Christine Heffernan was a research associate in the Income and Benefits Policy Center at the Urban Institute. She maintains the Welfare Rules Database, tracking Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) policies for the 50 states and the District of Columbia. She also works on safety net program microsimulation modeling. Previously, Heffernan provided litigation support at a labor law firm and was a case manager for TANF recipients. She received a BA in psychology from Colgate University.