Upon hearing that Congress would attempt to overturn a regulation restricting the use of drug tests for unemployment benefits, several Republican governors sent a letter on Tuesday in support of the resolution.
Writing to Rep. Kevin Brady, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, Govs. Greg Abbott (TX), Phil Bryant (MS), Gary Herbert (UT), and Scott Walker (WI) stated:
“We write to you today in support of H.J. Res. 42, your legislation that would disapprove of the United States Department of Labor’s recent regulation regarding states’ ability to drug test individuals who apply for unemployment insurance (UI). Congress authorized the Labor Department to craft a rule that would provide states the option to drug test unemployment insurance applicants.”
“Unfortunately, the Obama Administration drafted the rule too narrowly, undermining the intent of Congress and permitting drug testing in too few instances,” the document continued. “We believe this rule should be replaced with a new rule that allows increased flexibility for states to implement UI drug testing that best fits the needs of each state. Thank you for introducing this important legislation and we look forward to working with Congress on this issue going forward.”
The House of Representatives voted 236-189 on Wednesday to advance H.J. Resolution 42 by utilizing the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to unwind regulations 60 legislative days after they come into effect. The resolution would stop an August 2016 regulation that limited the scope of such testing on the state level to unemployed applicants “for whom suitable work (as defined under the State law) is available only in an occupation that regularly conducts drug testing.” President Donald Trump, for his part, already issued a statement last Tuesday saying that he would sign it should it pass the Senate and come to his desk.
All four governors are from states that signed laws drug tests for recipients of unemployment compensation in the past. However, Governor Abbott and Governor Walker both faced uphill battles as they waited for guidance from the Department of Labor. And Walker’s lawsuit against the Department of Agriculture for a similar rule on food stamps got shot down last October.
Opponents have previously argued that drug-testing applicants would either be a waste of taxpayer funds or, in some cases, outright illegal.
A ThinkProgress article from February 2016 reported that only 321 people tested positive in 10 states despite spending more than $800,000 on implementing the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program during 2015. And as for testing food stamp recipients, Kevin Concannon, undersecretary at the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service and an Obama-era appointee, argued in a January interview with the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: “The law clearly does not allow it. [Walker’s] office forwarded that request to us and it was very clear, we consulted the legal counsels here and the law absolutely does not allow it.”
Proponents, however, believe that expanding the use of drug testing would help the poor get treatment and reinforce the notion of personal responsibility.
“If someone fails the test, we help them with rehabilitation, so they can get healthy and ready to enter the workforce,” Walker said in a Tuesday statement. “Over and over again, employers are telling us of their dramatic needs for people who are ready to work and able to pass a drug test. This scheduled vote by the House of Representatives is an important first step to advancing bold welfare reform in Wisconsin and across our nation.”
A spokesman for Walker also told U.S. News and World Report on Tuesday that “we will help our fellow citizen when they are down and out, but public assistance should be a trampoline, not a hammock.”
