Please Don’t Forget to Write--Especially to Your Constituents

C ivic-minded constituents regularly grill their elected representatives on everything from welfare reform to the budget deficit to U.S. policy in Bosnia. If the issue is on the national stage, members of Congress prepare themselves for inquiries--sometimes scores and scores of inquiries--from the voters back home.

Lawmakers employ designated staffers to help sort through the correspondence and send out an appropriate reply. And just like the speeches they deliver on the House floor, congressmen’s jottings differ widely in their take on the issues.

The following is a sampling of recent missives from local lawmakers on welfare reform and illegal immigration . *

Rep. Howard L. Berman (D-Panorama City)

“Thank you for contacting me to express your views on welfare reform. I share your concerns and appreciate hearing your opinions.

“I voted against the Republican welfare reform bill which recently passed the House. This legislation would end the federal entitlement status of Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), school breakfast and lunch programs, and child protection programs and turn money for these programs over to the states in the form of block grants. Total welfare spending would be cut dramatically over the next five years.

“Like most Americans, I am convinced that the current welfare system is in need of comprehensive reform. However, I could not vote for such drastic funding cuts and programmatic changes in good conscience because I believe they will worsen rather than improve the fundamental problems with our current system and the condition of the underclass. . . .

“Although the House has already passed its welfare reform bill, the Republican majority in the Senate is still negotiating the provisions of its own welfare legislation. Some moderate members of the Senate are pushing for a better bill than that passed by the House, and I hope they prevail. If the final conference agreement between the House and the Senate ends up in a form similar to the House bill, I will urge the President to veto it.”

*

Rep. Carlos J. Moorhead (R-Glendale)

“Thank you for your comments regarding welfare reform.

“Most people agree that our welfare programs as they now exist perpetuate poverty, dependence and despair. Previous reform efforts have not made any progress, and the President’s proposal does not represent enough change either.

“I am convinced that we must move beyond the status quo to make a difference. Five million families now receive Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) benefits--up from 3.7 million families in 1988, when we last ‘reformed’ the welfare system. Over half of these families will depend on welfare for 10 years or more.

“From 1965 to 1990, the percentage of children born out-of-wedlock grew from 7% to 32%. Illegitimate children are three times more likely to eventually be on welfare. The number of AFDC mothers working has fallen from 14% in 1979 to 7% in 1990. Funding for welfare programs is estimated to increase from $325 billion in 1993 to $500 billion by 1998. There is no way to quantify the broken spirits and lost opportunities.

“In summary, we have spent over $5 trillion in combined government spending on welfare benefits since President Johnson began the ‘War on Poverty’ and more people are on welfare than ever before. Clearly the system is not working and both taxpayers and welfare recipients, including children, are paying the price for its failure.

“Therefore, I voted for H. R. 4, the Personal Responsibility Act, which was passed by the House on March 24th. . . .”

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Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson (D-Woodland Hills)

“The primary reason people come to this country illegally is to find jobs. When Congress enacted employer sanctions as part of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), we did so in recognition of the fact that, because immigrants come here primarily to seek work, it is necessary to deter employers from hiring those who are not here legally. What we failed to do at that time, however, was to provide a sound and dependable way for employers to determine whether or not a prospective employee is here legally. Without that, it is virtually impossible to enforce the employer sanction law.

“Our failure to establish a reliable means of enforcing the employer sanctions law has created other problems as well. The law has generated widespread discrimination against U.S. citizens and legal residents who may look or sound foreign, and has created a huge, multimillion-dollar underground industry in counterfeit and fraudulent Social Security cards, green cards, voter registration cards and the 26 other kinds of documents that can be used to demonstrate one’s work eligibility.

“All of these problems would be solved by the development of a counterfeit-resistant Social Security card. This card would serve as the single work authorization document for all eligible workers in the United States, both citizens and non-citizens alike. An improved Social Security card is the best way to fix the problems with the existing law, making it both enforceable and fair. No matter how many other ways we attempt to curb illegal immigration, we will not succeed unless we make our existing employer sanctions law enforceable. . . .”

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Rep. Carlos J. Moorhead (R-Glendale)

“I share your concerns over the number of immigrants illegally controlling our borders and the social and economic impact it is having on California. For years, the federal government has not devoted the resources needed to stop the flow of illegal immigration at the border, and to deport those who are in our country in violation of the law. This failure has imposed an unfair burden on our state’s ability to provide public services, such as education, health care and law enforcement, to our law-abiding residents. . . .

“As a member of the Immigration Subcommittee, I will have the opportunity in the new majority to enact federal legislation to put an end to public aid for illegal immigrants aside from immunizations, emergency food and health care. Today more immigrants are coming to the United States than at any time in history. We must put a halt to this massive invasion and regain control of our borders. . . .”