This report outlines findings and recommendations of a committee study of whether the State of Missouri is in need of welfare reform. The major finding is that Missouri's current welfare system is substantially deficient and requires correction of laws, policies, practices, and resource allocation. Three major themes are the following: (1) welfare…

Homelessness among families is quickly reaching crisis proportions across the country. Over 30 percent of America's three million homeless people are members of families, and families are the fastest growing segment of the homeless population. Perhaps more disturbing, homelessness represents only the most extreme manifestation of a more…

The two papers in this document were prepared in response to requests by the Department of Agriculture and the White House staff for briefs on welfare and poverty issues. The first paper, "The Administration's Welfare Reform Proposal: Impact on Rural Areas" by Robert Hoppe, discusses major provisions of (1) the proposed Welfare Reform…

Examines the issues surrounding the controversial Workfare program, which establishes work effort as a requirement for receipt of welfare benefits. (SK)

This report examines trends in the incomes of single mothers and their children during a pair of consecutive two-year periods, 1993-95 and 1995-97, considering changes in earnings and changes in safety net programs that provide them with income. Chapter 1, "Introduction," reviews the issue. Chapter 2, "Participation Has Declined…

The 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act requires welfare recipients to look for work and has made it more difficult for nonworking recipients to remain on the welfare rolls. In addition, the economic boom of the 1990s and changes in federal and state policies have raised the net income gain associated with moving…

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)

Society has moral and economic obligations to assist the urban poor to overcome adverse conditions. A national urban policy designed to ameliorate substandard conditions is recommended along with realistic policies and programs of effective schooling. The urban poor have a responsibility to accept and use the help offered to them. (Author/VM)

This country has long debated the question of how to design the welfare system, particularly the federally supported Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program which provides cash assistance to families headed primarily by female single parents. A pressing issue is whether welfare programs should continue to be broad entitlements or…

Welfare programs changed dramatically in 1996. Caseloads dropped by more than 9 million recipients over an eight-year period, and millions entered the labor market in the wake of these changes. Since the start of the "welfare revolution," research has emerged to document the new ways former welfare recipients are using federal…

Stories of living on welfare are told by five women and their children. Each represents a group of women who use Aid to Families with Dependent Children. The reasons these women have turned to public aid, and their means of achieving self-sufficiency illustrate why welfare policy and family policy must be redefined to account for the differences…

Nearly 80 means-tested programs for low-income persons and families have been created by the federal government to help meet the needs of various groups. In fiscal year 1992, the federal government spent about $208 billion through these programs. Evaluation of these programs was based on reports by the General Accounting Office (GAO) and others.…

Boston food costs exceed the combined value of government cash and food assistance benefits that households whose sole income is Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) may receive. This contradicts findings by the General Accounting Office. Food stamps and AFDC benefits indexed to the actual costs of living are needed. (Author/BJV)

This report reviews the impact of the categorical eligibility provision of the Food Security Act of 1985 (FSA) on the program participation, administrative costs, and error rates of the Food Stamp Program (FSP). The Act automatically granted eligibility for the FSP to households composed entirely of participants in the Aid to Families with…

This report analyzes data from the April 1984 Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) on households comprised of both Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) recipients and nonrecipients. Of the 3.7 million AFDC households, 32 percent consisted of AFDC recipients and their relatives, as opposed to only recipients. Analysis of the…