Where to from here? Understanding the Expanding Landscape of Cash Transfers in the US and Their Impact on Women

This brief provides an overview of the current landscape of cash transfer programs in the US. It identifies the types of programs being implemented and the target populations they serve, focusing on understanding how cash transfers reach and affect women across various groups. This analysis shows 90 concluded and current guaranteed income programs, with another 8 in the pipeline.3 Of the 90 guaranteed income programs identified, 11 programs are only open to women participants, 13 require participants to be primary caregivers, and 38 restrict participation to households with children. These eligibility criteria highlight the explicit and implicit targeting of women by guaranteed income programs and suggest that the wave of recent guaranteed programs will touch the lives of many women across the US. Given the proportion of cash transfer programs that are guaranteed income pilots and demonstrations, this brief highlights the pressing need to analyze the impact of guaranteed income programs on women’s empowerment and gender equity.