LEWISTON, Maine — Republican Gov. Paul LePage visited a homeless shelter in here Monday to make the case for his food stamp reform initiative that he's calling "Welfare to Work." The governor views the effort as a way to help people, not hurt them.
The governor says the initiative won't affect people with disabilities, single parents, or those with several children. But it will require able-bodied people between the ages of 19 and 49 to work or volunteer 20 hours a week.
"What the program's going to call for is you have to work, make an effort to get some skills, some training, either through an educational institution or internships or things of that nature," LePage says. "And you can volunteer in places like here, soup kitchens, homeless shelters."
The governor says the new requirement isn't designed to kick people off food stamps but to help them find better jobs so they can transition off welfare.
"One thing that the state of Maine has been doing, and many states have been doing, is they throw money at the problem but they never throw the mentoring, the resources to help the people," LePage says.
In this case, LePage says the state will work with recipients to identify what skills they are lacking. He says he recognizes that some people may not be capable of working a full-time job and becoming self-sufficient.
Meanwhile, the man who runs the Hope Haven Gospel Mission, where LePage held his news conference, says he supports the governor's initiative. But Pastor John Robbins says he doesn't have many opportunities for volunteers from the public.
"We ask our clients ... to help us with the everyday chores of cleaning and doing a few and other odds and ends so we would reserve any volunteer time for our clients first," Robbins says.
LePage says there plenty of other volunteer options out there and more than 7,000 unfilled jobs in Maine. The state estimates there are between 11,000 and 12,000 Mainers who are likely to be affected by the new requirement.
