ICYMI: Pulliam Column on Young’s Fair Shot Agenda

WASHINGTON — A column by Russ Pulliam in TheStatehouseFile.com highlights U.S. Senator Todd Young’s (R-Ind.) Fair Shot Agenda, an initiative focused on ensuring every Hoosier has a fair shot at success regardless of the challenges they face. 

“Young thinks conservative Republicans should engage in a civil debate with liberals about what works when tackling poverty. He prefers a free-market emphasis and sees effectiveness in faith-based options. He also wants government funding to go to efforts that show practical results, which are often rooted in spiritual transformation,” Pulliam writes. 

“One piece of his agenda has been adopted by Congress and signed by President Trump – social impact partnerships, or an attempt to measure effectiveness in social services. One example: the nurse-family partnerships have shown practical benefits, with home visits by nurses that help women adjust to being new mothers,” Pulliam adds. 

See more highlights from Pulliam’s column below and read the full article here.

TheStatehouseFile.com

Commentary: Todd Young, looking for a fair shot

By Russ Pulliam

January 30, 2019

Now that he has been named chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Sen. Todd Young will have to talk about Donald Trump and hot button issues. He’d rather direct attention to a conservative war on poverty.  He calls it his Fair Shot agenda.

As committee chairman, his task is to elect as many Republicans as possible to the Senate in 2020. 

For a Republican, though, he takes an unusual interest in anti-poverty efforts, frequently visiting urban projects in Indianapolis and smaller cities in Indiana. In elections Democrats carry most of these districts by wide margins. He’s not looking for votes when he visits these projects. He recently highlighted an inner-city housing initiative of former Colts football star Marlin Jackson, as Jackson builds homes to help revitalize low-income neighborhoods.

Young thinks conservative Republicans should engage in a civil debate with liberals about what works when tackling poverty. He prefers a free-market emphasis and sees effectiveness in faith-based options. He also wants government funding to go to efforts that show practical results, which are often rooted in spiritual transformation.

One piece of his agenda has been adopted by Congress and signed by President Trump – social impact partnerships, or an attempt to measure effectiveness in social services. One example: the nurse-family partnerships have shown practical benefits, with home visits by nurses that help women adjust to being new mothers. 

Young would like to encourage private investors to invest in these efforts, but not to maximize return as in the traditional stock market. The goal is to make early childhood better and offer a small return on the original investment. 

Young thinks private foundations might have a special interest in this kind of social investing because they already invest in markets with their capital savings set aside for future grants to charities. The foundations also give grants to tackle these problems, such as opioid abuse or home ownership for low-income families. Instead of a grant, the foundation or philanthropist would actually make an investment. The return on the investment would come if the charity fulfills objectives set forth in the original contract, saving the government some money. The government then repays the investment bond with low interest.

Another example might be groups that help ex-inmates adjust to life after prison. Government savings would come with anyone staying away from crime after leaving prison. Recidivism or a return to crime is one of the biggest costs for taxpayers, through repeat offenders.

Young’s proposal is part of his larger attempt to inject conservative, free-market principles into government attempts to help those in need.

… 

Click here to read the full article.