Texas pro-family leader Jonathan Saenz say a research project that looks at the economic costs of family breakdown in America shows the widespread impact divorce has on everyone.
According to the academic study conducted by the Institute for American Values, taxpayer costs of divorce and out-of-wedlock births is costing Lone Star taxpayers $3 billion per year. And Saenz, with the Free Market Foundation, says the study highlights the ineffectiveness of government programs to deal with the problem. According to Saenz, most of the taxpayer cost comes from government programs that try to "pick up the pieces and fill the gaps from family breakdowns that the mother and father would usually be filling ...." "[S]o what we've looked at in Texas ... is spending money for marriage strengthening programs ... skills-based programs [that deal] with communications techniques, to help strengthen and keep marriages together," he explains. Saenz points out that strong families are, on average, better off economically than those that have experienced divorces. So far, Texas pro-family forces have been able to get state lawmakers to approve $15 million in block grants to strengthen marriages and families. The pro-family spokesman argues that most Texans view that as a "slight amount of investment" in marriages that will be cost-effective in saving future taxpayer dollars.
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