WORKFARE IN OHIO - POLITICAL AND SOCIOECONOMIC CLIMATE AND PROGRAM IMPACT

The purpose of this paper is to shed new light on the welfare debate i n two ways: (a) to provide new evidence on the effectiveness of long-t erm workfare programs; and (b) to examine in what contexts the program s were most effective. The study examines welfare trends between 1981 and 1990 for counties in Ohio. A quasiexperimental design is used to c ompare 26 counties that experimented with workfare with Ohio's remaini ng counties. The findings indicate that workfare lowered caseloads sig nificantly, particularly for the two-parent (AFDC-U)population. The fi ndings also indicate that the effectiveness of the program increased i n counties with lower unemployment rates and smaller urban populations . The programs appeared to be more effective in more conservative coun ties, but these findings are mixed.