Welfare Reform: Data Available to Assess TANF's Progress

Abstract

Over 4 years have passed since federal welfare reform legislation was enacted, replacing the legal entitlement to cash assistance under the Aid to Families With Dependent Children (AFDC) program with the promotion of work and personal responsibility. The policy and research community has been asking what has happened to low-income families since the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) created the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant, replacing the federal entitlement to assistance and institutionalizing reforms that had been initiated by many states. Overseen by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) at the federal level, TANF makes $16.8 billion in federal funds available to states each year through 2002. While TANF delegates wide discretion to the states to design and implement the program, it does specify four broad program goals that focus on children and families.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 01, 2001
Accession Number
ADA387861

Entities

Organizations

  • United States Government Accountability Office

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Adolescents
  • Attrition
  • California
  • Congress
  • Databases
  • District Of Columbia
  • Governments
  • Health Services
  • Law
  • New Jersey
  • New York
  • North Carolina
  • South Carolina
  • Surveys
  • United States
  • Urban Areas
  • Websites

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