Work Incentives and the Safety Net

Posted by Center for Budget and Policy Priorities on March 21, 2016

It Pays to Work: Work Incentives and the Safety Net

Public assistance programs such as the EITC, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and housing subsidies tend to encourage recipients to get jobs, work more hours, and receive higher pay, according to a new report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. It Pays to Work: Work Incentives and the Safety Net finds that workers in or near poverty, benefit substantially from working additional hours or at higher wages, and that the vast majority face lower incomes if they don’t work. The authors argue that reforms such as increasing the minimum wage, fully implementing the Affordable Care Act, and expanding the EITC would all further incentivize work among public benefit recipients.

Read the full report here.

http://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-tax/it-pays-to-work-work-incentives-and-the-safety-net