Mississippi rejects nearly all of its welfare applicants but won't explain why

Something strange and nefarious seems to be happening in Mississippi. Last year, more than 11,000 of its low-income residents applied for welfare benefits through the state—part of the federal Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program. Of those applicants, only 167 people, or just 1.42 percent were approved. Every other applicant was denied or withdrew, which means that Mississippi is essentially refusing to give out any aid to families in need. And this is nothing new. Apparently, this has been on the rise over the last few years.

The numbers follow a disturbing trend in the state over the past several years. Between 2003 and 2010, according to a report by the Mississippi Low-Income Child Care Initiative (MLICCI), roughly half of the applicants to the state’s TANF program were rejected, already a large share of poor people denied assistance. But then in 2011, the rejection rate catapulted to 89 percent. It has gradually increased every year since.

States are generally incentivized to reduce their TANF caseloads, given that any unused money can be redirected to other purposes. But Mississippi stands out for its astonishing rejection rate.

Of course, no one seems quite able to explain exactly why the state has such an enormous rejection rate although there seems to be plenty of blame directed at welfare recipients. 

The state did not respond to repeated requests from ThinkProgress for an explanation of what changed, but it did send a statement saying, “Upon review of our caseload, there are a significant number of TANF applications being denied; however, there are many reasons the denials are taking place.” Those include failing to meet eligibility criteria, unresolved noncompliance issues, an ongoing mandatory work sanction period, unverified compliance with upfront requirements, failing to provide necessary data, voluntarily quitting or being fired from a job for one’s own behavior, failing to cooperate with child support enforcement, failing to show up for appointments, or voluntarily withdrawing an application. 

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