The Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe in Washington State would like to offer budgeting classes for their Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) clients and is looking for various curriculums to review. They would love to hear from anyone who has implemented budgeting programs and what curriculums they have used/recommend.

A representative from the Kansas Department for Children and Families (KDCF) stated that Kansas recently passed suspicion-based drug testing requirements for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) applicants and recipients. Any adult who demonstrates substance abuse symptoms is required to be tested for controlled substances. This statute is to be implemented by January 1, 2014. If any State has a position description and/or flowchart of their process that they can share, please contact Judy Kennedy, TANF Program Manager at judy.kennedy@dcf.ks.gov. Questions that they have include:

Pre-testing
-What determines if and when a person gets tested in your State?
-Would you be willing to share the criteria used to determine your referral for testing?
-Who monitors the referrals for drug testing, if anyone?
Testing
-What type of test does your State utilize to determine if a person is abusing drugs?
-Do you have a contract with a vendor to administer and monitor the results, or is the drug testing done by existing staff?
-What substances does your State test for?
-What type of testing do you administer and where is testing administered?
-How do you test when an individual lives in an isolated or rural area when drug testing sites are not readily available?
-Have you experienced many false positives test results due to prescription drugs used for medical purposes?
-Have you encountered or had to address any HIPPA issues with regards to a person's medical information?
Treatment
-If substance abuse treatment is part of the eligibility requirement for TANF in your State, who is responsible to pay for this?
-Does your State set a defined time period for which an individual must undergo treatment prior to regaining eligibility for TANF? If so, what is it? If not, how do you determine or "define" when an individual has completed treatment.
-In addition to treatment, are individuals who test positive required to complete any additional requirements prior to regaining eligibility for TANF?

A representative from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services' Employment Program would like to know if States have any resources that they use when helping individuals with criminal backgrounds.

The Peer TA Network would like to know if any States, Tribes, and local TANF programs have innovative strategies for engaging and working with their child welfare counterparts to address child-only cases and at-risk families?