Fostering TANF/WIOA Collaboration: Nevada

This is an updated brief from the Office of Family Assistance (OFA) 2018 TANF Works! TANF/WIOA Collaboration Series that described collaboration strategies between Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) programs to serve populations with low incomes. These updated briefs were developed through follow-up outreach and interviews to explore how TANF/WIOA collaborations have been sustained over time and have evolved as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Each brief features a success story and includes snapshot infographics depicting TANF and WIOA data.

The integration of TANF and WIOA services are outlined in Nevada’s unified state plan, and work-eligible adults must participate in the New Employees of Nevada (NEON) program. This collaboration addressed customer needs during the COVID-19 pandemic, including the use of NEON funds to help provide internet installation and access to clients in need when trainings were moved to online delivery. The brief highlights the relaxation, and in some cases, removal of some TANF and NEON work requirements, and discusses how communication among staff at both programs, co-location of services, cross-training, and partnerships with employers helped to sustain collaboration. Innovations covered in the brief reflect the use of regional labor market data to link customers to higher paying career opportunities and Nevada’s priority initiative to better assist refugee and other immigrant populations.