Guardianship and the Representative Payee Program

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore unstably housed persons satisfaction with representative payee services. Design/methodology/approach – Surveys were distributed through two different methods, which consisted of mailings and dispersal by program staff members. Findings – Participants overwhelmingly reported that they were satisfied with representative payee services with 77 percent of the stand-alone housing participants and 86 percent of the scattered site participants reported being “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with representative payee services. Similarly, 92 percent of stand-alone participants and 82 percent of scattered site participants reported being satisfied with their abilities to care for their needs. The lowest reported satisfaction with the program was with the timeliness of getting spending checks, with 85 percent of participants being satisfied in the stand-alone location and only 63 percent of participants reporting satisfaction in the scattered site setting. Research limitations/implications – This research is limited by the fact that it is an evaluation of one program and does not have a comparison group. Additionally, clients self-selected to participate in the research and results are not generalizable. Future research should ascertain whether aspects of harm reduction and peer staff have an impact on client outcomes as well as representative payee satisfaction. The study was conducted in a metropolitan area in the Northeast USA, which includes the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and surrounding areas. Given that this region includes both city and suburban areas, it is likely the results are translatable to multiple geographic areas. Practical implications – Results of this research indicate that use of harm reduction and peer staff could be factors in client satisfaction with representative payee services thereby increasing the possibility that clients will sign up for this service and receive the benefits of the program. Social implications – Having a representative payee program imposed on clients whether voluntarily or involuntarily can be an extremely anxiety provoking experience. Increasing satisfaction with this service will lend to improved quality of life for clients as well as improved relationships with providers which may lead to more engagement in care. Originality/value – This paper provides a new perspective on representative payee programs since it shows positive satisfaction, as well as use of harm reduction and peer staff, which varies from previous studies.

Aside from Social Security and, for some, employer-provided pensions, housing equity is the principle asset of a large fraction of older Americans. Many retired persons have essentially no financial assets to support retirement consumption. We use data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), the Asset and Health Dynamics Among the Oldest Old (AHEAD), and the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) to understand the extent to which families use housing equity to support general consumption in retirement. The initial analysis is based on self-assessed home values reported by survey respondents. Because the self-assessments exaggerate actual home equity, much of the subsequent analysis is based on the selling price of recently sold homes, together with the reported equity in recently purchased homes. Homeowners can change home equity by either discontinuing ownership or by purchasing another home of lesser or greater value. We find that in the absence of a precipitating shock-death of a spouse or entry of a family member into a nursing home--families are unlikely to discontinue home ownership. And even when there is a precipitating shock, discontinuing ownership is the exception rather than the rule. On average, families that move and purchase a new home tend to increase home equity. We find, however, that income-poor and house-rich families are more likely to reduce equity when they move, while house-poor and income-rich households are more likely to increase housing equity. Overall, accounting for discontinuing ownership and moving to another home, housing equity increases with age until about age 75 and then declines slightly as households grow older. The overall decline among older households (surveyed in the AHEAD) is about 1.76 percent per year, and this decline is largely accounted for by a 7.84 percent decline among households who experience a precipitating shock. Families that remain intact reduce housing equity very little, about 0.11 percent per year for two-person households and 1.15 percent per year for one-person households. We conclude that, on average, home equity is not liquidated to support general non-housing consumption needs as households age.

Research on economic need in the United States dates back at least to Jacob Riis's classic 1890 book, How the Other Half Lives. In the century since that publication, government efforts to reduce poverty have expanded enormously. Along with the expansion of anti-poverty programs, the demand for research on the nature of economic need in this country has mushroomed. A primary motivation for beginning the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) was to provide more and better information on families' level of eco­ nomic need and their use of government programs. This paper analyzes the ex­ tent to which SIPP has fulfilled that promise and presents recommendations for further changes and improvements in SIPP that might make it more useful to those who want to investigate poverty and anti-poverty programs. Data on income and program participation serve four basic functions in un­ derstanding poverty. First, income statistics are used to calculate measures of economic need, such as the official poverty rate, which are used as a measure of economic and social progress. Second, comparative measures of economic need across different subgroups of the population provide a measure of the relative progress and well-being of different groups in society, and help focus attention on those whose needs remain unmet. Third, data on program partici­ pation and family income provide information on who receives government transfer income and on how effective these programs are in reducing economic need. Fourth, repeated observations over time provide evidence on how all of these issues evolve. In particular, as anti-poverty programs and the macro

One of the methods of increased privacy protection is the creation of synthetic data sets. In this article we consider the differences that emerge between synthetic and nonsynthetic data in one of the very few attempts to create a synthetic data file for a major household survey data set, the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP). The data we use are nonsynthetic and synthetic versions of the SIPP linked to administrative earnings histories, known as the SIPP Gold Standard File (GSF) and the SIPP Synthetic Beta (SSB), respectively. We present a set of results on short-run earnings dynamics estimated on both the SSB and the GSF, focusing on earnings volatility—the variance of short-run earnings growth rates—as well as an error components decomposition of inequality into permanent and transitory components. We find that short-run instability—both volatility and the transitory component of earnings inequality—is higher in the SSB than the GSF although the differences are somewhat dependent on modeling choices and the treatment of low earnings. Differences between the two data sets emerge both because cross-sectional inequality is higher in the SSB than in the GSF and because the dynamics of earnings over both shorter and longer periods appear to be different.

Parental Earnings and Children's Well-Being and Future Success: An Analysis of the SIPP Matched to SSA Earnings Data

The dynamics of participation in government programs can be studied using longitudinal data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP). This paper examines some of the issues involved in such analysis, focusing first on the kinds of analysis that SIPP data allow. The second section discusses the major problems with the SIPP that complicate longitudinal analyses. A concluding section suggests changes that could simplify and improve the data.

We propose a new methodology that does not assume a prior specification of the statistical properties of the measurement errors and treats all sources as noisy measures of some underlying true value. The unobservable true value can be represented as a weighted average of all available measures, using weights that must be specified a priori unless there has been a truth audit. The Census Bureau's Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) survey jobs are linked to Social Security Administration earnings data, creating two potential annual earnings observations. The reliability statistics for both sources are quite similar except for cases where the SIPP used imputations for some missing monthly earnings reports.

This chapter examines the change in the home equity of older families as they age, beginning at ages just before retirement. It uses data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), the Asset and Health Dynamics Among the Oldest Old (AHEAD) survey, as well as the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP). It distinguishes changes in housing equity that might be thought of as part of a financial plan to use housing equity as a means of general support in retirement from changes in housing equity that are precipitated by family shocks—death or severe illness. The chapter extends the analysis in Steven Venti and David Wise, in which it was found that in the absence of changes in household structure, most elderly families are unlikely to move. The chapter also shows that even among movers, those families that continue to own typically do not reduce home equity.

Although a vast amount of literature on the characteristics of public assistance recipients exists, little is known about the characteristics of the clientele of nonprofits that provide material assistance. This study examines the question of who receives material assistance from nonprofits. Three panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation (1996, 2001, and 2004) adult well-being module were used to see if the use of nonprofit assistance is associated with individual and household characteristics, type of material hardship, and the use of other sources of assistance. Results show that poverty status, education, area of residence, and public program participation have a significant association with nonprofit material assistance, regardless of the type of material hardship and the use of other sources of assistance. These associations stayed relatively stable during the years of observation. It is interesting that households headed by an individual with college education were more likely than those headed by an individual without a high school diploma to receive material assistance from nonprofits. These findings may help nonprofits develop appropriate assistance programs and reach target populations. KEY WORDS: low-income households; material assistance; material hardship; nonprofits; social service ********** Material hardship is a condition of failure to meet the minimum levels of very basic goods and services, such as food, housing, and medical needs (Beverly, 2001, p. 143). In the United States, one in every 10 people lives in material hardship (Beverly, 2001). To help those with material hardship, government at various levels and nonprofit groups provide a wide range of material assistance. During the recent economic downturn, the need for material assistance rose and an increasing number of people turned to nonprofits for assistance (Ducey, 2009). Despite the important role of nonprofits in social assistance historically and currently (for example, Allard, 2008; Lipsky & Smith, 1989; Young, 1999), little is known about the clientele of the nonprofit sector (Allard, 2008). Two reasons may account for this. First, nonprofit assistance is still small in size and scope relative to public assistance, although this is changing as the partnership between government and nonprofits grows (Salamon, 1995; Young, 1999). Second, as noted by Allard, the local nature of service providers poses a challenge to research on nonprofit groups, and this is partly reflected by the lack of nationally representative data on the use of nonprofit assistance by individuals. Despite how little we know about the clientele of the nonprofit sector, a huge gap can be seen in the extent of material hardship and the availability of material assistance to the needy. Because of this, nonprofits are expected to play a larger role in social assistance to the needy (Alexander, Nank, & Stivers, 1999; Salamon, 1995). For this to happen, we need to look closely at who receives material assistance from nonprofits and what factors are associated with the use of nonprofit assistance. An inquiry into these questions will not only benefit nonprofits as they try to develop appropriate assistance programs and reach target populations, but also inform policymakers of the similarities and differences between the clientele of the nonprofit sector and that of the public sector. The Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), which incorporates questions regarding nonprofit assistance, makes it possible to closely study the clientele of nonprofit assistance. Three panels of the SIPP (1996, 2001, and 2004) were used by the current study to examine the characteristics of nonprofits' clients and the determinants of the use of nonprofit assistance by families with material hardship. BACKGROUND Theoretical Perspectives As is widely recognized, nonprofit assistance is distinct from other sources of assistance, such as government, family, and friends. …

When debating the effect of undocumented immigrants on the economy, scholars often presume that undocumented immigrants are wage laborers rather than business owners. This study imputes the legal status of Mexican and Central American immigrants (MCAs) in the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) between 1996 and 2008 to evaluate how legal status affects business ownership patterns. From 1996 to 2008, the SIPP asked a series of questions about business ownership and migration history that make it uniquely suited to an investigation of undocumented MCA business owners. Instrumental variables regressions reveal that undocumented immigrants had a lower likelihood of owning a business than documented immigrants, but undocumented and documented business owners derived similar incomes from their businesses. A lack of legal status may hold back potential entrepreneurs. MCA business owners of both legal statuses clustered into similar low-paying, low-growth industries, however, so regardless of legal status, there are likely limits to how much business ownership can promote economic mobility among MCAs. All told, scholars should do more to acknowledge the existence of undocumented immigrant business owners, measure their impact on the economy, and examine their influence on immigrant incorporation patterns.

Time limits are among the most fundamental of recent welfare reforms. Whereas welfare benefits were an entitlement under the old Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), which replaced AFDC with the Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF) program, restricts most families to 60 months of federally funded benefits. Although the states are free to extend benefits further using their own funds, almost all have incorporated some sort of time limit into their TANF programs. Time limits may affect welfare receipt in two distinct ways. The most obvious effect is mechanical, reducing welfare use once recipients exhaust their benefits. However, time limits may also reduce welfare receipt before recipients reach the limit. If families are forwardlooking, they may reduce their current welfare use in order to preserve their benefits for the future. The purpose of this paper is to provide evidence on such anticipatory, or behavioral, effects of time limits. I use data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) to replicate my earlier estimates based on the Current Population Survey (CPS). I also exploit the SIPP to relax some of the restrictive assumptions that were implicit in my previous work.

BackgroundClient-Centered Representative Payee (CCRP) is an intervention modifying implementation of a current policy of the US Social Security Administration, which appoints organizations to serve as financial payees on behalf of vulnerable individuals receiving Social Security benefits. By ensuring beneficiaries’ bills are paid while supporting their self-determination, this structural intervention may mitigate the effects of economic disadvantage to improve housing and financial stability, enabling self-efficacy for health outcomes and improved antiretroviral therapy adherence. This randomized controlled trial will test the impact of CCRP on marginalized people living with HIV (PLWH). We hypothesize that helping participants to pay their rent and other bills on time will improve housing stability and decrease financial stress.MethodsPLWH (n = 160) receiving services at community-based organizations will be randomly assigned to the CCRP intervention or the standard of care for 12 months. Fifty additional participants will be enrolled into a non-randomized (“choice”) study allowing participant selection of the CCRP intervention or control. The primary outcome is HIV medication adherence, assessed via the CASE adherence index, viral load, and CD4 counts. Self-assessment data for ART adherence, housing instability, self-efficacy for health behaviors, financial stress, and retention in care will be collected at baseline, 3, 6, and 12 months. Viral load, CD4, and appointment adherence data will be collected at baseline, 6, 12, 18, and 24 months from medical records. Outcomes will be compared by treatment group in the randomized trial, in the non-randomized cohort, and in the combined cohort. Qualitative data will be collected from study participants, eligible non-participants, and providers to explore underlying mechanisms of adherence, subjective responses to the intervention, and implementation barriers and facilitators.DiscussionThe aim of this study is to determine if CCRP improves health outcomes for vulnerable PLWH. Study outcomes may provide information about supports needed to help economically fragile PLWH improve health outcomes and ultimately improve HIV health disparities. In addition, findings may help to refine service delivery including the provision of representative payee to this often-marginalized population. This protocol was prospectively registered on May 22, 2018 with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03561103).

Undocumented status is widely recognized as an important social determinant of health. While undocumented immigrants have lower levels of health care access, they do not have consistently poorer physical health than the US-born or other immigrant groups. Furthermore, heterogeneity by race/ethnicity has been largely ignored in this growing literature. This paper used the 2001, 2004, 2008 panels of the restricted Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), one of the only representative surveys equipped to adequately identify Asian undocumented immigrants, to compare health patterns between Asians and Latinos by immigration status. We examined three general measures of health/health access: self-rated health, disability, and current health insurance. Latino undocumented immigrants displayed some advantages in self-rated health and disability but had lower insurance coverage compared to US-born Latinos. In contrast, Asian undocumented immigrants did not differ from US-born Asians in any of the three outcomes. While undocumented status has been proposed as a fundamental cause of disease, we found no evidence that Latino and Asian undocumented immigrants consistently fare worse in health access or physical health outcomes than immigrants in other status categories. Different racial groups also appeared to have unique patterns between immigration status and health outcomes from one another.

Summary Review of Data Sources for School to Work Transitions by Youth with Disabilities - Policy Brief

This article examines proposals to transfer Social Security benefits from married couples to surviving widows in terms of effects on poverty rates, trust fund expenditures, and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) expenditures. Because widows are much more likely to be living in poverty than older married women, it makes sense to consider Social Security benefits in a lifetime framework and transfer some benefits from the time both the husband and wife are alive to the time when there is only one survivor, usually the wife. Because of expected life span and age differences of marital partners, a $1 reduction of the couple's benefit can finance a $1.45 increase in the widow's benefit. The 1990 Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) matched to the Social Security Administration's benefit records are the basis for the estimates.