Social Security Stupid Party

Anti-Welfare Bill May Cost Kansas a Lot of Money

Do you remember the anti-welfare bill that would prohibit recipients from visiting massage parlors, fortune tellers, and luxury cruises? It appears that Governor Sam Brownback signed that bill into law without fully recognizing the consequences.

If the state legislature had simply prohibited people from getting tattoos it may have passed muster, but the legislature also amended the bill to limit daily withdraws to just $25 per day.

The problem that the legislature and the governor's office seemingly did not account for is that the withdraw limit may violate federal rules.

States are required to ensure that recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) “have adequate access to their cash assistance" but, as the Washington Post points out, a limit of $25 per day is actually a limit of $20 per day.

Since most banking machines are stocked only with $20 bills, the $25 limit is effectively a $20 limit. A family seeking to withdraw even $200 in cash would have to visit an ATM 10 times a month, a real burden for a parent who might not have a car and might not live in a neighborhood where ATMs are easy to find.

And for his part, Governor Brownback has declined to accept responsibility for the legislation he signed into law.

The governor said he’s open to raising the limit if necessary to comply with federal policies.

“We’ll work with them; it’s a joint program,” Brownback said. “We’ll do what we have to do to work with the federal partnership.”

He stressed that the $25 limit didn’t originate with his administration.

If the law is not amended before July 1st, the state could lose over $100 million in grants from the federal government.

Brownback also refused to accept full responsibility for this signature tax cuts.