Welfare work programs are a form of welfare fraud. They engender little change compared to the resources that go into them. The most promising policies for reducing welfare roles are the following: (1) support of children by absent parents; (2) tax credit systems; (3) improvements in public education; and (4) provision of health care. (VM)

Because female heads of families tend to have less continuity of employment than their male counterparts do, they are twice as likely to face unemployment without unemployment insurance (UI) benefits. If Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), which is the primary income support program for impoverished single mothers and their children…

The number of working women with children has increased dramatically in the past 20 years, increasing the demand for child care services to help working families secure and maintain their economic self-sufficiency. As more welfare families will be expected to seek and keep jobs, demand for child care services will increase. Because Congress is…

This book provides new estimates of the private costs and public effects of childhood disabilities among welfare recipients. Based on over 2,000 interviews conducted between 1992-96 with household heads in 3 California counties, the estimates cover direct expenditures by families and indirect costs from employment reductions. The study finds that…

The implications for social planning are discussed in relation to income maintenance, rehabilitation, and work opportunity and job adaptation programs, with particular emphasis on the need for early contact and coordination of services. (Editor)

Despite welfare reform initiatives emphasizing job training, the complexity of dealing with county, state, and federal agencies and regulations often forces low income women to choose between working/training and keeping child-care assistance. Adult educators can advocate for policy changes in financial aid, child care, and other support services.…

We developed a conceptual framework to examine the association between stigma, enrollment barriers (e.g., difficult application), knowledge, state policy, and participation in the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) and adult Medicaid programs. Survey data from 901 community health center patients, who were potential and actual…

A common argument in support of work-based welfare reform is that exposure to work will lead welfare recipients to revise their beliefs about how they will be treated in the labor market. This paper explores the analytical and empirical basis for this argument. The difficulty in testing the assumption that work leads to a change in beliefs is that…

This paper uses data from the 1996 and 2001 panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation to assess the impact of recent policy initiatives intended to increase access to Food Stamps. It finds that reductions in state certification requirements increased Food Stamp participation rates of income-eligible families with children by one to…

A longitudinal study of urban (Baltimore) black teenage mothers and their welfare experiences following the birth of their first child was started in the 1960s by Frank Furstenberg and has continued for more than 20 years. Information was gathered from 3 generations of the families of 300 women. Most of the school-aged mothers were not married at…

This report contains highlights of a seminar which focused on young unwed fathers and welfare reform. Comments by these panelists are summarized: Rikki Baum, legislative assistant to Senator Patrick Moynihan; Linda Mellgren, from the Office of Income Security; and Margaret Boeckmann, Director of the Office of Employment Policy, Maryland Department…

Information on the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program in Wisconsin is provided in this document. Part 1 is a summary of the history, administration, and funding of the program. In Part 2, various elements of the AFDC program are described. These include eligibility requirements, grant calculation, work requirements, and medical…

The number of poor females has increased because of : (1) gender differences in wages; (2) the inadequacy of public benefits; (3) lack of legislative commitment; and (4) demographic factors such as divorce. These variables emerge as strong predictors of female poverty rates in seven industrialized nations. Only a comprehensive social movement will…

Presents a study of 207 employed AFDC recipients whose benefits were terminated or reduced by 1981 federal policy changes. Findings report respondents' source of income, household characteristics, employment history, expense patterns, child care, coping and social support strategies, health and health care, and psychosocial outlook on life.…

The question of whether recipients of Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) can reasonably be expected to work full time year-round given their available employment opportunities and living conditions was examined in a ongoing study. The study used the U.S. Bureau of the Census' Survey of Income and Program Participation to develop a…