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Well, there he goes again. Gov. Tate Reeves blocked a federal summer food program for poor school children because it would “expand the welfare state.”

Welfare has become the Governor’s latest strawman. He has opposed Medicaid expansion because, “adding 300,000 able-bodied adults to the welfare rolls is not the right thing to do.” He denied continuation of the pandemic rent assistance program saying, “Mississippi will continue to say no to these types of liberal handouts that encourage people to stay out of the workforce.”

Perhaps the Governor’s lamenting about welfare is simply a means to deflect attention from real problems.

Consider this:

“Mississippians don’t want welfare,” the Governor likes to say, “they want to work.” Well, there is some evidence he ought to be saying, “Many Mississippians need welfare because they can’t find work.”

Mississippi’s lowest-in-the-nation labor force participation rate points to this. That rate, at just 53.9%, shows nearly half of our population age 16 and up not only don’t have jobs but they also aren’t looking for jobs.

And our major adult welfare programs – TANF and SNAP – aren’t the problem. Both now require able-bodied adults to get jobs in order to draw benefits.

The Temporary Assistance for Needy Programs requires any adult between ages 18 and 60 who is receiving funds, unless exempted, to participate in the TANF Work Program. The Mississippi Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program limits SNAP benefits to three months for every “able-bodied adult without dependents” between ages 18 and 60 who does not meet agency work requirements or is exempted. Exemptions generally arise from mental and physical disabilities, care for dependents, pregnancy, or school attendance.

The real problem looks to be that the economies in parts of Mississippi aren’t doing very well and jobs are scarce, particularly living wage jobs. Mississippi’s labor force participation rate has been in decline since hitting 63.3% in 1994.

Perhaps the Governor should acknowledge that Mississippi is a “welfare state” – persistent poverty, low wages, stagnant population – and needs every federal dollar it can get. State government got over $12 billion in federal government hand-outs for 41% of its FY 24 budget. Another $25 billion or so flowed into Mississippi through direct payments, contracts, grants, loans, and other financial assistance. All this makes Mississippi one of the states most dependent upon federal funds.

Complaining about the “welfare state” to turn away federal dollars may be politically popular but does nothing to solve our problems or put people to work in distressed areas.

In muted contrast, Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann has made finding real solutions to our labor force participation problem a top priority in the Legislature this session.

Bill Crawford is a syndicated columnist from Jackson.