Bill would reduce ADC eligibility
The maximum amount of time a qualifying family could receive cash assistance under the Aid to Dependent Children Program would be decreased under a bill heard by the Health and Human Services Committee Feb. 28.
LB379, as introduced by Omaha Sen. Bob Andersen, would reduce the lifetime maximum that a family could qualify for the program from 60 months to 24 months.
Andersen offered an amendment at the hearing that instead would decrease maximum program eligibility to 36 months. He said the change would align ADC with the state’s self-sufficiency program that provides vocational training for up to three years.
Rather than merely providing a cash allowance, Andersen said, the bill would incentivize ADC participants to expedite their job training and become financially self-sufficient sooner, transforming the state’s “welfare system” into a “workforce system.”
“By passing LB379, we send a clear message — Nebraska believes in the dignity of work,” Andersen said. “Our people deserve the security, stability and pride that comes from earning a paycheck rather than relying on government.”
Clay Rhodes, representing the Foundation for Government Accountability, spoke in favor of the proposal. He said adjusting the duration of cash assistance would reinforce the program’s original purpose of being a short-term support system that encourages a swift return to employment.
“This approach isn’t about reducing aid, it is about enhancing its effectiveness,” Rhodes said.
Andrea Evans, a former ADC participant, opposed the measure. She said reducing the time limit for assistance before addressing structural problems within the program, such as low benefit levels, would create more hardships for families who already are struggling to make ends meet.
ADC benefit levels are not enough to live on, Evans said, and cutting the number of months a family can receive those benefits would only make their lives more difficult.
“Participants are weaving together a complicated web of supports just to keep their kids fed and housing,” she said.
Taylor Givens-Dunn, representing I Be Black Girl, also spoke in opposition. She said the proposal would disproportionately impact families who face systemic barriers to economic mobility such as discrimination, lack of access to child care and health care instability.
Minority families are more likely to experience these barriers and often are significantly impacted by policies that reduce support for low-income families, she said.
“Policies like LB379 fail to account for the compounded challenges faced by Black, Indigenous and other marginalized families in our state, including the long-term effects of historical inequities and present-day discrimination,” Givens-Dunn said.
Testifying in opposition on behalf of Nebraska Appleseed, Diane Amdor expressed concern that the bill would not provide individuals living in extreme poverty with enough time to become financially self-sufficient. She noted that many ADC recipients struggle under the existing maximum time limit.
The committee took no immediate action on LB379.
