FRANKFORT — A new version of controversial bill meant to tighten controls over public assistance and crack down on suspected fraud passed a House committee Thursday but not before it ran into a buzz saw of opposition from opponents who called it unnecessary and overly punitive.
"We are called to lift people out of poverty," said the Rev. Don Gillette, executive director of the Kentucky Council of Churches. "This bill does not do this. We would urge you to take it back to the drawing board."
But instead — with the two top Republican House leaders backing it — House Bill 1 passed the House Health and Family Services Committee in a 12-7 vote.
It now goes to the full House, where it could come up for a vote as soon as Friday.
House Speaker David Osborne and David Meade, speaker pro tem, both Republicans, are sponsoring the HB 1 and said they made changes in the bill to address concerns of advocates.
For example, the original bill would bar people from spending more than 25% of their food stamps on soda or other sweetened drinks, a provision critics said would be impossible to enforce and conflicts with federal law.
The new version recommends people use at least 75% of food stamp funds on healthy foods.
Advocates were critical of that provision, saying research shows most people already use food stamps for healthy foods such as meat, fruit and vegetables.
Meade said critics have spread "misinformation" about the bill that he said is designed to encourage people to get off public aid and into jobs.
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"This bill is a balance between compassion and accountability," he said.
The bill addresses aid programs, funded largely by the federal government such as SNAP, formerly known as food stamps, Medicaid, the government health plan for low income and disabled individuals, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF, a cash assistance program for low income families.
Dustin Pugel, a policy analyst with the progressive Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, said most people on public aid who are able to work already do so, but hold low-paying jobs without any benefits such as health coverage.
"These safety-net programs were designed to catch us when we fall and help us get back on our feet, which is exactly what they do," Pugel said.
Some lawmakers also questioned the cost of HB 1, an estimated $20 million for oversight and enforcement. Osborne said it would cost about $5 million in state funds and $15 million in federal money.
Meade, a Stanford Republican, said the bill is meant to increase efficiency of such programs by tightening oversight and reducing fraud.
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But advocates say the fraud rate of such programs is very low and additional rules will simply make it harder for people in need to get benefits.
For example, fraud in the food stamp program is estimated by the federal government to be about 1% of all benefits.
But Meade said he believes it to be much higher, saying "common sense" suggests that. He said he had heard of fraud rates of up to 30% in some states but said afterward he couldn't cite any specific studies to back that up.
The bill drew mixed reactions from lawmakers on the panel with Republicans praising it and Democrats arguing against it.
"This is a bill that will not help get people off poverty," said Rep. Tom Burch, D-Louisville. "It will just send them deeper back into that pit."
But Rep. Robert Goforth, R-East Bernstadt, said he grew up poor and said people shouldn't have any problems if they follow the rules.
"I grew up on benefits," he said. "I don't see anything that would have kicked my mother off these benefits as long as you're doing what you're supposed to do."
HB 1 represents a year-long effort by House Republicans to enact such a measure.
Last year, they filed House Bill 3, which one advocate called a "war on the poor." After that bill failed in 2019, House leaders established a "Public Assistance Reform Task Force," which met for six months and prompted an outpouring of testimony from across Kentucky, largely from advocates and individuals calling public assistance a lifeline for poor families and beseeching lawmakers not to enact any changes making benefits harder to get.
The task force ended its work last year with only minor recommendations in policy changes and no changes to state law.
The bill includes some of the recommendations, such as creating a single electronic benefit card for people.
But it goes much further than the task force, including bans for some public assistance for individuals who violate rules. For example, individuals released from jail or prison could face a ban on Medicaid benefits — which helps pay for substance abuse treatment — should an individual fail to sign up for treatment within 90 days of release.
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It also seeks to reinstate some of the work requirements for some higher-income individuals on Medicaid or move them to insurance plans subsidized by the state, similar to the failed Medicaid overhaul launched by former Gov. Matt Bevin.
It also would create a new state plan for low-income people who make too much for Medicaid.
And it would revamp the current legislative Medicaid Oversight and Advisory Committee, giving it broader oversight over all public assistance.
Reach Deborah Yetter at dyetter@courier-journal.com or 502-582-4228. Find her on Twitter at @d_yetter. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: https://ift.tt/2Z9C9oV.
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