Research by Author & Topic

Publications by Sheila R. Zedlewski on TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families)

In this commentary for The Press-Enterprise (Riverside, Calif.), Olivia Golden and Sheila Zedlewski advise states to grab the federal dollars offered by the economic stimulus package to help pay for recession-driven increases in the demand for welfare.

This brief, part of the Urban Institute's "Recession and Recover" series, examines how the TANF program (formerly AFDC) responds during a recession and how that response may differ in the current recession from its response in the past.

This paper analyzes how mental health problems impede low-income mothers' ability to work and how health insurance improves access to mental health treatment services. According to data from the 2002 National Survey of America's Families, low-income mothers in poor mental health are significantly less likely to work and to work full time than those without these problems. Low-income mothers with public or private health insurance are significantly more likely to receive treatment than those without insurance. Mental health problems are an important barrier to work among low-income women, and access to treatment could be improved through increased health insurance coverage.

Many low-income parents with personal challenges that make work difficult (sometimes called the "hard to employ") seek help from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, but many do not. The most effective TANF programs offer cash assistance along with services that alleviate barriers and help clients find jobs. Other federal-state programs offer help by providing either generic employment services or specialized services that address particular challenges. Hard-to-employ parents probably fare best when they enroll in TANF and receive a holistic set of supports. A redesigned system should marshal all program resources to provide an integrated system that addresses barriers and supports work simultaneously.

This study examines states approaches to serving TANF recipients facing multiple barriers to work in fall 2006. It also describes changes states anticipate (partly in response to TANF reauthorization) in the near future to help these recipients move into work and off the caseload. Study results are based primarily on structured interviews with state TANF program officials in 17 states including the states with the largest TANF caseloads. The findings highlight the different approaches taken by state TANF programs on how to best help recipients with serious barriers and provide early information on states’ thinking on how their approach may change for this group in the future.

This study uses data from the National Survey of America's Families 1997, 1999, and 2002, to summarize what we have learned about families potentially affected by welfare reforms passed in 1996. We describe outcomes for low-income families currently on welfare, families that recently left welfare, and those that have never received welfare. Changes in welfare policy, the economy and broader societal trends potentially affected all three groups. Our results show important differences in the relative well-being of these three groups over time, including changes in employment, poverty, and the share of families disconnected from either cash government assistance or work.

In this commentary for The Providence Journal, Sheila Zedlewski, director of the Urban Institute's Income and Benefits Policy Center, and Pamela Loprest, a principal research associate, look at how low-income families have fared since the 1996 welfare reform and what needs to be done to keep them from falling through the safety net.

The most vulnerable populations in New Orleans--the elderly, people with physical and mental disabilities, and single mothers out of the labor market--arguably were hit hardest by Katrina. These groups had the highest poverty rates and the fewest assets. Most were African American. Many depended on the social safety net for survival and on others to avoid the storm's catastrophic effects. Rebuilding presents New Orleans with a unique opportunity to strengthen its safety net for vulnerable populations that return and for others who will require help in the future.

Data from the 2002 round of the National Survey of America's Families show that 37 percent of welfare recipients lack information about when their welfare benefits will end. Half of welfare recipients with two or more barriers to employment lack information about time limits. Three out of four Spanish-speaking recipients are not aware of when their welfare benefits will end.

Data from the 2002 National Survey of America's Families show that about six out of 10 adults receiving welfare in 2002 reported that they had either worked or engaged in activities to prepare for work during the previous 12 months. The share of welfare recipients working during the preceding 12 months rose from 31 percent in 1997 to 44 percent in 1999 before falling to 39 percent in 2002.