one's fellow human beings, it will
be tough to outdo the eleventh-hour legis
lation rammed through during the final
days of the 2015 session to cut off food
assistance to 100,000 or more down-on
their-luck people.
In case you missed it in all of the hub
bub that surrounded the closing days of the
General Assembly, consider the following
amazing facts about the legislation in
question:
Under current federal law (something
that is, itself, an outrageously stingy com
ponent of mid-1990s "welfare reform"),
sc-called "able-bodied" adults between 18
and 50 without children can only receive
SNAP benefits (aka Food Stamps) for 90
days unless they are working at least 20
hours per week or are participating in a
qualified work training program.
The federal law does, however, wisely
allow an exception in places in which
states request a waiver of the requirement
because of lack of available jobs.
In North Carolina, where large swaths
of the state remain mired in Great
Recession level unemployment, the
Department of Health and Human
Services (DHHS) has applied for and
received several such waivers - the most
recent of which was submitted in July of
this year for 77 counties.
The bill in question, which currently
sits on Gov. McCrory's desk awaiting
action, would forbid DHHS from seeking
any such waivers in the future.
If fully signed into law, as many as
105,000 people would see their benefits
cut off.
These benefits provide an average of
something on the order of $30 per week in
food assistance - all of which is paid by
the federal government.
In other words, if the bill is approved
by the governor. North Carolina could cut
off food assistance to as many as 105,000
people in the 77 hardest hit counties of the
nation's fifth hungriest state]. The new
rule would go into effect next year. (It
should be noted that the same bill (House
Bill 318) also includes highly controver
sial and' destructive changes that would
limit the ability of local governments to
accept and make use of foreign identifica
tion cards - something that's especially
useful for local law enforcement officers
in communities with significant undocu
mented populations.
Targeting slackers?
According to conservative defenders
of the food benefits proposal, the legisla
tion is necessary to spur unemployed
workers to get off their duffs and find
work. This is from an editorial in the
Charlotte Observer:
"Earlier this month, state lawmakers
decided to try a little more tough love on
those who had the gall to be unemployed,
requiring that they show evidence of five,
contacts a week with potential employers
instead of two. All the provision did was
create more paperwork for those trying to
find a job, as well as employers who had
to process unnecessary applications.
The rationale for lawmakers then and
now is the same: The jobless need a shove
to look for work. 'I think you're going to
see a lot of them go and get that 20-hour
a-week job, or they're going to enroll in
some sort of higher education to improve
their job skills,'. Sen. Norman Sanderson, a
Republican from Pamlico County, said of
the ban on SNAP waivers."
Sanderson's comments were echoed
by other conservative lawmakers in both
houses who advanced the usual explana
tion - namely, that the availability of food
assistance without a work requirement for
"able bodied" individuals provided an
incentive for idlers to sit back and take it
easy.
A representative of the McCrory
administration - which was apparently
already in. the process of moving to
enforce a version of the work requirement
statewide before the General Assembly
acted - advanced a similar explanation
earlier this month. McCrory spokesperson
Rick Martinez told the conservative John
Locke Foundation (which employs his
wife, Donna) that "the purpose of the
waiver is not to cut folks a break. We
believe in work."
Or ignoring the reality on the
ground?
Obviously, the central problem with
this approach is that it ignores common
sense and the reality on the ground.
Simply put, 100,000 North Carolinians
aren't sitting around not looking for work
because they can get a few bucks per week
to buy a little bit of food. If there were jobs
available - even lousy, part-time jobs -
these people would obviously be much
better off working than merely receiving
SNAP benefits. (And if a few hundred
people were somehow milking the system
for such a pathetic benefit, all one can say
is "God forbid!")
The reality, however, is that such
opportunities are simply not available. As
Patrick McHugh of the Budget and Tax
Center reported recently:
"The change is particularly hard to
square with the fact that high unemploy
ment is still a problem across much of
North Carolina. This week's local labor
market data shows that 72 counties have
actually seen their unemployment rates
increase since January 2015. All but nine
of the state's 100 counties have more peo
ple looking for work than job openings, so
there are going to be people who are des
perately looking for a job but still can't
find one.
"A total of 81 counties continue to
have more unemployed workers than
before the start of the Great Recession. Of
those counties, 59 could have received the
waiver that was just eliminated, which is
determined by counties' unemployment
rate relative to the national average.
"While adults receiving SNAP and
able to work can also engage in volunteer
activities or skills training, these opportu
nities are hard to come by in many rural
communities. In fact, the SNAP
Employment & Training Program aimed
at providing skills training for those
receiving food assistance, offered fewer
than 500 training slots statewide?that's
far less than the 85,000 to 105,000 people
who will be cut off from food assistance
after three months if they can't find work
or a volunteer opportunity."
Ironically and even weirdly given this
latest conservative crusade, the harsh real
ity of hunger is not something that escapes
our state leaders. Just last September,
Governor McCrory announced that he
had ordered the Executive Mansion to be
lit in orange light in recognition of
September as "Hunger Action Month."
Meanwhile, in February of this year.
House Speaker Tim Moore helped spear
head a food drive at the General Assembly
to combat hunger.
And yet, despite this universally
acknowledged and horrific failure in one
of the most prosperous nations the world
has ever known (failing to feed all of its
people), the very men with the power to
really attack the problem now prepare to
take state policy in the precise opposite
direction of where it needs to go.
Add in the fact that forbidding future
waivers of the 90-day limit will place the
state squarely behind the eight ball when
the next recession hits and takes employ
ment below its already anemic levels and
the current action becomes that much
more unfathomable.
Going forward
With most of the rest of October to
decide what to do about the bill in ques
tion, let's hope that Governor McCrory
takes his time, listens to the better angels
of his nature and dusts off his veto stamp.
Unfortunately, given his past actions on
such issues and the bill's inclusion of unre
lated anti-immigrant red meat - a matter
that's even drawn the attention of
Democratic presidential frontrunner
Hillary Clinton [12] - such an outcome
may, sadly, be wishful thinking.
Article printed from NC Policy Watch:
http://www.ncpolicywatch.com
URL to article: http.i/wwwjicpolicy
watch.com/2015/10/06/cutting-off-food
assistance-to-the-poor-really/
Voices of Our Sisters conference will recognize
women beyond the month of October
Delores
McCul
lough
Guest
Columnist
Summer has ended and
we have entered a period of
fall. Our energy will be
re focused, allowing us to
pause and consider what
we see around us. The
leaves are turning to radi
ant colors; they will fall to
the ground, bearing the
nakedness of the trees. The
cools days and cold nights
that come with winter will
allow us to pause and
reflect on who we are -
where we have been - and
where we might go.
This is a season of
transformation - change.
This is an opportunity to
reflect on ourselves and the
source of our being.
Inspired by Kathy
Findley's book "Voices of
Our Sisters," Women of
Promise Ministry is taking
the opportunity to recog
nize women beyond the
month of October. The
Voices of Our Sisters con
ference seeks to lift ancient
biblical voices from the
pages and echo them into
the 21st century.
Contemporary sisters will
creatively perform
vignettes, giving voice to
silent cries from over 2,000
years ago.
Anyone who has expe
rienced heartache and suf
fering will be inspired by
the conference as it offers
voices of despair, anguish,
fear, shame, resentment,
emptiness, regret, bitter
ness, sorrow, suffering,
sadness and anger. Today's
sisters will allow you to
eavesdrop on ancient
women lives; hear their
cries of distress and listen
to their mourning songs, as
tears fall on the driest sea
sons of their lives.
These women's stories
will raise consciousness
about the issues and con
cerns affecting women
today. This is an opportuni
ty that stems from biblical
history, and it is an oppor
tunity for women to come
together to support one
another and raise their con
sciousness. Being aware of
the story is not enough.
You have to be conscious
of your own inner voice
and your story as it relates
to these biblical stories.
This is an opportunity
to enter their lives and see
their faith. Hopefully, you
will leave the conference
with your own life rede
fined. So plan to leave
encouraged and "to get in
touch with the feelings of
your own faith; find words
to express your deepest
emotions; and allow your
self to hum. if not sing
aloud, the music of hope."
Women of Promise
Ministry will present
"Voices of Our Sisters"
vignettes 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
on Saturday. Nov. 14 at the
Bridger Field House, 499
Deacon Blvd., Third Floor,
Winston-Salem. Lunch
will be provided.
Registration and tickets
may be obtained at the fol
lowing link;
https:llwww.eventbrite.
com/el voice s-of-our-sis
ters-tickets- 18942907747
Rev. Delores
McCullough is an ordained
minister and executive
director and founder oj
Women of Promise
Ministry. She provides
workshops and conferences
to serve as a catalyst in the
lives of women, focusing on
their needs and empower
ing them to uncover dor
mant gifts, refine skills, find
comfort and empower oth
ers. Contact her at
womenofpmm @ gmail .com