Posted on 01/22/2015 8:52:19 AM PST by afraidfortherepublic
Madison — Setting up a likely legal fight in the federal courts, Gov. Scott Walker is proceeding with his plan to ensure that drug users aren't getting food stamp or jobless benefits.
Fulfilling a campaign promise, the Republican governor committed Thursday to putting the proposal in his next budget but provided few new details on how he would pursue a plan that could run afoul of federal rules in programs such as food stamps and unemployment insurance.
For the first time, he did commit to offering free treatment and job training for those testing positive for drugs, but he offered no details on how the state would cover the costs of that or the testing. The budget, Walker said in a statement, would also drop from four years from five the limit on how long a recipient could be on the Wisconsin Works program, the replacement in this state to traditional welfare.
"We know employers in Wisconsin have jobs available, but they don't have enough qualified employees to fill those positions," Walker said. "With this budget, we are addressing some of the barriers keeping people from achieving true freedom and prosperity and the independence that comes with having a good job and doing it well."
The governor has said in the past that the drug-testing proposal would only apply to able-bodied adults, not the elderly or children.
Opponents of the idea say that currently no state tests for drugs in the successor to the food stamps program known in Wisconsin as FoodShare. They say if aggressively implemented, the proposal could cost Wisconsin employers a credit on their federal taxes as well as cause a loss in federal money for FoodShare.
~snip~
The idea expands on another Walker requirement to make able-bodied FoodShare recipients receive job training.
(Excerpt) Read more at jsonline.com ...
I assume he means illegal drugs.
A federal judge would knock that down faster than it could be published.
To ensure enough skilled workers for state employers, Walker's 2015-'17 budget plan also calls for:
■■ Freezing tuition for technical college students who go into high-demand fields, a pledge he made previously on the campaign trail
■ Making all state funding for technical college dependent on their performance in meeting work force training targets. No further details were provided.
■ Increasing state scholarships by an undisclosed amount for students going into technical education classes
■ Putting $5 million a year into the Transform Milwaukee jobs program and $3 million over two years for other areas of the state, including Kenosha and Racine counties. The proposal appeared to call for new state spending in this area but a spokeswoman for Walker did not immediately respond to a request for confirmation of that.
■ Allowing candidates with "real-life experience" to take compentency tests to gain teaching licenses
FReep Mail me if you want on, or off, this Wisconsin interest ping list.
Good idea, and one you know that liberals will absolutely scream about, thus confirming that it’s a good idea.
I like this guy more each day.
Hmmm... Common sense... Go figure.
You have that right given the fact that the American judiciary intuitively favors the criminal and vive ridden elements of our society.
why would anything other type use mater??
Of course it is illegal drugs. To prohibit some very useful and effective pharmaceutical products, in permissible quantity and confined to use only for the condition it is designated to treat, would be a self-defeating action, if the intention is to either restore the individual to an able-bodied status, or to relieve long-term chronic conditions.
A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds.
Recreational drugs, that serve only to impair the capacity of the individual and the purchase of which only goes to feed a large underground economy, are of no benefit to any honest person.
Random Testing. No more than 3 days notice before test day. On test day, they pick up their check at the Health and Human Services Office after they test “Negative” for drugs. Meth stays in the system 4 days or longer. Weed, cocaine and heroin will all show up within 4 days.
I kinda like that one
A federal judge would knock that down faster than it could be published.
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Are you sure about that or are you just surmising? If Industries and Major Companies, as well as small businesses, require drug tests for employment, why can’t the Government require drug testing for people they are “paying” and giving benefits?
Oh, the Teachers’ Union will go ballistic on that one! We’ll be in for four more years of WDS — Walker Derangement Syndrome! LOL
His instincts are good. One of my favorites as a frontrunner for the Presidency. This guy is racking up victories and doing exactly what needs to be done.
You’re trying to use logic, but these decisions are increasingly political and emotional. I’ll bet you a medium-priced steak dinner that this will be shut-down by a judge within a year of passage. Deal?
Scott Walker for President
Nah; no deal because you are probably right.
Well, I have heard that in some parts of the country, there are well-known doctors you can go to who will proscribe some nice pain-killers without asking too many questions. I that case, they would test positive for opiates.....but it’s all legal, right?
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