2014 Governor's State of the State speeches: on Welfare & Poverty

Rick Scott: People don't want handouts; they want their shot at success

Maggie Hassan: Help Out New Hampshire volunteerism tour

My husband Tom has seen the same spirit at the Tillotson Center in Colebrook, at the Claremont Soup Kitchen, at the New Hampshire Veterans Home, and in every county in the state through his "Help Out New Hampshire" volunteerism tour.

Jack Markell: Free college for low-income families; increase minimum wage

I propose a scholarship program so that all low-income Delaware students with college potential can take credit-bearing courses during their senior year of high school.

Matching skilled workers with available jobs is critical. Thanks to our new JobLink capability, it's easier than ever for employers to search our database for employees with the skills they need.

Finally, too many working Delawareans struggle to care for their families and put food on the table. I am glad that the General Assembly is poised to increase the minimum wage.

Martin O`Malley: Move from welfare to work; & raise Earned Income tax credit

• We've invested dearly, to improve education as a ladder to success.
• We are investing more than ever in our transportation infrastructure, to get more of our people back to work.
• We raised the Earned Income tax credit. Why? To better reward hard work.
• We've maintained the highest goals for minority and women-owned business participation, and for the first time ever, we actually exceeded it.
• We became the first state in the country to pass a living wage.
• We put in place for the first time a progressive income tax, reducing income taxes for 86% of Marylanders.
• Just last calendar year, we moved more people than ever from welfare to work.

Nikki Haley: Trade welfare check for dignity of paycheck

Previously, with Washington having its way, we would handle welfare recipients by asking a few simple questions, effectively checking a box, and handing over a check. Easy in, easy out.

But no one improves their lot in life that way. Now we do things differently. We dig deeper. We ask them about their skills, what they are good at. And then, we find them a job. Yes, it seems like a simple concept, but here's the deal: it works. Since starting this program in 2011, we have moved more than 20,000 South Carolinians from welfare to work.

We should all be proud of this program. But more than that, we should be proud of those workers, those South Carolinians who traded the false stability of a welfare check for the true dignity of a well-earned paycheck.

Phil Bryant: Focus on jobs for those who need public assistance

Soon, with the assistance of the Mississippi Department of Employment Security, the State Workforce Investment Board, and the state longitudinal data system, we will unveil a state-of-the-art system matching job seekers with employers. The system, along with its app, will be unlike any other in the nation. It will put job seekers and employers a click away from success. Finding a job or a qualified employee in Mississippi will be easier and more effective than ever. The Mississippi Works web site will add this important feature very soon. I will just say, stand by to be amazed. And I assure you, this website works.

Scott Walker: Help transition from government dependence to independence

For those living above poverty, we transition them into the marketplace. I believe Medicaid is for those living in poverty, and our goal should be to help lift more and more people out of the depths of economic despair.

Our Wisconsin Plan is unique as we are able to cover everyone living in poverty, reduce the number of uninsured, and still not expose Wisconsin taxpayers to the uncertain potential cost of the federal Medicaid expansion.

Helping more people transition from government dependence to true independence is not only good for the taxpayers, it is good for employers, too. Most importantly, it is good for the people, who can now control their own lives and their own destinies.

Lincoln Chafee: Yes, government has a role in struggle against poverty

Robert Bentley: We are poorest state, but government just causes dependency

The statistics are sobering. The facts are indisputable. Never-ending cycles of a need for jobs, better job skills and better education, plague our communities. We resolve to reverse the trends that have troubled our state for decades.

We will never see an end to the plague of poverty by offering a deeper dependence on a flawed government system. We will never help our poorest citizens, or our future generations, by casting over them the net of federal government giveaway programs. We can break the cycle of poverty, but not with programs that drag our communities and our people into the downward spiral of dependence.

Earl Ray Tomblin: Homelessness is devastating; revive Interagency Council

Homelessness also includes hard-working families who can't make ends meet. It includes people with disabilities and children without support. Homelessness is devastating. We cannot turn our backs on our fellow West Virginians in need. I have revived the Interagency Council on Homelessness to bring together leaders who will work within the community to end homelessness in West Virginia.