LOS ANGELES COUNTY : Judge Refuses to Order Boost in Welfare Payments
Superior Court Judge Kurt Lewin refused to order Los Angeles County to raise welfare payments to poor, single adults from $302 a month to the previous level of $341. Advocates for the homeless had argued that the lower rate violated terms of a settlement in a similar, year-old case.
But attorneys for the county held that they were following a state directive and that to pay more would encourage indigents from other counties to move to Los Angeles County.
In denying the public interest lawyers’ request for an injunction, the judge held that the earlier, related settlement could not supersede a state mandate.
General relief is paid to single adults who do not qualify for federal money under the Aid to Families With Dependent Children program.
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