Chapter 14: The Family, the State, and Social Policy
What is the welfare state?
-A capitalist government that has enacted numerous measures to protect workers and their families from the harshness of the capitalist system, raise standard of living >Examples of what measures these states take: --Social security --Unemployment compensation --Minimum wage -The programs were initially designed under the assumption that husbands would work full time for wages and wives would do domestic work in the household, congress did not anticipate the large number of wives working outside home or that divorce and outside marriage child bearing would become more common.
What is the Earned Income Tax Credit?
-A refundable tax credit to low income families with children in which at least one parent is employed -It was one of the main anti-poverty programs -Tax benefit to help low to moderate income working people -Workers must file tax return to receive credit -Liberals like it: helps working families income assistance -Conservatives like it: incentive to work emphasizes breadwinner/homemaker families
What are the themes liberals and conservatives stress in debating family policy?
-LIBERALS: Believe that the growth of diverse forms of family life should be accepted and even welcomed. They oppose programs that favor heterosexual marriage over other family forms, and they approve same sex marriage. They provide direct assistance to employed parents, single-parent families, low-income fathers. They support national health insurance. Liberals accept and defend the emergence of family diversity. They see family change as rooted in changes in the economy; and they favor more assistance for low income families and working parents. -CONSERVATIVES: They believe that heterosexual marriage is the superior setting for raising a children and favor programs that promote it. They oppose same sex marriage. They are neutral at best on the issue of married woman working outside the home. Discourages non-marital childbearing. Approve programs that enforce the obligations of welfare recipients to search for work and non-resident fathers to pay child support, they oppose national health insurance. They tend to believe that the upheaval in family life over the past half-century has been a result of cultural change: a deterioration in the values that supported marriage. They also believe in a modest role for government programs in support of family life.
How has welfare reform impacted families?
-Sort of answered this in #4, but basically it forced families to find a job within 5 years and mothers could no longer be stay at home mothers. There was a new emphasis on helping people find jobs and the government could decline you of benefits his they've exhausted their block grant. -The number of families receiving TANF decreased by ⅔ -Increased employment of single mothers -Effects of welfare are mixed
What are the basic arguments on each side of the following family policy debates?
Marriage promotion -LIBERALS - Does not promote one type of family over another. Promotes diverse family types. -CONSERVATIVES - Promotes marriage by enhancing communication skills among young adults. Same-sex marriage -LIBERALS - legalize it -CONSERVATIVES - prohibit it and perhaps get rid of civil unions too Nonmarital childbearing -LIBERALS - increase sex education and contraceptives. Based on personal freedom of choice. -CONSERVATIVES - encourage abstinence, don't support non-marital births to mothers receiving TANF Single-parent families -LIBERALS - provide greater cash assistance and child care subsidies -CONSERVATIVES - enforce work obligations as a condition of assistance National health insurance -LIBERALS - achieve universal coverage through government regulations, mandates and financial assistance. Supports the Affordable Care Act -CONSERVATIVES - rely on the private system of obtaining insurance through employment for most of the non-poor. Doesn't support the Affordable Care Act Responsible fatherhood -LIBERALS - support more education and job-training for non-resident fathers -CONSERVATIVES - maintain strong child support enforcement system Work-family balance -LIBERALS - implement paid parental leave and more childcare assistance for working parents -CONSERVATIVES - assist all marriage based families, regardless of whether both spouses work
How was the 1996 welfare reform law a sharp break from previous policies toward low-income families?
WELFARE BEFORE -Aid to families with dependent children (AFDC) was originally designed to support widows and their children as part of the social security act. Both AFDC and social security were created as entitlement programs by congress. -This means that the government is obligated to provide benefits to anyone who qualifies regardless of the total cost of the program. -Starting in the 1930's the gov pledged to provide assistance to through the FDSC program to any family that qualified - low income, just one parent and children under 18. WELFARE AFTER 1996 - The Welfare reform: -Ended entitlement to welfare benefits -States were given a certain amount of money each year - block grant (fixed amount of money that the federal government gives each state to spend on a set of programs) -If a state exhausted its block grant, it can choose to turn away new applicants until next year. - Entitlement -The government no longer agreed to support every single parent family in need. -Five year limit cash assistance - people still on the rolls after 5 years were cut off. States could enforce a shorter time limit -Families had to accept work within 2 years or else they would lose their benefits. So mothers could no longer stay at home full time to take care of their children Emphasized assistance on getting a job -Title went from AFDC to TANF (temporary assistance for needy families) -Supporters of the bill argued that dependence on public benefits was detrimental to low-income families; liberals countered that dependence was a symptom of the deeper problem of poverty.