America’s safety net is meant to help families get back on their feet. But too often, it does the opposite by discouraging work and earnings due to benefit cliffs.

On this episode of Defending Ideas, host Nic Dunn sits down with U.S. Senator from Ohio, Jon Husted, and U.S. Representative from Utah, Blake Moore, to discuss their new legislation: The Upward Mobility Act.  

This new bipartisan proposal would allow a group of states to pilot innovative reforms that combine multiple anti‑poverty programs and gradually phase out benefits as earnings increase. The goal: help families transition from government assistance to work‑based self‑reliance without falling off a financial cliff.

Show notes:

• The Upward Mobility Act One Pager
• Let states fix the welfare system that Washington broke
• Strengthening the American Dream: Addressing benefits cliffs to empower safety net participants to pursue work and opportunity

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.