Changing Work Ethic and Welfare Dependence Through Welfare Reform: The 100-Hour Rule Waiver Experiment for AFDC-U

Assumptions about welfare dependency and work are examined in a randomized experiment that tested the impact of the 100-hour rule waiver for two-parent welfare families: Aid to Families with Dependent Children–Unemployed (AFDC-U). The 100-hour rule was waived for the experiment group, allowing the primary wage earners in these families to work more than 100 hours a month without losing welfare eligibility. The analysis uses county administrative data, unemployment insurance records, and Medicaid data, and compares regression adjusted least squares means for the control and experiment group. The results from the impact analysis indicate that waiving the 100-hour rule has no effect on primary wage earners' work activity and earnings. The 100-hour rule waiver also has little effect on time on aid and AFDC-U payments, and does not have an effect in reducing marital dissolution. The results cast doubts about the validity of the assumptions underlying some of the recent welfare reform initiatives.