Nebraska applicants and recipients of cash assistance benefits under the Welfare Reform Act would be subject to drug testing under a bill heard March 10 by the Health and Human Services Committee.<\/p>\n
LB221 would require the state Department of Health and Human Services to develop a program to screen Aid to Dependent Children (ADC) applicants or recipients for use of nonprescribed controlled substances, if there is reasonable cause to believe the individual is using such a substance.<\/p>\n
If a positive result is confirmed after an administrative hearing, the individual would be ineligible for ADC assistance for one year and the department would refer the individual to the division of behavioral health for referral to a treatment program.<\/p>\n
Fremont Sen. Charlie Janssen, sponsor of the bill, said he introduced the measure after many Nebraskans told him it was unfair for them to be drug tested to qualify for employment when no such requirement exists for those receiving cash assistance from the state.<\/p>\n
Janssen said he limited the bill\u2019s provisions to individuals receiving ADC out of concern for their ability to parent.<\/p>\n
\u201cClouding this important responsibility with drug use is not fair,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Fullerton dentist Daniel Maas testified in favor of the bill, saying the state should have the same ability to drug test welfare recipients as employers have to test employees.<\/p>\n
Tax dollars from citizens\u2019 payroll deductions should not be used to subsidize drug use, he added.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am disturbed that some of the money my staff has earned is going to support people who are abusing drugs,\u201d Maas said.<\/p>\n
Aubrey Mancuso of Voices for Children in Nebraska testified against the bill, saying its provisions are punitive and contrary to ADC\u2019s goal of moving families to self-sufficiency.<\/p>\n
A family that qualifies for ADC already is in a desperate financial situation, she said, and any reduction in cash benefits would have a significant impact.<\/p>\n
\u201cLB221 will harm innocent children and struggling families,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Saying the bill would be more likely to harm children than help them, James Goddard of Nebraska Appleseed testified in opposition.<\/p>\n
The state\u2019s child welfare system currently has mechanisms in place for addressing parental drug abuse, he said, adding that the bill\u2019s effect may be the opposite of what is intended due to parents\u2019 fear of losing benefits.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis bill could deter them from seeking treatment in the first place,\u201d Goddard said.<\/p>\n
Amy Miller, legal director of ACLU Nebraska, also testified in opposition, saying the state likely would face legal challenges if the measure becomes law. She said the only court that has examined the issue of drug testing as a qualification for public assistance ruled that doing so violates the Fourth Amendment.<\/p>\n
Drug testing for private sector employment is not the same as the government engaging in drug testing, Miller said, because Fourth Amendment search and seizure prohibitions do not apply to the private sector.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a private arrangement with an employer,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The committee took no immediate action on the bill.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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