Alaska Temporary Assistance Long-term Recipient Study (2002)

Brian Saylor, PhD, MPH 
Curtis Lomas, BS
Stacy L. Smith, MFA

The Division of Public Assistance commissioned the Institute for Health Studies to carry out an evaluation of the Alaska Temporary Assistance Program. This evaluation was made up of two phases: the Leaver Study and the Long-Term Recipient Study. 
The Long-term Recipient Study examined the characteristics of the cohort of approximately 800 long-term Temporary Assistance recipients who, if they continued to receive benefits, would reach the 60-month limit on benefits by the end of the sixth month, after the time limit first impacted Alaskan families in July 2002. Work on this second phase of the Alaska Temporary Assistance program evaluation began in the spring of 2001 and continued through the fiscal year 2002.

The principal objective of the long-term recipient study was to examine the characteristics of the long-term recipient population so the Division of Public Assistance and other policy makers could be well informed about this population's barriers to employment, as well as their experiences with the Temporary Assistance program and the services provided through Temporary Assistance case managers. This information is valuable as state officials strive to develop effective strategies for serving the long-term recipient population.

The final ATAP Leaver Study report is available in pdf format: Facing the Final Countdown: A Study of Long-Term Alaska Temporary Assistance Program Recipients (340 KB) (340 KB, pdf)