Cheating Welfare: Public Assistance and the Criminalization of Poverty

Index

| 221 Index administrative penalties, 65 administrative appeals hearings, 24, 30, 31, 120, 122, 126 Aid to Dependent Children (ADC), 19-20, 21-23, 23-24 Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), 24, 28, 31, 32, 34, 42, 44; Aid to Families with Dependent ChildrenUnemployed Parent (AFDC-UP), 24; caseloads, 47; declining benefit values, 32, 41; elimination of, 44 African Americans, 19, 21, 38; as recipients of aid, 19, 20, 39; stereotypes about, 30, 43, 82, 200 Allard, Patricia, 55 arbitrariness: in application of welfare rules, 114-16, 167; of fraud prosecutions, 166; in welfare provision, 24 Bane, Mary Jo, 43 block grants, 44, 45 Bumiller, Kristin, 13 Bush, George H., 40, 41, 42 Byrd, Robert, 34 California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs), 45 caretaking responsibilities, 71-73, 90-91, 124-26, 156 “carrot and stick” approach to welfare, 38, 47, 60, 61, 151 Carter, Jimmy, 33 cheating, 19, 20, 29, 33, 34-35, 56, 65, 101-3, 116-17, 121-22, 127, 130, 132-33, 150, 151-54, 168-69. See also employment, side jobs; rules, rule breaking child care, 41, 46, 61, 90-91, 144, 165 child support, 103-6; “child support disregard,” 104-5; evasion, 105; formal, 104-6; informal, 105-6, 120; policies, 47; receipt of, 77, 79, 141; state efforts to collect, 76 children, number in the interviewees’ care, 72 churning, 32-33, 96-97 civil rights, 25 Clinton, Bill, 43 Cloward, Richard A., 26, 28 Collins, Patria Hill, 197 compliance and non-compliance: generally , 4, 93, 116, 119, 166-71; interviewee perceptions of, 151-54; with income- and asset-reporting requirements, 97; research on compliance and legality, 9-11. See also under work requirements condensation symbols, 9, 15, 179-80, 183 constitutive view of law, 12 Cover, Robert, 27 credit, 108-9 crime, 30, 43, 49 criminal records, 91, 126, 143, 161-63 criminalization of poverty: criminal penalties for cheating, 65, 67-68, 68-69, 179, 184-85; defined, 1-2; expressive functions of, 70; generally, 1, 51-52, 59-60, 179-80, 184-85, 187 criminology, 5, 7-8, 52; feminist criminology , 7-8; Marxist criminology, 7 data gathering by and data exchanges among government agencies, 33, 40, 63-65, 137-38 222 | Index dependency: welfare dependency, 38, 39, 43, 44, 48, 49-50; interdependence of caretakers and dependents, 8 deserving poor, 17, 18-19, 20, 24 deterrence, 57-58, 160-61, 165, 167, 183 devolution, 41, 44-45 disabilities: as a barrier to employment, 87-89; among dependents, 89-90; among recipients, 79-80 disability benefits. See Social Security Disability Insurance discretion in determining eligibility for benefits, 20, 22-23, 24, 31, 32. See also special needs grants discrimination, racial, 25; in welfare provision , 20, 23, 24 disqualification consent agreements, 66 diversion programs, 68, 163-64 domestic abuse/violence, 76-77, 84, 85, 86, 126, 175 Donzelot, Jacques, 52 drugs: drug felony exclusion, 53-56; drug testing, 59-60; substance abuse treatment , 55-56, 78; use among interviewees, 78, 139; use among welfare recipients generally, 60, 176; use by family members, 76 due process, 135 Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), 43, 61 Edin, Kathryn, 10-11 education: access to educational opportunities , 46, 84, 87, 126; educational backgrounds of interviewees, 83-84; enrollment in education programs, 113, 122, 123, 132 Ellwood, Paul, 43 empowerment, 14, 174, 180 employment: barriers to, 87-92; exploitative , 103; histories, 85-87; legitimate, 98-101, 137-38; side jobs, 93, 95-96, 101-3, 117, 127, 138, 155, 169, 174-75; types of, 80, 85-87, 98-101, 101. See also work requirements Engel, David, 13 ethical issues in social research, 42-43, 185-87 Ewick, Patricia, 13-14, 173-75 extended family members: as an encumbrance , 107; support from, 106-7 fairness: of welfare rules, 127, 128, 142, 147-50; of penalties for cheating, 150; of sanctions, 146; of time limits, 148-49; of work requirements, 128, 149-50 family cap policies, 42, 46, 62-63; effects of, 43; fairness of, 150; knowledge of, 135-37, 141, 145 Family Assistance Plan (FAP), 31 Family Support Act, 40-41 fathers: deceased, 75; domestic violence, 76, 78; incarcerated, 75-76, 77, 78; interviews with, 78-79; invisible men, 74-79. See also child support fear: of getting caught cheating, 174-75; of time limits, 149; of welfare officials, 159 federalism, 37 Fineman, Martha, 8 fingerprinting/fingerimaging, 56-59 food: food assistance, 20, 37; food insecurity, 48, 94-95; use of food pantries, 80 food stamps: policies, 31...