Latest Reports from the Low Income Working Families Project

This paper examines the characteristics and circumstances of families vulnerable to sharp income drops and those most likely to recover financially. More than 13 percent of nonelderly adults in families with children will see their incomes fall by half at some point over the course of a year, and about 40 percent fully recover within a year. Those who lose jobs or have an adult leave the family are more likely to have a substantial drop in income and are less likely to recover. This study uses data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation, which collects data every four months and can provide information on short-term income loss.

The fact sheets examine the transition to adulthood for two groups of youth using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1997 cohort. Low-income African Americans are compared to low-income white youth, and youth from low-income "high-work" families are compared to low-income youth from moderate-work and nonworking (i.e., low-work) families. Low-income African American youth are vulnerable to lower employment and earnings despite comparable levels of high school education and lower risk-taking behaviors. Low-income youth from high-work families show stronger connections to school or work compared to youth from low-work families, but have comparable employment and earnings during the transition to adulthood.

Up-to-date state information on children of immigrants is essential for social policies that affect children and families. This brief, accompanying the Urban Institute's interactive Children of Immigrants Data Tool, describes the national and state characteristics of children of immigrants based on recent American Community Survey data. Since children of immigrants account for almost a quarter (24 percent) of children under age 5, their share in the school-age population will increase, with important implications for education policy. In addition, children of immigrants' poverty and low-income rates vary across states, highlighting the importance of state and local policies in promoting children's well-being.

The Children of Immigrants Data Tool enables users to generate detailed charts of the characteristics of children age 0 to 17 nationwide and for individual states and the District of Columbia in 2005 and 2006. Statistics on 21 features include citizenship and the immigrant status (foreign vs. native-born) of children and their parents; children's race, ethnicity, and school enrollment; parents' education and English proficiency; and family composition, income, and work effort. A companion publication, "Children of Immigrants: National and State Characteristics," highlights key national data and variations across states.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) provides essential help in purchasing food for most low-income Americans. Most families can qualify for benefits if their assets and income fall below minimum levels. SNAP caseloads are at an all-time high due to the recession and to program changes making it easier to receive benefits. The majority of working families that receive assistance are headed by single parents that work part time. SNAP benefits substantially reduce poverty, especially deep poverty, when benefits are added to cash income.

Low-income status in the United States varies significantly by race and ethnicity. Of the more than 13.4 million families with children living on incomes less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level, 30 percent are Hispanic, 22 percent are black or African American, and 6 percent are other nonwhites. This fact sheet provides statistics on racial and ethnic differences in family structure, work effort, nativity or immigration status, earnings, and education.

Too often, child welfare policy and the agencies responsible for it—offices that respond to child abuse and neglect, oversee foster care placements, and seek to reunite children with their parents or find adoptive families—are out of sight and out of mind except for fleeting moments of tragedy, such as a child's death. Yet this topic is crucial: many children come into contact with child welfare agencies each year, and far more live in highly vulnerable families with some of the same challenges and risks. Further, leaders' successes and failures dealing with these extraordinarily difficult issues hold lessons for other areas of public policy and agency reform.

A large percentage of American families have low incomes, which lead to a host of challenges and disadvantages for both parents and children. In 2006, one out of every three families with children had incomes below twice the federal poverty level (FPL): $40,888 for a family with two adults and two children. While these families face many of the same challenges as other families, they are particularly financially vulnerable. This fact sheet provides statistics on the work effort, earnings, health care access and other characteristics of these families.

Using the 1996, 2001, and 2004 panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation, this brief examines the likelihood that nonelderly individuals in families with children experience substantial drops in family income and recoveries from such drops. Over 13 percent of families see their incomes fall by half at some point over the course of a year with the lowest- and highest-income families the most likely to experience a substantial income loss. Further, only two in five individuals recover to at least 100 percent of their pre-drop income in the year after the drop.

This report summarizes strategies San Francisco employers used to implement the nation's first law requiring paid sick days for all employees, based on interviews with a sample of businesses. Although employers faced three new policies that affected staff wages and benefits, they were able to implement the paid sick leave requirement with minimal impacts to their business. The report details employer responses to the law in their operations, staffing, employee benefit packages, and reporting requirements. By assessing employers' perspectives on the operational challenges of the law, the study provides lessons to inform future research and policymaking.