# Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: Programs and Spending, FY2008-FY2013 > Briefs, arguments, decisions, and more. URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/crs%3AR43863 ## Record - **Collection:** Congressional research report - **Document type:** CRS Report - **Published:** January 15, 2015 - **Citation:** R43863 ## Text Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: Programs and Spending, FY2008-FY2013 (name redacted) Specialist in Domestic Social Policy and Division Research Coordinator (name redacted) Specialist in Social Policy January 15, 2015 Congressional Research Service 7-.... www.crs.gov R43863 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Summary The Congressional Research Service (CRS) regularly receives requests about the number, size, and programmatic details of federal benefits and services targeted toward low-income populations, and the characteristics of people who participate. This report attempts to identify and provide information about such programs, including their federal spending during FY2008FY2013. The report does not discuss social insurance programs such as Social Security, Medicare, or Unemployment Insurance, but includes only programs with an explicit focus on low-income people or communities. Tax provisions, other than the refundable portion of two tax credits, are excluded. Key findings include the following: • No single label best describes all programs with a low-income focus, and no single trait characterizes those who benefit. Programs are highly diverse in their purpose, design, and target population. Readers should use caution in making generalizations about the programs described in this report. • Total federal spending on low-income programs rose sharply between FY2008 and FY2009 as the Great Recession took hold. Spending ultimately peaked in FY2011, dropped in FY2012, and edged up again in FY2013. • Total low-income spending in FY2013 totaled $744 billion, significantly higher than the FY2008 level of $561 billion but below the FY2010 level of $750 billion. Peak spending over the six years was $764 billion in FY2011. • Health care is the single largest category of low-income spending, accounting for nearly half of the total, and drives overall trends. The single largest program within the health category is Medicaid. Cash aid and food assistance are the next largest categories, with food assistance seeing the largest growth over the sixyear period. Other categories (in descending size) are education, housing and development, social services, employment and training, and energy assistance. • Most low-income spending (82% in FY2013) is classified in budgetary terms as “mandatory” (or “direct”), which means the amount spent is a function of eligibility and payment rules established by Congress in authorizing laws. Congress determines the amount spent for the remaining “discretionary” programs through the annual appropriations process. • Four programs accounted for 65% of low-income spending in FY2013, and 10 programs made up 82%. Medicaid alone contributed 39% of the total. In addition to Medicaid, the top four include the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), and the refundable portion of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). • The disabled receive the single largest share of federal low-income spending, based on an analysis of spending for the top 10 programs in FY2011. The disabled received almost a third of such spending, primarily for health care and secondarily for cash aid. Working families with children received the next largest share of spending (including from the EITC and Additional Child Tax Credit), followed by the elderly. The bulk of spending for low-income elderly was in the health category. Less than 12% of total low-income spending in FY2011 went to families with nonelderly nondisabled adults who were not working. Congressional Research Service Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Contents Introduction...................................................................................................................................... 1 Important Caveats...................................................................................................................... 1 Organization of Report .............................................................................................................. 2 Trends in Low-Income Spending, FY2008-FY2013 ....................................................................... 3 Overview of Benefits and Services by Category ............................................................................. 5 Health Care ................................................................................................................................ 5 Cash Aid .................................................................................................................................... 6 Food Assistance ......................................................................................................................... 6 Education ................................................................................................................................... 7 Housing and Development ........................................................................................................ 7 Social Services........................................................................................................................... 8 Employment and Training ......................................................................................................... 9 Energy Assistance ...................................................................................................................... 9 Trends in Low-Income Spending by Category .............................................................................. 10 Trends in Low-Income Spending by Budgetary Classification ..................................................... 13 Trends in Spending for the 10 Largest Programs........................................................................... 14 Spending for the 10 Largest Programs by Population ................................................................... 18 Related Reading ............................................................................................................................. 21 Figures Figure 1. Federal Spending on Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 ........................................................................................................................... 4 Figure 2. Percent of Federal Spending by Major Category on Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 .............................................................................. 10 Figure 3. Federal Spending by Major Category on Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 .................................................................................................. 12 Figure 4. Federal Spending on Major Categories of Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 .................................................................................................. 13 Figure 5. Spending for Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income by Size of Program, FY2013 ........................................................................................................... 15 Figure 6. Estimated Federal Spending for 10 Largest Low-Income Assistance Programs by Population Category, FY2011................................................................................................ 19 Tables Table 1. Federal Spending by Major Category on Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 .................................................................................................... 4 Table 2. Percent of Federal Spending by Major Category on Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 .............................................................................. 11 Congressional Research Service Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Table 3. Spending for the 10 Largest Programs for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 ......................................................................................................................... 16 Table 4. Key Features of the 10 Largest Programs ........................................................................ 17 Table 5. Estimated Federal Spending for the 10 Largest Low-Income Programs, by Population Category and Program, FY2011 ............................................................................... 20 Table C-1. Spending for Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, by Program: FY2008-2013 .............................................................................................................. 30 Table C-2. Target Populations and Concepts Used to Determine Individual Income Eligibility Criteria and/or Target Federal Resources, by Program.............................................. 41 Table C-3. Types of Grants or Awards, and Eligible Immediate Grantees or Beneficiaries, by Program ................................................................................................................................. 48 Table D-1. Guide to Program Fact Sheets and Page Numbers ..................................................... 54 Appendixes Appendix A. Methodology Used to Create Low-Income Program Database ................................ 22 Appendix B. Methodology Used for Analysis of Spending by Population ................................... 26 Appendix C. Detailed Program Tables .......................................................................................... 29 Appendix D. Program Fact Sheets ................................................................................................. 54 Contacts Author Contact Information......................................................................................................... 168 Acknowledgments ....................................................................................................................... 168 Congressional Research Service Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Introduction The size and composition of federal spending directed toward low-income people is a focus of public policy. Particularly in a budget-conscious environment, policy makers want to know what the federal government spends on programs to help needy populations, including the types of assistance provided and the characteristics of those who benefit. This report attempts to identify and provide information about federal programs that are targeted in some way toward lowincome people and communities. An earlier version of the report looked at low-income programs and spending in FY2008 and FY2009;1 this version extends that analysis through FY2013. Programs included in this report are distinct from social insurance programs such as Social Security, Medicare, or Unemployment Insurance. Those programs are financed largely by contributions from workers and employers2 and benefits are earned on the basis of an individual’s work history. Social insurance plays a major antipoverty role in the United States, but participation is generally meant to be universal (providing insurance to the population at large against becoming poor) and not specifically targeted toward low-income people.3 In contrast to social insurance, programs examined in this report are funded through general revenues and provide benefits and services to people with limited income either by tying eligibility to a specific measure of income, or by targeting assistance through funding allocation formulas or other need-related mechanisms.4 Some programs are highly targeted with detailed eligibility rules for individuals or households, while others encourage or prioritize services to low-income people within a broader target population group, such as the elderly. These programs attempt to ameliorate or mitigate the effects of low income by providing cash or noncash benefits to help people meet basic needs, such as food, housing, and health care. They also seek to address root causes of economic disadvantage by providing education, training, and other services to improve people’s employability and earnings capacity. Some programs target assistance to communities with high concentrations of low-income people to compensate for their low tax capacities, and to help finance benefits and services for residents. Important Caveats While they share the common feature of an explicit low-income focus, programs discussed in this report are highly diverse in their purpose, design, and target population. They were established at different times, in response to different policy challenges, and not necessarily in coordination 1 See CRS Report R41625, Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: Programs, Policy, and Spending, FY2008-FY2009, by (name redacted). 2 These contributions are made in the form of payroll taxes. Some components of social insurance programs also receive general revenues or other funds (e.g., Medicare Part B is funded through general revenues and premium payments; Unemployment Compensation-Extended Benefits is funded by federal general revenues and states). 3 See discussion of “Universal Policies Versus Need-Tested Benefits” in CRS Report R43731, Poverty: Major Themes in Past Debates and Current Proposals, by (name redacted) and (name redacted). 4 The earlier version of this report, cited in footnote 1, includes detailed discussions of concepts and income measures used to determine individual eligibility for low-income programs, and of the various mechanisms used to target federal resources toward populations or communities based on need. Congressional Research Service 1 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 with one another. Readers should exercise caution in any attempt to generalize about these programs or draw conclusions from the information presented in this report. No single label accurately describes all programs in the report. Terms such as “social welfare” and “social safety net” are often understood to include social insurance programs, and are thus broader than the programs included here. “Public welfare” and “public assistance” are typically understood as a more narrow set of programs that primarily provide cash or near-cash benefits to low-income people. While such programs are included, programs that provide in-kind benefits and services also are discussed. “Income-tested” or “means-tested” might be used to describe these programs, but some target assistance toward low-income communities and do not apply a specific income or means test to individual participants or beneficiaries. The report examines programs by category, but the categories themselves are diverse. For example, the health category includes primary care for poor children and their families along with nursing home care for the elderly and disabled whose health costs may have depleted other income and assets. Cash aid includes traditional “welfare” in the form of cash assistance to needy families, but also includes pensions for needy veterans and two refundable tax credits for households with earnings, the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC).5 Food assistance includes the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), as well as subsidized meals for low-income schoolchildren and home-delivered meals for the elderly. Similarly, no single trait characterizes the people served by these programs. They include elderly and disabled individuals, children and their families, single adults and couples without children, workers and nonworkers, veterans, homeless people, refugees, students, and others. While some popular perceptions of “welfare” assume that beneficiaries are unemployed able-bodied adults of working age, the report demonstrates that people with disabilities actually account for the single largest share of spending under the 10 largest low-income programs. Families with children where an adult is working account for the next largest share of spending, followed by the elderly. Households where no able-bodied adult is working account for a relatively small share of spending under these programs. Readers should also note that most of the programs included in this report are relatively small, and serve a fraction of their potentially eligible target population. The report refers to the collective target population of the programs as persons with “low” or “limited” income, rather than “poor” people. Although some programs limit participation to individuals with income below federal poverty guidelines, income eligibility criteria vary widely and frequently include people with income above the official federal definition of poverty. Organization of Report Key findings of this report are presented in the Summary, above. The body of the report is organized as follows: • The report begins with an overview of trends in federal spending for low-income programs over the six-year period from FY2008 through FY2013. 5 With the exception of direct spending for the refundable portions of the Earned Income Tax Credit and Additional Child Tax Credit, this report does not include tax programs or provisions. Congressional Research Service 2 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 • It continues with a brief descriptive overview of federal low-income programs by major category (health care, cash aid, food assistance, etc.). Following sections discuss spending trends by category and by budgetary classification (“mandatory” or “discretionary”). • The next section looks specifically at spending and trends over the six-year period for the 10 largest programs included in the report, which together accounted for 82% of all low-income spending in FY2013. Key features of the 10 programs are summarized. • Still focusing on the 10 largest programs, the next section presents an analysis of spending by the population groups served, including the elderly and disabled, families with children, and childless adults and couples. Nonelderly nondisabled households are further examined by whether they include working adults. • A “related reading” section lists additional CRS reports that provide information on federal low-income policy, programs, and spending. • The report concludes with several appendixes. Appendix A discusses the methodology used to create the database of low-income programs and spending, and Appendix B explains the methodology used to prepare the analysis of spending by population group. Appendix C provides overview tables of the programs included in the report, and Appendix D is a series of short fact sheets on each program. Trends in Low-Income Spending, FY2008-FY2013 Federal spending for low-income programs totaled $561 billion in FY2008 and jumped to $708 billion the next year, as the Great Recession of 2007-2009 took hold.6 The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA, P.L. 111-5) aimed to stimulate the economy with additional federal funding and was responsible for nearly 60% of the increased spending on lowincome programs between FY2008 and FY2009. Caseloads also grew as unemployment rose and incomes declined, making more people eligible for such benefits as SNAP and Medicaid. Federal spending for low-income programs peaked in FY2011 at $764 billion, dropped in FY2012, and edged up again in FY2013. By that year, spending for low-income benefits and services had receded below FY2010 levels, but remained a third higher than comparable spending in FY2008. (See Figure 1 and Table 1.) 6 This report discusses federal spending only and does not attempt to quantify nonfederal (state, local, or other) spending related to the low-income programs included in this report. However, readers should be aware that a significant amount of such spending occurs. (See “Matching or related requirements” in individual program fact sheets in Appendix D.) Congressional Research Service 3 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Figure 1. Federal Spending on Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 (dollars in billions) Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) from obligations data contained in the U.S. Budget Appendix for each of FY2010-FY2015. See Appendix A for additional details. Note: ARRA = American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, P.L. 111-5. Table 1. Federal Spending by Major Category on Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 (dollars in billions) FY2008 Categories FY2009 FY2010 FY2011 FY2012 FY2013 Total Total ARRA Total ARRA Total ARRA Total ARRA Total ARRA Health Care $258.8 $319.2 $34.7 $346.9 $40.6 $352.5 $26.3 $328.4 0 $344.0 0 Cash Aid 116.4 129.6 0.2 145.3 2.0 149.1 0 142.4 0 150.3 0 Food Assistance 58.9 77.6 5.0 93.9 11.1 101.4 11.9 104.8 8.3 107.1 6.1 Education 41.9 58.2 18.7 58.6 7.9 66.0 0 58.4 0 54.7 0 Housing and Development 39.7 60.0 14.5 51.8 5.7 46.2 0 44.0 0 41.4 0 Social Services 36.0 43.9 4.0 39.7 3.7 37.0 0 36.7 0 36.7 0 Employment and Training 6.2 8.6 1.9 7.7 0.7 6.5 0 6.1 0 6.0 0 Energy Assistance 2.9 10.3 4.7 5.6 0.2 4.9 0 3.6 0 3.4 0 $560.8 $707.6 $83.8 $749.6 $71.9 $763.5 $38.2 $724.5 $8.3 $743.7 $6.1 Total Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) from obligations data contained in the U.S. Budget Appendix for each of FY2010-FY2015. See Appendix A for additional details. Notes: ARRA = American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, P.L. 111-5. ARRA amounts are included in totals. Congressional Research Service 4 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Overview of Benefits and Services by Category The following sections briefly describe the programs included in each major category of benefits and services, organized by size of spending in FY2013. Tables in Appendix C list and highlight key features of the programs, and brief fact sheets on each program are provided in Appendix D. As noted earlier, these programs are highly diverse and provide a range of benefits and services to a variety of target populations (see “Important Caveats”). Health Care Just as health care dominates total federal spending on low-income programs, Medicaid dominates the health category. Medicaid accounted for 83% of health care spending in FY2013 and is the single largest program included in this report (accounting for 39% of total FY2013 lowincome spending). Medicaid is intended to help specified categories of people who lack the income and resources to afford necessary medical care. Low-income parents, dependent children, the elderly, and individuals with disabilities have been the primary target populations served by Medicaid, although the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA, P.L. 111-148) expanded Medicaid eligibility to include most nonelderly, nonpregnant individuals with income below a specified level.7 The program finances the delivery of a wide range of primary and acute medical services as well as long-term supports and services such as nursing home care. The State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) provides health coverage for low-income children who lack health insurance but whose family income exceeds Medicaid eligibility levels. Other large health programs include the low-income subsidy under Medicare Part D, which helps low-income seniors and individuals with disabilities pay for prescription drugs, and medical care for low-income veterans without service-connected disabilities. The latter program pays for an array of primary care, specialized care, and related social and support services provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The Indian Health Service also offers a variety of health services to its target population, who are American Indians or Alaska Natives living on reservations or within a specified service delivery area. Consolidated Health Centers offer primary and other health services to low-income populations in medically underserved areas, and the Maternal and Child Health block grant supports preventive and primary health care services for low-income women, infants, and children. The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program is intended to address the unmet care and treatment needs of individuals living with HIV or AIDS who lack insurance or resources to pay for core medical services, including prescription drugs, and related support services. Additional programs focus on specific health services, such as family planning and early breast and cervical cancer detection, or specific populations, such as refugees. 7 The Supreme Court’s June 28, 2012, decision in National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius, effectively made the ACA Medicaid expansion optional for states. See CRS Report R43564, The ACA Medicaid Expansion, by (name redacted). Congressional Research Service 5 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Cash Aid Three programs account for the bulk of cash aid spending, and each ranks among the 10 largest of all programs for low-income people. Supplemental Security Income (SSI), which aims to provide a minimum income for aged, blind, or disabled individuals with very low income and resources, accounted for nearly 40% of cash aid spending in FY2013. The refundable portion of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) accounted for another 38% of cash aid spending, and more than 14% came from the refundable Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC). The EITC subsidizes the wages of low-income workers, with most benefits going to those with children. The ACTC is a refundable credit for families whose tax liability is too low for them to fully benefit from the regular nonrefundable Child Tax Credit. Cash aid also includes part of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), the welfare reform program that replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) in 1996. As AFDC’s successor, TANF is still sometimes viewed as traditional welfare for poor families; however, the majority of TANF expenditures are for activities other than cash aid. TANF aims to increase the flexibility of states in meeting several statutory goals, including assisting needy families so that children can remain in their homes; ending dependence of needy parents through job preparation, work, and marriage; preventing and reducing incidence of out-of-wedlock pregnancies; and encouraging the formation and maintenance of two-parent families. In this report, TANF spending has been allocated among three categories—cash aid, social services, and employment and training—based on states’ reporting of their actual expenditures. Finally, cash aid programs include pensions for needy elderly or disabled veterans and their dependents or survivors. Food Assistance The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps) dominates spending for food assistance, accounting for almost three-quarters of obligations in this category and ranking as the second-largest low-income program in FY2013. SNAP attempts to alleviate hunger and malnutrition and to help low-income households purchase food to support a healthy diet. The next largest area of food assistance spending is for programs that subsidize the costs of breakfast and lunch served to low-income schoolchildren; these programs aim to support learning readiness, promote healthy eating, and protect the health and well-being of low-income children. Related programs subsidize the costs of meals and snacks for children in child care and other outof-school settings (and some low-income elderly and disabled adults in adult care settings) and for children during the summer when they lack access to school-based meal programs. Another program helps elementary schools with high concentrations of low-income students provide fresh fruit and vegetable snacks during the school day. Food assistance also includes the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), which provides supplemental food and nutrition education to low-income pregnant, postpartum, or breastfeeding women and their infants and young children who are at nutritional risk. The program seeks to protect children’s health during critical developmental stages, prevent health problems, and improve health status. Food assistance programs also include congregate and home-delivered meals for the elderly to reduce hunger and promote socialization and well-being for older individuals, and emergency food assistance in the form of commodities for individuals defined by their states as needy. Congressional Research Service 6 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Education The Federal Pell Grant Program is the largest education program for people with limited incomes, accounting for 58% of targeted federal education spending in FY2013 and ranking as the fifthlargest program in this report. Pell Grants are one of several ways the federal government helps subsidize the costs of higher education for needy students. Other programs with similar goals include Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants and Federal Work-Study.8 In addition to direct assistance to students, the federal government provides institutional aid to help expand the capacity of colleges and universities that serve high proportions of low-income and minority students. Federal TRIO Programs offer grants to institutions of higher education and other organizations to motivate and support disadvantaged students as they move from high school through college. GEAR-UP serves low-income elementary and secondary school students who are at risk of dropping out, and aims to increase the number of such students who enter and succeed in higher education. College Access Challenge Grants pursue a similar goal, through partnerships between government agencies and philanthropic groups. The second-largest education program included in the report (also one of the 10 largest lowincome programs) is Title I-A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, which accounted for more than one-fourth of targeted federal education spending in FY2013. Title I-A provides grants to local educational agencies with high concentrations of disadvantaged children and aims to ensure that all children have an opportunity to obtain a high-quality education and reach at least minimum proficiency on challenging academic achievement standards. Separate programs have similar goals for children of migrant workers, Indian children, and students in rural school districts. The Bureau of Indian Education operates programs to meet the educational needs of Indian children living on or near reservations. Other elementary and secondary education programs aim to increase student achievement through improvements in teacher and principal quality and to improve teacher knowledge and student performance in mathematics and science. Literacy is the focus of Adult Basic Education, which helps adults to become literate and obtain the skills necessary for employment and self-sufficiency and to become partners in their own children’s educational development. Finally, 21st Century Community Learning Centers are intended to provide a wide range of remedial education and academic enrichment opportunities during non-school hours for children in high-poverty and low-performing schools. Housing and Development The federal government supports the housing needs of low-income people primarily by subsidizing the cost of rental units in the private market. Section 8 housing vouchers and project-based rental assistance together accounted for nearly two-thirds of all housing and development spending in FY2013. (The voucher component of Section 8 is one of the 10 largest low-income programs.) The overarching goal of Section 8 is to provide low-income people with decent, safe, and sanitary housing. Public Housing, which represented 14% of spending in this category in FY2013, achieves a similar goal by making publicly owned rental units available to 8 Low-cost loans to help students finance higher education also are provided through the Federal Family Education Loan and William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan programs. However, these programs are not strongly targeted toward low-income students and are not included in this report’s analysis. See CRS Report R40122, Federal Student Loans Made Under the Federal Family Education Loan Program and the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program: Terms and Conditions for Borrowers, by (name redacted). Congressional Research Service 7 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 low-income tenants at affordable prices. The Public Housing account supports the capital needs and operating costs of publicly owned housing developments, as well as the HOPE VI program and Choice Neighborhoods, which demolish, rehabilitate, and replace distressed public housing units. Additional housing programs are intended to expand the supply of supportive housing for low-income elderly and disabled households, as well as individuals living with AIDS. Homeless Assistance Grants attempt to meet the needs of homeless individuals and families, including individuals with disabilities, for basic shelter, short-term and long-term housing, and related support services. Two block grants—HOME and the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)—target federal assistance toward communities with high rates of poverty and aging housing stock (among other factors) to help meet the housing needs of low-income homeowners, homebuyers, and renters (HOME) and to expand the community’s supply of decent housing and economic development activities (CDBG). An additional block grant provides housing assistance and helps develop private housing finance mechanisms on Indian lands. To address housing needs in rural areas, loans are available to help low-income households purchase, build, or renovate homes, and rental subsidies are available for low-income tenants. Low-interest loans and grants also are available to support new and improved water and waste disposal facilities in low-income rural communities. Finally, the housing and development category includes the Public Works and Economic Development program, which provides grants to distressed communities to help them revitalize, expand, and upgrade their physical infrastructure to attract new industries, expand businesses, diversify their economies, and generate job and investment growth. Social Services The social services category is diverse and includes a wide range of activities to support lowincome or otherwise vulnerable populations.9 Of spending categorized as social services in this report, the vast majority—more than 90% in FY2013—is focused directly on children and youth or their families. Services funded by TANF are the largest single activity in this category, accounting for more than a quarter of the social services spending in this report. As noted in the earlier discussion of cash aid, TANF is often thought of as traditional welfare for poor families. However, states have flexibility in spending their TANF grants, and the majority of funds are used for noncash aid, including various social services for families with children. TANF spending also includes obligations under competitive grants for promotion of healthy marriage and responsible fatherhood. Head Start is the second-largest program in this category, accounting for more than 20% of social services spending for low-income populations. Head Start aims to promote school readiness for young children through a full array of educational, health, nutritional, social, and other services to children and their families. The Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF), accounting for 14% of social services spending in FY2013, subsidizes the cost of child care for low-income parents while they work or attend school. Additional programs targeted toward children and families include Child Support Enforcement, which assists custodial parents who are seeking child support 9 Social services is a loosely defined category. Some of the programs included here could be categorized differently (e.g., Head Start could be viewed as education rather than social services; Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting could be categorized as health, etc.). See discussion in Appendix A. Congressional Research Service 8 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 from their children’s noncustodial parent. Foster Care grants are used by states to provide temporary homes for children who cannot remain safely with their families; Adoption Assistance helps facilitate the adoption of children with special needs as defined by their state; and the Chafee Foster Care Independence Program helps current and former foster children transition to a self-sufficient adulthood. The Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program is intended to promote a range of outcomes, including maternal and newborn health, child protection and prevention of child injuries, school readiness and achievement, reduction in crime or domestic violence, and family economic self-sufficiency. Of social services programs not specifically targeted toward children and families, the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) is the largest and most flexible. The program supports a continuum of services to promote self-sufficiency, but decisions about target populations and services are left to the states. Other social services programs focus on specific target populations. For example, the Older Americans Act authorizes social services for the elderly and the Bureau of Indian Affairs provides various human services for American Indians. Programs that target services at the community level include the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG), which aims to reduce poverty and empower low-income individuals and families to become self-sufficient, and Emergency Food and Shelter Grants, which provide services for homeless and hungry individuals in high-need communities. Finally, the Legal Services Corporation attempts to ensure equal access to the justice system for people who are otherwise unable to afford legal counsel. Employment and Training Two programs serving disadvantaged youth comprised 43% of the FY2013 employment and training spending included in this report. Specifically, youth activities under the Workforce Investment Act (WIA)10 provide a variety of services to improve the educational and skill competencies of eligible youth and to develop connections with employers and mentoring opportunities with adults. Job Corps focuses on those disadvantaged youth who can benefit from an intensive residential program to become employable and productive. This category also includes work-related services for needy families with children under TANF, a small employment and training program for recipients of SNAP benefits, and a program that provides employability and related services to help refugees and other humanitarian entrants find jobs quickly. Remaining programs include WIA’s adult activities program; Community Service Employment for Older Americans, which helps older individuals (age 55 or older) become self-sufficient through community service jobs and training; and Foster Grandparents, which provides stipends for low-income older individuals to provide services to children with special needs. Energy Assistance Two programs make up the energy assistance category. The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) helps low-income households pay their heating and cooling expenses, and the Weatherization Assistance Program helps increase the energy efficiency of homes occupied by low-income people to reduce energy costs and improve health and safety. 10 The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 was replaced in 2014 by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (P.L. 113-128). The new provisions are generally scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2015. Congressional Research Service 9 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Trends in Low-Income Spending by Category Health care is by far the largest category of low-income spending, accounting for nearly half of all expenditures in each of the six years from FY2008 through FY2013. Cash aid has consistently been the second-largest category (20% in FY2013), followed by food assistance (more than 14% in FY2013); however, spending for these two categories combined still falls short of spending for low-income health programs. Education, housing and development, and social services rank next in size, accounting for 7%, 6%, and 5%, respectively, of total low-income spending in FY2013. The last two categories—employment and training and energy assistance—each constituted less than 1% of low-income spending in FY2013. (See Figure 2 and Table 2.) Figure 2. Percent of Federal Spending by Major Category on Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) from obligations data contained in the U.S. Budget Appendix for each of FY2010-FY2015. See Appendix A for additional details. Congressional Research Service 10 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Table 2. Percent of Federal Spending by Major Category on Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 Categories FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 FY2011 FY2012 FY2013 Health Care 46.1% 45.1% 46.3% 46.2% 45.3% 46.2% Cash Aid 20.7% 18.3% 19.4% 19.5% 19.7% 20.2% Food Assistance 10.5% 11.0% 12.5% 13.3% 14.5% 14.4% Education 7.5% 8.2% 7.8% 8.6% 8.1% 7.4% Housing and Development 7.1% 8.5% 6.9% 6.0% 6.1% 5.6% Social Services 6.4% 6.2% 5.3% 4.9% 5.1% 4.9% Employment and Training 1.1% 1.2% 1.0% 0.8% 0.8% 0.8% Energy Assistance 0.5% 1.5% 0.7% 0.6% 0.5% 0.5% Total 99.9% 100% 99.9% 99.9% 100.1% 100% Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) from obligations data contained in the U.S. Budget Appendix for each of FY2010-FY2015. See Appendix A for additional details. Note: Amounts may not sum to 100% due to rounding. As noted above, health care dominates low-income spending; thus, total low-income spending tends to follow the same pattern as health care spending. (See Figure 3.) Like total low-income spending, health expenditures during the FY2008-FY2013 period peaked in FY2011, declined in FY2012, and rose again in FY2013. However, other categories show different patterns. Spending for cash aid and food assistance generally rose over each of the six years (with a dip in the cash aid category in FY2012); peak spending for both of these categories occurred in FY2013. (The food category showed the largest growth over the period, with an 82% increase in spending between FY2008 and FY2013.) On the other hand, education spending peaked in FY2011 and declined in both of the subsequent years. Smaller categories—housing and development, social services, employment and training, and energy assistance—all saw their peak spending in FY2009. By FY2013, spending for these four categories combined was only slightly higher than in FY2008. (See Figure 4.) Congressional Research Service 11 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Figure 3. Federal Spending by Major Category on Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 (dollars in billions) Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) from obligations data contained in the U.S. Budget Appendix for each of FY2010-FY2015. See Appendix A for additional details. Congressional Research Service 12 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Figure 4. Federal Spending on Major Categories of Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 (dollars in billions) Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) from obligations data contained in the U.S. Budget Appendix for each of FY2010-FY2015. See Appendix A for additional details. Trends in Low-Income Spending by Budgetary Classification Of total low-income spending in FY2013, about 82% was classified in budget terms as “mandatory” (also called “direct” spending) and the remainder as “discretionary.”11 This was a slight shift from FY2008, when 78% of low-income spending was mandatory and 22% was discretionary. In mandatory programs, many of which are entitlements to individuals or units of government, Congress defines eligibility and payment rules in authorizing laws.12 These rules determine the amount of spending that will occur, so Congress generally must amend the 11 For more information on these budget classifications and trends in both areas of spending, see CRS Report RL33074, Mandatory Spending Since 1962, by (name redacted) and (name redacted); and CRS Report RL34424, The Budget Control Act and Trends in Discretionary Spending, by (name redacted). 12 Most mandatory programs in this report are entitlements; however, not all mandatory spending is for entitlement programs. See U.S. Government Accountability Office, A Glossary of Terms Used in the Federal Budget Process, GAO-05-734SP, September 2005. Congressional Research Service 13 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 authorizing law in order to control federal spending. The amount of federal spending for discretionary programs, on the other hand, is determined by Congress through the annual appropriations process.13 Mandatory spending may be structured as open-ended or capped. In an open-ended entitlement program, no predetermined ceiling is imposed on federal expenditures; instead, federal payments are made to all eligible beneficiaries for eligible expenditures as defined in law. (Medicaid is an example of an open-ended entitlement program.) In a capped program, the authorizing law limits the total amount of federal spending that can occur. (TANF is an example of a capped entitlement program.) Of mandatory spending discussed in this report, 90% was through open-ended programs in FY2013. The pattern of mandatory versus discretionary spending differs by major category of benefits and services. The three largest categories—health care, cash aid, and food assistance—are dominated by mandatory spending, while the smaller categories (with the exception of social services) are primarily or exclusively discretionary. In the top three categories, spending occurs largely through open-ended entitlement programs. Social services spending is a mixture; about two-thirds of such spending in FY2013 was classified as mandatory and the rest discretionary. Of mandatory social services spending, most (about three-fourths) was capped and the balance open-ended. Trends in Spending for the 10 Largest Programs This report describes a large number of programs, but it is important to note that just a few account for the vast majority of spending. (See Figure 5.) The four largest programs accounted for nearly two-thirds (65%) of total low-income spending in FY2013, and the top 10 comprised almost 82%. The dominance of these large programs has grown somewhat since FY2008, when the same top four made up 61% of total low-income spending, and the top 10 accounted for 78%. Spending for Medicaid—the single largest program—went from 37% of the total in FY2008 to 39% in FY2013, and SNAP grew from 7% to 11%. (See Table 3.) 13 Congress also funds certain mandatory programs through annual appropriations laws; however, the amounts to be provided are established in authorizing laws, and appropriators generally lack the “discretion” to adjust these amounts. These programs are sometimes referred to as appropriated entitlements. Congressional Research Service 14 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Figure 5. Spending for Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income by Size of Program, FY2013 (dollars in millions) Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) from obligations data contained in the U.S. Budget Appendix for each of FY2010-FY2015. See Appendix A for additional details. All programs shown in Congressional Research Service 15 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 this figure had spending of at least $100 million in FY2013. See Table C-1 for complete program names and funding amounts. Table 3. Spending for the 10 Largest Programs for People with Low Income, FY2008-FY2013 (dollars in billions) Program FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 FY2011 FY2012 FY2013 Medicaid 214.0 265.1 290.5 295.8 270.9 286.9 Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program 37.5 53.8 68.5 75.3 78.2 79.7 Supplemental Security Income 48.9 52.4 54.5 59.9 53.8 59.8 Earned Income Tax Credit (refundable portion) 40.6 42.4 54.7 55.7 54.9 57.5 Top Four, Subtotal $341.1 $413.7 $468.2 $486.6 $457.7 $483.9 Top Four, Percent of Total Low-Income Spending 60.8% 58.5% 62.5% 63.7% 63.2% 65.1% Federal Pell Grants 18.0 26.0 32.9 41.5 34.3 31.9 Medicare Part D-Low-income Subsidy 17.4 20.3 20.9 22.3 22.3 22.4 Additional Child Tax Credit (refundable portion) 16.7 24.3 22.7 22.7 22.1 21.6 Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers 15.6 16.3 18.1 18.5 18.3 17.9 Temporary Assistance for Needy Families 17.5 18.8 21.6 17.3 17.3 17.3 Title I-A—Education for the Disadvantaged 13.4 21.5 14.5 14.5 14.5 13.8 Top 10, Subtotal $439.5 $540.8 $598.9 $623.3 $586.6 $608.8 Top 10, Percent of Total Low-Income Spending 78.4% 76.4% 79.9% 81.6% 81.0% 81.9% Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) from obligations data contained in the U.S. Budget Appendix for each of FY2010-FY2015. See Appendix A for additional details. See Table 1 for Total Low-Income Spending amounts for each fiscal year. Note: Amounts shown for TANF include obligations in the following categories: cash aid, social services, and employment and training. Amounts shown for SNAP include obligations primarily in the food assistance category, but also include obligations in the employment and training category. The 10 largest programs in FY2013 are the same as in FY2008, and Medicaid has consistently been number one; however, some of the others have shifted in rank order. Four programs ranked higher in FY2013 than in FY2008: SNAP, the Low-Income Subsidy for prescription drugs under Medicare Part D (LIS-Part D), the ACTC, and Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers. Three programs declined in relative size: SSI, the refundable portion of the EITC, and TANF. Among the 10 largest programs, seven are entitlements, or mandatory spending programs. Of those seven, all but one are open-ended entitlements to individuals. As noted above, this means Congressional Research Service 16 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 their spending levels are determined by the number of people who are eligible and apply for the program, rather than the amount Congress chooses to provide through the appropriations process. One mandatory program—TANF—is a capped entitlement to states (rather than individuals), which means that states are entitled to receive a fixed amount each year that is established in the authorizing law. Table 4 provides an overview of key features of each of these top 10 programs. Table 4. Key Features of the 10 Largest Programs Medicaid Medicare Part D, Low-Income Subsidy • • Mandatory spending, open-ended. • Serves elderly and disabled Medicare beneficiaries. • Uses federal poverty guidelines to determine eligibility, automatic eligibility for certain groups. • Direct benefits to individuals. Mandatory spending, open-ended. • Serves elderly, disabled, families with children, and (in certain states) nonelderly nondisabled adults. • Uses federal poverty guidelines to determine eligibility, automatic eligibility for certain groups. • Formula grant to states; cost-sharing formula determines federal share. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program • Mandatory spending, open-ended. • Limits participation of able-bodied adults without dependents. • Uses federal poverty guidelines to determine eligibility, automatic eligibility for certain groups. • Direct benefits to individuals; matching grants to states for administrative costs. • Benefits adjusted annually for inflation. Supplemental Security Income • Mandatory spending, open-ended. • Serves elderly and disabled. • Sets specific dollar thresholds for eligibility. • Direct benefits to individuals; states may supplement federal payment. • Benefits adjusted annually for inflation. Earned Income Tax Credit • Mandatory spending, open-ended. • Serves workers with earnings; largest benefits for families with children. • Phases out benefits at specific dollar thresholds. • Direct benefits to individuals. • Maximum benefit phase-out thresholds adjusted annually for inflation. Pell Grants • Discretionary and mandatory components. • Serves postsecondary students. • No individual income eligibility threshold; benefits based on available resources and cost of education. • Direct benefits to individuals. Additional Child Tax Credit • • • • Mandatory spending, open-ended. Serves families with children. Phases out benefits at specific dollar thresholds. Direct benefits to individuals. Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers • Discretionary spending. • Serves families, with priorities defined by local public housing authorities. • Uses income limits based on area median income to determine eligibility. • Formula grants to local public housing authorities; allocations based on use and cost of vouchers. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families • Mandatory spending, capped. • Serves families with children. • States set their own eligibility criteria. • Formula grants to states; national total and state allocations based on historical expenditures (early to mid-1990s) under predecessor program. Title I-A Education for the Disadvantaged • Discretionary spending. • Serves students in schools with high concentrations of low-income students. • No individual income eligibility determination; students need not be low-income. • Formula grants to local educational agencies; uses population-based and other allocation factors. Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). Congressional Research Service 17 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Spending for the 10 Largest Programs by Population14 Many low-income assistance programs target their benefits not only on the basis of financial need but also to certain populations, such as the aged, the disabled, or families with children. Other low-income assistance programs—while not explicitly restricting their benefits to certain groups—provide the bulk of assistance to them. Figure 6 provides estimates of federal spending in FY2011 by population group under the 10 largest low-income assistance programs identified in the previous section. The analysis uses FY2011 because it is the latest year for which data to divide spending among population groups are available for Medicaid. Estimates are provided for federal spending under the top 10 programs for the aged, the disabled, families with children, and childless adults and couples. Childless adults and couples represent nonelderly nondisabled adults in families without children. For families with children and for childless adults and couples, additional estimates are made for those with and without earnings. The figure also provides detail on the type of assistance received by each population group (e.g., health, food, housing, cash). As the figure shows, the population group benefitting from the most federal spending under the top 10 programs is the disabled, who received an estimated $208 billion in federal dollars in FY2011, or 33% of all federal spending under the 10 largest programs. Disabled individuals received $136 billion in health care assistance alone. The population group that received the second-most federal dollars was families with children with earnings, whose federal spending from the top 10 programs totaled $171 billion. This included $77 billion in cash assistance from the two refundable tax credits (EITC and ACTC), which are targeted to low-income families with children and are restricted to such families with earnings. The aged received $96 billion in low-income aid from the top 10 programs, predominantly in the health care category. Families with children but without wage earners received an estimated $61 billion from the top 10, largely from noncash programs. Childless adults received the least aid from the 10 largest programs; those with earnings received an estimated $9.7 billion in benefits and those without earnings an estimated $12.9 billion, mostly in the form of noncash benefits. Pell Grants, one of the 10 largest low-income assistance programs, provided student aid in FY2011 totaling $41.5 billion, and grants to states for services (education and TANF services) totaled $23 billion. (These are shown in Figure 6 and Table 5 as “Education and Services,” rather than in a specific population category.) 14 This section was prepared by (name redacted), Specialist in Social Policy. Congressional Research Service 18 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Figure 6. Estimated Federal Spending for 10 Largest Low-Income Assistance Programs by Population Category, FY2011 (dollars in billions) Source: Estimates by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). Table 5 shows the estimates of federal spending for each of the top 10 low-income assistance programs by population category in FY2011. For two programs, all spending was categorized for a single population group; the ACTC is only available for families with children with earners, and Pell Grants are only available for college students (shown in the “Education and Services” category). For the other eight programs, spending was allocated among population groups based on available data. (For a discussion of the methodology used to prepare these estimates by population groups, see Appendix B.) Congressional Research Service 19 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Table 5. Estimated Federal Spending for the 10 Largest Low-Income Programs, by Population Category and Program, FY2011 (dollars in billions) Families with Children Total Federal Spending Aged Disabled With Adult workers Without Adult Workers Childless Adults and Couples Working Not Working Education and Services Medical Assistance Medicaid $295.8 $68.0 $126.3 $67.0 $27.7 $4.5 $2.3 $0.0 Medicare Part D Subsidy 22.3 12.3 10.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Total, Medical Assistance 318.1 80.3 136.3 67.0 27.7 4.5 2.3 0.0 75.3 6.4 11.6 22.1 22.6 2.8 9.9 0.0 18.3 3.1 5.9 3.9 3.7 0.9 0.7 0.0 Supplemental Security Income 59.9 5.9 54.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Earned Income Tax Credit 55.7 0.0 0.0 54.3 0.0 1.4 0.0 0.0 Additional Child Tax Credit 22.7 0.0 0.0 22.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, cash assistance 6.6 0.0 0.5 0.9 5.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 Total, Cash Assistance 144.9 5.9 54.5 77.9 5.2 1.4 0.0 0.0 41.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 41.5 Title I Grants for Education for the Disadvantaged 14.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 14.5 TANF Services 10.7 0 0 0 0 0 0 10.7 Total, Grants to States for Services 23.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 23.3 $623.3 $95.7 $208.3 $170.9 $59.1 $9.7 $12.9 $66.7 Food Assistance SNAP Housing Assistance Section 8 Cash Assistance Student Financial Aid Pell Grants Grants to States for Services Totals Source: Estimates by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). Congressional Research Service 20 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Related Reading The following CRS reports provide related information on federal low-income policy, programs, and spending. Additional CRS reports are cited in footnotes, and each of the program fact sheets in Appendix D includes a reference to a relevant program-specific CRS report. • CRS Report R41625, Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: Programs, Policy, and Spending, FY2008-FY2009: includes a brief history of federal low-income policy; a detailed discussion of concepts used to define individual eligibility for benefits and services (e.g., federal poverty guidelines and others); a discussion of mechanisms used to target resources on the basis of need (e.g., formula allocation factors and cost-sharing rules); and a discussion of the types of federal grants (formula, competitive, direct benefits to individuals) used to provide assistance, and related policies such as matching requirements. • CRS Report R41823, Low-Income Assistance Programs: Trends in Federal Spending: analyzes spending trends for the 10 largest low-income programs (similar but not identical to the top 10 programs identified in this report) from FY1962-FY2013, with projections through FY2024. • CRS Report R43731, Poverty: Major Themes in Past Debates and Current Proposals: provides a short history of key federal policies enacted over the past century to address poverty, presents several overarching themes that have recurred in antipoverty policy debates over time, and highlights selected current proposals in the context of these themes. • CRS Report RL33069, Poverty in the United States: 2013: presents detailed statistics on the incidence of poverty among various demographic groups and by geography, and compares measures of poverty under the official federal poverty guidelines and the “research supplemental poverty measure.” • CRS Report R41187, Poverty Measurement in the United States: History, Current Practice, and Proposed Changes: provides a history of the current official federal poverty measure, and discussion of alternatives. Congressional Research Service 21 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Appendix A. Methodology Used to Create LowIncome Program Database Selection of Low-Income Programs Programs were selected for inclusion in this report if they (1) have provisions that base an individual’s eligibility or priority for service on a measure (or proxy) of low or limited income; (2) target resources in some way (e.g., through allocation formulas, variable matching rates) using a measure (or proxy) of low or limited income; or (3) prioritize services to low-income segments of a larger target population. A few programs without an explicit low-income provision were included because either their target population is disproportionately poor or their purpose clearly indicates a presumption that participants will be low income. Such programs that serve disproportionately low-income people include the Indian Health Service, Homeless Assistance Grants, Indian Education programs, Title I Migrant Education, and Indian Human Services. Programs with purposes that presume a lowincome target population include Adult Basic Education and Social Services Block Grants. Federal student loan programs were considered for inclusion because they determine benefit levels through the same need-analysis system that is used for Pell Grants and several smaller postsecondary education programs. However, this system results in students from relatively welloff families receiving assistance, as there is no absolute income ceiling on eligibility. Pell Grants are structured in such a way that the majority of recipients are low-income and the lowest-income students receive the largest benefits. Student loan programs are not as strongly targeted and therefore are not included in the report. On the other hand, deliberations about whether to include the Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) reached a different conclusion. The regular Child Tax Credit (CTC) is a nonrefundable credit and phases out at relatively high income levels. The ACTC is a refundable credit that allows families with no or insufficient tax liability to get all or part of the benefit they would otherwise receive from the CTC. Because of the refundable nature and other design features of the ACTC, it serves predominantly lower-income families. For example, for tax year 2012, 90% of returns that claimed the ACTC were filed by families with adjusted gross income (AGI) below $40,000 and 89% of the credit went to such families.15 Thus, the ACTC is included in the report. Because the report includes only programs with direct spending, it does not include tax provisions, with the exception of direct spending for the refundable portion of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the refundable ACTC. Finally, one program—Developmental Disabilities Support and Advocacy Grants—was included in the 2011 version of this report (CRS Report R41625, Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: Programs, Policy, and Spending, FY2008-FY2009) but dropped in the current version. Only one component of that program had a low-income targeting provision, and that component was below the $100 million threshold for inclusion in this analysis (see below). 15 Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income (SOI) Tax Stats – Individual Income Tax Returns Publication 1304, Table 3.3. Congressional Research Service 22 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Categorization of Programs Most programs are easily assigned to broad categories, such as health, cash aid, food assistance, or education. A few, however, have multiple purposes or allowable activities. For some of these programs, spending can be disaggregated into the relevant categories. For example, using state reporting of actual expenditures, it is possible to estimate the amount of TANF obligations attributable to cash aid, social services, and employment and training. Other programs cannot be disaggregated and must be assigned to a single category. For example, Transitional Cash and Medical Services for Refugees was categorized as health care, and Indian Human Services was categorized as social services although it also provides cash and housing assistance. The social services category, in general, is not well-defined and some analysts might assign some programs—and therefore dollars—differently. Head Start, for example, could be considered an education program, since its purpose is to promote school readiness; however, it supports a very broad range of activities (including activities for children ages 0-3 in its Early Head Start component) that can best be characterized collectively as social services. Foster Care and Adoption Assistance both give cash to families or other care providers, but income support is not these programs’ purpose or sole use of funding. Foster Care subsidizes maintenance payments and administrative activities (including case planning) on behalf of children who cannot remain safely at home, and Adoption Assistance helps facilitate the adoption of children who would otherwise lack permanent homes. Thus, these programs were categorized as social services and not cash assistance. Likewise, Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting is included in social services, rather than health care, because of the broad range of its intended purposes. Selection of Spending Measure New obligations incurred in the indicated fiscal year were chosen as the measure of spending for this report, although for many programs readers may be more accustomed to seeing appropriations (budget authority) or outlays. These spending concepts are related. Congress and the President enact budget authority through appropriations measures or other authorizing laws. Budget authority in turn allows federal agencies to incur obligations, through actions such as entering into contracts, employing personnel, and submitting purchase orders. Outlays represent the actual payment of these obligations, usually in the form of electronic transfers or checks issued by the Treasury Department.16 Obligations are used in this report because they are the most consistent measure available at the necessary level of detail for the majority of programs. The source of obligations data is the U.S. Budget Appendix for the second fiscal year (e.g., FY2015 budget appendix for final FY2013 obligations, FY2014 budget appendix for final FY2012 obligations, etc.). Obligations were either not available or not appropriate for a small number of programs. Because obligations were not available at the necessary program level, appropriations were used for the following: Transitional Cash and Medical Services for Refugees, Breast/Cervical Cancer Early Detection, the Title I Migrant Education Program, Social Services and Targeted Assistance for Refugees, and Foster Grandparents. 16 See CRS Report 98-410, Basic Federal Budgeting Terminology, by (name redacted) Congressional Research Service 23 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 For veterans’ medical care, the Budget Appendix shows obligations for the entire program, not solely the income-tested component. Thus, estimated obligations for Priority Group 5 veterans (needy veterans without service-connected disabilities) were calculated from Department of Veterans Affairs data on obligations for Priority Groups 1-6 and 7-8 and the number of patients receiving care by individual priority group. The Budget Appendix also does not show obligations solely for the low-income subsidy portion of the Medicare Part D prescription drug program. Therefore, the report uses aggregate reimbursements for the low-income subsidy for the calendar year (instead of fiscal year), available from the annual report of the Medicare trustees.17 As noted above, TANF obligations provided in the Budget Appendix were disaggregated into the categories of cash aid, social services, and employment and training, based on states’ reporting to the Department of Health and Human Services of their actual expenditures. The Budget Appendix includes obligations for the Section 502 single-family rural housing loan program in combination with other programs in an aggregate amount for the Rural Housing Insurance Fund Account. Thus, loan subsidy budget authority (also found in the Budget Appendix) was used for the Section 502 program in this version of the report. In the 2011 version, loan subsidy outlays were used, adjusted for re-estimates provided in the Federal Credit Supplement to the U.S. Budget for the relevant years; however, budget authority has now been chosen as a better measure. Finally, the report uses obligations from the Budget Appendix for the ACTC in FY2009-FY2013. However, for FY2008, ACTC obligations shown in the Budget Appendix also include an unspecified amount for a one-time $300 per child tax rebate, authorized by the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 (P.L. 110-185), which was not targeted on low-income families. That figure, which overstates the amount spent for the ACTC alone, was used in the 2011 version of this report with appropriate caveats. For the current version, however, data from the Internal Revenue Service Statistics of Income for tax year 2007 are used to provide a more accurate picture of the ACTC in FY2008. Spending Threshold Programs are included in this report if they had obligations in any year from FY2008 through FY2013 of at least $100 million. To simplify the analysis without significantly changing the overall picture, smaller programs were excluded, even if they met the low-income criteria. A few programs had spending above the threshold in some years but not in others.18 Spending totals cited throughout this report include these programs only for the years in which their obligations equaled or exceeded $100 million. In other words, each year’s spending total is a snapshot of spending in that year for low-income programs that—in that year—had obligations totaling at least $100 million. (See Table C-1 for all spending amounts for all programs in each year.) 17 2014 Annual Report of the Boards of Trustees of the Federal Hospital Insurance and Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Funds, July 2014, Table IV.B.10. 18 These programs include the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations, the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, Indian Education Grants to Local Education Agencies, Education for Homeless Children and Youth, College Access Challenge Grants, Single-Family Rural Housing Loans, and the Tax Credit Assistance Program. See Table C-1. Congressional Research Service 24 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Comparison with Predecessor CRS Report Series From 1979 to 2006, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) issued a series of reports, typically every other year, called Cash and Noncash Benefits for Persons with Limited Income. The series was conceived and produced (except for the last edition in 2006) by (name redacted), Specialist in Social Policy, who retired from CRS in 2004. In 2011, CRS published CRS Report R41625, Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: Programs, Policy, and Spending, FY2008-FY2009, as a replacement for the Cash and Noncash series. The current report is an update to the 2011 version. The new report series uses different methodologies to select and categorize programs and measure spending; therefore, it cannot be considered an update of Cash and Noncash for various reasons. For example, the older series did not include certain programs that are now included, such as the low-income subsidy under Medicare Part D, Title I-A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, and Community Development Block Grants. The older series also had no minimum spending threshold, so it included smaller programs that are not included here. In addition, the older series included student loans, which are no longer included for reasons explained above. Several programs were also categorized differently in the previous series (e.g., Head Start was categorized as education, Foster Care and Adoption Assistance as cash aid, and Homeless Assistance Grants as social services). The older series used different measures of spending for different programs, while the new series uses obligations wherever possible. The older series also provided estimates of state-local spending, which are not included here. Finally, the older series traced spending back to 1968, which is beyond the scope of the current series. Changes in programs and appropriations accounts over time make it virtually impossible to trace obligations backward with precision. However, an analysis of long-term spending trends for 10 major needs-tested programs, using outlays, is available in CRS Report R41823, Low-Income Assistance Programs: Trends in Federal Spending, by (name redacted). Congressional Research Service 25 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Appendix B. Methodology Used for Analysis of Spending by Population19 The allocations of federal spending in FY2011 under the 10 largest low-income programs by population groups (see “Spending for the 10 Largest Programs by Population”) are estimates based on a specific methodology and available data. These estimates also rely upon certain simplifying assumptions and hence, represent an approximate division of spending among the population groups. Note that for most programs, data collected in conjunction with the administration of a program (administrative data) were used as the basis of making the allocations among population groups. However, programs use different definitions of “elderly” and “disabled” to determine eligibility and program requirements, so the population groupings are not consistent among all programs. For example, Medicaid uses age 65 to determine who is elderly, while a person is considered elderly for purposes of the SNAP program at age 60. Medicaid As noted earlier, the analysis uses FY2011 because it is the latest year for which data to divide spending among population groups are available for Medicaid. The allocation of Medicaid spending is based on a combination of administrative data and data from the Census Bureau’s March 2011 Current Population Survey (CPS). FY2011 Medicaid administrative data report that, of total Medicaid expenditures in that year, 23% was received by the elderly and 43% by disabled recipients. These percentages were directly used to allocate federal Medicaid spending among those two population categories. However, Medicaid administrative data are not sufficient for allocating spending to the population groups representing nonelderly and nondisabled beneficiaries. (For example, they do not include information on whether a family had earnings.) An analysis of March 2011 CPS data was used to determine the allocation of federal spending among those population groups. The CPS identifies individuals covered by Medicaid, and the Census Bureau provides an estimate of the “market value” of Medicaid for those covered.20 The CPS also provides background demographic and economic characteristics of the population, including age, disability, whether the individual is in a family with children, and whether the individual was working or not. These background characteristics were used to identify Medicaid beneficiaries in families with children, as well as childless adult recipients (not aged or disabled) and whether any adult (aged 18 or older) in the family was employed in March 2011. Total Medicaid “market values” were computed for each population category, which determined each population category’s share of total Medicaid market values for the nonelderly, nondisabled population. These shares were then applied to the 34% of Medicaid spending that remained, after spending was allocated to the elderly and disabled, to determine how much federal Medicaid spending was allocated to the population categories of families with children and childless adults and couples. 19 This appendix was prepared by (name redacted), Specialist in Social Policy. The “market value” of Medicaid for an individual is generally the average expenditure in a state and in the individual’s population group. 20 Congressional Research Service 26 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program The allocation of federal SNAP spending is based on an analysis of the FY2011 SNAP Quality Control Data files, administrative data that include information on the demographic and economic characteristics of SNAP participants and households. The information is for the full fiscal year, but the data are collected monthly and tabulations of them represent a monthly average. SNAP households were placed into six categories that were totally inclusive and mutually exclusive in the following order: households with an aged member, households with a disabled member, households with children and earnings, households with children without earnings, childless adults or couples with earnings, childless adults or couples without earnings. If a household could be classified in multiple categories, it was placed in the first category for which it met criteria for inclusion. For example, if the household had an aged member but also had children, it was placed in the “aged” category. Supplemental Security Income The allocation of federal SSI spending to the elderly and disabled is based on administrative data collected and published by the Social Security Administration. The share of spending for the aged and disabled in this report is from Table 2, SSI Annual Statistical Report, 2013. Earned Income Tax Credit For the purpose of this report, EITC spending reflects obligations for the refundable portion of the tax credit. The Internal Revenue Service collects and publishes information on the refundable portion of the EITC in its Statistics of Income (SOI) data, derived from information on filed tax forms. The information in this report is based on the division of the refundable portion of the EITC for tax year 2010 (which would be paid in FY2011) between those filers who claimed the credit based on the presence of children versus those who claimed the credit based on having no children. Medicare Part D Low-Income Subsidy The allocation of the Medicare Part D prescription drug Low-Income Subsidy between the elderly and disabled is based on unpublished information obtained by CRS from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). They estimated that the elderly account for 55% of the total low-income subsidy, with the disabled accounting for the remaining 45% of the subsidy. Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers21 The allocation of Section 8 spending among the population groups is based on an analysis of administrative data collected by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. FY2011 data were not available for Section 8; thus FY2010 data were used for these estimates. As with the SNAP information, households were categorized into population groups in the following 21 (name redacted), Specialist in Housing Policy, c onducted the analysis of HUD administrative data. Congressional Research Service 27 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 order: households with an elderly member; households with a disabled head or child; households with children with earnings; households with children without earnings; households without children (or aged or disabled members) with earnings; and households without children (or aged or disabled members) without earnings. The Section 8 administrative data use an annual accounting period, representing the characteristics of a household over a year rather than in a month. Thus, families with earnings represent those who had any earnings over a year, rather than earnings in a month. Additionally, the disability information available for Section 8 households was more limited than that for SNAP, with the data only permitting identification of households with a disabled head or disabled child. Rent subsidies were tallied for each of these population shares, with federal Section 8 spending allocated based on each population’s share of total subsidies. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families This report divides TANF spending among three categories: cash assistance, social services, and employment and training. For the analysis of spending by population group, social services and employment and training expenditures were placed in the “Education/Services” category. TANF cash assistance was allocated among the population groups based on TANF administrative data, which include information on demographic and other characteristics of families receiving TANF cash assistance. The information is for the full fiscal year, but the data are collected monthly and tabulations of them represent a monthly average. Using these data, TANF families were classified into three population groups: • Disabled, representing families with a parent receiving SSI (not TANF cash), and a cash supplement paid on behalf of the children in the family from TANF; • Families with children with earnings, representing those families with adult TANF recipients who had earnings; • Families with children without earnings, representing families with adult TANF recipients who had no earnings and families without adult recipients (other than those with parents receiving SSI). TANF benefit amounts for these three categories were totaled, and federal TANF cash assistance spending was then allocated among the three population categories based on their shares of total cash assistance benefits from the administrative data files. Congressional Research Service 28 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Appendix C. Detailed Program Tables The following three tables provide specific information about programs included in this report. Programs are organized by category and listed within categories according to their Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number. (Program fact sheets in Appendix D are presented in the same sequence.) Table C-1 shows obligations (or another measure of spending, as noted) for each program from FY2008 through FY2013. ARRA amounts are included in the totals for each program, and are also shown in separate columns. The table also indicates the federal administering agency for each program. Table C-2 identifies, for each program, the general target population and the concept(s) used to determine individual income eligibility and (if relevant) the concept used to target federal resources broadly based on need. The table indicates the general concept used but not the specific application. For example, the table might indicate that federal poverty guidelines (FPG) are used as a concept in determining income eligibility for a particular program, but it does not indicate the specific percent of FPG that is used. Likewise, the table might show that a program uses formula allocation factors to direct federal resources toward areas with the greatest need, but it does not identify the specific factors or their weighting. Readers are referred to the fact sheets in Appendix D, relevant CRS reports, or the statutes themselves for these details. Table C-3 shows the type of federal assistance provided (typically formula grants, competitive or discretionary grants, or direct benefits) and the immediate recipients of this assistance. As noted in the table, “immediate” recipient refers to the level of government or the organization that directly receives the federal grant or award. Many programs require that funds be further distributed (by formula or other criteria) to other units of government or organizations. For example, federal grants may be awarded by formula to states, but states are then required to subaward these funds to local governments or other entities. This table only shows the “immediate” grantee. The table also indicates whether a program has provisions for participation by U.S. territories or residents or organizations located within the territories. The specific details of these provisions are not provided in the table; readers are referred to statutory language or the federal agency that administers the program for this information. Congressional Research Service 29 Table C-1. Spending for Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income, by Program: FY2008-2013 (new obligations, unless otherwise noted; dollars in millions) FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 FY2011 FY2012 FY2013 Federal Agency Total Total Medical Care for Veterans without ServiceConnected Disability VA 10,517a 10,945a 11,819a 12,172a 12,490a 12,546a Family Planning HHS 300 307 316 298 294 278 Consolidated Health Centers HHS 2,021 3,665 3,384 2,882 State Grants and Demonstrations HHS 556 625 418 758 416 534 Transitional Cash and Medical Services for Refugees HHS 296b 282b 353b 353b 323b 401b State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) HHS 6,360 9,534 10,717 8,740 9,362 9,357 Voluntary Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit— Low-Income Subsidy HHS 17,400c 20,300c 20,900c 22,300c 22,300c 22,400c Medicaid HHS 214,015 265,058 270,914 286,920 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program HHS 2141 2227 2367 2220 Program ARRA Total ARRA Total ARRA Total ARRA Total Health Care CRS-30 1,519 32,888 3,049 290,461 2286 908 39,670 3,295 295,836 2310 74 26,181 ARRA FY2008 Program Federal Agency FY2009 Total Total FY2010 ARRA Total FY2011 ARRA Total FY2012 ARRA Total FY2013 ARRA Total Breast/Cervical Cancer Early Detection HHS 201b 206b 210b 206b 213b 197b Maternal and Child Health Block Grant HHS 666 662 661 656 639 605 Indian Health Service HHS 4,347 5,416 294 5,668 5,544 5,729 5,661 258,820 319,227 3,4701 346,858 Subtotal, Health Care 40,578 352,468 26,255 328,431 0 344,001 ARRA 0 Cash Aid Pensions for Needy Veterans VA 3,777 4,134 Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) (cash aid) HHS 6,364d 6,341d Supplemental Security Income SSA 48,926 52,446 Additional Child Tax Credit (refundable portion) IRS 16,690e Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) (refundable component) IRS Subtotal, Cash Aid CRS-31 4,345 4,294 4,892 5,195 6,594d 6,737d 6,263d 54,463 59,854 53,773 59,756 24,284 22,659 22,691 22,106 21,608 40,600 42,418 54,712 55,652 54,890 57,513 116,357 129,623 210d 210 9,118d 145,297 1995d 1,995 149,085 0 142,398 0 150,335 0 FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 FY2011 FY2012 FY2013 Federal Agency Total Total ARRA Total ARRA Total ARRA Total ARRA Total ARRA Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) USDA 37,179 53,396 4,478 68,192 10,764 74,943 11,896 77,828 8,177 79,365 5,933 School Breakfast Program (free/reduced price components) USDA 2,307 2,513 2,811 2,987 3,256 3,514 National School Lunch Program (free/reduced price components) USDA 7,863 8,498 9,462 9,831 9,984 10,549 Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) USDA 6,400 7,028 7,300 7,168 6,945 Child and Adult Care Food Program (lowerincome components) USDA 2,029 2,217 2,358 2,499 2,616 2,799 Summer Food Service Program USDA 312 356 374 377 400 437 Commodity Supplemental Food Program USDA 141 165 183 196 189 187 Program Food Assistance CRS-32 72 7,245 64 FY2008 Program Federal Agency FY2009 FY2010 FY2011 Total Total ARRA Total ARRA Total ARRA FY2012 FY2013 Total ARRA Total ARRA 165 2,001 128 Nutrition Assistance for Puerto Rico USDA 1,623 2,000 240 2,000 254 2,001 2,000 Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) USDA [88]f 119 4 114 1 [97]f 103 100 The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) USDA 240 425 125 359 55 298 309 312 Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program USDA g [45]f [80]f 115 157 165 Nutrition Program for the Elderly HHS 756 905 97 817 820 814 765 58,850 77,622 5,016 93,915 Subtotal, Food Assistance 11,138 101,367 11,896 104,824 8,342 107,139 Education CRS-33 Indian Education DOI 684 699 784 753 803 766 Adult Basic Education Grants to States ED 555 572 628 596 595 565 Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant ED 759 760 759 740 738 698 6,061 FY2008 FY2010 FY2011 FY2012 FY2013 Federal Agency Total Total ARRA Total ARRA Total Education for the Disadvantaged— Grants to Local Educational Agencies (Title I-A) ED 13,352 21,495 9,936 14,526 64 14,472 14,490 13,757 Title I Migrant Education Program ED 380b 395b 395b 394b 393b 373b Higher Education— Institutional Aid and Developing Institutions ED 755 801 764 833 816 780 Federal WorkStudy ED 989 1,156 995 986 986 934 Federal TRIO Programs ED 885 905 910 883 840 796 Indian Education Grants to Local Educational Agencies ED [97]f [99]f 104 104 106 100 Federal Pell Grants ED 18,000 26,019 8,497 32,905 41,458 34,308 31,887 Education for Homeless Children and Youth ED [64]f 135 70 [65]f [65]f [65]f [62] f 21st Century Community Learning Centers ED 1,082 1,127 1,166 1,157 1,150 1,091 Program CRS-34 FY2009 200 7,786 ARRA Total ARRA Total ARRA FY2008 Program Federal Agency Total FY2009 Total FY2010 ARRA Total FY2011 ARRA Total FY2012 ARRA Total FY2013 ARRA Total ARRA Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR-UP) ED 303 313 323 303 302 286 Reading First and Early Reading First ED 560 129 0 0 0 0 Rural Education Achievement Program ED 172 174 175 175 179 170 Mathematics and Science Partnerships ED 182 176 180 179 148 141 Improving Teacher Quality State Grants ED 2,946 2,687 2,955 2,460 2,450 2,334 College Access Challenge Grants ED [66]f [66]f 145 150 128 [72]f Academic Competitiveness and Smart Grant Program ED 297 690 918 350 0 0 41,901 58,233 18,703 58,632 7,850 65,993 131h 277h 59h [70]hf [43]hf [50] hf 954 905 837 Subtotal, Education 0 58,432 0 54,678 Housing and Development CRS-35 Single-Family Rural Housing Loans USDA 178h 279h Rural Rental Assistance Program USDA 479 902 979 0 FY2008 Program CRS-36 Federal Agency Total FY2009 Total FY2010 ARRA Total Water and Waste Disposal for Rural Communities USDA 685 1,370 631 1,443 Public Works and Economic Development DOC 170 285 147 Supportive Housing for the Elderly HUD 778 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities HUD Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance FY2011 ARRA Total Total ARRA FY2013 Total 648 583 524 149 115 129 [97]f 800 580 509 1056 389 256 284 216 149 243 102 HUD 7,004 9,390 1,991 8,991 19 9,444 9,311 8,818 Community Development Block Grants HUD 3,645 4,733 965 3,956 18 3,341 3,245 2,971 Homeless Assistance Grants HUD 1,538 2,861 1,485 1,813 7 1,888 2,079 2,086 Home Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) HUD 1,647 1,911 1,857 1,485 1,208 919 Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) HUD 310 318 314 352 352 302 Public Housing HUD 6,894 10,843 6,999 5,847 5,954 3,977 7,360 556 ARRA FY2012 16 ARRA FY2009 FY2008 Program Federal Agency Total Total FY2010 ARRA ARRA Indian Housing Block Grants HUD 556 1,149 Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers HUD 15,552 16,289 18,071 Neighborhood Stabilization Program HUD g 3,920 1,980 Grants to States for Low-Income Housing in Lieu of Low-Income Housing Credit Allocations Treasury g 2,465 2,465 3,083 Tax Credit Assistance Program HUD g 2,250 2,250 0 39,692 60,049 14,542 51,831 Subtotal, Housing and Development 500 Total FY2011 762 Total 6 ARRA Total ARRA Total ARRA 627 18,510 18,316 17,897 1,980 969 0 0 3,083 160 0 0 [10]f 0 0 46,186 3 FY2013 691 5,744 663 FY2012 3 43,965 0 41,426 Social Services CRS-37 Indian Human Services DOI 118 115 118 115 110 100 Older Americans Act Grants for Supportive Services and Senior Centers HHS 351 361 368 369 367 348 Older Americans Act Family Caregiver Program HHS 153 154 154 154 154 146 0 FY2008 Program CRS-38 Federal Agency Total FY2009 Total FY2010 ARRA Total Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program HHS Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) (social services) HHS 9,411i 10,594i Child Support Enforcement HHS 4,585 4,719 Community Services Block Grant HHS 654 1692 992 708 Child Care and Development Fund HHS 4,979 7,034 1,990 Head Start HHS 6,877 9,077 578 Foster Care HHS 4,525 4,705 Adoption Assistance HHS 2,038 Social Services Block Grant HHS Chafee Foster Care Independence Program FY2011 ARRA Total 100 ARRA FY2012 Total ARRA FY2013 Total 250 344 378 8,828i 8,913i 9,491i 4,671 4,179 4,278 8 678 677 635 5,083 10 5,152 5,218 5,140 8,757 1,523 7,559 7,968 7,573 4,603 4,456 4,180 4,133 2,324 2,438 2,362 2,296 2,278 1,700 2,300 1,700 1,700 1,700 1,613 HHS 140 140 140 140 140 140 Emergency Food and Shelter Program FEMA 153 300 200 121 120 114 Legal Services Corporation LSC 351 392 422 406 351 343 g 346i 9,837i 2,120i 5,044 100 ARRA FY2008 Program Federal Agency Subtotal, Social Services Total FY2009 Total 36,146 44,021 FY2010 ARRA 4,006 Total 39,788 FY2011 ARRA 3,661 Total 37,077 FY2012 ARRA Total 0 36,833 FY2013 ARRA Total 0 36,819 Employment and Training CRS-39 Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) (employment and training component) USDA 351 367 344 354 334 368 Community Service Employment for Older Americans DOL 504 708 820 454 448 429 Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Adult Activities DOL 827 1,357 495 862 766 773 731 Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Youth Activities DOL 984 2,218 1,182 994 946 902 856 Social Services and Targeted Assistance for Refugees HHS 203b 203b 203b 202b 152b 198b Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) (employment and training) HHS 1,694j 1,826j 1,845j 1,683j 1,579j Foster Grandparents CNCS 109b 109b 111b 111b 105b 60j 2,682j 111b 587j ARRA 0 FY2008 Program Job Corps Federal Agency DOL Subtotal, Employment and Training Total FY2009 Total FY2010 ARRA Total FY2011 ARRA Total FY2012 ARRA Total FY2013 ARRA Total 1,558 1,804 148 1,713 102 1,777 1,735 1,718 6,230 8,592 1,885 7,729 689 6,455 6,138 5,984 4,748 517 228 234 126 182 4,701 3,472 3,255 ARRA Energy Assistance Weatherization Assistance Program DOE 291 5,240 Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) HHS 2,590 5,100 2,881 10,340 Subtotal, Energy Assistance $560,877 $707,707 TOTALS 5,100 4,748 5,617 $83,811 $749,667 228 4,935 $71,883 $763,566 0 3,598 $38,154 $724,619 0 3,437 0 $8,342 $743,819 $6,061 Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) from obligations data contained in the U.S. Budget Appendix for each of FY2010-FY2015, unless otherwise noted. See Appendix A for additional details on spending measures. Notes: VA = Department of Veterans Affairs. HHS = Department of Health and Human Services. SSA = Social Security Administration. IRS = Internal Revenue Service. USDA = Department of Agriculture. DOC = Department of Commerce. HUD = Department of Housing and Urban Development. Treasury = Department of the Treasury. DOI = Department of the Interior. ED = Department of Education. FEMA = Federal Emergency Management Agency. LSC = Legal Services Corporation. DOE = Department of Energy. DOL = Department of Labor. CNCS = Corporation for National and Community Service. ARRA = American Recovery and Reinvestment ACT. ARRA mounts are included in totals. a. Estimated obligations on behalf of Priority Group 5 veterans. b. Appropriations. c. Aggregate reimbursements for calendar year from 2014 Medicare trustees’ report. d. Estimated obligations for cash aid and administration under TANF, based on state reporting of actual expenditures. e. Amount shown for FY2008 is from the Internal Revenue Service Statistics of Income for tax year 2007. f. Amounts below $100 million are not included in totals. (Not applicable to amounts shown in ARRA columns.) g. Program not authorized. h. Subsidy budget authority. i. Estimated obligations for social services under TANF, based on state reporting of actual expenditures. j. Estimated obligations for employment and training activities under TANF, based on state reporting of actual expenditures. CRS-40 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Table C-2.Target Populations and Concepts Used to Determine Individual Income Eligibility Criteria and/or Target Federal Resources, by Program Program Target Population Concept(s) Used to Determine Individual Income Eligibility Concept(s) Used to Target Federal Resources Health Medical Care for Veterans without Service-Connected Disability Needy veterans without service-connected disabilities. Specific dollar amounts. None. Family Planning Low-income individuals. FPG. None. Consolidated Health Centers “Medically underserved” groups. FPG. Eligibility limited to areas or populations designated by the Secretary as “medically underserved.” State Grants and Demonstrations Varies by program. In general, selected individuals eligible for Medicaid. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Federal-state cost-sharing rules for certain programs. Transitional Cash and Medical Services for Refugees Refugees, asylees, other humanitarian cases, trafficking victims, unaccompanied refugee minor children. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Uninsured low-income children. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. Voluntary Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit— Low-Income Subsidy Low-income seniors and people with disabilities. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. None. Medicaid Low-income families with dependent children; aged, blind and disabled individuals; nonelderly nondisabled individuals in certain states. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Federal-state cost-sharing rules. Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Uninsured or underinsured people living with HIV or AIDS. FPG. Formula allocation factors. Breast/Cervical Cancer Early Detection Low-income uninsured and underserved women of specified ages. FPG. None. Maternal and Child Health Block Grant Mothers and children. FPG. Formula allocation factors. Indian Health Service American Indians and Alaskan Natives. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Assistance generally provided to eligible individuals in IHS service delivery areas. Congressional Research Service 41 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Program Target Population Concept(s) Used to Determine Individual Income Eligibility Concept(s) Used to Target Federal Resources Cash Aid Pensions for Needy Veterans Needy veterans, their dependents and survivors. Specific dollar amounts. None. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Needy families with children. Defined by states. None. Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Low-income aged, blind and disabled individuals. Specific dollar amounts. None. Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) Working families with children below specified ages. Specific calculations determine when families incur tax liability and become eligible for nonrefundable Child Tax Credit instead of ACTC. None. Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) Working families with children below specified ages, and childless adults. Specific dollar amounts. None. Food Assistance Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Low-income households. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. None. School Breakfast Program (free/reduced price components) Low-income children. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Cost-sharing rules; federal reimbursement varies by family income of participating child. National School Lunch Program (free/reduced price components) Low-income children. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Cost-sharing rules; federal reimbursement varies by family income of participating child. Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Low-income women, infants and young children who are at nutritional risk. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. Child and Adult Care Food Program (lower-income components) Low-income children and chronically impaired and elderly adults. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Cost-sharing rules; federal reimbursement varies by family income of participating child or adult. Summer Food Service Program Low-income children. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Cost-sharing rules; federal reimbursement varies by family income of participating child. Commodity Supplemental Food Program Low-income elderly individuals and pregnant and postpartum and breastfeeding women, infants and young children. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. Nutrition Assistance for Puerto Rico Needy persons living in Puerto Rico. Defined by Puerto Rico. Eligibility is limited to Puerto Rico. Congressional Research Service 42 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Program Target Population Concept(s) Used to Determine Individual Income Eligibility Concept(s) Used to Target Federal Resources Food Distribution Program for Indian Reservations Low-income American Indian and households living on or near reservations. FPG; automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Program only operates on or near Indian reservations. The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) Low-income individuals. Defined by states. Formula allocation factors. Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program Students in elementary schools with high proportion of low-income children. None. Formula allocation factors; program is limited to schools that meet needrelated tests. Nutrition Program for the Elderly Older individuals. FPG. Formula allocation factors. Education Indian Education American Indian and Alaskan Native children and postsecondary students. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Depending on the program, assistance provided through recognized tribes. Adult Basic Education Grants to States Adults who lack basic education skills or cannot speak, write, or read English. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant Low-income undergraduate students. “Need analysis” system. Formula allocation factors. Education for the Disadvantaged—Grants to Local Educational Agencies (Title I-A) Low-achieving elementary and secondary students. None. Formula allocation factors. Title I Migrant Education Program Migratory children. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. Higher Education— Institutional Aid and Developing Institutions Low-income and minority postsecondary students. None. Eligibility limited to institutions that meet need-related tests. Federal Work-Study Postsecondary students. “Need analysis” system. Formula allocation factors. Federal TRIO Programs Low-income secondary and postsecondary students who are firstgeneration college students. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. None. Indian Education Grants to Local Educational Agencies Indian students, including preschoolers, in schools that enroll a certain threshold of Indian children. None. Formula allocation factors; program is limited to schools that meet needrelated tests. Federal Pell Grants Low-income postsecondary students. “Need analysis” system. None. Congressional Research Service 43 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Target Population Concept(s) Used to Determine Individual Income Eligibility Concept(s) Used to Target Federal Resources Education for Homeless Children and Youth Homeless children and youth. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. 21st Century Community Learning Centers Children who attend highpoverty and lowperforming schools. None. Funds must be used to serve children in schools that meet need-related test. Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR-UP) Low-income secondary school students. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Funds must be used to serve cohorts of students in at least one grade level at schools that meet needrelated tests. Rural Education Achievement Program Students in rural and rural low-income school districts. None. Eligibility for certain grants limited to local educational agencies that meet needrelated test. Mathematics and Science Partnerships Teachers and students in high-need local educational agencies. None. Eligibility limited to partnerships that meet need-related tests. Improving Teacher Quality State Grants Elementary school teachers and principals. None. Formula allocation factors; eligibility for certain grants limited to partnerships that meet need-related tests. College Access Challenge Grants Low-income students and their families. None; priority based on FPG. Formula allocation factors. Reading First and Early Reading First Low-income children from preschool through grade 3. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors (Reading First). Academic Competitiveness and Smart Grant Program Needy undergraduate students pursuing a rigorous curriculum or majoring in selected subjects. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. None. Program Housing and Development Single-Family Rural Housing Loans Low-income households in rural areas. AMI. None. Rural Rental Assistance Program Low-income households in rural areas. AMI. Formula allocation factors. Water and Waste Disposal for Rural Communities Residents of poor rural communities. None. Formula allocation factors; cost-sharing rules. Public Works and Economic Development Residents of distressed communities. None. Eligibility is limited to projects located in areas that meet need-related tests; cost-sharing rules. Supportive Housing for the Elderly Low-income housing with at least one elderly member. AMI. Formula allocation factors. Congressional Research Service 44 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Program Target Population Concept(s) Used to Determine Individual Income Eligibility Concept(s) Used to Target Federal Resources Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities Low-income households with at least one member with a disability. AMI. Formula allocation factors. Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance Low-income families (which may include single individuals). AMI. Assistance is limited to projects under contract with the federal government. Community Development Block Grants Low and moderate-income residents of targeted communities. None. (However, a specified percentage of funds must be used to benefit low and moderateincome individuals, defined using AMI.) Formula allocation factors. Homeless Assistance Grants Homeless individuals and families. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Emergency Shelter Grant uses formula allocation factors. Home Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) Low-income homeowners, homebuyers, and renters. AMI. Formula allocation factors. Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) Low-income individuals who are HIV-positive or have AIDS. AMI. Formula allocation factors. Public Housing Low-income families, elderly and disabled individuals. AMI. Assistance is limited to publicly-owned housing projects. Indian Housing Block Grants Low-income Indian families living on reservations or other Indian lands, certain specified non-Indians also living on reservations or other Indian lands. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors; eligibility limited to recognized Indian tribes. Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers Low-income families (which may include single individuals). AMI. Formula allocation factors. Neighborhood Stabilization Program-1 Low-income individuals and families. AMI. Formula allocation factors. Grants to States for LowIncome Housing in Lieu of Low-Income Housing Credit Allocations Low-income households. AMI. Eligibility limited to projects in which a specified percentage of units are rent-restricted and serve a specified percentage of low-income households. Tax Credit Assistance Program Low-income households. AMI. Eligibility limited to projects in which a specified percentage of units are rent-restricted and serve a specified percentage of low-income households. Congressional Research Service 45 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Program Target Population Concept(s) Used to Determine Individual Income Eligibility Concept(s) Used to Target Federal Resources Social Services Indian Human Services American Indian children and adults with various needs. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. None. Older Americans Act Grants for Supportive Services and Senior Centers Older individuals. FPG. Formula allocation factors. Older Americans Act Family Caregiver Program Family and other caregivers for older individuals and grandparents or other relative caregivers for children with disabilities. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. Child Support Enforcement Custodial parents and their children. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. None. Community Services Block Grant Low-income individuals and families. FPG. Formula allocation factors. Child Care and Development Fund Low-income children and their families. SMI, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors; federal-state cost-sharing rules for certain funds. Head Start Low-income infants, toddlers and preschool children. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. Foster Care Children who cannot remain safely in their own homes. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Federal-state cost-sharing rules. Adoption Assistance Children with special needs that make it difficult for them to be placed with adoptive families. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Federal-state cost-sharing rules. Social Services Block Grant Defined by states. Defined by states. (FPG used for certain funds.) Formula allocation factors. Chafee Foster Care Independence Program Current and former foster youth. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. Emergency Food and Shelter Program Homeless and hungry individuals. Defined by local administering boards. Eligibility is limited to jurisdictions that meet need-related tests. Legal Services Corporation Low-income individuals. FPG. Formula allocation factors. Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program Energy Assistance Weatherization Assistance Program Low-income households. Congressional Research Service FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. 46 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Program Target Population Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Low-income households. Concept(s) Used to Determine Individual Income Eligibility FPG, SMI, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Concept(s) Used to Target Federal Resources Formula allocation factors. Employment and Training Community Service Employment for Older Americans Low-income unemployed individuals above a specified age. FPG, priority for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Adult Activities Adults for core services. For intensive and training services: adults who need services to become employed or obtain and retain a job that allows for self-sufficiency. None for core services. For intensive and training services: FPG, LLSIL, and priority for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Youth Activities Low-income youth who are deficient in basic skills, school dropouts, runaway or foster children, pregnant or parenting, or offenders. FPG, LLSIL, and automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. Social Services and Targeted Assistance for Refugees Refugees, asylees, other humanitarian cases, and trafficking victims. Automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. Formula allocation factors. Foster Grandparents Low-income older individuals. FPG. None. Job Corps Low-income youth who need and can benefit from the program. FPG, automatic eligibility for specific categorical groups. None. Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). For a detailed discussion of the concepts shown in this table, see CRS Report R41625, Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: Programs, Policy, and Spending, FY2008-FY2009. Notes: FPG = federal poverty guidelines. AMI = area median income. SMI = state median income. LLSIL = lower living standard income levels. Congressional Research Service 47 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Table C-3.Types of Grants or Awards, and Eligible Immediate Grantees or Beneficiaries, by Program Program Grant or Award Types Eligible Immediate Grantees or Beneficiaries Health Medical Care for Veterans without Service-Connected Disability Direct benefits. Eligible veterans served at VA facilities or through contracts with the VA. Family Planning Competitive grants. Public and private nonprofit agencies. Includes provisions for territories. Consolidated Health Centers Competitive grants. Public and private nonprofit agencies. State Grants and Demonstrations Varies by program; formula and competitive grants. Varies by program; states and health care providers. Includes provisions for territories. Transitional Cash and Medical Services for Refugees Formula and discretionary grants. Formula grants: states. Discretionary grants: “state-alternative” programs and voluntary agencies. Includes provisions for territories. State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Formula grants. States. Includes provisions for territories. Voluntary Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit—Low-Income Subsidy Direct benefits (through contracts with participating prescription drug plans). Eligible beneficiaries enrolled in participating prescription drug plans. Medicaid Formula grants (reimbursement for eligible expenditures). States. Includes provisions for territories. Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Formula and competitive grants. Formula grants: eligible metropolitan areas, “transitional grant” areas and states. Competitive grants: qualified health centers, family planning clinics, hemophilia centers, rural health clinics, Indian Health Service facilities, and certain other health facilities and organizations; public and private nonprofit organizations; and dental schools. Includes provisions for territories. Breast/Cervical Cancer Early Detection Competitive grants. States. Includes provisions for territories. Maternal and Child Health Block Grant Formula grants. States. Includes provisions for territories. Indian Health Service Direct benefits. Eligible American Indians or Alaskan Natives served at IHS or tribal health facilities or through contracts. Cash Aid Pensions for Needy Veterans Congressional Research Service Direct benefits. Eligible veterans, their dependents and survivors. 48 Federal Benefits and Services for People with Low Income: FY2008-FY2013 Grant or Award Types Eligible Immediate Grantees or Beneficiaries Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Formula grants (basic block grant, contingency fund) and competitive grants (promoting healthy marriage and strengthening fatherhood). Formula grants: states. Competitive grants: public and private nonprofit organizations. Includes provisions for territories. Supplemental Security Income Direct benefits. Eligible individuals. Additional Child Tax Credit Direct benefits. Eligible individuals. Earned Income Tax Credit Direct benefits. Eligible individuals. Program Food Assistance Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Direct benefits and formula grants (reimbursement for eligible expenditures). Direct benefits: eligible [Text truncated at 120,000 characters. The full text is on the page linked above.] --- Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/crs%3AR43863. Public record. Not legal advice.