Welfare and Drug Testing, Essay Example

The issue of whether people who receive federal or state assistance should be mandated to have drug-testing is an extremely controversial and values-laden question.  Does the government have the right to attach such strings to its citizens who are financially in need?  At a time when the nation is in a significant financial crisis, and more and more of its citizens are applying for unemployment benefits, cash assistance programs, and food stamps, is this the price that they need to pay?

The 1996 Welfare Reform Act authorized – but did not require – states to impose mandatory drug testing as a prerequisite to receiving state welfare assistance (Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act, 1996).  Since then, a number of states have attempted to pass legislation that would require such testing for anyone receiving public funds.  However, there is evidence to suggest that people who receive welfare assistance are only slightly more likely to be chemically dependent than people who are not using substances, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.  In fact, the same agency found that heavy alcohol use was actually slightly lower in households that were receiving some form of welfare payments and those who were not (Greenblatt, 2010).

The proponents of such testing believe that people who are receiving public funds should not be spending the money on illegal drugs, but rather on food, medicine, and essentials for themselves and their children.  They say that they are motivated out of concern for the welfare recipients’ well-being, and their success in getting themselves into a better position financially in order to seek and find jobs and other responsibilities when the economy improves.  It also appears that they want to send the message to people who are receiving benefits that “you don’t get something for nothing.”

The problems inherent in enacting such legislation are many.  For example, how would one define “welfare”?  Would that include people who receive federally-guaranteed loan assistance to attend college?  Are public schools considered to be a form of welfare?  Since most people drive on interstate highways that are publicly funded, either by the state, county, or local governments, are they to be considered welfare recipients?  In that case, in order to be equitable, then all drivers would need to be drug tested.  In addition, there is the problem of corporate welfare—perhaps every executive and manager who works in a bank that has received bailout money should be drug tested as well.  In addition, since there was also federal money given to bail out the automobile industry, perhaps all of the factory workers and car salespeople would need to be drug tested as well.  In addition, customers who took out loans from the banks that received bailout money would need to be drug tested as well.

Sarcasm aside, there is another significant issue involved in considering mandatory drug testing for welfare recipients: the constitutionality of such a law.  The argument on these grounds is that random drug testing violates the constitutional ban against unreasonable search and seizure.  The Constitution protects all Americans, including those who are in need of federal, state, or local assistance.

If the goal is to save money for the government by eliminating people from welfare rolls because they test positive for drug use, this policy might be counterproductive.  What would the costs be to conduct testing for everyone who receives benefits, as well as the payouts to people who sue the government on constitutional grounds and win their cases?

Included in the arguments against mandatory drug testing for welfare recipients is one that speaks to the bias many hold against people who receive welfare.  As difficult as it is for many people to ask for help when it is needed, making the process even more demeaning would not serve anyone.  There are so many people currently out of work due to the terrible job market and the high unemployment rate, is it truly going to help them stand on their feet more quickly if they’re subjected to a completely demeaning procedure that suggests that asking for help implies that someone has to be abusing substances?

References

Greenblatt, A. (2010, March 31). Should Welfare Recipients Get Drug Testing? Retrieved June 13, 2010. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=125387528

Hucks, D. (2009, July 30). Should Drug Testing Be Mandatory For Welfare Recipients? Scientific Blogging. Retrieved 13, 2010.   http://www.scientificblogging.com/under_curve/should_drug_testing_be_mandatory_welfare_recipients

Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act (1996). Internet.  Retrieved June 13, 2010.  http://www.usinfo.state.gov/usa/infousa/laws/majorlaw/h3734_en.htm

States Consider Drug Tests for Welfare Recipients. (2009, March 26). Retrieved from http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,510707,00.html