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Show Utah Foundation's Report Released On State Aid to Dependent Children Parental estrangements account ac-count for more than one-half the present aid to dependent children caseload, according to a report, released this week by Utah Foundation, the non-profit tax research re-search organization. During the early years of the program, death or incapacity of one or both of the parents were the two most frequent causes of aid to dependent children in cases in Utah, the Foundation reports. However, the emphasis has shifted in recent years, and aid to dependent children is be. coming primarily a program for children deprived of parental support by reason of parental estrangements. es-trangements. Utah Foundaiion lists total expenditures ex-penditures for the aid of dependent depend-ent children program in Utah during the fiscal vear ended June 30, 1952 at $3,813,944, of which $2,200,742 was supplied by the state and $1,713,202 by the Federal Feder-al Government. Twenty-nine cents out of every public welfare dollar spent in Utah was used for aid to dependent children, compared with 48 cents for old-age old-age assistance and 23 cents for all other welfare programs and activities. Foundation analysts point out that Utah's divorce rate of 3.1 divorces per 1,000 population is higher than the average for the nation, although it is lower than the rate for most of the surrounding surround-ing states. During 1951, there were 32 divorces for every 100 marriages performed in Utah. The Utah Foundation study cites a special report made to the 1946 Tax Study committee in which it was indicated that the security offered by the aid to dependent children program may he a factor contributing to parental par-ental irresponsibility and increased in-creased divorce, separation and desertion rates. During a special meeting of district judges held at the State Capitol several years ago, the problem of the alarming increase in aid to dependent children resulting from family estrangements estrange-ments was discussed. There was general agreement among various vari-ous judges present that all resources re-sources of the family should be examined before establishing the amount of alimony or support money that should be awarded in each divorce or separation case. Bills introduced without success suc-cess in the last three Utah Legislatures Leg-islatures would have permitted the court in any divorce or separate sep-arate maintenance to direct the Welfare department to investigate investi-gate certain matters in such cases and report its findings to the court. Such a report could be considered by the court in fixing alimony and support, with a view to reduce the likelihood of the children requiring public aid. Although alimony or support money was decreed in Sl'.'r of the aid to dependent children cases involving divorce that were active ac-tive in January, 1952, only about 35 of the total amount decreed de-creed by the courts was actually actual-ly paid by the legally responsible responsi-ble spouse. In examining long-term recipient recipi-ent trends, the Foundation study acknowledges that periods of war, such as World War II and the Korean War, have brought about immediate and substantial twtiiftii-inc n th niri tn derjend- ent children case load. It warns, however, that war creates social problems that intensify the dependent de-pendent children problem in later lat-er years. The rapid increase in aid to dependent children cases following World War II is cited as an example. For this reason, the Foundation suggests that the decline in aid to dependent children chil-dren since the beginning of the Korean War perhaps should be viewed with some caution. Utah's average aid to dependent depend-ent children grant of $107.44 per family in July, 1952, was 7th highest in the nation and AVe higher than the average for the United States, according to the Utah Foundation study. The foundation states hat an aid to dependent childien experiment experi-ment conducted in 1951 indicated that substantial savings in pub-1 lie assistance are possible through more intensive investigation investi-gation and casework. An outgrowth out-growth of this experiment has been the reorganization of the Salt Lake County Welfare department. de-partment. The purposes of this reorganization are to effect savings sav-ings (such as were obtained in the aid to dependent children ex-periment) ex-periment) and to provide better service by concentrating more ef-I ef-I fort on those cases which require special attention. |
