Work & Welfare Subcommittee Chairman LaHood Opening Statement at Hearing on the 30th Anniversary of Welfare Reform: No Government Program Can Substitute the Stability,[...]

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Ways and Means Subcommittee Chairman Darin LaHood (IL-16) delivered the following opening statement at a Work and Welfare Subcommittee hearing on Welfare Reform at 30: Restoring the Promise of Work and Personal Responsibility in Federal Welfare Programs.

As prepared for delivery.

"Good afternoon and thank you for joining us for today's hearing to mark the 30th anniversary of welfare reform. I especially want to thank our witnesses for being here.

"My name is Darin LaHood and I represent Illinois' 16th District covering much of the central and northwestern parts of the state.

"Our goal today is to reflect on the historic, bipartisan welfare reforms made in 1996, the principles that drove those reforms, and the challenges and opportunities that remain three decades later.

"Thirty years ago, in the face of rising caseloads and generational dependence on welfare, Congress enacted a package of consequential social-policy reforms to change the nation's welfare system.

"Welfare reform replaced an open-ended, 'no strings attached,' cash entitlement program with the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program.

"For the first time, TANF included work requirements, time limits, enforced the principle of work in exchange for benefits, and capped federal funding for benefits, while providing states flexibility to experiment with tailored solutions for families in poverty.

"Those reforms, led by House Republicans and ultimately signed into law by President Clinton, were based on shared bipartisan principles: that America should maintain a strong safety net for families in need, but that assistance should be targeted, time limited, and connected to an expectation of personal responsibility and work.

"During President Clinton's announcement of the legislation in 1996 he described the reforms as 'transforming a broken system that traps too many people in a cycle of dependence to one that emphasizes work and independence, to give people on welfare a chance to draw a paycheck, not a welfare check.'

"In many ways, the 1996 reforms were a success. Welfare caseloads fell dramatically. Employment increased among many of the families most likely to have previously relied on cash assistance.

"For example, labor-force participation among never-married mothers rose from roughly 59% in 1995 to 74% by 2000, an increase of roughly 15 percentage points - and more work translated into substantially higher earnings.

"However, as TANF caseloads shrank, programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Medicaid grew in both spending and recipients. From 1995 to 2025, SNAP participation rose nearly 60%, while Medicaid rose 115%.

"Reforms made by H.R. 1, the Working Families Tax Cut Act took significant steps toward restoring the promise of 1996 by strengthening work requirements for able-bodied recipients of SNAP and Medicaid - to ensure more individuals who need help are connected to work.

"Unfortunately, we have struggled to find the bipartisan consensus that made the reforms of 1996 possible. Congress may be divided on these principles today, but I do not believe the American people are.

"Tying federal benefits to the expectation of work is not a punishment. All of our government programs need to be oriented to provide every opportunity for individuals to grow their capacity and be connected to meaningful work.

"Two years ago, this Subcommittee traveled to Chicago to hold a field hearing where we heard first-hand from witnesses at a homeless shelter in Ranking Member Davis's district, called Pacific Garden Mission.

"During our time there, we spoke with Pastor Corey Brooks and his Team at Project HOOD. They told us about their philosophy of 'uplifting' - equipping individuals in crisis with skills and tools to find stability and transforming lives through faith and work.

"That stayed with me. At the heart of welfare reform three decades ago was a simple principle: there is dignity in work.

"Americans are a generous people. Our country provides a robust social safety net to the tune of more than $1 trillion in spending each year and more than 80 government assistance programs. But that is not how we should be measuring success.

"Government assistance can provide important help during a difficult period. But no government program can substitute the stability, confidence, purpose, and connection to community that meaningful work can provide.

"Thank you to our witnesses for being here today. I look forward to hearing your testimony."