Report Urges Nonprofit World to Participate in Welfare-Policy Discussions

Welfare Reform: Next Steps Offer New Opportunities–A Role for Philanthropy in Preparing for the Reauthorization of TANF in 2002, by Mark Greenberg and Michael C. Laracy, urges nonprofit organizations to get involved when Congress takes up the extension of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families in 2002. The program–designed to foster employment and self-sufficiency among welfare recipients–was enacted in 1996 as part of the federal government’s restructuring of the welfare system. Since the law was put in place, the authors note, many charities and foundations have developed new ways to help those not fully aided by the law, especially the mentally ill, substance abusers, and illegal immigrants. Organized philanthropy has a duty, they argue, to ensure that Congress considers the lessons learned from such efforts during the 2002 debates. The authors hope that research organizations, policy analysts, and grassroots advocates will collaborate to push for policies that “level the playing field for low-income families.” Mr. Greenberg is a senior attorney at the Center for Law and Social Policy, in Washington, and Mr. Laracy is a senior associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation, in Baltimore. This publication is Number 4 in a series of policy papers produced by the Neighborhood Funders Group. It is available free online at http://www.nfg.org.

Publisher: Neighborhood Funders Group, 6862 Elm Street, Suite 320, McLean, Va. 22101; (703) 448-1777; fax (703) 448-1780; nfg@nfg.org; http://www.nfg.org; 30 pages; $5 for NFG members, $10 for non-members.