Buckeye Anti-Poverty Plan Boasts New Ideas
Earlier this year, the Ohio State University brought home the national championship in football. Now, the state of Ohio could be again be the national leader, but this time in on a field that is far more important in ensuring that our nation provides opportunity for all.
14.5 percent of Americans are counted as living at or below the poverty line, and a stalemate in Washington means much-needed and substantive reform to the federal programs that are meant to help them achieve their full potential won’t be just around the corner.
But in Ohio, Gov. John Kasich has said that he won’t be waiting for Washington to act in trying to improve the lives of those living in poverty. Instead, the seventh-largest state in the nation could become a leader in showing what effective and efficient anti-poverty programs could look like. In February, Kasich released a two-year budget proposal that includes a proposal to improve the state’s human services efforts. His “Blueprint for a New Ohio” seeks to streamline and update the current approach to human services, a status quo that too-often tries to address the symptoms of poverty rather than root causes, and does little to break the cycle of generational poverty. The “Blueprint for a New Ohio” also recognizes the need to do away with the piecemeal and patchwork attempts to address poverty, and proposes reallocating $310 million in existing funds to create a system that would take into account the individual situation facing every person and family in poverty, rather than trying to force them into a rigid form that was created when the War on Poverty was launched over 50 years ago. Instead of requiring a laid-off steel worker to apply for food stamps when all he needs is money for gas to get to work, for example, a comprehensive case management approach would target the barriers to self-sufficiency trapping low-income Ohioans and find the targeted state and community resources to help them move into the middle class. The result would be a system that is more efficient with taxpayer resources, empowers faith-based and non-profit organizations to support those in need on a journey out of poverty, and, most importantly, responds to the contemporary challenges facing those in need with contemporary and long-lasting solutions. The “Blueprint” would reduce the impact of so-called “benefit-cliffs;” when an individual or family seeking to improve their economic situation is hit with an abrupt loss of benefits that can leave them worse off than when they started. With subsidized child care that gradually phases out, rather than abruptly ends, parents will be able to adjust to the new reality of working more hours and becoming more self-sufficient. While transitioning from a phase-out rather than a cliff will require more investment from the state initially, it won’t penalize hard work and a desire to provide for one’s family the way the current system does now, leading to a stronger society and long-run dividends. On the bureaucratic side, Kasich’s plan will streamline and standardize the application process for social assistance programs, reducing the amount of time and effort wasted on duplicative forms and overlapping asset-tests. Funds received through federal programs would be held to clear and consistent evaluation standards to demonstrate the impact that these safety-net programs have, and where they can be improved. The Buckeyes may already have captured the trophy on the gridiron, but if Kasich’s plan is implemented, the Buckeye state could take the lead in creating a more lasting legacy - leading the way in providing comprehensive, person-centered approaches to helping our neighbors in need achieve their full potential. Photo credit: Flickr.
But in Ohio, Gov. John Kasich has said that he won’t be waiting for Washington to act in trying to improve the lives of those living in poverty. Instead, the seventh-largest state in the nation could become a leader in showing what effective and efficient anti-poverty programs could look like. In February, Kasich released a two-year budget proposal that includes a proposal to improve the state’s human services efforts. His “Blueprint for a New Ohio” seeks to streamline and update the current approach to human services, a status quo that too-often tries to address the symptoms of poverty rather than root causes, and does little to break the cycle of generational poverty. The “Blueprint for a New Ohio” also recognizes the need to do away with the piecemeal and patchwork attempts to address poverty, and proposes reallocating $310 million in existing funds to create a system that would take into account the individual situation facing every person and family in poverty, rather than trying to force them into a rigid form that was created when the War on Poverty was launched over 50 years ago. Instead of requiring a laid-off steel worker to apply for food stamps when all he needs is money for gas to get to work, for example, a comprehensive case management approach would target the barriers to self-sufficiency trapping low-income Ohioans and find the targeted state and community resources to help them move into the middle class. The result would be a system that is more efficient with taxpayer resources, empowers faith-based and non-profit organizations to support those in need on a journey out of poverty, and, most importantly, responds to the contemporary challenges facing those in need with contemporary and long-lasting solutions. The “Blueprint” would reduce the impact of so-called “benefit-cliffs;” when an individual or family seeking to improve their economic situation is hit with an abrupt loss of benefits that can leave them worse off than when they started. With subsidized child care that gradually phases out, rather than abruptly ends, parents will be able to adjust to the new reality of working more hours and becoming more self-sufficient. While transitioning from a phase-out rather than a cliff will require more investment from the state initially, it won’t penalize hard work and a desire to provide for one’s family the way the current system does now, leading to a stronger society and long-run dividends. On the bureaucratic side, Kasich’s plan will streamline and standardize the application process for social assistance programs, reducing the amount of time and effort wasted on duplicative forms and overlapping asset-tests. Funds received through federal programs would be held to clear and consistent evaluation standards to demonstrate the impact that these safety-net programs have, and where they can be improved. The Buckeyes may already have captured the trophy on the gridiron, but if Kasich’s plan is implemented, the Buckeye state could take the lead in creating a more lasting legacy - leading the way in providing comprehensive, person-centered approaches to helping our neighbors in need achieve their full potential. Photo credit: Flickr.
