WASHINGTON, D.C. – House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) today joined Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) and other House Republican leaders to unveil “A Better Way to Fight Poverty.” The report marks the first of six policy blueprints that House Republicans will release this month as part of our pro-growth agenda.
In an op-ed published this morning in the Washington Post, Chairman Brady laid out what the Ways and Means Committee is doing to help more Americans move off of welfare and successfully into the workforce.
The Committee also released the following four documents that highlight our specific efforts to:
PROMOTE WORK | GET INCENTIVES RIGHT
FOCUS ON RESULTS | IMPROVE INTEGRITY
CLICK HERE or below to watch Chairman Brady’s remarks from today’s press conference.
Remarks as delivered:
“Good morning, I’m Kevin Brady from Texas, Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee. I wish all of America could meet Bishop Shirley and hear the inspiring stories that we heard today. And this is not new to our Speaker, who’s been here three times, but is doing this all throughout this country. We’re here because we care. We’re serious about combating poverty in America, and we’re serious about helping millions of Americans earn their success.
“And that’s what we’re talking about. 46 million Americans who live in poverty. Now that may seem like a number, but think about it this way: think about every man, woman, and child in 24 states in America who live in poverty. And they didn’t just get there, they’ve lived there too long. And there’s no hope for change, unless this government changes, unless we do things differently. And that’s what this blueprint is about. We came together to look at and listen to people and leaders like Bishop Shirley and programs like this at the local level all across America looking at new and innovative ways, better ways, to help get people out of poverty and reach their God-given potential.
“And so the principles we’re focused on ought to be clear to every American. One, we’re going to reward work, and we’re going to expect work from those receiving government benefits. Because nowhere do you learn skills sooner, nowhere do you escape poverty faster than with a full-time job.
“We’re going to get the incentives right. We’re going to make sure everyone benefits, everyone’s better off when someone moves from welfare to work. And that means the family, the organization that’s helping them, the state, the businesses, the tax payers. Government doesn’t do that well today; we’re going to change that. We’re going to measure results. Because at the end of the day, for a government that measures how many red-cockaded woodpeckers we have, how many toilets are in homes, how much beer content is in ale – why aren’t we measuring the lives of families who want to escape poverty? Why aren’t we measuring how well we do that? And so we’re going to change that as well.
“And finally, we want to bring integrity to these programs. We want to make sure the dollars get to those who need it the most in a way that helps them the most. Those principles are what drive a better way of combatting poverty in America. I’m grateful to our Speaker for bringing us together, for leading off our solutions agenda with this issue because we are going to find a better way for America. Thank you.”
CLICK HERE to view the full report.
CLICK HERE to learn more about “A Better Way.”