Law Commons^™

The Quiet "Welfare" Revolution: Resurrecting The Food Stamp Program In The Wake Of The 1996 Welfare Law, David A. Super

Faculty Scholarship

Cash-assistance programs have long been a focus of both liberal and conservative efforts to make symbolic statements. In this regard, the 1966 dismantlement of federal entitlement to cash assistance was nothing new. Although the 1996 welfare law also made deep cuts to in-kind programs, such as food stamps, these programs had less symbolic significance and hence were less often the target of public attacks. This lower political profile gave the Food Stamp Program room to find positive ways to adapt to the key themes that drove the enactment of the 1996 welfare law. In the 1996 welfare law’s wake, the …