TANF REAUTHORIZATION

This section of the Welfare Peer TA Web site provides information on TANF Reauthorization.

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TANF Reauthorization

• "Needy State" Guidance for Counting Participation in Job Search and Job Readiness Assistance

  A State with an unemployment rate at least 50 percent greater than the national rate or that qualifies as a "needy State" may count up to 12 weeks of participation in job search and job readiness assistance per fiscal year. The Program Instruction TANF-ACF-PI-2006-04 explains the criteria to meet this qualification, how to find out if it does, and in which months it can count extended participation in job search and job readiness assistance. To view the guidance, please see the "What's New" section of OFA's Web site at: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ofa or view the program instruction at: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ofa/pi-ofa/pi200604.htm.

  The table containing the list of States that qualified for an additional six weeks of job search and the months in which they qualified during FY 2006 through June 2006 can be found at: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ofa/pi-ofa/june2006.pdf. OFA has established this location to post updated State lists in future months.

• Estimated Number of Participants for States to Meet Work Participation Requirements in FY 2007
  
  The Administration for Children and Families releases its analysis of the estimated number of additional participants States would need to meet the participation requirements in FY 2007, including the provisions enacted under the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 and associated regulations.
  
  To view or download, please: Download Document [19 KB]
  
  
• Discussion with the States on the TANF Interim Final Rule
  
  Wade F. Horn, Ph.D., Assistant Secretary for Children and Families, is conducting a Discussion Tour with the States on the TANF Interim Final Rule. The new TANF regulations were published in the Federal Register on June 29, 2006, and States must implement the new provisions by October 1, 2006. The attached PowerPoint slides are part of the technical assistance given by Dr. Horn and others to the States in implementing the new provisions.
  
  Message & Outline of the TANF Interim Final Rule, Wade F. Horn, Ph.D.
  
  TANF Interim Final Rule: A Discussion with the States
  
  Types of Vocational Education Available to TANF Clients
  
  
• The US Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families is pleased to announce the Interim Final Regulations Implementing the Next Phase of Welfare Reform are now available for public view. The Regulations strengthen work participation requirements for States by defining work activities, defining work-eligible individuals to include additional categories of individuals in the calculation of state work participation rates, and requiring states to establish and maintain work verification procedures.
  
  Comments on this Interim Final Rule are due by August 28, 2006. Comments can be submitted in writing to the Office of Family Assistance or via the Internet.
  
  For more information or to access the Regulations, please see:
  
  Interim Final Regulation Implementing Next Phase of Welfare Reform
  
  TANF Interim Final Regulations (.pdf)
  TANF Interim Final Regulations (.ppt)
  Fact Sheet: TANF Interim Final Regulations
  Fact Sheet: TANF Work Activities
  Fact Sheet: Deficit Reduction Act of 2005

• Work Verification Plan Guidance
  
  The Administration for Children and Families and the American Public Human Services Association have prepared the “Work Verification Plan Guide” to assist States in developing their Temporary Assistance to Needy Families work verification plans.
  
  To view or download, please: Download Document [60 KB]
  
  
• Questions and Answers on Implementing a Simplified Food Stamp Program
  
  New ACF rules allow States to “deem” families who work the maximum number of hours permitted under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) rules, but still fall short of the 20-hour core activity requirement, as having met that requirement. This “deeming” policy is limited to States that combine the food stamp and TANF benefit amounts when calculating maximum hours. The following Q&As describe how States can adopt the mini-Simplified Food Stamp Program option to do this.
  
  For more information, please: Download Document [24 KB]
  
  
• Framing the Issues: TANF Reauthorization

  PowerPoint (ppt) [265 KB] | Resource List [285 KB]

  These materials are part of a presentation given by Grant E. Collins, Deputy Director of the Office of Family Assistance, at the Urban Leadership Forum delivered March 2, 2006 in Baltimore, MD and the Urban Partnerships National Academy on May 31, 2006 in Atlanta, GA. The PowerPoint presentation provides a framework for considering the key issues of TANF Reauthorization while the Resource List provides easy access to the materials referenced in the presentation. Central to this discussion is the GAO's report on the need for HHS guidance on the key points of TANF Reauthorization.

• Using Performance and Outcome Data in the Real World

  This PowerPoint is from OFA Deputy Director Grant E. Collins as part of Region VII Rapid Response events entitled "TANF Challenges and Opportunities for FY 2007 and Beyond." This resource provides best practices for performance management from Georgia, Florida, New York, and Baltimore, Maryland.

• State and Federal Perspectives on Reauthorization, June 2006
  
  Florida Deputy Secretary Don Winstead offered his perspective on Reauthorization at OPRE's Ninth Annual Welfare Research and Evaluation Conference. After reviewing Federal data on this history of welfare, and the latest information on the TANF caseload in the US, Winstead reviewed Florida's plan for meeting the new work requirements set forth by the Deficit Reduction Act.

  To view or download, please see: PowerPoint

• Welfare Reform Reauthorized

  See the HHS press release here.

  Click here to see a photo of President Bush signing the Bill!

  Please click here to view the full text of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005.