From Barrier to Bridge: Approaches to Address Benefits Cliffs

Keith Barnes, Brittany Birken and John Rees
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Brittany Birken: https://www.atlantafed.org/community-development/about-us/staff/birken-brittany

No 2026-3, Workforce Currents from Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta

Abstract: Working families can experience a variety of financial barriers that limit economic mobility. One significant barrier occurs when career advancement puts a family above the income-eligibility threshold for public assistance programs. Career advancement, and the wage gains that come with it, can create a scenario in which a family is financially worse off due to the partial or complete loss of benefits–a phenomenon known as a benefits cliff. In other instances, the loss of benefits may largely erase (but not entirely offset) the financial gains associated with career advancement, a dynamic known as a benefits plateau. Both situations can curtail economic mobility.

Pages: 14
Date: 2026-08-04
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:fip:a00034:103608

DOI: 10.29338/wc2026-03

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