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Drug Testing, Welfare, And The Special Needs Doctrine: An Argument In Support Of Drug Testing Tanf Recipients, Brianna W. Mclaughlin

Cleveland State Law Review

In 1996, Congress considered situations of children like Michael Oher when they overhauled the welfare program through the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA). One of the PRWORA’s goals is to protect children in homes receiving welfare benefits. A crucial step in the Congressional plan was authorizing states to drug test welfare recipients as a condition to receiving benefits. With this grant of authority, states enacted legislation to implement drug testing programs to protect children in welfare receiving homes from the dangers of drug addicted parents. In 2011, over thirty-six states proposed legislation requiring drug testing of welfare …