April 7, 2002

Washington, D.C.- One of the most significant accomplishments of the Republican Congress since taking majority control has been the reform of America's welfare system. What is most striking about the overwhelming success of the 1996 welfare reform law is how far beyond our expectations it has worked, considering how adamant the legislation's detractors were during debate on the bill that it would never work.

Members of Congress warned that the bill would throw millions of Americans into the street, that it was an attack on the poor, and that it would make the problems of poverty even worse. I'm proud to say the exact opposite has happened. As Congress prepares to re-authorize the welfare system, we are looking at how the reforms of 1996 have worked, in order to make any necessary changes. The statistics are nothing short of remarkable, showing that the legislation worked better than even we had hoped.

Since 1994, welfare caseloads have fallen by 9 million - from 14 million recipients to just 5 million today. These people can now take pride in getting back into the workforce and leading independent lives.

Poverty has declined across all categories. Child poverty is at its lowest since 1977. Since 1996, nearly 3 million children have been lifted from poverty, and the black child poverty rate is now at a record low. Child hunger has also declined. The percentage of children living in hunger has fallen by more than 40 percent.

The number of children living in single parent homes has also declined, while the share of children living in married-couple families has increased, particularly among minority families. To further strengthen families, the upcoming budget includes programs for pre-marital education and counseling. Stable marriages result in children who do better at school and are treated better at home.

Since 1996, personal income among working welfare recipients has increased. A single-mother family with an income of $11,000 increased its average earnings by 21 percent from 1995-1999. And we're cracking down on deadbeat dads and moms, with child support payments up 210 percent.

Some have claimed that the strong economy caused these welfare-to-work successes, and not the 1996 welfare reform law. But looking at recent history shows that during other long economic booms in the 1960s and 1980s, welfare cases actually rose. The difference is in the 1996 law's focus on maximizing opportunities for welfare recipients to participate in the workforce.

One of the keys to the success of our welfare reform bill, which I supported and voted for in the House, was its focus on moving recipients from the welfare rolls to the workforce. The law converted the welfare offices of the past into the job placement centers of today. In re-authorizing the welfare law, we must continue to keep working requirements as the centerpiece of the legislation, in order to help move recipients off the welfare rolls and into jobs, making them more productive members of society.

When you help a person who has been without work find a job, you don't just give them a paycheck in place of a welfare check. You also help them gain the self esteem they need to remain employed, and put them on the first step toward a path to not only a full-time job, but a career. Working welfare recipients also gain access to other benefits, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit, food stamps, and health insurance, which will help ensure they stay above the poverty line.

But we still have more work to do. Too many families are below the poverty line, and teen childbearing remains a problem, especially in low-income areas. Many parents have limited skills and work experience. We must work to find new ways to reduce these problems in the years to come.

Our welfare reform has been a huge success, but we must build on these successes to meet the challenges of the future. If we focus not on putting more people on welfare rolls, but instead on lifting up needy Americans and helping them gain independence, our anti-poverty measures will be even more successful in the future.