Under the Denial of Federal Benefits Program, judges in  federal and state courts may deny a range of federal licenses, contracts,  and grants to persons convicted of controlled substances drug trafficking  and drug possession offenses. In addition, 9 PHAs reported that they acted on 21,996  applications for admission into the HCV Program and that less than 1.5  percent of applicants were denied admission for reasons of drug-related  criminal activities. This  amounted to an average of fewer than 600 offenders per year. Eighteen States Fully Implement the Federal Ban on TANF, as the Remainder Have Enacted Legislation to Exempt Some or All Convicted Drug Felons

A total of 32 states have enacted laws that exempt all or some convicted  drug felons from the federal ban on TANF benefits. In States That Fully Implement the Ban on TANF, about 15 Percent of All Drug Offenders Released from Prison in 2001 Were Estimated to Meet TANF Eligibility Criteria

Using Bureau of Justice Statistics survey data on the family and economic  characteristics of drug offenders in prison and state-level data on the  number of drug offenders released from prison during 2001 in 14 of the 18  states that fully implement the ban on TANF, we estimated that about 15  percent of those released from prison were parents of minor children,  lived with their children, and had earned income below the maximum  levels permitted by their states of residence. In States That Fully Implement the Ban on Food Stamps, About One- Fourth of Drug Offenders Released from Prison in 2001 Were Parents Who Could Have Been Eligible for Food Stamps

At the time of our review, 15 states fully implemented the federal ban on  food stamp benefits to convicted drug felons, and 35 states had passed  laws to exempt all or some convicted drug felons in their own states from  the federal ban on food stamps. Our estimates  indicate that denial of benefit laws potentially affect relatively small  percentages of drug offenders, although the numbers potentially affected  in given years may be large. This is because they are more likely to be custodial parents with  low incomes and thus otherwise eligible for the benefits. Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

Federal law provides that certain drug offenders may or must be denied  selected federal benefits, such as Temporary Assistance for Needy  Families (TANF), food stamps, federally assisted housing, postsecondary  education grants and loans, and certain federal contracts and licenses. (2) What factors  affect whether drug offenders would have been eligible to receive TANF  and food stamp benefits, but for their drug offense convictions, and for a  recent year, what percentage would have been eligible to receive these  benefits? Assessing How Many Drug Offenders Were Estimated to Be Denied Federal Postsecondary Education and Federally Assisted Housing Benefits and Certain Grants and Contracts

To estimate how many or what percentage of drug offenders were  reported to be denied federal postsecondary education and federally  assisted housing benefits and certain grants and contracts under the  Denial of Federal Benefits Program, we obtained and analyzed data from  agency officials. From a nonprobability sample of some of the largest public housing  agencies (PHA) in the United States, we obtained information about  reported actions taken in 2003 in these PHAs to deny persons federally  assisted housing benefits for reasons of drug-related criminal activities. Estimating the Percentage of Convicted Drug Felons That Would Have Been Eligible to Receive TANF or Food Stamps and the Factors Contributing to These Estimates

Data limitations concerning the actual number of persons denied TANF  and food stamp benefits required us to develop estimates of the drug  offenders that could be denied these benefits in that they had  characteristics that would have allowed them to qualify to receive the  benefits except for their drug offense convictions. Methods for Estimating the Percentage of Drug Felons Potentially Affected by the TANF and Food Stamp Bans

To assess the potential impacts of the bans on TANF and food stamps, we  estimated the percentage of a population of drug felons released from  prison that would be eligible to receive TANF, and but for their drug  offense conviction could receive the benefit. The data are  provided annually for academic years 2001-2002 through 2003-2004.
Why GAO Did This Study

Several provisions of federal law allow for or require certain federal benefits to be denied to individuals convicted of drug offenses in federal or state courts. These benefits include Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), food stamps, federally assisted housing, postsecondary education assistance, and some federal contracts and licenses. Given the sizable population of drug offenders in the United States, the number and the impacts of federal denial of benefit provisions may be particularly important if the operations of these provisions work at cross purposes with recent federal initiatives intended to ease prisoner reentry and foster prisoner reintegration into society. GAO analyzed (1) for selected years, the number and percentage of drug offenders that were estimated to be denied federal postsecondary education and federally assisted housing benefits and federal grants, contracts, and licenses and (2) the factors affecting whether drug offenders would have been eligible to receive TANF and food stamp benefits, but for their drug offense convictions, and for a recent year, the percentage of drug offenders released who would have been eligible to receive these benefits. Several agencies reviewed a draft of this report, and we incorporated the technical comments that some provided into the report where appropriate.

What GAO Found

For the years for which it obtained data, GAO estimates that relatively small percentages of applicants but thousands of persons were denied postsecondary education benefits, federally assisted housing, or selected licenses and contracts as a result of federal laws that provide for denying benefits to drug offenders. During academic year 2003-2004, about 41,000 applicants (or 0.3 percent of all applicants) were disqualified from receiving postsecondary education loans and grants because of drug convictions. For 2003, 13 of the largest public housing agencies in the nation reported that less than 6 percent of 9,249 lease terminations that occurred in these agencies were for reasons of drug-related criminal activities--such as illegal distribution or use of a controlled substance--and 15 large public housing agencies reported that about 5 percent of 29,459 applications for admission were denied admission for these reasons. From 1990 through the second quarter of 2004, judges in federal and state courts were reported to have imposed sanctions to deny benefits such as federal licenses, grants, and contracts to about 600 convicted drug offenders per year. Various factors affect which convicted drug felons are eligible to receive TANF or food stamps. This is because state of residence, income, and family situation all play a role in determining eligibility. Federal law mandates that convicted drug felons face a lifetime ban on receipt of TANF and food stamps unless states pass laws to exempt some or all convicted drug felons in their state from the ban. At the time of GAO's review, 32 states had laws exempting some or all convicted drug felons from the ban on TANF, and 35 states had laws modifying the federal ban on food stamps. Because of the eligibility requirements associated with receiving these benefits, only those convicted drug felons who, but for their conviction, would have been eligible to receive the benefits could be affected by the federal bans. For example, TANF eligibility criteria include requirements that an applicant have custodial care of a child and that income be below state-determined eligibility thresholds. Available data for 14 of 18 states that fully implemented the ban on TANF indicate that about 15 percent of drug offenders released from prison in 2001 met key eligibility requirements and constitute the pool of potentially affected drug felons. Proportionally more female drug felons than males may be affected by the ban, as about 27 percent of female and 15 percent of male drug offenders released from prison in 2001 could be affected.