Research On Social Assistance For Marginal Families With Minimum Living Standard

With the development of China's economy and the implementation of aid systems such as targeted poverty alleviation and minimum living security,it is no longer a threat to the poor to maintain basic survival.However,this does not mean the disappearance of poverty.A profound change is taking place:absolute poverty is gradually weakening and relative poverty is becoming increasingly prominent.The low-income marginalized group is accompanied by the minimum living security system.It is a diverse and multi-layered relatively poor group with unclear boundaries.Using the census data,the author estimates that there are 15%marginalized population in the urban areas and about 10%of the marginalized population in the rural areas.Whether in urban or rural,the marginal population are higher than the number of minimum-living-security population.The marginal group is not only at the edge of the low-income line,but also at the edge of social attention and poverty alleviation policies.Only by sharing the fruits of social development more equitably can the marginal groups get rid of poverty.Based on the above background,this study adopts the method of overall research and case study,based on the current relief policy supply situation,taking Qingdao marginal families as the survey object,from the perspective of multidimensional poverty theory and social exclusion theory,makes an in-depth analysis of the multidimensional poverty situation and relief policy supply situation,and using Gilbert's framework of social welfare policy,this paper constructs the social assistance system for the marginal families.Through the field survey,it is found that:in Qingdao,the standard of defining marginal families is that the monthly per capita income of families does not exceed 1.5-2 times of the minimum living standard.The multidimensional poverty measurement of marginal families mainly examines four dimensions and ten indicators.In the survey sample,nearly 60%of marginal families of minimum living standard are poor in three indicators,and in the dimensions of health,education and basic quality of life,the sense of deprivation is relatively stronger than income indicators,.It can be seen that it is difficult to grasp the actual poverty situation of the marginal families only by understanding the income.The multidimensional poverty characteristics of the marginal families include:high proportion of the elderly;high proportion of chronic diseases;low level of employment and unstable source of income;family income does not make up for its expenditure;high proportion of medical expenditure;lack of upward mobility opportunities,obvious intergenerational transmission of poverty;heavy psychological and life pressure,etc.From the perspective of feasible ability theory,it is found that the poverty of marginal families is the result of many factors,such as lack of economic conditions,lack of social opportunities,lack of protective security,lack of demand expression mechanism and so on.The marginal families are faced with the problem of multidimensional poverty.What is the supply situation of the current relief policy?In fact,in China's public policy practice,most of the policy experiments are initiated by grassroots cadres to solve the thorny problems within their jurisdiction,and gradually develop into a policy innovation model.At present,the status of policy supply for the marginal families is in the "experimental" policy mode based on the interaction between the central government and the local government.Various regions carry out policy practice and attempts at different levels.The policy innovation in eastern provinces and cities is fast,while some parts of the central and western regions are still in the policy vacuum.It is a predictable trend that the system will requires the top-level design of the central government and the reasonable division of the central and local responsibilities.By combing the current situation of policy supply,it is found that:in theory,the marginal families refer to the vulnerable families whose per capita income is slightly higher than the local minimum living allowance line,who can not be covered by the minimum living allowance system,and who are unable to get rid of life difficulties;from the perspective of relief content,medical assistance is the most common relief content,education assistance and temporary assistance also cover marginal families.To a certain extent,these policies go beyond the relief standard of the minimum living security objects,expand the scope of social assistance,and alleviate the "cliff effect" of the minimum living security system.However,on the whole,the concept of"marginal families" has not yet entered the national system documents,and the relief policies in various places are fragmented.Using the social welfare policy analysis framework to analyze the policy supply factors:(1)From the perspective of distribution basis,the definition of assistance object only takes the family per capita income as the index,and ignores the Multidimensional Poverty Situation of marginal families;(2)From the perspective of supply type elements,the rescue content is not comprehensive,the rescue methods lag behind and the hematopoietic effect is insufficient;(3)From the transportation system elements,the rescue management lacks top-level system design,and the grass-roots information handling ability is insufficient;(4)From the perspective of financial form elements,the responsibilities of central and local governments are not clearly divided,the sources of relief funds are few,and the relief is maintained at a low level,which is difficult to meet the actual needs of the marginal families.The financial constraints under the single main body,the narrow coverage under the low security standard,and the weakening of the rescue goal under the survival concept are the core constraints of the insufficient rescue.Based on the above analysis and the experience of Britain,the United States and Japan,this study proposes that:at the top level of design,we should follow the principle of distribution justice,improve the legislation,set up classified assistance,promote the hematopoietic function,promote the diversification of the rescue subjects,and strive to promote the social assistance in China from policy-based assistance to rule of law assistance,from management assistance to service-oriented rescue,from survival relief to development oriented relief,from government assistance to multi-agent relief.At the policy implementation level,we should change the current practice of all rescue and assistance policies focusing on the low-income groups,integrate the marginal families with low-income into the current rescue system and ensure their normalization,and integrate them into the "support system for low-income families".The main elements of the system framework include:(1)in terms of distribution basis,we should break through the single income standard and identify the rescue objects by multidimensional indicators;(2)In terms of supply type,we should increase the balance of cash assistance for public services,expand the scope of special assistance and set a reasonable level of relief;(3)In the aspect of transportation system,strengthen the system supply at the national level and improve the basic level handling mechanism;(4)In terms of financial form,the responsibility of central government should be divided reasonably,and the rescue funds should be raised through multiple channels.