This publication is the tenth segment of an educational series on poverty and welfare in South Dakota. This leaflet examines what the goals, recipient requirements, output, and functions of a welfare system should be, and the relationship of the system to others

Chamberlain, Fern L.

English

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South Dakota State University Open PRAIRIE: Open Public Research Access Institutional Repository and Information Exchange SDSU Extension Circulars SDSU Extension 1974 Poverty Welfare : Designing a Welfare System Fern L. Chamberlain Follow this and additional works at: https://openprairie.sdstate.edu/extension_circ Historic, archived doculllent Do not assume content reflects current scientific knowledge, policies, or practices. SDSU ® Extension For current policies and practices, contact SDSU Extension Website: extension.sdstate.edu Phone: Email: 605-688-4 792 sdsu.extension@sdstate.edu SDSU Extension is an equal opportunity provider and employer in accordance with the nondiscrimination policies of South Dakota State University, the South Dakota Board of Regents and the United States Department of Agriculture. EC 699 Part J APR 171975 L!B;tARY Designing a Welfare System If you are critical of the present welfare system, why not try devis-ing one you feel would be satisfac-tory. For this purpose, you might assume the role of a member of the governing body of an entirely new city, who has been assigned the responsibility to draft a plan for the welfare system of that city. There are no rules in existence for you to follow, your plan does not have to conform to any state or national guidelines. The people By Fern L. Chamberlain, Welfare consul-tant, CENCOAD, formerly chief, Research and Statistics, S.D. Dept. of Welfare, 193 7-1966, and Wanda M. Leonard, Public Affairs Agent, Economics Department, South Dakota State University in this city are the same people who live in South Dakota. The welfare system for which you are to draft a plan is defined as that activity which is related to provid-ing basic necessities to the per-sons in the city who do not have them available to them in any other way. As you begin to work on your assignment, it becomes evident that some general decisions must be made before you can come up with specific details. What should be the primary goal of the system? Who should be permitted to enter the system and how? What should be the output of the system (cash allowances, aid-in-kind, ser-vices)? What should be the func-tions of the system? What should be its relationship to other sys-tems such as health and educa-tion? The first step in drafting your plan will be, therefore, to ex-amine each of these questions. --------EC 699-A Series on Poverty and Welfare--------Part A-What Are Your Feel-ings about Welfare? Part B-What Is Welfare? Part C-What Are Your Beliefs about Welfare? Part D-Welfare: Historical Perspective. Part E-Welfare: Opinions and Facts. Part F-Poverty Awareness Worksheet Part G-South Dakota Poverty Data. Part H-Welfare: the Poor, the Near Poor, the Re-ceipts and the Cost. Part I-Poverty, Welfare and Reform. Part J-Designing a Welfare System. Cooperative Extension Service • South Dakota State University • U.S. Department of Agriculture ~ 3 C), 7 3 2 LS o. P-7,17 .. /{_q~, r r WELFARE RECIPIENTS IN SOUTH DAKOTA it 3 7 3\.. L.f-O ~~ February 1972, S. D. Dept. of P.W. 4,551 persons 75 or older ' 2,035 persons 65 through 7 4 72 persons 50 or older, blind 45 other persons, blind 1,173 persons 50 or older, disabled 649 other persons, disabled 3,912 children under 5 years of age 8,641 children 5-14 years of age 11 2,127 children 15-18 years of age 130 19-20 years old, disabled or in school I 987 children in foster care 15 girls pregnant out of wedlock 83 mothers under 19 with infants 2,306 mothers with 3 or more children 412 incapacitated fathers at home 362 mothers employed 566 in WIN or other training programs 412 not in WIN because training opportunities not available 41 other adults, mostly women 29,419 TOTAL II. Who should be permitted to enter the system? A. Anyone in need? How do you define "need"? What are the necessities? (See box at right.) B. Only those who are aged, blind, disabled, or other special circumstances? What special cir-cumstances? C. Only established, long time residents of an area? D. Only persons who conform to group standards of culture, life style and values? E. Only deserving persons? Define deserving. What happens to those not deserving? F. Other (Are the decisions made in question II compatible with goals determined in question I?) Ill. What is to be the output of the system? A. Cash payments. At what level? (See box at right.) 1. Survival 2. Minimum subsistence 3. Minimum adequate 4. Adequate 5. Comfortable 6. Luxury I. What should be the primary goals of the system? A. To keep deprived people from rioting? B. To rehabilitate non-productive members of soci-ety so they can support themselves? (What are the realities? See box at left.) C. To insure equal opportunity for all? D. To provide assistance to persons not meeting the proficiency standards for entrance into the pro-ductive system? E. To provide purchasing power to those outside the productive system in order to maintain con-sumption? F. To bolster the recipient's self-image so he will make the most of his potential? G. To punish people who do not conform to group standards? (Which of the above are compatible, which are not?) ...------ BASIC NECESSITIES------Food Clothing Shelter and utilities Personal items Household operation Transportation Medical and dental care Community participation Recreation Other? EXAMPLES Standards at Different Levels Family of Four Minimum wage $1.60 per hour, 40 hours per week S.D. Dept. of Welfare Standard* Proposed minimum wage, $2.00 per hour; 40 hours per week Median income in S.D. (U.S. Census 1970) U.S. Poverty level-1973 non-farm family Average (mean) family earnings from wages and salaries US Dept. of Agriculture Economy plant Low-cost plan Moderate-cost Per Month $277.33 $310.00 $346.67 $357.58 $358.33 $619.00 $167-$333 $333-$500 plan $500-$833 Liberal plan $833 up *The standard adopted in 1959 was based on the low-cost plan of the US Dept. of Agriculture. tTo be used in temporary situations when funds are limited. B. Aid-in-Kind 1. Food Stamps 2. Housing 3. Medical Care 4. Protective Care 5. Other? C. Services 1. Daycare 2. Homemaker services 3. Homehealth aides 4. Housekeeping and maintenance aids 5. Vocational training and retraining 6. Problems-in-living counseling 7. Credit and money management counseling 8. Protective services ( children and adult) 9. Prevention and treatment of alcoholism and other drug use 10. Other? (Which of the above should be available only to persons in financial need?) IV. What are the functions of the welfare system-A. To force people to work? B. To offer equal opportunities to children to de-velop? C. To keep people alive? D. To ease burdens which are beyond the persons' coping ability? E. To teach people good housekeeping skills? F. To enforce moral standards? G. To support parents in their efforts to care for their children? H. To force estranged fathers to support their chil-dren? I. To strengthen family life? J. To train people to become self-supporting? K. To determine the causes of poverty and seek to alleviate them, such as: 1. Schools that do not educate 2. Malnutrition, especially of pregnant women and infants, which leads to physical and mental health problems and general apathy 3. Excessive medical costs which deplete a family's resources 4. Discrimination in employment, housing, and other systems 5. Overcrowding and poor housing conditions. 6. Other: Are there other agencies with responsibility for any of these functions? V. What is the relation of the welfare system to other systems? . In each instance, define the role of the welfare system and the role of the other system. What role is required from the welfare system to enhance the role of the other system? A. Communication For example: 1. What role does communication play in the myths regarding the receipt of welfare which abound? 2. Should assistance from public funds be enough to permit persons to have a tele-phone and buy a newspaper? B. Religion For example: 1. What responsibilities do religious institu-tions have for the attitudes of their members toward welfare and recipients of aid? 2. Would change in attitude or more adequate assistance payments reduce the number of the poor who withdraw from organized re-ligious activities? C. Transportation For example: 1. What effect does lack of transportation have on various aspects of a poor person's life? Employment? Medical care? Social partici-pation? 2. Would public transportation be more effi-cient and economical (not to mention more environmentally sound)? D. Health For example: 1. What proportion of the need for welfare can be attributed to poor health? 2. What effect would more preventive services have? E. Education For example: 1. What is the relationship of poor nutrition to apathy and dropouts_? 2. What is the relationship of poor education to poor health habits? F. Political For example: 1. What are the political implications of "wel-fare reform"? 2. Is income redistribution politically feasible? (Continued) G. Economic For example: 1. Should marginal laborers be guaranteed ajob or provided for through some form of wel-fare? 2. Would adequate grants of assistance stimu-late the economy? Is this stimulation desira-ble? Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, Acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, in cooperation with the United States Department of Agriculture. D. Dearborn, Acting Director of Extension Service, South Dakota State University, Brookings. The South Dakota Cooperative Extension Service offers educational programs and materials to all people without regard to race, color, religion, sex or national origin, and is an Equal Opportunity Employer. 3.5-9-74-File: 5.3-3011 

Poverty Welfare : Designing a Welfare System

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Poverty Welfare : Designing a Welfare System

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