Abstinence Programs Receive Federal Welfare Dollars

Louisiana will use $150,000 of federal welfare funds to pay for programs to encourage abstinence and reduce STDs and unwanted pregnancies. The Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget unanimously approved giving the money to the Governor's Program on Abstinence on Wednesday after disagreeing about the item last week. The money will be spread among 13 existing abstinence programs. Several legislators, including Rep. Yvonne Welch (D-Baton Rouge), walked out in protest before the vote. Welch complained that the state Department of Social Services did not give groups that help abused women, provide child care, and programs that offer other alternatives to abstinence a chance to apply for the money. Don Richey, director of the Governor's Program on Abstinence, said those programs could not have qualified, since the money was earmarked as part of a five-year federal grant for the abstinence program.

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