US social programs Flashcards
The Social Security Act, as part of the New Deal legislation created under President Roosevelt, established two types of cash benefits
Social insurance
Public assistance
Social insurance programs included New Deal
A pension for retired workers (informally called Social Security)
Unemployment Insurance (UI)
New Deal public assistance programs for the poor included
Aid to Dependent Children (ADC), Old Age Assistance (OAA), and Aid to the Blind (AB).
In 1962, ADC became
Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC).
While, by 1974,
Old Age Assistance (OAA), Aid to the Blind (AB) and Aid to the Permanently and Totally Disabled (APTD) were consolidated under SSI, Supplemental Security Income
AFDC came to be regarded as welfare.
In 1996, with the introduction of welfare reform, Congress ended the federal entitlement to welfare by replacing AFDC with
Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF).
Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, eliminated the 60 year old fed guarantee.
PROWRA marked a major change in US social policy by repealing AFDC (a federal entitlement) and replacing it with TANF (a state block grant)
What is an entitlement?
Government program, good, service or benefit that provides individuals with personal financial benefits.
What did AFDC program provide?
Cash to families
Modified state by state (eligibility levels; benefit levels)
Low levels of cash assistance
Below poverty
An Entitlement
Automatic eligibility for Medicaid and other “in-kind” benefits
Modest Work Requirements:
JOBS mandated 20% of recipients in a state be mandated to work.
Modest Work Supports
JOBS program mandated higher “earnings disregards”; transitional child care and Medicaid; as well as job training, basic education and community work experience.
Primary goals of TANF:
- Provide assistance to needy families so that children may be cared for in their own homes or in the homes of relatives;
- End the dependence of needy parents on government benefits by promoting job preparation, work, and marriage;
- Prevent and reduce the incidence of out-of-wedlock pregnancies and establish annual numerical goals for preventing and reducing the incidence of these pregnancies;
- Encourage the formation and maintenance of two-parent families.
TANF requirements
Eliminated entitlement to benefits
Work requirements (work activities)
Time limits
5-year maximum life time limit on benefit receipt
States can exempt 20% of caseload
Funding in block grants to states ($16.5 billion/year)
A pot of money vs. increased federal money to match need
States now design their own programs
Family caps and sanctions – allowed states to impose
What did a longitudinal study on Welfare reform conclude?
On average, household income, earnings, and wages improved among former and current welfare recipients, although such improvements appear to do little to lift families out of poverty. Strong labor markets are important for gains to be realized.
What are examples of entitlements?
Social Security Medicare Medicaid most Veterans' Administration programs federal employee and military retirement plans unemployment compensation food stamps agricultural price support programs
What is a block grant?
A block grant confers monies to the state from the federal government.
The state has discretion, under certain broadly stated federal goals, in the dissemination of these funds.
TANF adjusts benefits for COLA
T or F
F
TANF does have lifetime limits and work requirements.
T or F
T
What is Residual Welfare?
General Assistance (GA)
What is GA?
A residual program with limited availability for groups who do not fit into either TANF or SSI
What is the summary of General Assistance?
For the most part, the federal government has left it up to states to provide basic assistance to childless adults in need of assistance.
states have never provided significant support for this group, this limited support has weakened significantly over time
