According to reports, a mother of three admitted to spending most of the $10,800 she received from a taxpayer-funded program on a luxurious five-day trip to Miami. Canethia Miller, 27, was one of 132 mothers in Washington, DC, who was accepted last year into the “Strong Families, Strong Future” pilot program to help those living around the poverty line. Miller opted for a no-strings-attached $10,800 lump sum instead of the $900 monthly payments. She justified her spending by saying that she wanted her children to experience something she wouldn’t have been able to afford otherwise. Miller also spent $180 on getting her hair and nails done for the trip.
Reports state that Miller bought 15 new outfits for her children – one for each child for each day of the vacation – and spent much of the remaining money on steak dinners, gadgets, toys, and a boat tour past some of the city’s most expensive mansions. She claimed that she hoped to inspire her children and teach them that if they work hard enough, they may one day be able to afford one of the mansions.
Miller had claimed that she needed the money due to her financial situation worsening after the birth of her third child in 2022. She paused her education to receive a degree in social work to focus on her growing family and was living in a subsidized two-bedroom apartment at the time. She was also receiving funds from the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families fund, which helped her cover her $120-a-month rent.
However, Miller has now opened a savings account and is set to begin a new remote job that pays $30 an hour. She credits the program for giving her the confidence to do so. “Many communities in my area don’t know the financial gain of credit, saving for your kids; that’s why we’re broke. That’s why we have nothing to pass down or no house to give down,” Miller explained.
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