Four year limit goes into effect October 1st
FRANKENMUTH -- In three weeks a new law goes into effect in Michigan, which puts a four-year cap on welfare assistance.
The law was authored by a State Representative Ken Horn from Frankenmuth, who continues to speak out in support of a policy that will leave twelve-thousand thousand families without assistance.
Representative Horn says, " People on cash assistance, able bodied people, are required to work."
He says he wants to motivate welfare recipients to work saying, " People begin to get serious about looking for work roughly two weeks out of losing their check entirely."
The new welfare cut off actually helped Saginaw resident Haley Duel.
She says, " I actually just got a job today, but I didn't have a job so for me that was my help."
But not all Saginaw residents are so lucky. The welfare deadline is coming during an economic downturn.
Laron Atkins says, "Already bills are high so its harder for people to pay they bills and buy food you know."
As the city of Saginaw continues to struggle, so is the area soup kitchen. The kitchen can barely keep up with demand now.
Soup Kitchen manager Pam Cole says, "If we get increases its going be really hard to keep up with the pace we're at."
Still, Representative Horn sticks by his bill.
He says some families have been on welfare for 14 years. He blames state lawmakers saying, " Shame on all of us for letting this go on this long."
