| Summary: | Reforms passed in 1996 ended welfare as we knew it. Individuals no longer have an entitlement to welfare, and states have changed how they administer cash assistance. Most states actively discourage welfare entry and aggressively require new entrants to pursue paid work. Numerous other safety net programs also changed, as the 1996 legislation limited immigrant eligibility for food stamps, scaled back children's eligibility for disability benefits, increased federal money for child care, and placed greater demands on states' child support enforcement systems. States were given incentives to encourage marriage and the formation of two-parent families and to reduce out-of-wedlock child bearing. The dramatic decline in welfare caseloads represents the most stunning post-reform outcome. Caseloads declined over 50 percent in just a few years. Numerous studies attempt to explain caseload decline and how families fared. Scholars generally agree that the strong economy, work supports such as Earned Income Tax Credit, and welfare reform all encouraged a shift from welfare to work, especially among single mothers. Scholars disagree about the relative important of each of these factors. The National Survey of America's Families (NSAF), conducted by the Urban Institute as part of its Assessing the New Federalism project, documented changes in low-income families' circumstances at the national level over the 1996 to 2002 period. This study uses these data to summarize what we learned about families in the welfare system. We describe outcomes for three low-income groups: families currently on welfare, families that recently left welfare, and those that never received welfare. The outcomes discussed include family structure, demographic characteristics, work and barriers to work, income, and well-being.
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