| The U.S. has the capacity to end poverty. In a nation of such
prosperity, we must do all that we can to achieve this goal. Researchers
have generated several anti-poverty strategies in response to studying the
effects of 1996 welfare reform. These strategies must be included in the
TANF reauthorization bill. To do this, I propose three policy initiatives.
First, "make work pay" by increasing the minimum wage and expanding the
earned income tax credit (EITC). Expanding the EITC lifts 4.5 million
Americans above the poverty line, so we should continue to expand it.4 The
current minimum wage is just $5.15. Raising this to at least $6.50 would
do much to aid the working poor. Moreover, encouraging unionization in
industries heavily supplied with low-wage labor would provide working poor
people with collective bargaining power to negotiate higher wages. Second,
strengthen and establish workplace supports which will ensure that people
with multiple barriers to work will be able to keep their jobs. Congress
should increase the TANF block grant to further establish these work
supports, and prohibit state supplantation of these funds. More funding
should be spent on education and training, providing low-skilled workers
with opportunities for greater educational attainment. Increasing funding
for childcare subsidies, access to healthcare, and access to
transportation is also critical to providing workplace support. Finally,
support further research which encourages researchers and community
organizations that serve low-income groups to collaborate in creating
further anti-poverty strategies. This will give the working poor more
agency and ensure that these anti-poverty strategies are directly aligned
with their needs.The Center for Urban Research and Learning at Loyola
University Chicago and University Community Collaborative of Philadelphia
at Temple University are leaders in this area. The absence of political
will promises to be a major obstacle to the implementation of these
initiatives. Many members of Congress are opposed to the expansion of
welfare funding, and do not believe that trying to end poverty is
realistic. However, if Congress increases funding now, in the long-term,
the nation will benefit by lifting people out of poverty, and thus
reducing the number of TANF recipients overall. There is little evidence
showing that reducing the number of out-of-wedlock births has a direct
affect on reducing the number of people on welfare, so Congress could
reallocate this funding to expand TANF.5 While increasing the EITC and the
minimum wage alone will not end poverty, in conjunction with other
anti-poverty strategies, they could affect millions of Americans with
low-incomes. Some individuals will not see the need for community-based
research which allows poor people to play a role in eliminating poverty.
However, if we want to ensure that welfare policies are positively
impacting the working poor, they must be involved in this process. In
October of this year, the U.S unemployment rate rose to 5.4%, the biggest
jump in five years.6 In these times of economic uncertainty, ending
poverty in the U.S. must be the central goal of the upcoming TANF
legislation Thank you. Beandrea Davis**University of Pennsylvania
'03**btd@sas.upenn.edu |
