LEGISLATORS TAKE HARD LOOK AT WELFARE REFORM

Two Southeast Missouri senators serving on a joint legislative committee looking at welfare reform say they believe legislators, welfare recipients and people who work in administering welfare programs are poised to come together for major changes in the system.

"I am most encouraged by the fact there seems to be a broad bi-partisan consensus that we must act to change a failed system. That consensus is so broad that it encompasses just about everyone in both houses, with a tiny handful of exceptions," said Sen. Peter Kinder, R-Cape Girardeau.

"I think some proposals that were considered radical five, six, or seven years ago are mainstream today; ideas like Learnfare, Workfare. And, surprisingly, a significant number of recipients -- clients within the system -- share those views as do the people who work with them directly in the Division of Family Services."

Sen. Jerry Howard, D-Dexter, points out that the committee has received a clear consensus on a variety of issues related to welfare reform. He agrees that 1994 could be the year for major action, after years of talk.

Said Howard: "I think we've gotten a consensus from the people in testifying, but unfortunately we have had more people involved in the process of both utilization of the system and employees of the system than we have had people involved in business."

But while most have testified have been advocates of the system, Howard said some of the business people told how welfare competes with entry level jobs,and often people on welfare cannot afford to take jobs.

"If you have a person on AFDC and two children, with the Medicaid and other benefits a person would get under the system, they would have to make $7.34 an hour at a job just to reach the level of benefits they would be getting on welfare," Howard said.

"Whatever system we build from, there has got to be a system that provides incentives for a person to get off welfare -- and that provides reinforcement."

Kinder added that he believes a reformed welfare system should avoid trying to be punitive, and instead reward people for trying to improve their lives and get out of a cycle of dependency.

The 10-member committee held hearings last month in Jefferson City, Sikeston, St. Louis and Kansas City and will likely meet again next week to begin formalizing a report and looking at specific legislation to be proposed next year. The Senate chairman of the panel is Senate President James Mathewson, D-Sedalia, while the House chair is Rep. Joe Maxwell, D-Mexico.

"What we've got to do is still up in the air, but we've got a lot of good ideas," said Howard.

Kinder added: "I know Gov. Carnahan has made welfare reform a priority, and I am very hopeful we will be able to enact meaningful reform this coming year."

The issue of welfare reform is important to both Southeast Missouri senators. Howard represents five counties and Kinder one that ranks in the top 10 of welfare recipients in the state.

"We've heard a lot of buzzwords during these hearings, words like reinforcement, self-sufficiency, and empowerment," said Howard. "Empowerment is defined as providing access to benefits for a person while getting training during this critical period, instead of yanking benefits because they reached a certain dollar level of income."

Kinder also observed that finding a way to phase welfare recipients off of benefits is essential to an effective program.

"There is a consensus that in order to boost people out of dependency in all programs there would not be an immediate cutoff of benefits when a person takes an entry level job and all of a sudden has a level of income, meager though it is, that triggers a cutoff in benefits," said Kinder.

"It is now widely viewed that it is unfair and ought to be a phased withdrawal of support if someone gets on their feet so those persons are not penalized."

Another consensus issue is that there should be some type of time limits for people receiving AFDC benefits. But Howard points out that it is difficult to impose time limits and still have a provision so people who are working to get off welfare are not penalized.

But both senators said they were surprised to learn that the average person drawing AFDC receives it for less than two years. They had thought the time period was much longer.

One issued related to AFDC, which was proposed last year by Mathewson and Rep. Mary Kasten, R-Cape Girardeau, would have prohibited the state from providing increased AFDC payments for additional children. This would eliminate what is often viewed as a financial incentive for welfare mothers to have more children.

Kinder recalled that Kasten's proposal drew criticism from the St. Louis Post Dispatch editorial page, charging the representative's idea was "mean spirited."

"I am seeing less and less patience with the view expressed in the Post Dispatch editorial, by any party," said Kinder.

The interim committee is also looking at the need for day care, both for low income families who need further education or who are working in lower income jobs.

Howard said ultimately in dealing with the welfare problem over a long-term basis, the state will need to deal with the development of an outstate system of managed health care to keep costs down and increase educational opportunities in poorer counties.

"In our part of the state, our problem lies in educating our folks, where we have a very high illiteracy rate and dropout rate," said Howard. "All of that contributes not only to problems in our health care system, but also in social services and criminal justice.

"We are hoping to provide additional vocational training and adequate health care so they will feeling like working and want to work. And, by improving education, we will develop a base for industry. if the work force is not educated, we're not going to get industry to locate here."

Howard added, "The problems are all intertwined. There are no easy solutions, and it is all complicated by federal regulation."

Said Kinder: "Some of the proposals we have range to the extent of the abolition of any welfare not tied to a work. We have a whole range of considerations. Our challenge now is to take what we have learned in hearings and do more than just lip service -- to really build on what we have learned and act in this coming session."