[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 40 (Friday, March 3, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H2589]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


             WELFARE REFORM: REAL CHANGE VERSUS FALSE HOPE

  (Mrs. KELLY asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. KELLY. Mr. Speaker, I do not know what is more disheartening, 
the vicious cycle of dependency perpetuated by the current system of 
welfare, or the mindset on the part of some Members of this institution 
that a national welfare bureaucracy is the only way to help those in 
need.
  The American taxpayer has not lacked in generosity. We have invested 
well over $5 trillion on welfare in this country since the mid-1960's, 
and welfare spending continues to rise.
  And yet, despite this commitment, illegitimacy rates have risen, 
welfare dependence remains constant, and fewer recipients of assistance 
are working. Five million families received AFDC benefits in May 1993, 
up from 3.7 million in 1988, and over half of those families will 
remain dependent on welfare for over 10 years.
  As working women and mothers, who among us does not remember earning 
their fist paycheck, meeting that first payroll, or the pride of seeing 
our own child bring home their first paycheck. It is this sort of 
restoration of self-esteem that we must achieve.
  The Personal Responsibility Act of 1995 fundamentally restructures 
the way in which we think about welfare. It maintains a system of 
support for those in need, while restoring the notion that welfare 
recipients have an obligation to use this assistance to better 
themselves. We have an opportunity to accomplish real reform, and 
instill real hope in the lives of those caught in the welfare trap.

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