Long-Run Impact of Welfare Reform on Educational Attainment and Family Structure

I investigate the impact of early childhood exposure to the 1990s welfare reform on short and long-run outcomes among those likely to be affected by changes to Aid to Families with Dependent Children and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program rules. Using two supplements of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, I estimate a triple-difference model and show that these affected children perform better on reading achievement tests. Following the same children through age 28, I find that they are more likely to have completed college and be married. The effects are stronger for women than men, particularly in childhood