Deck 17: Social Policy

Question 1

The Social Security Act of 1935 created

A) only one category of welfare program: contributory.
B) only one category of welfare program: noncontributory.
C) two separate categories of welfare: contributory and noncontributory.
D) the first system of regressive taxation.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

What was the "outdoor relief" distributed by private charities?

A) a place to sleep at night
B) a temporary job
C) money
D) bread lines and soup kitchens

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which of the following is a goal of American social policy?

A) the elimination of poverty
B) the promotion of equality of opportunity
C) closing the gap between rich and poor
D) promoting economic equality

Answer 3

B

Question 4

The movement for mothers' pensions began in

A) Vermont in 1917.
B) Massachusetts in 1914.
C) California in 1909.
D) Illinois in 1911.

Question 5

Social Security was established in ________.

A) 1929
B) 1930
C) 1935
D) 1965

Question 6

In 2016, each individual's required contribution to Social Security was ________ percent of his or her first $118,500 of income.

A) 0
B) 1.45
C) 6.2
D) 7.65

Question 7

Which of the following statements about Social Security is true?

A) Social Security was established in 1965.
B) It is a program based on voluntary savings.
C) Contributors receive benefits in strict proportion to their contributions.
D) Social Security redistributes wealth from younger workers to older retirees.

Question 8

Which group was one of the first to receive government assistance throughout the United States?

A) African Americans after the Civil War
B) mothers with dependent children
C) the unemployed
D) veterans coming back from World War I

Question 9

The periodic adjustment of benefits or wages that takes into account the increased cost of living is called ________.

A) means testing
B) indexing
C) graphing
D) economic tabulating

Question 10

Which of the following is an example of nineteenth-century "indoor relief"?

A) shelter provided at the police station
B) job placement services
C) subsidized schools and training centers
D) passes to hotels

Question 11

A(n) ________ benefit is one where potential recipients must document their genuine need.

A) indexed
B) contributory
C) means-tested
D) in-kind

Question 12

Unemployment insurance is a ________ program that is funded by the ________.

A) noncontributory; federal and state governments
B) noncontributory; state governments only
C) contributory; federal and state governments
D) contributory; state governments only

Question 13

Before the development of the welfare state, the primary problem with private charities was that they

A) would make subjective decisions on who was deserving of aid.
B) were unable to get the necessary government licenses to operate legally.
C) disrupted the constitutional separation of church and state.
D) often kept donations for their own private use.

Question 14

Currently, the average monthly Social Security payment is ________ per month.

A) $325
B) $757
C) $1,000
D) $1,335

Question 15

As of 2016, a provision in the Affordable Care Act ________ Medicare taxes for households earning ________.

A) eliminated; more than $250,000 a year.
B) lowered; more than $250,000 a year by .9 percent.
C) lowered; more than $250,000 a year by 5.4 percent.
D) increased; more than $250,000 a year by 5.4 percent.

Question 16

In 2016, each individual's required contribution to Medicare was ________ percent of all earnings.

A) 0
B) 1.45
C) 6.2
D) 15

Question 17

Social Security plays a vital role for younger people by providing

A) survivor benefits to those whose parents die or become disabled.
B) unemployment compensation for those who lose their jobs.
C) health care benefits to those whose jobs do not provide it.
D) food stamps for those who fall under the poverty line.

Question 18

Social Security is a good example of ________.

A) outdoor relief
B) indoor relief
C) a contributory program
D) a noncontributory program

Question 19

The goals of social policy

A) reflect changing views about which risks should be borne by the individual or shared by society.
B) have been consistent since the early twentieth century.
C) are always determined by the political party that controls the White House.
D) are clearly laid out in the Constitution.

Question 20

Which of the following played an important role in caring for the poor during the nineteenth century?

A) the military
B) the federal government
C) churches and religious organizations
D) the United Nations

Question 21

President ________ vowed "to end welfare as we know it."

A) Richard Nixon
B) Ronald Reagan
C) George H. W. Bush
D) Bill Clinton

Question 22

Which of the following programs provides an in-kind benefit?

A) Social Security
B) Medicaid
C) veterans benefits payments
D) Supplemental Security Income

Question 23

Part of the reason welfare programs became so unpopular was that

A) many Americans came to believe that welfare recipients did not want to work.
B) the programs were completely taken over by the federal government rather than having input from state and local governments.
C) the programs were completely taken over by state and local governments rather than having input from the federal government.
D) federal judges frequently ruled them to be unconstitutional.

Question 24

Spending on medical programs such as Medicare and Medicaid has proven difficult to control because

A) spending on Social Security has declined so significantly.
B) state and local governments have refused to contribute to the costs of administering these programs.
C) these programs are indexed to grow at two times the rate of inflation.
D) of the growing number of people eligible, and because of rising health care costs.

Question 25

Medicare is a ________ program; Medicaid is a ________ program.

A) noncontributory; contributory
B) contributory; noncontributory
C) contributory; contributory
D) noncontributory; noncontributory

Question 26

The Temporary Assistance to Needy Families Program is administered by the

A) federal government.
B) states, with uniform benefit levels set by the federal government.
C) states, with benefit levels varying between states.
D) federal government, with benefit levels varying between states.

Question 27

One reason that the Aid to Families with Dependent Children Program grew significantly in the 1970s was that

A) voters passed initiatives in many states that required an increase in benefits.
B) a number of court decisions determined that benefits must be increased at a level greater than that of inflation each year.
C) Congress passed a number of laws that dramatically expanded the number of people who were eligible and the overall amount of in-kind benefits that would be provided to eligible people.
D) court decisions made it more difficult for the government to legally terminate people's benefits for lack of eligibility.

Question 28

Noncitizen legal immigrants are

A) eligible to receive Medicaid benefits as soon as they arrive in the United States.
B) required to reside in the United States for 15 years before they can receive Medicaid benefits.
C) required to reside in the United States for five years before they can receive Medicaid benefits.
D) never allowed to receive Medicaid benefits.

Question 29

Most unemployed workers receive approximately ________ percent of their previous wages through unemployment insurance.

A) 100
B) 75
C) 50
D) 25

Question 30

The idea of ________ was at the heart of George W. Bush's 2005 plan for Social Security reform.

A) termination
B) private accounts
C) universal access
D) benefit reduction

Question 31

In most states, unemployment benefits last for a maximum of ________ weeks.

A) 4
B) 26
C) 36
D) 52

Question 32

Which of the following is a program of forced savings?

A) Medicaid
B) Medicare
C) Temporary Assistance to Needy Families
D) food stamps

Question 33

The federal government's spending on Aid to Families with Dependent Children fell after the mid-1970s because

A) the Supreme Court's decision in Goldberg v. Kelly prohibited more than 15 percent of the budget from being spent on welfare.
B) unlike Social Security, the program was not indexed to inflation.
C) fewer and fewer people needed the benefits provided by the program.
D) the program's cost-of-living adjustments were linked to real gross domestic product rather than to inflation.

Question 34

The Earned Income Tax Credit allows

A) elderly and disabled people to receive exemptions from Social Security and Medicare taxes.
B) unemployed people to request waivers that exempt them from federal payroll taxes.
C) working people whose annual income falls below a certain level to file for an income supplement through their tax return.
D) business owners to receive income supplements for each additional employee they hire in a given calendar year.

Question 35

The Great Depression changed American attitudes about welfare by

A) showing that the government could efficiently distribute public assistance.
B) demonstrating that the government could choose between the deserving and undeserving poor in a more objective manner than private charities.
C) revealing that poverty could be caused by a flawed economic system, not just by personal irresponsibility.
D) showing that government was not as capable of taking care of the poor as private charities.

Question 36

Which of the following social policies is currently the most costly to the government?

A) Social Security
B) food stamps
C) public housing assistance
D) Medicare

Question 37

Poor Americans had strong incentives to establish their eligibility for Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) in the 1970s because AFDC recipients

A) were exempted from the military draft.
B) were immediately enrolled in Medicare.
C) received a waiver on sales taxes.
D) automatically received Medicaid and food stamps.

Question 38

Monthly Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) benefits ________ the amount of the federal poverty line in ________.

A) exceed; every state.
B) exceed; all but 10 states.
C) exceed; only 20 states.
D) do not exceed; any state.

Question 39

The average benefit provided to a family with children by the Earned Income Tax Credit in 2013 was ________.

A) $1,286
B) $3,074
C) $7,984
D) $17,543

Question 40

Which program was designed to help augment the benefits to the aged, blind, and disabled?

A) Medicaid
B) Medicare
C) food stamps
D) Supplemental Security Income

Question 41

What important noncontributory program was abolished by Congress in 1996?

A) food stamps
B) Medicaid
C) Aid to Families with Dependent Children
D) Temporary Assistance to Needy Families

Question 42

A cost-of-living adjustment is based on the

A) financing approved by Congress during each session.
B) rate of inflation.
C) relationship between the level of the federal deficit compared to the nation's gross national product.
D) changing needs of each recipient.

Question 43

During the past three decades, the level of federal payroll tax has ________, and the level of federal corporate taxes has ________.

A) risen; risen
B) fallen; fallen
C) risen; fallen
D) stayed the same; stayed the same

Question 44

Medicare was established in ________.

A) 1888
B) 1933
C) 1942
D) 1965

Question 45

How does an entitlement differ from a right?

A) Unlike an entitlement, a right cannot be taken away by an act of Congress.
B) Unlike a right, an entitlement can be revoked without the due process of law.
C) Entitlements and rights are the same thing.
D) Entitlements are only for older Americans and rights apply to all citizens.

Question 46

The main fear concerning the consequences of outdoor relief was that it

A) perpetuated poverty.
B) was not cost-effective.
C) involved the state too much.
D) was unconstitutional.

Question 47

In 1862, Congress established land-grant colleges with the

A) Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
B) GI Bill of Rights.
C) Northwest Ordinance.
D) Morrill Act.

Question 48

The idea that all people should have the freedom to use whatever talents and wealth they have to achieve their goals is called ________.

A) in-kind benefits
B) equality of opportunity
C) outdoor relief
D) contributory system

Question 49

About ________ percent of the current federal budget is spent on entitlement programs.

A) 20
B) 35
C) 64
D) 78

Question 50

Ronald Reagan's administration signaled a new focus for federal education policy by

A) launching the first federally funded charter schools.
B) eliminating the Department of Education.
C) creating the Department of Education.
D) shifting the central goal from equal opportunity to the pursuit of higher standards.

Question 51

The American welfare state began in the

A) 1890s
B) 1920s
C) 1930s
D) 1960s

Question 52

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)

A) cut federal funding for school districts that performed poorly on the Department of Education's measures of student success.
B) guaranteed that 10 percent of all federal revenue would be spent each year on elementary and secondary education.
C) required that all school districts devote at least 200 hours of instruction to students each year using federally approved curriculum.
D) offered federal aid for education by allocating funds to school districts with substantial numbers of children from unemployed or low-income families.

Question 53

What event brought federal attention to elementary school education?

A) the fear that the Soviets were winning the Cold War through better technology
B) low levels of literacy in America's inner cities
C) the return of veterans at the end of World War II
D) the Great Depression

Question 54

Charter schools are best described as

A) schools that a district uses as the median by which to judge test scores.
B) private schools that are funded with tax vouchers.
C) public schools that are free to design special curricula.
D) private schools run by large corporations.

Question 55

There are considerable disparities in benefits from state to state in noncontributory programs because

A) many state constitutions prohibit state governments from accepting money for noncontributory programs from the federal government.
B) state governments are given grants-in-aid from the federal government to establish and operate their own programs rather than having one uniform national program.
C) the federal government specifies different levels of assistance to each state based on means testing and indexing.
D) some states choose to only employ contributory programs.

Question 56

The main change in welfare policies since 1996 is ________.

A) increased use of noncash assistance
B) increased benefits
C) decreased use of means testing
D) decreased use of job training programs

Question 57

Which of the following statements about noncontributory programs such as Temporary Assistance to Needy Families and Medicaid is most accurate?

A) The federal government provides all of the funding for these programs and, as a result, citizens in each state receive exactly the same level of benefits.
B) The federal government does not provide any funding for these programs, but state governments have all agreed to provide exactly the same level of benefits to citizens across the country.
C) The federal government provides only some of the funding for these programs and, as a result, citizens in each state receive exactly the same level of benefits.
D) The federal government provides only some of the funding for these programs and, as a result, citizens receive very different levels of benefits in different states.

Question 58

The 1996 welfare reforms

A) have done little to eliminate welfare dependency.
B) have reduced the number of people on welfare, but have done little to reduce poverty.
C) have led to an increase in the number of welfare recipients.
D) did not change anything.

Question 59

Goldberg v. Kelly (1970)

A) established the right of noncitizens to receive public assistance.
B) held that public assistance benefits could not be revoked without due process of law.
C) held that unequal welfare benefits were a violation of the equal protection clause.
D) held that the government could revoke assistance benefits without cause.

Question 60

After the election of 2004, President George W. Bush announced that ________ would be the centerpiece of his domestic policy.

A) tax reform
B) education
C) Social Security reform
D) the war on terrorism

Question 61

________ spending for K-12 education comes from ________.

A) The vast majority of; the state and local governments, while the federal government contributes a relatively small amount.
B) The vast majority of; the federal government and local governments, while state governments contribute a relatively small amount.
C) All; the federal government.
D) All; state governments.

Question 62

In 2007 and 2008, the government faced a housing crisis caused by

A) sharp rises in house prices.
B) foreclosures.
C) a scarcity of affordable housing.
D) shortages in the timber industry.

Question 63

Between 2003 and 2013, the average amount of student debt in the United States

A) increased by more than 100 percent.
B) increased by more than 20 percent.
C) did not change.
D) decreased by more than 20 percent.

Question 64

The Supreme Court ruled that the "individual mandate" of the Affordable Care Act was

A) unconstitutional under the Tenth Amendment.
B) unconstitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment.
C) constitutional under the commerce clause.
D) constitutional under Congress's taxing powers.

Question 65

Which of the following was a key part of the overhaul of No Child Left Behind?

A) a proposal that states could apply for waivers that would exempt them from some of the requirements of No Child Left Behind
B) a proposal to change the criteria for allocating $14 billion in federal assistance to schools from a system of competitive grants to a per-pupil formula
C) mandating a single nationwide standardized test to be taken by all students
D) providing an unprecedented amount of federal funding for school vouchers, allowing parents more freedom in choosing where their children attend school

Question 66

The Supreme Court's decision in King v. Burwell was significant because it

A) upheld the federal government's ability under the Affordable Care Act to provide subsidies to people using the federal health insurance exchange.
B) struck down the federal government's ability under the Affordable Care Act to provide subsidies to people using the federal health insurance exchange.
C) required employers to provide health insurance programs that cover all forms of contraception, including birth control methods they opposed on religious grounds.
D) allowed state governments to opt out of the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion without fear of losing their existing Medicaid funds.

Question 67

Which of the following statements about American's health care views is most accurate?

A) Americans universally reject the idea that government should ensure that all people receive adequate health care.
B) Although a majority of Americans reject the idea that government should ensure that all people receive adequate health care, there is widespread agreement that government should adopt the "public option" system.
C) Although a majority of Americans believe that government should ensure that all people receive adequate health care, there is considerable disagreement about how to deliver such benefits and how to pay for them.
D) A vast majority of Americans strongly favor government-run health care but only if state and local governments are placed in charge of administering all health care programs.

Question 68

The first federal government assistance in education came in

A) 1785, when the federal government set aside land for public schools.
B) 1812, when Congress established public schools in Washington, D.C.
C) 1944, with the GI bill.
D) 2001, with the No Child Left Behind Act.

Question 69

The most significant education policy developed by the federal government in the nineteenth century was the

A) creation of compulsory elementary school education.
B) establishment of land-grant colleges.
C) creation of the GI bill.
D) development of a standard national elementary school curriculum.

Question 70

The central thrust of federal housing policy has been to

A) promote home ownership.
B) reduce homelessness.
C) provide low-cost rental units for the poor.
D) provide uniform housing safety standards.

Question 71

________ is the single largest medical insurance program in the United States.

A) PhP
B) Anthem
C) Cigna
D) Medicaid

Question 72

The National Defense Education Act

A) eliminated affirmative action programs in university admissions.
B) increased federal funding for K-12 education programs focused on engineering.
C) awarded college scholarships to low-income students who scored highly in math and science exams.
D) offered low-interest loans to college students.

Question 73

The GI Bill of Rights of 1944 was an example of the

A) federal government's attempt to recruit more soldiers to the armed forces prior to World War II.
B) federal government's attempt to improve national security during the Cold War.
C) federal government's approach to education policy during the 1940s and 1950s.
D) numerous amendments made to the Constitution in order to protect the rights of veterans of foreign wars.

Question 74

The American Medical Association (AMA) is the

A) main lobbying organization of doctors.
B) main lobbying organization of patients.
C) federal agency in charge of monitoring outbreaks of disease and implementing prevention measures.
D) federal agency in charge of biomedical research.

Question 75

Congress's 2003 Medicare reform bill

A) added a prescription drug benefit to the package of health benefits provided to the elderly.
B) eliminated a prescription drug benefit to the package from health benefits provided to the elderly.
C) increased the minimum age of Medicare recipients from 65 to 75 years old.
D) decreased the minimum age of Medicare recipients from 75 to 65 years old.

Question 76

Deregulation of the mortgage industry in 1999 helped produce the housing crisis of 2007 and 2008 by

A) driving housing prices down by preventing too many qualified people from obtaining the mortgages needed to purchase homes.
B) allowing many new mortgage companies to form, offering "predatory" loans that people could not afford to repay.
C) making foreclosures almost impossible under the law and allowing many people to stop paying their mortgages with no monetary penalties.
D) eliminating most mortgage companies and forcing potential homeowners to pay cash for their homes.

Question 77

The "individual mandate" of the Affordable Care Act refers to

A) the requirement that Medicare cover all individuals living in the United States by 2014.
B) a tax credit that is given to all people who are unemployed and do not have health insurance coverage.
C) the requirement that uninsured individuals purchase health insurance.
D) the requirement that health insurance companies accept all applicants, regardless of preexisting conditions.

Question 78

The U.S. Public Health Service was founded in ________.

A) 1798
B) 1866
C) 1936
D) 1942

Question 79

In the Hobby Lobby case, the Supreme Court ruled that

A) the state-based insurance exchanges set up under the Affordable Care Act were a violation of the Constitution's Tenth Amendment.
B) state governments could opt out of the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion without fear of losing their existing Medicaid funds.
C) the "individual mandate" of the Affordable Care Act was unconstitutional.
D) "closely held" corporations were exempt from provisions of federal law that violated their owners' religious beliefs.

Question 80

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) is the

A) main lobbying organization of doctors.
B) federal agency in charge of monitoring outbreaks of disease and implementing prevention measures.
C) federal agency in charge of implementing the Affordable Care Act's "individual mandate."
D) federal agency in charge of biomedical research.