Did temporary cash assistance program work for you?

Proclaiming to “end welfare as we have come to know it,” President Bill Clinton signed landmark legislation 20 years ago. The bill aimed to move people off public assistance and into work.

The law replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children with a new program called Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF.

Two decades later, two-thirds fewer needy American families receive cash assistance through TANF, but millions more are living below the poverty line. In Ohio, only 26 out of every 100 families in poverty receive TANF assistance. And many find that working fulltime or more isn’t a guaranteed lift from poverty.

This newspaper is gathering comments from current and former TANF recipients for an upcoming story.

Did TANF help you find a good job? Or, did the program fall short in your view?

Reporter Chris Stewart would like to hear from you. He can be reached at Chris.Stewart@coxinc.com or at 937-225-2442.

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