SIMILAR BILLS TO HB 772
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (2014), at least nine states have passed legislation regarding drug testing or screening for public assistance applicants or recipients (Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Utah). Many states have proposed drug testing of applicants and recipients of public welfare benefits since federal welfare reform in 1996 (NCSL, 2014). In 2009 and 2010, over 20 states proposed legislation that would require drug testing as a condition of eligibility for public assistance programs (2014). In 2003, The Michigan Court of Appeals ruled in the case of Marchwinski v. Howard, the court ruled that subjecting every welfare applicant in the state of Michigan to drug test without reason, is unconstitutional (2014). Due to this ruling, none of the proposals became into law. Nevertheless, in 2011, proposals gained momentum in the 2011 session, and as of 2013, eight states passed legislation. At least 29 states in 2013, have introduced legislative proposals requiring drug testing or screening for public assistance applicants and recipients (2014). During a personal interview with Representative Greg Morris (R-156th), he addressed most of the states mentioned above. He stated, "...if all these other states feel so compelled to pass legislation to require drug testing for welfare benefits, then there is a problem out there, but we need these laws to be enforced, so we can prove the problem exists, it's our job as legislators to protect taxpayers' dollars, that’s why HB 772 need to be passed."
FLORIDA
The sponsor of the HB 772, Representative Greg Morris (R-156th), told the House Judiciary Committee he proposed his legislation after a federal court ruled against a Florida law to drug-test welfare applicants. Georgia had modeled its own law (HB 861) after Florida (HB 353). The Florida's law that was overturned had a blanket provision for testing, while Morris’ proposal is more narrowly drawn, calling for testing only under certain circumstances.
In 2011, Florida passed HB 353, requiring all applicants for TANF benefits be tested for controlled substances. Florida’s Governor stated, “Any illegal drug use in a family is harmful and even abusive to a child, we should have zero-tolerance policy for illegal drug use in families—especially those families who struggle to make ends meet and need welfare assistance to provide for their children” (Robles, 2013, p. 1). State data in Florida showed there were approximately 108 out of 4,086 people (2.6 percent) applying for public assistance, tested positive for controlled substances (Robles, 2013, p. 2). The state of Florida was trying to pursue a strategy of protecting children by testing all applicants, however the federal court, ruled that HB 353 was unconstitutional (NCSL, 2014). In December 2013, U.S. District Judge Mary Scriven of Florida, permanently halted enforcement of Florida’s drug testing law, because it violated the 4th amendment (Robles, 2013). There was a demonstration project conducted in Florida to determine the effects of substance abuse among applicants and recipients of TANF, it was determined that there is difficulty to determining the extent of drug use among welfare applicants and recipients (Crew and Davis, 2003).
In 2011, Florida passed HB 353, requiring all applicants for TANF benefits be tested for controlled substances. Florida’s Governor stated, “Any illegal drug use in a family is harmful and even abusive to a child, we should have zero-tolerance policy for illegal drug use in families—especially those families who struggle to make ends meet and need welfare assistance to provide for their children” (Robles, 2013, p. 1). State data in Florida showed there were approximately 108 out of 4,086 people (2.6 percent) applying for public assistance, tested positive for controlled substances (Robles, 2013, p. 2). The state of Florida was trying to pursue a strategy of protecting children by testing all applicants, however the federal court, ruled that HB 353 was unconstitutional (NCSL, 2014). In December 2013, U.S. District Judge Mary Scriven of Florida, permanently halted enforcement of Florida’s drug testing law, because it violated the 4th amendment (Robles, 2013). There was a demonstration project conducted in Florida to determine the effects of substance abuse among applicants and recipients of TANF, it was determined that there is difficulty to determining the extent of drug use among welfare applicants and recipients (Crew and Davis, 2003).