Conditional cash transfer programs (CCTs) have two main objectives: reducing poverty and increasing the human capital of children. To reach these objectives, transfers are given to poor households conditioned on investments in their children's education, health, and nutrition. Targeting mechanisms used by CCTs have been generally successful in…

Frequently implicit in Canadian social policy addressing other issues, family policy is generally assumed to be a good thing, is bound up with social structure, and, when made explicit, is prescriptive and potentially embarrassing to government. Historically important as a forerunner of more recent income assistance programs, the provision of…

During 1997, in cooperation with 17 southern states and the District of Columbia, the Southern Institute on Children and Families held site visits to identify ways to uncomplicate the delivery of health coverage, child care and other benefits to assist low wage families. This report presents key findings and recommended actions states can take to…

To assist states in easing the burden of Medicaid application procedures and verification requirements for families, the Southern Institute on Children and Families conducted a regional meeting to discuss child health coverage verification issues in September, 1998. Participating in the dialogue were Medicaid and state child health insurance…

Identifies the major themes that have emerged in this special issue on child welfare in Canada, and presents a critique of the policies and practices now dominating the Canadian child welfare enterprise. Outlines the changes required to move child welfare from its residual stance into an enterprise that develops a capacity for innovative practice.…

What might family support services look like in the reconfigured children and family services after the Children Act? This is the question this article attempts to explore by drawing on evidence from the National Evaluation of the Children's Fund in England. The article describes common features in two case-study sites that might indicate the…

Although more Americans are working than ever before, economic and employment trends over the past decade have resulted in low-income families falling even farther below the poverty level than ever before. The purpose of this oversight hearing is to discuss strategies to overcome family poverty. Testimony was submitted by six expert witnesses in…

The Southern Institute on Children and Families is an independent, nonprofit public policy organization founded in 1990 to improve opportunities for children and families in the South with a focus on disadvantaged children. This annual report presents the accomplishments and activities of the organization for 1999. The introductory letter from the…

The Southern Institute on Children and Families is an independent, nonprofit public policy organization founded in 1990 to improve opportunities for children and families in the South with a focus on disadvantaged children. This annual report presents the accomplishments and activities of the organization for 2000. The report begins with…

In the wake of welfare reform efforts, the government is willing to provide or finance a wide range of services for working parents and help them purchase child care and child health insurance. Taken together, these services represent a significant attack on child poverty. Based on a basic needs' budget for families and the high proportion of a…

Despite claims that benefits for the needy have not been reduced, the Reagan Administration's final budget for fiscal year 1990 is marked by substantial reductions in programs for the poor. Actual spending for low-income programs would be sliced $6.75 billion below current levels. Medicaid, which provides health care coverage for poor families…

This report describes problems West Virginia State has experienced in serving children, especially those in poverty-stricken areas, and recommends ways to overcome these problems. In confronting these issues, the task force made recommendations in four topic areas: Reorganization and System Change, Education and Child Care, Teen Pregnancy, and…

This book brings together sources of material on poverty and family health and makes it accessible to health and welfare teams working with families with young children. It draws on a wide range of disciplines and uses both "hard" and "soft" data to provide facts and figures and first-hand accounts of how poverty affects family…

This book analyzes how welfare reform can improve the lives of children, based on a study of successful programs that provide services to needy children and their families. The study looked at programs that operated in conjunction with the welfare department before the enactment of the Family Support Act and that operated successfully. Chapter 1…

Political changes underway at both the federal and state levels will dramatically affect public policies for children and their families in the years ahead. Drawing from over 550 budget line items in 10 state departments from 1990 to 1995, this report looks at spending on Illinois' children and families by program areas, with some specific…