Abstract

Italy is one of the very few European countries that still lacks a minimum income measure against poverty. Following the constitutional reform of 2001, the Regions have had exclusive responsibility for social assistance policies. For this reason the last 15 years witnessed a variety of local initiatives. This short note discusses the programs recently launched by Lombardy, Apulia and the city of Leghorn. Available evidence points to highly heterogeneous measures - ranging from a well-structured policy in Apulia to an irrelevant set of provisions in Lombardy. Once again the lack of a national strategy against poverty shows the weakness of the Italian social assistance system.