Most States Far Short of Meeting H.R. 4 Participation Requirements

Publication Date: May 2003

Publisher: Center for Law and Social Policy

Author(s): Mark Greenberg

Research Area: Social conditions

Type: Report

Coverage: United States

Abstract:

A new analysis by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) concludes that if the participation requirements of H.R. 4 (the House TANF reauthorization bill) had been in effect in 2001, the national average participation rate would have been 32 percent. Under H.R. 4, when the requirements are fully phased in, most states would be required to meet a 70 percent participation rate. Overall, CRS concludes that two states would have met their required rates and another two states would have been within three percentage points of doing so. This document summarizes the CRS approach and discusses policy implications.

Supplementary file: PDF version of the Excel file of CRS participation rate estimates.