An editorial from The Exponent Telegram
CLARKSBURG, W.Va. — As fiscal conservatives and social advocates, we’re as angry as the majority of people when we hear of welfare recipients who abuse the system, taking advantage of what should be a hand up and exploiting it for an unintended use.
With that being said, it would seem that drug testing welfare recipients would be worthy of support. After all, no hard-working taxpayer would want money intended to feed a family, especially children, used for illegal purposes such as drug trafficking.
So in some ways, Senate Bill 6 makes sense. It calls for drug testing about 4,000 adults who apply for cash assistance through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Program, according to the Charleston Gazette-Mail.
Those who fail a drug test will have to complete a substance abuse treatment program and a job skills class. A second positive test would suspend payments for one year. A third failed test would mandate a lifetime ban from benefits.
The bill was to be read to the full House of Delegates on Monday and appears to have support among lawmakers.
They are following the lead of 13 other states that already require some drug testing for benefit recipients.
But during a recent House Judiciary Committee hearing, the bill had substantial opposition. No one from the public spoke in favor of it while about 12 spoke against…