Frank Antenori has been a champion of drug testing recipients of public assistance, but it turns out in Florida, which doing this for awhile, it just doesn’t work on any level whatsoever:
Required drug tests for people seeking welfare benefits ended up costing taxpayers more than it saved and failed to curb the number of prospective applicants, data used against the state in an ongoing legal battle shows….
Of the 4,086 applicants who scheduled drug tests while the law was enforced, 108 people, or 2.6 percent, failed, most often testing positive for marijuana. About 40 people scheduled tests but canceled them, according to the Department of Children and Families, which oversees Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, known as the TANF program.
The numbers, confirming previous estimates, show that taxpayers spent $118,140 to reimburse people for drug test costs, at an average of $35 per screening.
The state’s net loss? $45,780.
“That’s not counting attorneys and court fees and the thousands of hours of staff time it took to implement this policy,” Newton said.
The law also didn’t impact the number of people who applied for benefits.
This article appears in Apr 19-25, 2012.
Well, yes of course, Dan Gibson. Theatric moves such as Raytheon’s Frank Antenori’s in this instance are for fundraising…
Similarly, AZ Governor Jan Brewer supposedly wrote and actually published…a book!
So what about the 40 that cancelled out–knew they would fail so at least did not cost the State anything. How do you know it did not impact the numbers? The takers as a % of the population continues to increase with a willing government ready to pass out the hand outs. If Florida stayed the same, that would indicate that as a % the takes were a smaller % of the total population. Sounds like a win win for Florida.
As an aside, why would any one want to give freebies to druggies?
GO FRANK!
Seriously — since when does a demagog like Frank Antenori give any weight to actual facts?
Sorry, but we have every right to expect those that get public assistance to use that MONEY for food, etc.. NOT drugs. Otherwise, GET OFF the assistance and go do your drugs all you want, on YOUR dime.
“Sorry, but we have every right to expect those that get public assistance to use that MONEY for food, etc.. NOT drugs” — Guiseppe.
Principle at any cost. So if Florida spent $118,140 to screen people for drugs and thus refrained from handing out $72,360 in funds — SOME of which would have gone for food and necessities, not all for drugs — and therefore wasted $45,780, that’s OK with you. I’m glad Florida can afford to throw away, on principle, $45K here and $45K there; Arizona certainly should not be wasting that kind of money.
Obongo just wasted half a BILLION on a green company in taxpayer money…..what the hell is $45k here and $45k there??????????????
I have to take a drug test, and agree to random testing, to hold my job so I can pay the taxes that the welfare people take from me, and yet THEY don’t have to go through drug screening in most states??????
OK, wise guys, tell me what’s wrong with this picture.