Letter to the Editor:

Mandatory drug testing for Family Independence Program (FIP) recipients was proposed by Governor John Engler in his 1998 State of the State Message. Since this announcement was made there has been a great deal of dialogue about the proposal, both for and against it. Many misconceptions about the proposal have surfaced. I would like to clarify the intent of the proposal and discuss what I see as the benefits.

Governor Engler's highly successful welfare reform program, To Strengthen Michigan Families, focuses on encouraging families to become independent through personal responsibility. Much of this success is based on an individual's ability to find and maintain productive employment. Substance abuse in any form is a major barrier to gaining and maintaining employment.

The intent of our proposed pilot to test recipients of Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) for use of illegal drugs is not to punish them for their reliance on drugs but to assist them in receiving treatment. Parents are more able to provide both financial and emotional stability to a child when there is no longer a reliance on drugs. They are clearly better able to plan for their family's future if there are no substance abuse barriers in their resume. Children's safety will be enhanced when their parents receive treatment. Their sense of stability will also improve.

Assistance to a needy family will not be withheld because a parent tests positive for drugs. In fact, the condition for receiving assistance will be that the recipient participate in a drug treatment program, not that they test negative for drug use. Individuals who test positive and pursue treatment will continue to receive financial assistance as well as all the other support services our agency has to offer those on the road to independence. This emphasis on treatment will provide many families with the ability to become whole again rather than being fragmented by reliance on drugs.

Barriers to self-sufficiency come in many forms. These may be difficulties in arranging consistent day care or reliable transportation. The FIA assists our recipients in addressing and removing these barriers. We should also assist our recipients in removing the barrier of addiction to drugs. It is a barrier that is not as easily fixed as day care or transportation because it depends on an individual's desire to make hard changes in the way they live.

This proposal offers support and encouragement to the families who are caught in the trap of substance abuse. We will offer them a way out. We will offer them a major step in the right direction.

Sincerely,