In 2025, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) identified several key challenges affecting Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs across states. These included inconsistent data quality, limited ability to track outcomes tied to non-assistance spending, and a lack of opportunities for states to learn from one another about effective strategies and approaches. Most notably, many states expressed a strong interest in peer-to-peer learning and practical collaboration opportunities.
In response, the Office of Family Assistance (OFA) developed this series to help states strengthen program operations, improve data use, and build confidence in program performance and oversight. Through peer discussions, expert guidance, and practical implementation strategies, the series focuses on using data sharing, analytics, and cross-system collaboration to better understand outcomes, support audit readiness, and strengthen policies and procedures.
This information session recording provides an overview of the series, including its goals, structure, and how states can use these opportunities to support continuous improvement in TANF program administration.
During the May office hours, staff from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services shared how their cross-agency data infrastructure evolved over time, beginning with efforts to address operational and compliance challenges and gradually expanding into a more coordinated approach to support TANF program administration and participant outcomes.
To support open discussion among state peers, the state presentation and peer discussion portions of the May office hours session were not recorded live. This recording includes the session introduction and a closing overview of Michigan’s case study, key peer discussion themes, and guidance on how to navigate and use the companion product.
Helpful Links
- HHS Could Facilitate Information Sharing to Improve States’ Use of Data on Job Training and Other Services
- Implementing Cross-Agency Collaboration in Government
- Leading Practices to Enhance Interagency Collaboration and Address Crosscutting Challenges
- Sustained and Coordinated Efforts Could Facilitate Data Sharing While Protecting Privacy
- The Five Phases of Successful Data Analytics: TANF Data Collaborative Pilot Resources Toolkit
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This session has not yet occurred. We invite you to register for this session or check back later for this sessions’ products.