Editorial: Washington should help the neediest

Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2002 | 8:58 a.m.

There was a sharp increase in the number of people without jobs following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, and the sluggish economy also has translated into a sharp rise in the number of welfare cases in Nevada since then. Those eligible to receive funding under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program (TANF) has grown since Sept. 11, from 8,800 to 13,000 families in Nevada. But the federal government's formula for providing assistance for needy families doesn't take into account factors such as a state's population growth or even the actual increase in welfare cases, creating a hardship in Nevada.

The state receives the federal TANF funds and it distributes them to Nevada's 17 counties. Nevada's $22 million reserve of welfare funds is expected to be depleted by June. In order to keep the state's program from going into the red, state officials will have to cut Clark County's portion by 75 percent so that the state can keep providing some of the basic services -- food and shelter. Everything seems to run downstream when the economy turns sour, and welfare funding is no exception. The federal government's miserly formula means that Clark County government will have to dip into its budget to offset the loss of funds.

The disconnect between Washington and what's happening in the rest of the nation is clear regarding welfare assistance. For example, President Bush and GOP members of Congress keep talking about making permanent the tax cuts passed last year. But it is unconscionable to even consider additional tax cuts for the wealthy when aid is shrinking for people who are hurting. Instead, Congress and President Bush should increase funding for needy families. Anything less is heartless.