Mich. Enacts 4-Year Welfare Limit; Advocates Fear Impact on Poor

Michigan is adopting a four-year lifetime limit on state cash benefits that advocates for the poor say will throw tens of thousands of people off welfare rolls in a matter of weeks, the Associated Press writes.

The measure, signed Tuesday by Gov. Rick Snyder, goes into effect with the October 1 start of the new budget year.

“We are returning cash assistance to its original intent as a transitional program to help families while they work toward self-sufficiency,” the governor said in a statement.

According to a legislative analysis, the new limit will cut the number of people getting cash assistance from 221,000 to about 180,000 and save the state more than $60-million a year.

The law includes exemptions for those unable to work due to a disability or certain family circumstances and seniors who receive little or no Social Security.

Gilda Jacobs of the Michigan League for Human Services said some 41,000 people will lose benefits on October 1, including about 11,000 adults. She said it was hard to see many of them finding work given the state’s 10.9 percent unemployment rate, one of the highest in the nation.

State officials said they are working with social-service charities to provide a “soft landing” to those coming off the benefit rolls.

The New York Times also reports on the debate over the Michigan welfare cuts and how low-income families are trying to prepare for the loss of benefits.

Tell us what’s going on in your state. Contact Suzanne Perry to share your story.