Spending patterns of public-assisted families

F amilies receiving public assistance differ from other families not only demographically, but also in the way they spend. Expenditures on basic needs account for a larger share of the assisted families’ spending. Furthermore, when the assisted families are classified by the number of public assistance programs received (such as medicaid, food stamps, and subsidized housing), the data indicate that such families are not homogeneous—their demographics are different, as are their spending patterns. This article summarizes the demographic characteristics and expenditure patterns of families receiving public assistance. The results are based on responses to the Interview survey component of the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey, conducted in 1998. Federal, State, and local governments provide a variety of assistance programs to low-income families. The Consumer Expenditure Survey collects data on out-of-pocket expenditures of persons by family, as well as their demographic characteristics—including whether the family receives some types of public assistance. For the purpose of this article, a family is classified as an assisted family if it reported receiving at least one of the following six types of public assistance: supplementary security income (SSI), welfare, medicaid, food stamps, government housing subsidies, or public housing. Lucilla Tan is an economist in the Office of Prices and Living Conditions, Bureau of Labor Statistics. Used by percentage of assisted familes Lucilla Tan