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rangerrebew

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The war on poverty: 50 years later
« on: April 21, 2014, 05:13:08 pm »
The War on Poverty: 50 Years Later


“Our aim is not only to relieve the symptom of poverty, but to cure it and, above all, to prevent it. No single piece of legislation, however, is going to suffice.”
- President Lyndon Johnson, 1964 State of the Union Address


Fifty years ago, President Lyndon Johnson declared war on poverty. Since then, Washington has created dozens of programs and spent trillions of dollars. But few people have stopped to ask, “Are they working?”
 
In “The War on Poverty: 50 Years Later,” the House Budget Committee majority staff starts to answer that question.
 
 There are at least 92 federal programs designed to help lower-income Americans. For instance, there are dozens of education and job-training programs, 17 different food-aid programs, and over 20 housing programs. The federal government spent $799 billion on these programs in fiscal year 2012.


Program Area
  # of federal programs   Cost in FY2012
 
Cash aid   5  $220 billion
 
Education and job training   28  $94.4 billion
 
Energy   2  $3.9 billion
 
Food aid   17  $105 billion
 
Health care   8  $291.3 billion
 
Housing   22  $49.6 billion
 
Social Services   8  $13 billion
 
Veterans   2  $21.8 billion
 
TOTALS   92  $799 billion
 
 
But rather than provide a roadmap out of poverty, Washington has created a complex web of programs that are often difficult to navigate. Some programs provide critical aid to families in need. Others discourage families from getting ahead. And for many of these programs, we just don’t know. There’s little evidence either way.
 
 So in a spirit of reform, this report hopes to inform the public debate. This important anniversary is an opportunity to review the record in full. And we should seize it.
Section-by-Section Breakdown
 
Cash Aid
Data | Charts
 •
Number of federal programs: 5


Number of federal agencies involved: 3

Social Security Administration


Department of Health and Human Services


Department of the Treasury.



Fiscal year 2012 cost: $220 billion

Education and Job Training
Data | Charts  •
Number of federal programs: 24

Number of tax expenditures: 4



Number of federal agencies involved: 7

 Department of Education


Department of Health and Human Services


 Department of Labor


Corporation for National and Community Service


Environmental Protection Agency


Department of the Interior


Department of the Treasury



Fiscal year 2012 cost: $94.4 billion

 
Energy
Data | Charts
 •
Number of federal programs: 2


Number of federal agencies involved: 2

Department of Energy


Department of Health and Human Services



Fiscal year 2012 cost: $3.9 billion

 
Food Aid
Data | Charts
 •
Number of federal programs: 17


Number of federal agencies involved: 3

Department of Agriculture


Department of Health and Human Services


Department of Homeland Security



Fiscal year 2012 cost: $105 billion


Health Care
Data | Charts
 •
Number of federal programs: 8


Number of federal agencies involved: 1


Department of Health and Human Services



Fiscal year 2012 cost: $291.3 billion

 
Housing
Data | Charts
 •
Number of federal programs: 20


Number of tax expenditures: 2


Number of federal agencies involved: 3

Department of Agriculture


Department of Housing and Urban Development


Department of Treasury



Fiscal year 2012 cost: $49.6 billion

 
Social Services
Data | Charts
 •
Number of federal programs: 8


Number of federal agencies involved: 7

Department of Housing and Urban Development


Appalachian Regional Commission


Department of Commerce


Federal Communications Commission

◦Department of Transportation 

The Judiciary


Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency for the District of Columbia


Legal Services Corporation



Fiscal year 2012 cost: $13 billion

 
Veterans
Data | Charts
 •
Number of federal programs: 2


Number of federal agencies involved: 1

Department of Veterans Affairs



Fiscal year 2012 cost: $21.8 billion

 
 
http://budget.house.gov/waronpoverty/
« Last Edit: April 21, 2014, 05:30:02 pm by rangerrebew »

Oceander

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Re: The war on poverty: 50 years later
« Reply #1 on: April 21, 2014, 05:14:19 pm »
Do you have a link to the original story?