Benefits and Costs of Increased Child Support Distribution to Current and Former Welfare Recipients

Final Report

Prepared by:
Laura Wheaton and Elaine Sorensen
With
Victoria Russell and Jeff Versteeg
The Urban Institute

Prepared for:
Department of Health and Human Services
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
Office of Human Services Policy

Contract Number 233-02-0092
Task Order No. 4

October 16, 2005

This report is available on the Internet at:
http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/05/cs-dist-TANF/

Printer Friendly version in PDF format

How to obtain a printed copy of this report

This report was produced under the direction of Jennifer Burnszynski, Task Order Officer, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Office of Human Services Policy, Jerry Regier, Deputy Assistant Secretary.  The views expressed here are those of the authors and should not be attributed to the Urban Institute, its trustees, or ASPE/DHHS.

Contents

Executive Summary (in PDF format)

Acknowledgements

Full Report in PDF format

Chapters

  1. Child Support Policy, Welfare, and the Benefits of Child Support
  2. Increasing the Child Support Pass-through and Disregard
  3. Distributing Federal Tax Refund Offsets to Former Welfare Families
  4. Effects on Administrative Costs
  5. Conclusions

References

Appendices

  1. State Pass-through and Disregard Policies in 2002
  2. Correction for Underreporting of Child Support
  3. Behavioral Response Methodology
  4. Federal Tax Refund Offset Imputation Methodology

Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the comments and advice received from Jennifer Burnszynski, Audrey Mirsky-Ashby, and Linda Mellgren (of ASPE/DHHS), Daniel Meyer and Maria Cancian (of the University of Wisconsin), and Linda Giannarelli (of the Urban Institute). The authors also thank Kenneth Finegold, Meghan Williamson, Liliana Sousa, An-Lon Chen, Joyce Morton, Paul Johnson, and Jessica Kelly for their contributions to this project.

How to Obtain a Printed Copy

To obtain a printed copy of this report, send the title and your mailing information to:

Human Services Policy, Room 404E
Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Ave, SW
Washington, DC 20201

Fax:  (202) 690-6562

Where to?

Top of Page | Contents

Home Pages:
Human Services Policy (HSP)
Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation ASPE)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)

Last updated:  10/31/06