Illinois Study Status: The project will examine various aspects of the lives of former recipients in large metropolitan areas as well as rural areas&151;studying such aspects as recidivism and issues of child care. Administrative records for the sample of 10,001 Illinois food stamp leavers (households that received food stamps sometime between December 1996 and November 1997 and in which no household member received food stamps in the subsequent two months) were obtained from the Illinois Department of Human Services. These administrative records provided information on sample members' monthly receipt of food stamps, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and medical benefits as well as information on quarterly earnings for a period of two years after program exits for most leavers. A sample 891 heads of households was drawn from the 10,001 cases for a targeted survey. The survey data include information on why individuals left the Food Stamp Program (FSP) in 1997, their employment experiences since the time of FSP exit, income and participation in public assistance programs, and indicators of material hardship during the year prior to interview. A grant of $377,857 was awarded to Mathematica Policy Research, Inc., in fiscal 1998 for the project. The expected completion date is January 2001.

Iowa Study Status: This project will focus on a variety of policy issues, including exit decisions, programmatic linkages, employment and earnings, food and housing security, and health insurance coverage. Linked administrative data for households that were active in the Food Stamp Program for at least one month during 1997 were obtained through working with Iowa Department of Human Resources (IDHS). The research contrasts the characteristics of those households who left the program with those who stayed. During fiscal 2000, the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy Evaluation (ASPE), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, provided support for continued development work in sample and questionnaire design for supplementing the Census Bureau's Survey of Program Dynamics to meet specific State needs for data and analysis. A grant of $400,000 was awarded to Iowa State University in fiscal 1998 for the project. In fiscal 1999 the grant was amended for $70,000 in order to examine statistical design issues. The expected completion date is September 2001.

South Carolina Study Status: The project will study former food stamp recipients to ascertain their current well-being, specifically comparing those who are working and managing their nutritional needs with those who are not. The project's sample design has two strata: families (one and two parent) with children and ABAWDs. A grant of $310,746 was awarded to the South Carolina Department of Social Services in fiscal 1998. The expected completion date is March 2001.

Arizona Study Status: The project will examine the extent to which households in Maricopa and Pinal Counties (the Phoenix area) that have left the Food Stamp Program (FSP) have made successful transitions to economic self-sufficiency. The analysis will include both administrative data compiled statewide and household survey data. Three types of households are surveyed: ABAWDs, non-ABAWD households who received no TANF-funded cash assistance in the year prior to closure; and non-ABAWD households who received prior-year cash assistance. Administrative data for the January 1997-March 1999 period for persons leaving the FSP during the calendar year 1997 were obtained from the Arizona Department of Economic Security. The survey instrument contains questions of food stamp benefits, household composition and child care, employment, employment benefits and health insurance, education and training, household income, family well-being and support, and food security. A grant of $399,471 was awarded to Abt Associates, Inc. in fiscal 1998. The expected completion date is December 30, 2000.