In today’s New York Times, A. G. Sulzberger reported only 32 temporary assistance applicants in Florida failed their required drug tests while 7,030 passed. That’s a 0.4% fail rate.
Based on the NYT estimate that the average temporary assistance applicant receives $253 monthly for less than five months, the state has saved $40,480 in denied benefits due to drug testing. With an average test cost of about $35, the state reimbursed $246,050 for the tests of those who passed. The net loss to the state of $200,000 since July does not include substantial administrative or legal costs.
According to the ACLU, since the state requires applicants to pay for tests in advance and testing facilities are not available in every community, it’s impossible to know how many of the 1,597 applicants who did not take the test would have passed or failed or would have lost eligibility otherwise. There are at least 13 reasons other than fear of failure why someone who is eligible for temporary assistance may not complete a drug test.
–It will be interesting to see how much the Escambia County School District’s new random drug testing will cost the taxpayers. The drug dog searches did little.