How the Welfare System Helps But Doesn’t Cure

The government provided welfare system in Texas is just like that of any other state, in need of reform and to be put under strict observance to help families who actually need and are seeking help rather than take advantage of the system. While welfare is tricky, it is also beneficial and the numbers found on government websites and secondary sources provide an idea of what it is like for a family of four to live off of the welfare system in Texas as well as a family of four above the poverty line to live here. Benefits and resources are available to both but with each individual situation comes different and specific problems. Overall, the Texas welfare system is attempting to help those in needy situations but could work to solve not just the front stage problems but the emotional and mental back stage problems preventing families from getting off of the welfare system in Texas.
The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program helps poor families by providing monthly cash payments for basic needs. According to the TANF government website, a two-parent family of four can receive up to $341 per month for six months and then they are up to a referral (3,5). With this the family will receive a Lone Star Card that may be used for cash benefits in however the family wants to use it. Within this program the family may apply for SNAP benefits. This is the Texas Food Stamp Program where the government provides monthly cash on the Lone Star Card to be used in specific grocery stores for approved food and drinks. According to the Texas Health and Human Resources Commission government website, a family of four may receive up to $632 monthly (4). Other programs available for needy families include child care services; according to the Texas Workforce Commission, these services are provided to families and single-parents who want to either continue working, train for a job, or receive education (8,9). The family’s income, amount of reduction and amount of kids determines how much that family will pay for childcare. According to the Share of Cost report found on that page, a family of four may pay between $981 to $2,229 for childcare on the welfare system (8). According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development website, programs are available for families in need of housing welfare; such programs include housing vouchers, and housing assistance (6). While no charts and specific numbers can be found for housing because wherever the family lives and even what apartment they receive will determine how much housing for a family of four under the poverty line will have to pay, Waco provides many low-income housing options where the government pays either the apartment landlord or uses the voucher system. Over 13 corporations and apartments in Waco provide housing for low-income/low-income elderly persons and families to live, according to Low Income Housing US website (7).
My opinion on welfare programs set up has had a long time to develop and continues to be challenged today. To begin, my mother has been in four failed marriages and raised two kids. She continues to pay for my education today while working in a strict work environment that is extremely demanding both physically and emotionally. We have never lived in houses unless we have another financial supporter. I can understand the levels of stress financial problems, jobs, and finding basic needs can have on a parent because I’ve seen it. My mother, while I was still in high school, and I lived under the poverty line without government assistance because she chose not to. Even today, almost two years later she does not have healthcare and neither do I, and she continues to live under the poverty line. It is a harsh world and my mom works so hard to put me through Baylor so that I can rise above our social standards, so that I won’t have to live like she does and I can be financially well-off. From that, as