The passage of these provisions offers evidence that Congress was anything but complacent about the topic of pregnancy prevention and that, when it could, it would tell states what to do about the problem. It is difficult, if not impossible, to identify any programs or policies common to all five states that would cause them to win the bonus. Because the bonus is part of the welfare law, a typical assumption is that the welfare law propelled these states' success. Another assumption is that those states with the worst problem would most likely become the winners since those states enjoy the greatest room for improvement. Certainly, the 1996 monies cannot explain a birth rate decline that began in 1991.
Research regarding the impact of abstinence programs is scanty.
While there is little clarity about the impact of these two welfare law initiatives on teen pregnancy prevention, in other respects the 1990's provide encouraging developments for the new millennium. Increasingly states and localities are moving to ensure that welfare and family planning agencies streamline access. Despite these encouraging developments, the millennium may mark a disinterest in teen pregnancy prevention per se. Instead, some lawmakers may promote marriage at all costs as the policy paradigm. If this is what is wished for, the policy genie may legislate an array of marriage proposals including those that fail to weigh whether a marriage is likely to be sound.