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When the stimulus bill was passed, it was heralded by many as an important and vital program to help those struggling in the economy. It would make it easier for those without work to get some and for those down on their luck to survive the drought. It was the plight of the unemployed and the struggling that spurred Obama and Congress to take action. So, how is that going?

Last fall, North Texas received $25 million in stimulus funds to help the homeless and those on the verge of homelessness. Only about $2 million of that has been spent. The small amount spent has nothing to do with the lack of applicants for those funds. It has to do with government management. It is not unusual for applicants to have to wait several weeks to get an appointment. This is attributed by some to the lack of staff needed to process the paper work along with the large numbers of people filing for assistance. Others attribute at least part of the problem to difficulties with the computer system used to process the claims. Curiously, while some claim the difficulties have to do with the unanticipated number of applicants, others worry that not enough people are aware of the program or now how to apply for assistance. "There is a lot of money that people don't know they could access" said an official working for one of the programs administering the funds.

Like for all federal programs, the application process is laborious. Applicants must first have an interview to determine eligibility. Next, they must provide documentation of income, or lack thereof, as well as housing status. Those without an income are not eligible for the program. The program only provides help with rent and utilities, not mortgages or other bills. Those seeking help with mortgages and bills are referred to another office for assistance where they have to start all over again. Presumably there are some signs posted on the wall to that effect. One applicant groused that he had called several agencies before he finally got an appointment. At that appointment he was told he was ineligible for that particular program because he did not have a job. He applied had to the wrong agency. Others seeking aid found out it would take a month to get an appointment just to apply for the aid. If they were approved for aid, it would take up to four months more to receive it. No doubt there is a story for every applicant.

When federal programs are enacted, they are announced with fanfare. The public is told of the great needs that program will meet and what a benefit it will be to society. The program will feed the hungry, shelter the poor, assist the struggling, ameliorate some crisis or another, and provide succor for those in need. Chances are statistics will be laid out such as how much money has been appropriated and how many people it is expected will be helped and how much they will be helped. Politicians will make speeches and take credit for the hard work they put in to provide that relief. Interest groups will issue press releases where they too will take credit for working to get the program enacted and laud the help that program will provide. Government will be able to move on to the next issue. Society will be able to relax and get on about its business comfortable in knowing that the less fortunate are being tended to.

However, it is those in need of that program that have to endure it. They are the ones who experience its true effects. The measure of a federal or state program is not the money budgeted, the number of offices and employees, or the mission statement. The true measure of a program is how it affects those who must rely upon it. It is the ones standing in line and filling out the forms that are best able to speak to the efficacy of a program. It is the ones who must meet the stipulations and bear the burdens that come with that aid that are best able to testify to its merits. If you want to know how successful or effective a program is, do not speak with the politicians who crafted it or the lobbyists who supported it. They do not rely upon those programs. Speak with the people who do.