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Title: Mother-Only Families: Low Earnings Will Keep Many Children in Poverty
Resulting in 1 citation.
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General Accounting Office |
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Mother-Only Families: Low Earnings Will Keep Many Children in Poverty GAO/HRD-91-62 Report to Congress, Washington DC: General Accounting Office, 1991 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: General Accounting Office (GAO) (pre July 2004) Keyword(s): Aid for Families with Dependent Children (AFDC); Armed Forces Qualifications Test (AFQT); Benefits, Fringe; Child Care; Child Health; Children; Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC); Earnings; Government Regulation; Maternal Employment; Mothers; Parents, Single; Poverty; Welfare This report examines the problems that mother-only families face in attaining economic self-sufficiency and discusses the impact that recent federal initiatives such as the Family Support Act (FSA) 1988 and the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 1990, both of which contained key provisions aimed at assisting low income families, may have in assisting such women and their children stay out of poverty. Utilizing data from the NLSY, comparisons are made of the characteristics and employment potential of poor and non-poor mothers. The analysis found that young poor single mothers face enormous barriers to economic self-sufficiency: (1) limited earnings potential, concomitant educational deficiencies (lower levels of education and lower AFQT scores) and less work experience; (2) responsibility for larger numbers of children and the need for economical child care options and greater family income in order to stay out of poverty; (3) less than full-time year-round employment at lower wages; and (4) jobs which did not provide such important fringe benefits as health insurance and sick leave. Various income projections, based on potential earnings for employed women, child care costs and taxes, revealed that many single mothers and their children will remain in poverty even with full-time employment and will need additional income supplements to raise themselves and their families out of poverty. Implications of the recently enacted FSA JOBS and child support enforcement provisions, and increases in the Earned Income Tax Credit for mother-only families are discussed. |
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Bibliography Citation
General Accounting Office. "Mother-Only Families: Low Earnings Will Keep Many Children in Poverty." GAO/HRD-91-62 Report to Congress, Washington DC: General Accounting Office, 1991. |