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The Great Recession and the Social Safety Net

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  • Robert A. Moffitt

Abstract

The social safety net responded in significant and favorable ways during the Great Recession. Aggregate per capita expenditures in safety net programs grew significantly, with particularly strong growth in the SNAP, EITC, UI, and Medicaid programs. The increase in transfers was widely shared across demographic groups, including families with and without children, and single-parent and two-parent families. Transfers grew as well among families with more employed members and with fewer employed members. In the low-income population, however, the increase in transfer amounts was not strongly progressive across income classes, with transfers to those just below or above the poverty line increasing slightly, compared to those at the bottom of the income distribution. This was mainly because of the EITC program, which provides greater benefits to those with higher family earnings. The expansions of SNAP and UI benefitted those at the bottom of the income distribution to a greater extent.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert A. Moffitt, 2013. "The Great Recession and the Social Safety Net," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 650(1), pages 143-166, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:anname:v:650:y:2013:i:1:p:143-166
    DOI: 10.1177/0002716213499532
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    8. Nada Eissa & Hilary W. Hoynes, 2006. "Behavioral Responses to Taxes: Lessons from the EITC and Labor Supply," NBER Chapters, in: Tax Policy and the Economy, Volume 20, pages 73-110, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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    Cited by:

    1. Bruch, Sarah K. & van der Naald, Joseph & Gornick, Janet C., 2022. "Poverty Reduction through Federal and State Policy Mechanisms: Variation Over Time and Across the U.S. States," SocArXiv jz5xp, Center for Open Science.
    2. Hershbein, Brad & Stuart, Bryan A., 2023. "Place-based consequences of person-based transfers: Evidence from recessions," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 224(C).
    3. Cai, Julie Y. & Wimer, Christopher & Berger, Lawrence & Maury, Matthew, 2023. "Intra-year employment instability and economic well-being among urban households: Mitigating effects of the social safety net," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 148(C).
    4. Massimiliano Agovino & Massimiliano Cerciello & Aniello Ferraro & Antonio Garofalo, 2022. "A Regional Perspective on Social Exclusion in European Regions: Context, Trends and Policy Implications," Italian Economic Journal: A Continuation of Rivista Italiana degli Economisti and Giornale degli Economisti, Springer;Società Italiana degli Economisti (Italian Economic Association), vol. 8(2), pages 409-433, July.
    5. Erik Hembre, 2023. "Examining SNAP and TANF caseload trends, responsiveness, and policies during the COVID‐19 pandemic," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 41(2), pages 262-281, April.
    6. Megan M. Reynolds & Ashley M. Fox & Yvette Young, 2021. "State‐level social safety nets for families coping with job loss," Poverty & Public Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 13(2), pages 121-138, June.
    7. Colleen Heflin & Michah W. Rothbart & Mattie Mackenzie-Liu, 2022. "Below the Tip of the Iceberg: Examining Early Childhood Participation in SNAP and TANF from Birth to Age Six," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 41(2), pages 729-755, April.
    8. Michael Wallace & Angran Li & Allen Hyde, 2022. "The Great Recession Index: A Place-based Indicator for Countries, States, and Metropolitan Areas," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 160(1), pages 401-426, February.

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