美国社会文化Chapter twelve Social Service - Public Social Service 原文 翻译

Public social services in the United States can be conveniently divided into two categories. The first is the contributory Social Security System, through which benefits are earned and distributed. The second is a program that provides assistance to people incapable of financially supporting themselves. Such assistance is given on the basis of income, but is not tied to the contributory system. Programs of this kind are generally known as social welfare programs.

Governmental provision for Social Security is a large and expanding part of public social services. In 2007,for example, the U.S. federal budget for Social Security amounted to $623 billion, which was composed of retirement insurance payments ($369 billion),survivors insurance($113 billion),disability insurance ($105 billion),and supplemental security income payments ($36 billion).Social Security contributes about33.9%of federal government's total tax revenue in the form of social insurance and retirement taxes, and its payments account for about 21%of federal spending, close to the expenditure for defense (20%).

Social Security derives from the programs contained in the 1935 Social Security Act. It now refers to three main areas: the old age, survivors, disability and health insurance program; Medicare; and Unemployment Compensation. Employees and the self-employed contribute financially (some7%of earnings)to these programs during their employment. In return, they and their families receive benefits from the system on the basis of their contributions. Such benefits include: pensions on retirement, which are relatively low, representing about a quarter of one's average earnings; medical care for the elderly and disabled under Medicare; disability payments; illness and accident provisions; and finally unemployment payments. In many ways, itis more like a social insurance program ,by European standards at least.

However, Society Security does not cover all the bills incurred, and therefore provision for old age ,illness, and unemployment often has to be supplemented by additional private resources, such as savings, investments,  and insurance policies. In many cases, employers and trade unions also provide additional retirement, unemployment, health care, and life insurance services for employees. These are mainly paid by employers or unions, but can also include financial contributions from workers.

Welfare programs are designed to provide financial help for the needy and poor. Additionally, they also provide job training and rehabilitation programs for those in need, such as the unemployed and the sick. Furthermore, for those homeless and foodless people, welfare institutions are responsible to shelter and feed them.  For all these programs, government of all levels, federal, state, and local, is involved with varying level of financial resources. Local community institutions, churches, charitable groups, and voluntary service organizations also playa large part. In this sense, there is no single welfare system, but rather a mosaic of measures created to assist those in need.

The cost of welfare programs has been traditionally shared by federal,  sate, and local governments. Generally, federal funds are distributed to the states,  which are supposed to spend equal amount of money to match the federal funds. At the state level,  however,  in addition to the funds for federal-state revenue-sharing or revenue-matching welfare programs, states may provide additional funds for their own welfare programs, depending on their financial capability, public opinion, and political leadership. On the whole, welfare programs are better provided in northern states than in southern states. Whatever the case, each state devises and organizes its own program, defines the  threshold for welfare relief, and decides, on the basis of its budget, which families and individuals are qualified for assistance.

Until 1996,the U.S. federal welfare consists of the following four programs: Medicaid, Aid to Families with Dependent Children, Food Stamps, and General Assistance. Medicaid is a health scheme and is the largest direct federal aid program for citizens under 65.It is meant to provide health care for those who do not have private health insurance ordo not have the financial ability to pay for a range of medical requirements.  Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)used to be the second largest federal aid program to the poor. Payments to the disabled and families with children were based on need and the official poverty line was used as a guideline. Like other welfare programs, AFDC payments varied from state to state, with southern states paying less than northern states. In 1996,AFDC was abolished, and the responsibility was passed on to the states, which receive federal grants to run their own programs. There is a five-year lifetime limit on this welfare benefit and most recipients will have to enroll in workfare schemes. The third largest welfare program derives from the 1964 Food Stamp Act. It provides coupons that are used by eligible needy people to buy food in approved  shops at an average national rate of some one-third of its normal price. Finally, the General Assistance scheme provides income support,  cash grants, aid for housing, school meals, Supplemental Security Income for the elderly poor and help with other basic necessities.

Seemingly comprehensive and well-developed, the federal welfare system does not provide adequate help for the most needy. People who are unemployed for long periods, for example, may receive little help form the government. Similarly, those who do not enroll in workfare may find their benefits greatly curtailed or even completely denied. Clearly, except for the disabled, employment is a crucial factor for most Americans, without which they cannot receive much public assistance. Take there structured AFDC, for example, those who receive help from it must find a job after two years, or all the benefits will automatically discontinue right away. This is the so-called “workfare'"(work+ welfare) programs, by which recipients are required to work or to participate in job training programs while still on welfare. By providing remedial education, vocational training, and child care, state governments want to encourage welfare recipients to get jobs with decent wages and prospects for long-term employment. Although certain exemptions have been made for families with preschool children, for most Americans, however, it is a matter of sink or swim situation. In other words, Americans want there recipients of welfare to be temporary rather than permanent, demonstrating their long-held values in social services, namely Protestant work ethic, self-reliance, self-responsibility, and social Darwinism.

美国的公共社会服务可以方便地分为两类。第一个是缴费型社会保障制度，通过该制度可以赚取和分配福利。第二个是一个向无力自立的人提供援助的项目。这种援助是根据收入提供的，但与缴款制度无关。这类计划通常被称为社会福利计划。

政府提供的社会保障是公共社会服务中一个庞大且不断扩大的部分。例如，2007年，美国联邦社会保障预算为6230亿美元，其中包括退休保险费（3690亿美元）、遗属保险费（1130亿美元）、残疾保险费（1050亿美元）和补充保障收入（360亿美元）。社会保障约占33%。联邦政府总税收的9%以社会保险和退休税的形式出现，其支付约占联邦支出的21%，接近国防支出（20%）。

社会保障源于1935年《社会保障法》中包含的计划。它现在涉及三个主要领域：老年、幸存者、残疾和健康保险计划；医疗保险失业补偿金。雇员和自营职业者在就业期间为这些计划提供经济资助（约占收入的7%）。作为回报，他们及其家人根据自己的贡献从该系统中获得福利。这些福利包括：退休金相对较低，约占一个人平均收入的四分之一；老年人和残疾人医疗保险；残疾补助金；疾病和事故规定；最后是失业救济金。在许多方面，至少按照欧洲标准来看，这更像是一个社会保险计划。

然而，社会保障并不能涵盖所有发生的账单，因此，养老、疾病和失业准备金通常必须由额外的私人资源补充，如储蓄、投资和保险单。在许多情况下，雇主和工会还为员工提供额外的退休、失业、医疗和人寿保险服务。这些费用主要由雇主或工会支付，但也可以包括工人的财政捐款。

福利计划旨在为贫困人口提供经济帮助。此外，他们还为失业者和病人等需要帮助的人提供职业培训和康复计划。此外，对于那些无家可归和没有食物的人，福利机构有责任为他们提供住所和食物。对于所有这些项目，联邦、州和地方各级政府都参与了不同程度的财政资源。当地社区机构、教会、慈善团体和志愿服务组织也发挥了很大作用。从这个意义上讲，没有单一的福利制度，而是为帮助那些需要帮助的人而制定的一系列措施。

福利项目的成本传统上由联邦、州和地方政府分担。一般来说，联邦资金分配给各州，各州应该花费相等的资金来匹配联邦资金。然而，在州一级，除了联邦州收入共享或收入匹配福利计划的资金外，各州还可以根据其财政能力、公众舆论和政治领导能力，为自己的福利计划提供额外资金。总的来说，北部各州的福利计划比南部各州提供的更好。无论情况如何，每个州都制定和组织自己的方案，确定福利救济的门槛，并根据预算决定哪些家庭和个人有资格获得援助。

1996年之前，美国联邦福利包括以下四个项目：医疗补助、对有受抚养子女的家庭的援助、食品券和一般援助。医疗补助是一项健康计划，是针对65岁以下公民的最大直接联邦援助计划。它旨在为那些没有私人健康保险或没有经济能力支付一系列医疗需求的人提供医疗保健。对有受抚养子女的家庭的援助（AFDC）曾经是第二大联邦贫困援助计划。向残疾人和有子女的家庭支付的款项是根据需要支付的，并以官方贫困线为指导。与其他福利项目一样，AFDC的支付因州而异，南部各州的支付低于北部各州。1996年，AFDC被废除，责任移交给各州，各州获得联邦拨款来运行自己的项目。这项福利有五年的终身限制，大多数领取者必须参加工作福利计划。第三大福利计划源自1964年的《食品券法案》。它提供优惠券，供符合条件的贫困人口在批准的商店购买食品，全国平均价格约为正常价格的三分之一。最后，一般援助计划为贫困老年人提供收入支持、现金补助、住房援助、学校膳食、补充保障收入以及其他基本必需品。

联邦福利体系看似全面而发达，却没有为最贫困的人提供足够的帮助。例如，长期失业的人可能得不到政府的帮助。同样，那些没有参加工作福利的人可能会发现他们的福利大大减少，甚至完全被剥夺。显然，除了残疾人以外，就业对大多数美国人来说都是一个至关重要的因素，没有就业，他们就无法获得太多的公共援助。以结构化AFDC为例，那些从中获得帮助的人必须在两年后找到工作，否则所有福利将立即自动停止。这就是所谓的“工作福利”（工作+福利）计划，要求受助人在仍享受福利的情况下工作或参加职业培训计划。通过提供补救教育、职业培训和儿童保育，州政府希望鼓励福利领取者获得工资体面的工作，并有长期就业的前景。尽管对有学龄前儿童的家庭有某些豁免，但对大多数美国人来说，这是一个水落石出的问题。换言之，美国人希望这些福利的领取者是暂时的，而不是永久的，这表明了他们在社会服务中长期持有的价值观，即新教的职业道德、自力更生、自我责任和社会达尔文主义。