In times of economic instability, many DC residents—like people nationwide—turn to safety net programs to meet critical, daily needs like food and housing. These supports can be especially important for young people during key developmental years, but many children and young people transitioning into adulthood don’t receive these benefits.
Barriers to connecting children and young people with critical benefits and supports are growing. The District faces extensive federal funding cuts introduced under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and already had to overcome a $1 billion gap in creating the fiscal year 2027 budget (PDF). At the same time, residents are facing rising affordability concerns, such as higher housing, grocery, and child care prices. More than 12 percent of children and 33 percent of young adults in DC live in households with resources below 100 percent of the supplemental poverty measure (SPM) threshold.
Here are three things the new mayor and council should know as they consider ways to improve access to safety net programs so DC’s children and young people can become healthy, thriving adults.
1. Young DC residents’ need for safety net supports spans a range of programs
The Urban Institute’s analysis of five key federal safety net programs—including the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF), public and subsidized housing, the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)—shows young people need a wide range of supports in DC. Across all five programs, many young people qualify for assistance, from one in five children under age 12 qualifying for child care subsidies to more than half of young adults ages 18 through 24 living in households qualifying for home energy assistance.
These programs’ high eligibility rates demonstrate a wide need for safety net supports and an opportunity for the new mayor and council to work within existing programs and structures to support the economic needs of the city’s young people.
Source: The Urban Institute’s State of the Safety Net data tool.
Notes: CCDF = Child Care and Development Fund; HUD = US Department of Housing and Urban Development; LIHEAP = Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program; SNAP = Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; WIC = Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children. Estimates produced using the Urban Institute’s Analysis of Transfers, Taxes, and Income Security (ATTIS) microsimulation model applied to combined 2022 and 2023 American Community Survey data, adjusted to reflect 2023 population and income characteristics, and corrected for underreporting of benefits. American Community Survey data were obtained from IPUMS USA, University of Minnesota, www.ipums.org. Estimates apply to the average month of the year. The eligibility rate for a group equals the number eligible within that group divided by the total number in the group. CCDF estimates reflect expanded income eligibility limits introduced in 2023. Public and subsidized housing eligibility estimates include households with income under 50 percent of area median income and those between 50 and 80 percent who are estimated to still be assisted based on prior enrollment. SNAP estimates include people eligible for benefits under broad-based categorical eligibility policies as well as people eligible for benefits under standard federal policies.
2. Nutrition assistance programs have higher participation rates than child care and housing programs, but budget constraints risk widening participation gaps
Many eligible young people aren’t receiving benefits. Though funding constraints restrict access to non-entitlement programs, low participation also stems from a lack of awareness and burdensome application procedures. Some programs more successfully reach children and young adults than others, but even these programs will face new challenges in the coming years.
The District’s nutrition assistance programs have had the greatest success connecting eligible young people to benefits, as seen with the very high participation rates in SNAP—which is the only federal entitlement among the programs examined. However, with the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) and the potential cost share the city would face if its SNAP error rate remains high (PDF), it may be challenging to maintain the high SNAP participation rates. Given the various SNAP program changes and funding cuts introduced under OBBBA, we previously estimated that 18,000 DC families could lose at least $25 a month in food assistance, including 5,000 families with children losing an estimated $118 per month in benefits at a time when grocery prices continue climbing.
WIC has a higher participation rate in DC than many safety net programs, but almost half of eligible young children in the District aren’t receiving the benefits they qualify for. While not technically an entitlement program, Congress has generally funded WIC so all eligible families who apply can receive benefits. However, the president’s 2027 budget request, like the 2026 request, proposes cuts to the program. If Congress continues to allocate sufficient federal funds to support full participation, this is an area where city leadership could focus efforts to increase benefit awareness and access without exacerbating the coming budget challenges.
Child care and housing assistance experience much lower participation rates, with neither program having sufficient federal funds for all eligible applicants. Just over a quarter of eligible children in DC received CCDF child care assistance. In more recent years, DC has successfully increased enrollment in the child care assistance program through supplemental funding and process improvements, such as offering an online application, but the District is now reintroducing a waiting list for the program that may require difficult decisions about enrollment freezes and which families are prioritized for care.
While DC provides other forms of housing assistance in addition to federally funded housing programs, housing assistance in the city still falls short in meeting the needs of residents. Only 16 percent of eligible young adult–headed households received US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)–provided housing assistance, and a quarter of eligible DC households with young children received LIHEAP benefits.
Source: The Urban Institute’s State of the Safety Net data tool.
Notes: CCDF = Child Care and Development Fund; HUD = US Department of Housing and Urban Development; LIHEAP = Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program; SNAP = Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; WIC = Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children. Estimates produced using the Urban Institute’s Analysis of Transfers, Taxes, and Income Security (ATTIS) microsimulation model applied to combined 2022 and 2023 American Community Survey data, adjusted to reflect 2023 population and income characteristics, and corrected for underreporting of benefits. American Community Survey data were obtained from IPUMS USA, University of Minnesota, www.ipums.org. Estimates apply to the average month of the year. Each participation rate equals the average monthly participants divided by the estimated number eligible in the average month. CCDF estimates are based on enrollment data published by the District of Columbia and reflect expanded income eligibility limits introduced in 2023. Public and subsidized housing eligibility estimates include households with incomes under 50 percent of area median income and those between 50 and 80 percent who are estimated to still be assisted based on prior enrollment. SNAP estimates include people eligible for or receiving benefits under broad-based categorical eligibility policies as well as people eligible for or receiving benefits under standard federal policies.
3. Connecting more people with benefits could lift 10,000 young people out of poverty in DC
Critical safety net supports can help alleviate poverty and improve short-term and long-term outcomes for young people. We estimate that with full funding and full participation in key safety net programs—including CCDF, HUD-provided housing assistance, LIHEAP, SNAP, WIC, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and Supplemental Security Income—10,000 young people in DC could be lifted out of poverty. This includes 7,000 children and 3,000 young adults.
Although some of these programs aren’t fully funded, and although others will face new pressure as the District deals with federal funding cuts and budget shortfalls, District leaders can prioritize actions to increase benefit take-up to the extent possible. For SNAP, a key challenge will be maintaining the District’s high participation rate while facing new pressures introduced by OBBBA. The District could also consider ways to reach some of the estimated 8,000 young children eligible for but not currently receiving WIC. DC leaders could consider strategies such as administrative changes, targeted outreach, and civic tech approaches.
Source: The Urban Institute’s State of the Safety Net 2023 data.
Notes: SPM = supplemental poverty measure. Estimates produced using the Urban Institute’s Analysis of Transfers, Taxes, and Income Security (ATTIS) microsimulation model applied to combined 2022 and 2023 American Community Survey data, adjusted to reflect 2023 population and income characteristics, and corrected for underreporting of benefits. American Community Survey data were obtained from IPUMS USA, University of Minnesota, www.ipums.org. Estimates reflect the total share of people who would have been lifted out of poverty (in families with resources below 100 percent of the SPM poverty threshold in 2023) if all eligible people had received their full benefits for the following programs: Child Care and Development Fund; Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program; public and subsidized housing; Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children; Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; Supplemental Security Income; and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.
A path forward
Improving access to the safety net for children and young people is an investment in future generations and in the District itself. The new mayor and council can draw on these findings as they consider how to prioritize DC’s resources to improve outcomes during their tenure and beyond. Understanding the evidence can help leaders decide where changes could make the biggest difference in expanding access to critical safety net supports and services that young people need to grow up healthy and thrive in adulthood.
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