File this in the "I told you so"
file,
Preliminary figures on a new Florida law requiring drug tests for welfare applicants show that they are less likely than other people to use drugs, not more.
Call me shocked...I would have never guessed in a million years that forcing people to pee in a cup to get welfare benefits and food stamps, while humiliating, would be a waste of time and money.
Of course I doubt the Republicans who passed this stupid law gave a crap about the costs or whether it would really do any good. They got what they wanted: humiliation of the poor. Florida Republicans passed a law in search of a problem. Per the AP article, "[t]he Justice Department estimates that 6 percent of Americans 12 and older use illegal drugs." Guess how many people tested positive in Florida when they applied for benefits. Just take a guess, I will wait for a minute while you think about that...
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Okay, have your answer? Here is the actual percentage:
Preliminary figures show that about 2.5 percent of up to 2,000 applicants for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families have tested positive since the law went into effect in July. Another 2 percent declined to take the test, Department of Children and Families officials say.
So 50 people out of 2,000 tested positive. Even if you add the 2% that refused to be tested, you are still under 100 people and still below the national average. The cost of one of these tests is between $10 and $25 so it cost the State of Florida between $20,000 on the low end to $70,000 on the high end. With these being Republicans, the high number is probably closer to being accurate.
Florida is not releasing numbers on how much it saved by requiring these drug tests—my guess is that those numbers will not be forthcoming as they will not be favorable to the program.
At least now I have facts to slap up on the next Facebook post I see demanding welfare recipients be tested for drugs.