The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), signed into law by President Trump earlier this year, largely kept the 2017 tax cuts in place. But it also made some significant changes to America’s welfare policy. In this episode of Giving Ventures, Peter brings on Tarren Bragdon, founder and CEO of the Foundation for Government Accountability, to learn more about these changes.
The Biggest Welfare Reform in Decades
Most notably, OBBBA introduces mandatory work requirements for the first time, marking what Bragdon calls “the biggest welfare reform bill ever passed in Washington DC.” The legislation requires work for all able-bodied adults who do not have disabilities or children in order to receive food stamps and Medicaid.
The scale of impact is substantial. The food stamp work requirement took effect in November 2025, and the Medicaid work requirement is set to begin approximately one year later. This affects over 11 million people in blue states alone, with nearly 8 million expected to transition from welfare to work as a result of the reform.
Today’s welfare recipients look vastly different from those of the 1990s, Bragdon notes. While 30 years ago, over 90% of welfare cash assistance recipients were single parents and less than 10% were men, the current Medicaid expansion population tells a different story. Nearly 90% of the 21 million able-bodied adults on Medicaid expansion are childless adults, more than half are men, and over 60% self-report not working at all.
The Power of Work Requirements
Historical evidence demonstrates the effectiveness of work requirements. Following the 1996 welfare reform, welfare enrollment dropped dramatically. But the benefits extend beyond simply moving people off the rolls. When work requirements are implemented, people move into a thousand different industries, their incomes rise, and they advance into more profitable sectors.
Unlike previous federal welfare initiatives that offered optional waivers, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act creates a “free market mandate” with significant fiscal consequences for states that don’t comply. “If states don’t clean up their Medicaid and food stamp roles because they control eligibility, then they’re going to be on the hook for billions of dollars,” Bragdon explains.