Welfare Report Released

NETWORK: A Catholic Social Justice Lobby has released a report on the struggles of people living in poverty in the midst of the current recession. The report, titled TANF Tested: Lives of People in Poverty, is based on interviews with adults from more than 800 families who receive Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, also known as welfare. The interviews were conducted at 70 emergency-service agencies throughout the country, including Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Albany
The report describes NETWORK’s findings and includes recommendations about how the nation can address poverty more effectively, including investment in human needs programs, better coordination of services, appropriate help for people facing multiple barriers to employment, and more emphasis on education and job training.
NETWORK’s goal is to inform Congress, policy experts and the public about how the U.S. can do a better job of helping people rise out of poverty, especially as Congress considers the reauthorization of TANF in the coming months.