Catherwood LibraryILR School

With the economy officially in recession and millions on the unemployment lists, the welfares system established by President Clinton in 1996 will receive a trial by fire in the months to come. Far from bringing about the massive increases in poverty and destitution predicted by critics, the implementation of the reforms---which established five year lifetime limits on welfare eligibility---was followed by record lows in overall poverty levels, as well as poverty levels among blacks, Hispanics, and children. Much of the gains were likely linked to the strong economy, however, and with many single-mothers and other welfare recipients coming up on their five year limits in the middle of a vastly changed economy, some analysts fear increasing hardship for those least able to bear it.