CUED

Living with Welfare Reform:
A Survey of Low Income Families in Illinois

January 2000
Suzanne Armato, Work, Welfare and Families; Jim Lewis, Chicago Urban League; and Tim Lohrentz, Center for Urban Economic Development, UIC
PDF executive summary (140KB)
PDF paper (741 KB)
PDF survey (21KB)

This report is one of the first comprehensive studies on the impact of the 1996 federal welfare policy reform on families receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), as well as those who are leaving TANF. In 1998, Work, Welfare and Families, an Illinois-wide coalition, the Chicago Urban League, and the Center for Urban Economic Development at the University of Illinois at Chicago, undertook a study to assess the effects of welfare reform on low-income persons across Illinois. The findings reported in this study were developed from three sources: a self-administered survey of 2,166 low-income clients of Illinois social service agencies, conducted from September 1998 to January 1999; data obtained from the Illinois Department of Human Services; and participants in a series of focus groups conducted around the state.

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