While still in its early stages, welfare reform has already been judged a great success in many states—at least in getting people off welfare．It's estimated that more than 2 million people have left the list since 1994．
In the past four years, welfare list in Athens County have been cut in half．But 70 percent of the people who left in the past two years took jobs that paid less than $ 6 an hour．The result: The Athens County poverty rate still remains at more than 30 percent —twice the national average．For advocates（代言人） for the poor, that's an indication that much more needs to be done．
"More people are getting jobs, but it's not making their lives any better," says Kathy Lairn, a policy analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in Washington．A center analysis of US Census data （戶口普查資料） nationwide found that between 1995 and 1996, a greater percentage of single, female-headed families were earning money on their own, but that average income for these families actually went down．
But for many, the fact that poor people are able to support themselves almost as well without government aid as they did with it is in itself a huge victory．"Welfare was a poison．It was a poisonous substance that was poisoning the family," says Robert Rector, a welfare-reform policy analyst．"The reform is changing the moral climate in low-income communities．It's beginning to rebuild the work ethic （道德觀）, which is much more important．"
Mr．Rector and others argued that once "the habit of dependency is cracked," then the country can make other policy changes aimed at improving living standards．
【小題1】．From the passage, it can be seen that the author __ __．
| A．believes the reform has reduced the government's burden |
| B．insists that welfare reform is doing little good for the poor |
| C．is not interested in the success of welfare reform |
| D．considers welfare reform to be fundamentally successful |
【小題2】．
Why aren't people enjoying better lives when they have jobs?
| A．Because many families end their marriage． |
| B．Because government aid is now rare． |
| C．Because their wages are still low． |
| D．Because the cost of living is rising． |
【小題3】．From the passage we know that welfare reform aims at____．
A．saving welfare funds B, rebuilding the work ethic
C．providing more jobs D．cutting government expenses
【小題4】According to the passage,____ before the welfare reform was carried out．
| A．the poverty rate was lower |
| B．a(chǎn)verage living standards were higher |
| C．the average worker was paid higher-wages |
| D．the poor used to rely on government aid |
