The states, however, face significant challenges in implementing these new rules. America’s safety net “system” isn’t really a system at all. It’s a patchwork of more than 80 separate programs, each with its own database, rules, processes and hoops to jump through. These programs rarely coordinate or talk to each other and often feel inhumane to recipients.
For struggling Americans, accessing needed benefits means navigating a bureaucratic maze: Section 8 for housing assistance, SNAP for food support, Medicaid for health care and workforce programs for job training, for example. Each program brings a different caseworker, different eligibility requirements and endless paperwork. Caseworkers can’t see the full picture of what benefits a recipient receives or easily verify whether someone is working.
To implement new work requirements, these state systems must share information and coordinate, something they weren’t designed to do. A handful of states are starting to explore ways to consolidate their programs and integrate workforce development into the safety net. In doing so, they are creating the beginnings of a blueprint for other states to follow.
In June, for example, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry signed the One Door to Work Act — the first step in a multiyear effort to align the state’s workforce and social services systems. The process began with a performance audit of key welfare programs that uncovered inefficiencies and a lack of coordination among agencies. Lawmakers then created a task force to recommend improvements, which ultimately led to the passage of One Door, bringing workforce development programs together under one roof while also integrating state SNAP and Medicaid eligibility systems.
With these reforms, Louisiana has made the most significant progress toward streamlining its safety net since Utah pioneered the One Door model in the 1990s, combining safety net and workforce development programs. Utah now boasts the lowest percentage of residents on Medicaid and food stamps, while simultaneously having consistently low unemployment rates.
Several other states have started down the same path. Mississippi passed SB 2290 in April, setting up a task force to study workforce and social services reform. And Arkansas lawmakers created a legislative committee to review the state’s safety net and workforce systems and recommend ways to improve coordination, streamline services and help more people move into work.
But if states and others are to achieve the vision Louisiana and others are working on, they will need help from Washington. Right now, federal funding laws don’t let states fully streamline and improve their safety net programs or integrate employment resources. Pending federal One Door legislation could go a long way toward achieving that vision by granting more states the flexibility to fully implement Utah’s model. Ironically, even Utah needs congressional approval through the federal One Door legislation to fully streamline its safety net.
While the U.S. welfare system helps our neighbors in need survive, it does little to help them thrive. The safety net often traps individuals and families, rendering many unable to break the cycle of dependency. A good job offers more than just a paycheck — it provides purpose and stability and serves as one of the strongest shields against poverty.
The safety net was intended not only to help struggling Americans survive poverty but also to escape it. The work requirements in the One Big Beautiful Bill are an important step toward restoring that vision. But as states move to implement them, they’ll quickly realize that for work requirements to truly succeed, individual safety net and workforce programs will have to start functioning as a true system.
Eric Cochling is chief program officer and general counsel at the Georgia Center for Opportunity.
Governing’s opinion columns reflect the views of their authors and not necessarily those of Governing’s editors or management.
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