Maryland is looking at the issue of salaries for TANF case workers and how it impacts the hiring and retention of workers. Have any other jurisdictions successfully argued that caseworkers be paid commensurate with what they do, and if so, has this improved your jurisdictions recruiting and retention efforts?

West Virginia is in the process of revising their current Personal Responsibility Contract (PRC) form for WV WORKS (TANF) adults. Currently, West Virginia's Personal Responsibility Contract includes goals, list of barriers, and specific assignments/activities for the client. If your State has a Personal Responsibility Contract or similarly named form, and is willing to collaborate with West Virginia, please contact Michael Lobert, WVDHHR, Family Support Policy, at michaellobert@wvdhhr.org.

Can other states provide best practices around serving two-parent families on their caseloads?

What are other states doing in regards to contractor incentives and pay-for-performance contracts? Which states have contracts where payment is based on clients achieving certain outcomes and what percentage of payment in those contracts is based on clients achieving those outcomes?

We are looking for information related to established TANF staffing standards or current staffing figures/ratios. Does anyone know of a resource or publication that has collected this information? Or, please let me know if your state or agency has established staffing standards or accessible staffing figures.

Philadelphia would like to find out the methods other states use to track client participation (hours) once they have obtained employment and are in the job retention phase of participation. Philadelphia must obtain pay stubs or a letter from the employer verifying hours, but this is very challenging. Do other states use any other methods, and if so, what are they? Thanks.

Can states give examples of any best practices or innovative strategies to re-engage clients in sanction status?

New Jersey is seeking information regarding excluding vehicles as an asset/resource for eligibility. Thus, my questions are directed to those states that have excluded vehicles as a resource. 1) What was the policy basis for your state excluding vehicles as a resources? 2) Did excluding vehicles increase the number of TANF and/or Food Stamps recipients? 3) Were there any problems getting vehicle exclusion through the regulatory or legislative processes?

We currently administer the TANF funding for the Domestic Violence Programs in the state. I would like to know how other states are enforcing reporting requirements. Specifically, how funds are applied to services provided and how data is collected. Are there definitions to the required reporting elements? Thank you.

Shared Custody - This is a two part question. (1) How do other states handle TANF eligibility in equally shared custody situations where one of the parents is requesting TANF assistance? For instance, a child lives with mom two weeks and then with dad two weeks, alternating between their residences, resulting in an equal amount of time at both of the parents' homes. Mom has applied for TANF assistance. How does this arrangement impact her eligibility for TANF benefits? How is the child support assignment and child support involvement handled? (2) How is eligibility affected and determined when both of the parents, in the above scenario, request TANF assistance?