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Senate advances welfare reform measure with contested exceptions to 36‑month limit
Summary
The Senate passed a substitute bill revising welfare eligibility for single‑parent assistance, including a debated 36‑month lifetime limit and an amendment allowing exceptions when unemployment exceeds a specified threshold; sponsors said the changes will be refined by interim task forces.
The Senate debated substitute House Bill 293, a welfare reform bill that places a 36‑month lifetime limit on certain assistance for single parents with several limited exceptions. Senator Steiner offered a set of amendments: one (adopted) would allow the Department to exceed a 15% exception cap "in the event the state's unemployment rate exceeds 6%," and another (defeated) would permit a person who used up their lifetime 36 months to requalify after working for 12 months.
Steiner framed the proposals as safety‑valve measures to avoid cutting off support when the economy turns down: "If the unemployment rate exceeded 6%, then the office would be able to exceed this 15% limit that's on line 16," he said. Opponents worried amendments could undermine the bill's goals and re‑open negotiations the Legislature had reached with stakeholder groups; sponsor Senator Tanner and others repeatedly emphasized the law would start prospectively and that exemptions for disabilities and other categories would remain.
Senators asked about implementation, grandfathering of existing recipients and training options; sponsors said work supports and exceptions are intended to be developed by task forces during the interim. The Senate called the question and passed the substitute bill under suspension of the rules; the clerk announced 26 yeas, no nays, and 3 absent. The bill will be transmitted to the House for their consideration.
