The United States spends $746 billion on welfare. That's just federal spending. States also spend their own money lifting the total to $1.03 trillion. Makes your eyes water but it's still less proportionately than NZ welfare spending.
It's almost impossible to do a direct comparison to NZ because the US figure includes medical assistance. The Washington Times article suggests medical assistance makes up 46 percent of the federal spend leaving $403 billion, and most of the state spend. So my guesstimate is $500 billion all-up.
NZ spends $11 billion on welfare. Doing a straight comparison, we're spending half as much again per capita (11/4.4 x 312). That is, if the US spent as much per person they'd be spending $780 billion - not $500.
But our spending is mostly cash transfer whereas in the US its mainly in-kind assistance:
Mr. Kogan said the cash assistance figure was “a shockingly small amount of money” in the scheme of things.
“Virtually all the rest is in the form of in-kind assistance: Medicaid, SNAP, WIC, housing vouchers, Pell Grants, LIHEAP and child care vouchers; or in the form of direct services, such as community health centers, Title 1 education, foster care, school lunch and Head Start,” he said.
Rather than straight transfers, those other programs provide support for services Congress has deemed worthy of funding. SNAP is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that used to be called food stamps; LIHEAP is the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program; WIC is the Women, Infants and Children nutrition program; and Pell Grants provide assistance for college costs.
5 comments:
Until recently, I had no idea the US was such a huge welfare state: they have half as many people receiving a social security benefit as there are workers in the private sector, some years ago, and it would be much worse now. I blogged on it here if you want to see the stats I've just quoted:
The United Welfare States of America.
Yup, red states are the problem.
http://www.arktimes.com/ArkansasBlog/archives/2012/02/17/the-red-states-addicition-to-welfare
http://www.businessinsider.com/mitt-romney-47-percent-no-income-tax-map-red-republican-states-2012-9
NZ spends $11 billion on welfare.
Rubbish Lindsay - why do you spread such crap.
http://www.treasury.govt.nz/government/expenditure
NZ spends $25.5 billion on core welfare, and another $26-odd billion on "health" and "education" - so let's say a nice round $52 BILLION on welfare of all types.
We're not spending "half as much again". We're spending SIX TIMES AS MUCH.
No wonder NZ's economy is totally uncompetitive and we're teetering on the brink...
But for someone claiming to be researching and commenting on welfare since 2001 this is a pretty pathetic mistake.
Whether it's "half as much again" or "six times as much" - I think there is agreement that we are spending **far too much.**
John "softc**k" Key should have "manned up" long before now and axed WFF and the DPB. That would be a good start.
axed WFF and the DPB. That would be a good start.
Half of all welfare spend is the super. Half. The DPB is chicken-feed by comparison.
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