Welfare States

How the Southwest Transformed Welfare

Welfare reform allowed states to choose how they provide assistance to the poor — or hardly provide it at all. In the rapidly changing Southwest, that has sometimes led to bizarre or impossible requirements for getting help.

Impact of Our Reporting

More States Are Allowing Child Support Payments to Reach Children

by Eli Hager

May 3, 2024, 5:00 am EDT

Biden Administration to Overhaul Welfare Following ProPublica Reporting

by Eli Hager

November 28, 2023, 6:00 am EST

Southwestern States Make Changes to Welfare After ProPublica Investigations

by Eli Hager

March 10, 2022, 5:00 am EST

Head of New Mexico Child Support Agency Asks State to Stop Intercepting Payments to Poor Families

by Eli Hager

December 3, 2021, 4:10 pm EST

11 stories published since 2021

Welfare Is No Substitute for a Child Tax Credit

by Eli Hager

February 14, 2022, 5:00 am EST
The Cruel Failure of Welfare Reform in the Southwest

by Eli Hager

December 30, 2021, 5:30 am EST
States Are Hoarding $5.2 Billion in Welfare Funds Even as the Need for Aid Grows

by Hannah Dreyfus

December 29, 2021, 5:00 am EST
A Mother Needed Welfare. Instead, the State Used Welfare Funds to Take Her Son.

by Eli Hager, photography by Caitlin O'Hara for ProPublica

December 23, 2021, 5:00 am EST
Utah Makes Welfare So Hard to Get, Some Feel They Must Join the LDS Church to Get Aid

by Eli Hager, photography by Kim Raff for ProPublica

December 2, 2021, 5:00 am EST
Para obtener asistencia social, estas madres solteras se ven obligadas a compartir casi todo lo que saben sobre los padres de sus hijos

por Eli Hager, fotografía por Adria Malcolm, en reporte especial para ProPublica

September 17, 2021, 2:45 pm EDT
These Single Moms Are Forced to Choose: Reveal Their Sexual Histories or Forfeit Welfare

by Eli Hager, photography by Adria Malcolm, special to ProPublica

September 17, 2021, 5:00 am EDT

Featured Posts in this Series

Impact of Our Reporting