LFAA Resources

2024 Survey of State Anti-Guaranteed Income Legislation

“Guaranteed income” (GI) refers to periodic, cash payments given directly to individuals that are frequent and unconditional, with no “strings attached” and no work requirements. Guaranteed income is meant to supplement, rather than replace, the existing social safety net. Unlike cash transfer concepts like a “universal basic income”, a guaranteed income is not universal and prioritizes channeling resources to low-income, no-income, and middle-income people. State and local governments are increasingly experimenting with guaranteed income, especially after the economic devastation of the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the momentum for the concept. Federal policies designed to provide economic relief during the pandemic, such as increased unemployment insurance, an expanded and fully refundable federal Child Tax Credit, and stimulus checks contributed to burgeoning support for creating and expanding cash assistance programs....Read more

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) : Arizona

The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program provides grants to states to provide families with cash assistance and related support services. States have broad discretion to determine eligibility for their TANF cash assistance programs and can restrict who can receive cash assistance and in what amount. These policies are often rooted in racist and sexist ideas about parents ─ especially Black mothers with low incomes ─ that have influenced cash assistance programs for over a century and resulted in marked racial discrepancies with respect to who receives benefits. Two policies that have racist roots are the work requirement (which requires TANF recipients to participate in "work activities" as a condition of receiving cash benefits) and the family cap (which says that children born or conceived while a family receives cash assistance are not counted in determining benefits). Some states have done away with these policies in recent years, and the COVID-19 pandemic has led to changes in many state programs. This state specific report--which is part of a larger  survey--looks at 19 states and provides an overview of each state’s stance with regard to the work requirement and family cap....Read more

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) : North Dakota

The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program provides grants to states to provide families with cash assistance and related support services. States have broad discretion to determine eligibility for their TANF cash assistance programs and can restrict who can receive cash assistance and in what amount. These policies are often rooted in racist and sexist ideas about parents ─ especially Black mothers with low incomes ─ that have influenced cash assistance programs for over a century and resulted in marked racial discrepancies with respect to who receives benefits. Two policies that have racist roots are the work requirement (which requires TANF recipients to participate in "work activities" as a condition of receiving cash benefits) and the family cap (which says that children born or conceived while a family receives cash assistance are not counted in determining benefits). Some states have done away with these policies in recent years, and the COVID-19 pandemic has led to changes in many state programs. This state specific report--which is part of a larger  survey--looks at 19 states and provides an overview of each state’s stance with regard to the work requirement and family cap....Read more