Poverty & Dependence: Introduction

The Promise of Hope and Opportunity

Heritage Foundation

Published in

2016 Index of Culture and Opportunity

6 min readJul 11, 2016

The Honorable Sam Brownback

Today, perhaps for the first time in our history, the promise of the American dream is at risk of disappearing. For many Americans, the hope of opportunity is no longer a promise rooted in the nature of our nation’s character, but a neglected dream that now seems unattainable. For those who feel lost in the chaos of a global economy, for those who are stuck in the morass of government regulation and economic stagnancy, we can and we must offer the promise of hope and opportunity.

We have a moral obligation to reform antiquated programs that keep families trapped in a cycle of generational poverty. A meaningful, effective safety net that both protects the vulnerable and is financially stable marks a successful society.

For over half a century, our nation has attempted to use progressive policies to fight poverty. After spending more than $20 trillion since 1965, we have made little progress in alleviating poverty: These programs have largely failed. Despite the unsustainable growth in various social welfare programs, we have been unable to ensure a path out of poverty for millions of Americans.

It is time to rethink how we fight poverty and advance opportunity. This need for change comes not only from the responsibility to spend taxpayers’ money effectively, but also from the obligation to reform those government programs that have fostered dependence and generational poverty.

Government assistance programs should not subsidize or incentivize the breakdown of family structure. They should not place millions in the bondage of dependence on government. They should not leave individuals isolated from civil society, employment, or community. We cannot allow the machinery of the war on poverty to wound and maim the poor.

Economic opportunity is a hallmark of American exceptionalism. For generations, Americans and those who came here seeking a better life believed in a promise that they saw as fundamental to the character of this nation: If you work hard and play by the rules, you can and will create a better life for yourself and your family. That promise is alive and well today in Kansas because we have implemented common-sense reforms that are working to break the cycle of generational poverty. These reforms are based around the idea that family structure, work, and education can do more to lift people out of poverty than dependence and government bureaucracy ever can.

These reforms were simple. If you are an able-bodied adult without dependents, we require you to work 20 hours a week or receive job training as part of your government food assistance benefit. Some on the left view work requirements as draconian punishment of those who are struggling economically. In reality, work and job training are needed lifelines that have helped to lift thousands of Kansans out of poverty and set them on the path to economic security.

Results show more people finding jobs, leaving welfare, and earning more income for themselves and their families.

Since the implementation of work requirements and time limits on welfare eligibility, the number of able-bodied adults without dependents on food stamps has decreased by 75 percent.
Nearly 60 percent of those who left the program found employment within a year, and they saw their personal income rise by 127 percent. This higher income not only offsets what meager government assistance could offer, but also has given our neighbors economic security and independence while fostering increased economic activity.
Since Kansas work requirements were restored, the number of food stamp enrollees rising out of poverty has tripled.

We know that success starts early and that children who are reading at grade level by fourth grade are more likely to do well both within the classroom and in life. These students are less likely to drop out of school and less likely to become single parents. In Kansas, innovative early reading programs are working to ensure that every child has a chance for a good education and a chance to avoid poverty altogether. Instead of pumping more money into low-income schools with little improvements, we invested in innovative programs that leverage the innovation and expertise of our existing teachers and educators.

State reading reforms have resulted in a 19 percent improvement in the numbers of children reading at their proper grade level and a 38 percent reduction in the numbers of children at risk for special education.

In high school, nonprofit partners like Jobs for America’s Graduates have helped at-risk teens, most of whom would likely have dropped out of school, to achieve an 89 percent graduation rate, preparing for college, work, or military service.

Meanwhile, our technical training education program gives many students the skills they need to walk off the graduation stage with a diploma and an industry-recognized certification and get good-paying jobs in industry or help earn their way through college.

Kansas is now one of the more than two dozen states that offer private school choice options to families. We launched a tax credit scholarship program that is available to children from low-income families who are trapped in underperforming schools.

Kansas also has fought to limit the impact of oppressive occupational licensing schemes that prevent many from entering the workforce. There is a significant difference between ensuring health and safety within a profession and creating a system of licensure and regulation that is aimed more at limiting entry into the market than it is at promoting the public welfare. We should make it easier, not harder, for those who are willing to work to enter industries that provide economic opportunity.

These programs prove that by redirecting existing funding streams, states have the ability to cut costs, create new programs, and make meaningful reforms that help to reduce poverty. For too long, conservatives have offered a narrower vision of merely spending less money on social welfare or spending it more efficiently. This is a good start, but is only the beginning of how conservative principles can reshape policy with the goal of reducing poverty and dependence.

It is perhaps even more important that conservatives create a vision of hope and opportunity that transcends the details of policy proposals to free citizens from the chains of poverty. Low-income Americans should be able to have faith that their path out of poverty will be unhindered by government, not that government is holding them back. It is easy to distribute cash assistance and claim some sort of victory, as has been done for decades, but this strategy has served only to deepen the roots of poverty in our communities and reduce opportunity for millions of Americans.

The benefits of economic freedom and individual liberty are not mere abstractions. We can and must show that these benefits can be realized in tangible ways. Education and job skills lead to entrepreneurship and economic security. Reformed welfare programs reduce overall costs while ensuring the long-term survivability and sustainability of a social safety net for our most vulnerable. The war on poverty will be won by helping people to achieve self-sufficiency instead of adding to the federal dole.

Citizens know that we cannot continue to subsidize poverty and that serving the least among us means more than writing a government check. Success means equipping people with the tools they need to shatter generational poverty. It means investing in the potential inherent in every human being.

This is a fight worth fighting. We must and we can restore the American dream for everyone.

— The Honorable Sam Brownback is Governor of Kansas and a former member of both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate.