Ten Things Everyone Should Know about Welfare Reform. New Federalism [electronic resource] : Issues and Options for States, Series A, No. A-52. Assessing the New Federalism: An Urban Institute Program To Assess Changing Social Policies / Alan Weil.
This brief presents 10 key findings about welfare reform, using research from the Urban Institute's Assessing the New Federalism project. Welfare reform has taken hold, and, in the immediate aftermath of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), states have m...
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| Format: | Electronic eBook |
| Language: | English |
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2002.
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| Summary: | This brief presents 10 key findings about welfare reform, using research from the Urban Institute's Assessing the New Federalism project. Welfare reform has taken hold, and, in the immediate aftermath of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), states have made major changes to their welfare systems that reflect the transition from cash assistance to requiring and supporting work. Welfare caseloads remain dynamic, with a high frequency of leavers and returners. More people on welfare are working than in the past, due to such factors as changed reporting incentives, change in welfare recipients' behavior, and increased earnings disregards. Most welfare leavers are working, though many live on resources below the federal poverty level. States are doing more to support work, including shifting funds to child care, transportation support, tax credits for low-income families, and programs to support marriage. The work support system often does not meet the needs of workers; traditional welfare bureaucracies are not well suited to meet the needs of working families that face substantial constraints balancing work, family, and bureaucratic obligations. Deep hardship has increased, and the safety net post-PRWORA is less effective at supporting the neediest families than were previous programs. Family structure changes are modest; the effects of welfare reform on children remain unclear; and welfare's effects on different subgroups are varied. (Contains 34 references.) (SM) |
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| Item Description: | ERIC Document Number: ED466503. Availability: Urban Institute, 2100 M Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20037. Tel: 202-261-5687; Fax: 202-293-1918; Web site: http://www.urban.org. Sponsoring Agency: Kellogg Foundation, Battle Creek, MI. Sponsoring Agency: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Princeton, NJ. Sponsoring Agency: Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, Menlo Park, CA. Sponsoring Agency: Ford Foundation, New York, NY. Sponsoring Agency: David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Los Altos, CA. Sponsoring Agency: John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Chicago, IL. Sponsoring Agency: Mott (C.S.) Foundation, Flint, MI. Sponsoring Agency: McKnight Foundation, Minneapolis, MN. Sponsoring Agency: Commonwealth Fund, New York, NY. Sponsoring Agency: Fund for New Jersey, East Orange. Sponsoring Agency: Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, Milwaukee, WI. Sponsoring Agency: Joyce Foundation, Chicago, IL. Sponsoring Agency: Rockefeller Foundation, New York, NY. Sponsoring Agency: Weingart Foundation, Los Angeles, CA. Sponsoring Agency: Annie E. Casey Foundation, Baltimore, MD. ERIC Note: Also funded by the Stuart Foundation. |
| Physical Description: | 9 pages. |