No Drug Testing for Welfare Recipients, Federal Court Says

Florida residents who sign up for welfare benefits won’t have to pee in a cup to prove their eligibility.

That ruling came out of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday in response to Gov. Rick Scott’s request to reinstate a 2011 law that requires welfare recipients to submit to mandatory drug testing, CBS News reported.

The three-judge panel determined Florida’s desire to drug test all applicants for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program violated the Constitution’s Fourth Amendment.

“By virtue of poverty, TANF applicants are not stripped of their legitimate expectations of privacy,” Circuit Judge Stanley Marcus, the Orlando Sentinel reported. Essentially, the judges said the law amounts to illegal search and seizure, CBS reported.

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The ruling upholds a decision last year by U.S. District Judge Mary Scriven in Tampa that called for the permanent halt of the 2011 law. That law required those seeking benefits to pay up to $45 for drug screenings. Those costs were refundable if the tests came back negative. Only an estimated one in 40 tests were positive while the law was in effect, the Sentinel pointed out.

The appeals court’s ruling could have an impact on similar laws in other states, the paper said.

It is unclear at this time if the Scott administration will continue to push the issue beyond the appeals court.

What are your thoughts on this? Should welfare recipients be required to submit to drug testing? Tell us by commenting below!

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