A Kansas University instructor on Wednesday warned that congressional debate about the effects of welfare reform laws passed in 1996 wasn’t getting the scrutiny it deserved.

“It should be getting a lot of attention, and it’s not,” said Kathryn Libal, who teaches classes for women’s studies, sociology and anthropology.

Libal’s comments were part of panel discussion during a University Forum luncheon at Ecumenical Christian Ministries, 1204 Oread Ave.

The House passed the welfare reform reauthorization bill Feb. 13. The bill is now in the Senate.

Generally, the House-passed bill requires welfare recipients — women with small children, mostly — to work more hours but with little or no increase in child-care assistance.

Though the bill’s supporters cite its success in moving millions of people off state welfare rolls, Libal said the majority of former recipients are still poor.

Today, “most poor people don’t qualify for welfare — and for those who do, it’s inadequate,” said KU sociology professor Mary Zimmerman, who joined Libal on the panel.

Zimmerman faulted the House-passed bill for doing little to promote education and training opportunities for the poor and for not expanding access to health care.

Also on the panel was Becky Fast, constituent services director for Rep. Dennis Moore.

Fast said Moore voted against the House-passed bill, arguing that it represented a “$67 million unfunded mandate for the state of Kansas alone.”

She said that Moore’s office was “getting very few calls” on welfare reform reauthorization. Instead, callers’ attention was focused on the situation in Iraq.

All three panelists encouraged University Forum members to write Sens. Pat Roberts and Sam Brownback, both R-Kan., with their concerns.

Avis Jones-DeWeever, study director for the Institute of Women’s Policy Research in Washington, D.C., had been scheduled to address the forum but was unable to attend because of the snowstorm that hit the northeastern part of the country this week.