WFNJ Clients and Welfare Reform: A Final Look at an Early Group. Work First New Jersey Evaluation.

In 1997, New Jersey implemented its welfare initiative, Work First New Jersey, which included five-year time limits on cash assistance, immediate work requirements for most clients, and expanded support services. This fifth, and final, report from our multiyear study tracking an early group of Work First clients focuses on their economic progress, housing situations, and noncustodial fathers’ involvement with their children. Clients have experienced substantial economic gains, although progress has not always been steady; housing stability has improved as incomes have risen with about a third receiving housing subsidies, mainly through rent vouchers; and most of these clients’ children have little contact with their noncustodial fathers and typically receive little or no financial support from them.