Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) is the forrmer name for a welfare program administered by the United States Department of Health and Human Services. Under the name Aid to Dependent Children (ADC), it was created by the Social Security Act of 1935 as part of the New Deal; the words "families with" were added to the name in 1960.
In 1996, the Republican-dominated United States Congress passed, and then-President Bill Clinton reluctantly signed, legislation which drastically remade the program — among other things, by imposing a lifetime limit of five years on the receipt of benefits therefrom. The name of the program was also changed, becoming Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF). However, many Americans continue to refer to the program by its pre-existing name.
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