Belinda Creel Davis

The Extended Reach of Minority Political Power: The Interaction of Descriptive Representation, Managerial Networking, and Race

This paper explores the conditions under which descriptive and bureaucratic representation translate into policy outcomes. In particular, it investigates the role of managerial networking in providing a conduit for black political power to influence policy outcomes for black clients. Using administrative data, survey data, and parish-level contextual data on new participants to Louisiana’s welfare to work program from April 2004 through September 2006, results from a logit analysis predicting placement in vocational education indicate that minority clients benefit from black political power and that the effect of black political power is conditioned by whether or not program managers are involved in community networking. All clients, regardless of race, are more likely to receive vocational education when the program manager is black, supporting arguments by proponents of representational bureaucracy.

Material Hardship Among Banked and Unbanked Earned Income Tax Credit-Eligible Families

The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) has helped millions of Americans escape poverty. However, there is a dearth of research examining the experience of material hardship among EITC recipients. A lack of mainstream banking, disproportionately experienced by the poor, may also be related to increased hardship experiences. This study, using a sample of families receiving the EITC, investigates the hardship differences experienced depending on banking status. Results show that the overwhelming majority of families receiving the EITC experience some type of material hardship. Those with a bank account are less likely to experience material hardship than those without an account. Strategies to decrease hardship experiences and increase use of mainstream banking are drawn for policy makers, banking community, consumer protection and community organizations, and government human service administration.

A Fresh Look at an Old Debate: Assigned Work Activities, Employment, and Post-program Earnings in TANF Work Programs

This study asserts that the type of work activity in which a Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) participant engages affects the likelihood of employment and post-program earnings. Using a Heckman selection model on administrative data from Louisianas social service office and unemployment insurance wage data (N = 15,816) and controlling for individual and parish characteristics, this study reveals that two work activities, on-the-job training and unsubsidized employment, are associated with an increased probability of employment. Further, unsubsidized employment, on-the-job training, and vocational education are positively associated with earnings, while job search, school attendance, and work experience are negatively associated with earnings.

The Complex Lives of Disconnected Welfare Leavers: Examining Employment Barriers, Social Support and Informal Employment

With no federal entitlement to cash assistance, some unemployed welfare leavers have no obvious means of support. This article compares former Louisianas Strategies to Empower People (STEP) participants who are disconnected from employment and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) to those who are connected. Logistic regressions show that disconnected welfare leavers are more likely to have transportation problems, live rent free, and engage in informal employment. They are less likely to report a health problem or have a child with poor health, share living expenses, or receive cash help from family and friends. Contributions to the literature and policy initiatives are discussed.

Tax Filing and Other Financial Behaviors of EITC-Eligible Households: Differences of Banked and Unbanked.

Holding a bank account is crucial to the income-maximizing and asset-building of households. This study uses 2008 survey data of EITC-eligible households assisted at Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) sites to document their tax filing behavior and use of Alternate Financial Services (AFS). Specifically, the differences in tax filing and AFS use between banked and unbanked EITC-eligible households are examined. Findings reveal that unbanked status is associated with a lower likelihood of receiving a federal tax refund for tax year 2007 (TY 2007), a lower likelihood of filing a federal tax return for the previous tax year (TY 2006), a lower likelihood of receiving tax refunds via direct deposit or cashing at banks, and a higher likelihood of using check cashing stores. Findings suggest that policy changes and educational efforts should continue to focus on bringing the unbanked into the financial mainstream.

Predicting Material Hardship Among Former Welfare-to-Work Participants: An Income- and Resource-Packaging Model

ABSTRACT Material hardship is of concern because it refers to physical deprivation related to meeting the basic needs of food, housing, utilities, and other items. This study tests a predictive income- and resource-packaging model of material hardship using survey data collected from 459 former welfare-to-work program participants. Logistic regression results show that receiving social support in the form of living rent-free decreased the odds for experiencing material hardship. The predictors of working in the informal economy, being sanctioned while on public assistance, having mental health issues, and having transportation problems all increased the odds for experiencing material hardship. The measures of formal employment income, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families income, work-first program participation, sharing living expenses, monetary social support, and assistance from nonprofit organizations were unrelated to predicting material hardship experiences. Policymakers interested in improving conditions for needy families should question the use of sanctions and carefully monitor material hardship among those sanctioned. Future programs and future research should consider the extent to which low-income women participate in the informal economy to make ends meet, rely on social networks to live rent-free, and struggle with poor health and transportation problems.

Substance Abuse as a Barrier to Employment of Welfare Recipients

Abstract This article evaluates the impact of substance abuse on the employability, earnings, and use of governmental services of individuals receiving welfare cash assistance. Ordered probit and ordinary least squares regression techniques were used to test the hypothesis that use of controlled substances affects the ability of welfare beneficiaries to find employment, to earn wages, to avoid economic hardship, and to take advantage of governmental social service programs. Results show that substance abuse is not the barrier to work for individuals receiving cash assistance that it has been thought to be, nor does such use predict economic hardship, or affect the propensity of welfare beneficiaries to take advantage of government programs.