Economics of Means-Tested Transfer Programs in the United States, Volume 1

Federal as well as state and local governments in the United States sponsor a wide range of programs that are designed to help the poor. From tax credits to medical assistance, the size and structure of the American safety net is an issue of constant debate. These two volumes update the earlier Means-Tested Transfer Programs in the United States with a discussion of the changes in means-tested government programs and the results of new research on these programs over the past decade. A number of these programs have seen substantial increases in expenditures over the last decade, including Medicaid, the Earned Income Tax Credit, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and subsidized housing programs. For each program, the contributors describe its origins and goals, summarize its history and current rules, and discuss recipients’ characteristics and the types of benefits they receive. This is an invaluable reference for researchers and policy makers that features detailed analyses of many of the most important transfer programs in the United States.