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Social Safety Net

Picture of two hands grasping, depicting  the social safety net.

If Americans fall on hard times, the social safety net is there to help them. It comprises various safety net programs to pay benefits to individuals or families.   The goal is to provide them with a minimum standard of living until they can earn their financial independence. More.

There are 13 social safety net programs, as listed below.   In addition, state and local government and non-profit organizations also have programs to protect and help Americans.  These programs vary by location, including food, housing, counseling, and other benefits.

Social Safety Net Definition

The term social safety net is used in a broad sense to mean any government program that benefits individuals or families.  This broad definition includes Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Unemployment, and Welfare Programs in the U.S. The term is used in a narrower sense to refer only to programs that protect low-income or homeless citizens. These programs are also called antipoverty or welfare programs and are listed below.

The social safety net has the following attributes

  • Entitlement Program – This term indicates that the government program is available to all citizens. All safety net programs are also Entitlement Programs.
  • Non-contributory – Americans do not need to contribute through taxes to the program to receive benefits. All antipoverty or welfare programs function this way in the U.S. Low-income individuals or families get the benefits for free. This contrasts with Social Security or Medicare, which collects payroll taxes from citizens. More.
  • Means-tested – All antipoverty safety net programs aim at low-income individuals and families.    The determination of this is through means-testing. The government reviews an individual’s or family’s income to qualify them for benefits.

Hidden Entitlement

The Safety Net to fight poverty is not a single program, nor does one federal government agency run it.  Eight different agencies run it. Therefore, to understand the safety net programs, they must be aggregated; see below.

The safety net programs are programs solely to aid low-income Americans. For example, food stamps are included, but food inspection programs are not.   More

Makeup of the Safety Net

picture depicting very complicated routes of two people walking

The Federal Safety Net is made up of a complex array of programs.  They are generally independent and attack a single aspect of poverty, such as food or rent.   As a result, each has specific regulations, goals, and benefits.  Large government agencies run them with thousands of federal employees.  Taken as a whole, they represent a challenging matrix for the poor to use and for the American taxpayer to understand.

Federal Safety Net Programs and Their Cost in Billions

Safety Net Programs are shown below in the following table. For more information on each program, simply click on it.

Safety Net ProgramFiscal
Year
2021
Fiscal
Year
2022
Fiscal
Year 2023
Refundable Tax Credits – Earned income tax credit (EITC) and child tax credit 
Cash is paid to working families who pay no income tax.  
$140$196$84
SNAP – Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program 
Formally called the food stamp program.  Debit cards are distributed to the poor to buy food.
134148135
Housing Assistance – HUD housing programs   
Includes rent vouchers, public housing, and community development programs.
907767
SSI – Supplemental Security Income  
Cash is paid to disabled, blind, or seniors over 65.
586362
Pell Grants 
Grants are paid to students to help pay for college tuition, room, and board. 
292731
TANF – Temporary Assistance for Needy Families 
Cash is paid to support low-income families and move them from welfare to work.
151516
Child Nutrition   
School lunch, breakfast, and after-school food programs.
263729
Head Start 
Preschool program 
131415
Job Training 
Various programs & employment support for adults, youth, and seniors.   
566
WIC – Women, Infants, and Children 
High protein food for pregnant women and children up to five years old.
567
Child Care 
Child care and after-school programs  
152626
LIHEAP – Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program   
 Aid for heating or cooling a residential dwelling. 
576
Lifeline (Obama Phone) 
Phone subsidy, including cell phones 
111
Total costs from 13 Welfare Programs  536623485
Medicaid
Health care for low-income Americans 
521592616
Total Federal Welfare costs    $1,057$1,215$1,101

All figures from USGovernmentSpending.com   [Internet].  Available here.   It was retrieved on March 15, 2024.