Income Distribution Commons^™

Essays On Transfer-Program Interactions Among Low-Income Households, Nicholas S. Moellman

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

This dissertation consists of three essays examining the role of transfer-program interactions for families and households who participate in the social safety net. The safety net is comprised of many different programs, run by different agencies, governed by different rules, and often administered by disparate and secluded entities. However, many households participate in multiple programs, subjecting them to the milieu of administrative hurdles. In this dissertation, I try to untangle some of the intended and unintended effects of program participation that may be experienced by these households.

In Essay 1, I examine the effect of the Patient Protection and Affordable …

Impact Of Welfare Participation During Childhood On Adult Income, Curran A. Prettyman

Lewis Honors College Capstone Collection

This paper analyzes the impact of welfare participation during childhood on adult income. In the United States, welfare programs have a long history originating from the 1800s, and over $20 billion are currently allocated to various anti-poverty programs, such as Aid to Families with Dependent Children and Supplemental Security Income. Many people believe that these programs effectively eradicate childhood poverty. However, ordinary least squares and instrumental variables regression models suggest welfare programs are counterproductive. On average, holding all else constant, with 95% confidence, the total dollar amount of funding received from welfare programs during childhood is statistically significant to a …

The Effects Of Food Stamps On Exiting Welfare And Becoming Employed For Welfare Recipients, Charles Baum

University of Kentucky Center for Poverty Research Discussion Paper Series

Welfare reform’s success encouraging employment may be affected by the federal Food Stamp program because many households receive welfare and Food Stamps. Food Stamp benefits could discourage employment because benefits are reduced proportionally with income; alternatively, it could encourage employment by increasing stability and allowing more resources to be allocated toward employment-related expenses. I examine the effects of Food Stamps on exiting welfare and becoming employed for welfare recipients. Results suggest, if anything, that Food Stamps discourage employment, and such benefits may discourage transitions off welfare, too. If so, then it may be necessary to study the determinants of welfare …

Exit Routes From Welfare: Examining Barriers To Employment, Demographic And Human Capital Factors, Colleen Heflin

University of Kentucky Center for Poverty Research Discussion Paper Series

This paper investigates how barriers to employment, human capital, and demographic characteristics affect women’s exit routes off welfare. Specifically, I address two questions. First, what are the avenues through which women leave welfare? Second, are mental and physical health problems, domestic violence, and lack of access to transportation, characteristics that have been ignored in other studies of welfare dynamics, associated with different welfare exit routes? Using multinomial logistic regression and data from the Women’s Employment Survey, this project examines the specific exit route chosen in detail and goes beyond general dynamics associated with welfare exit in order to capture the …