More jobs gone....

In a blog post written by Brooke Breitling, from the Texas Observer titled "Texas Senators Do Nothing to Save Thousands of Jobs," Brooke states that the Temporary Assistance for Needy Family Emergency Fund expired on September 30th.  According to Breitling, this will cause Texas to lose about 40,000 jobs.  Breitling states that the program was supposed to have gotten an extension for another three months, but was shutdown by Senate Republicans. 

The TANF program subsidizes employers to cover wages for the working poor.  When this program expires, employers would have to lay off thousands of workers nation-wide.   Breitling sites a report done by the Center for Public Policy Priorities which states that the number of TANF cases has decreased over 80% in the past few years, but not because of the number of qualifying families has decreased, but because the requirements for low income families to receive assistance are gravely exaggerated.  Of all the poor families, only a small fraction receives assistance. 

Breitling argues that the inaction of the Senate Republicans has effectively made Texas keep its ranking as the 5^th highest poverty rate.    She is perplexed, and quite annoyed at the fact that they effectively got rid of thousands of jobs in a time when jobs are already scarce. 

The data that the author uses to make these arguments is from very credible sources (Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPPP.org, and Census Bureau), and it backs up her opinion on the lack of action of government figures to allow this program to expire, which would have enabled many people to continue to work, or maybe even move away from poverty.  It makes no sense for a governing body, which is supposed to look out for the best of its citizens, to allow for programs such as these to just simply expire, leaving many of its citizens out to dry.  In part, I agree with the author when she states, “This is why the poverty rate in Texas’ poverty population is at 16.6 percent* – the 5th highest rate in the nation,” but I don’t believe it is the sole source for poverty being so high.  There are always other factors such as education, job availability, and many more which I cannot expand very extensively on. 

Our leaders need to take a closer look at what they can do to help out their citizens.  It is not only when they need their vote that they should look out for them.  In the current economic situation that this nation is going through, allowing for thousands of people to become unemployed is simply unacceptable.