White House Considers Welfare Law Changes

WASHINGTON (Reuter) - The White House Wednesday confirmed it was studying ways to amend the landmark welfare law but suggested a report that it may seek to restore about one quarter of $55 billion in savings was premature.

Spokesman Mike McCurry told reporters a New York Times story that said the White House would seek to restore about a fourth of the spending that otherwise would be cut over the next six years, was "too forward-looking."

Calling the figure a calculation of "the difference between what we had in our welfare reform proposals and our balanced budget proposal versus what was in the final legislation," he added: "That doesn't necessarily steer you in the direction of what the likely fixes are going to be or what the budget recommendations to the president might (be)."

Quoting U.S. officials, the paper said the White House was studying restoring food stamp eligibility for legal immigrants who have not become citizens, increasing food stamp allotments to families with high housing costs and relaxing some of the stringent work requirements for adults without children.

After twice vetoing welfare legislation, Clinton signed a version that the Republican-controlled Congress sent him this summmer. The law ends the 61-year federal guarantee of aid to the poor, gives states broad power to design their own welfare programs and limits public assistance to five years.

In announcing that he would sign the legislation, Clinton also pledged to fix what he called its "serious flaws," singling out food stamp cuts and the curtailment of assistance to many legal immigrants as especially troubling.

The New York Times said the changes contemplated by the administration would be submitted as part of the balanced budget plan that Clinton will send Congress in February.

But McCurry said top-level budget deliberations within the administration have not yet begun, adding that final budget recomendations would not go to Clinton before mid-December.