Welfare System A Need Of Reform - 1022 Words

Welfare System: In Need of Reform During the past two decades, predominantly since the mid-1990s, congress has intensely restructured the nation’s system of cash welfare assistance for low-income families. The welfare system was intended to be a safety net for those facing economic poverties in order to help workers get back on their feet. However, welfare programs seem to have spiked the unemployment percentage and increased expenditure on social welfare programs at expeditious rates. Although supporters believe that welfare helps unemployed workers and stimulates the economy, welfare programs cause people to become dependent on the government and is killing our economy. There have been many debates on whether extended unemployment†¦show more content†¦His findings concluded that the rise in unemployment, in relation to job openings, is due to diminished search effort created by the extended welfare benefits. In other words, there are basically two groups of people that make up the unemployed. The two groups are defined as those who lost their jobs and those who left their jobs or have never had one. The people who lost their jobs qualify for welfare, but the other half does not. So, when these two groups compete for jobs the unemployed workers without benefits are more persistent in looking for work and are more willing to accept job opportunities, which are less appealing, to make money; while those who have benefits tend to drag it out. There is no question that the economy is not where it needs to be. According to studies, the welfare state has become the largest part of federal spending. The expansive budget categories are national defense, human resources, physical resources, net interest, other functions, and undistributed offsetting receipts; welfare falls under the human resources category.( Welfare vs. Defense, By the Numbers) Kevin D. Williamson conducted a study by comparing the GDP of 1957 to the GDP of today and found that welfare is draining most of the nation’s funds. Williamson explained, â€Å"Even though we were spending three times as much on national defense in 1957—and even though we had lower taxes (17.2 percent of GDP then vs. 17.7 percent of GDP today) we ran a budget