Jason DeParle reports in The New York Times that “18 states cut their welfare rolls last year, and nationally the number of people receiving cash assistance remained at or near the lowest in more than 40 years…[raising] questions about how well a revamped welfare system with great state discretion is responding to growing hardships.” DeParle focuses on the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, “the main cash welfare program for families with children…which mostly serves single mothers.”