TANF at 30
Landmark Dates for TANF
From the Director of the Office of Family Assistance:
- Thirty Years Later, Welfare Reform Needs Its Own Reform
- TANF and Work: The Gap Between Perception and Reality
- TANF and Work: The Caseload Reduction Credit and How States Exploit It
- The Prevalence of TANF Child-Only Cases Involving Immigration-Status-Ineligible Parents
- Safeguarding TANF Assistance: State Options for EBT Location and Purchase Restrictions
Families are Stronger Together
Family Resource Centers can provide a central place where kinship caregivers and grandfamilies find information, referrals, and practical support. This Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network fact sheet explores how these centers can respond…
Kinship caregivers, including grandparents, relatives, and other family members, play an important role in providing children with safe, stable homes while maintaining family connections. The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) has…
North Dakota’s Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) Family Preservation Program offers a model for supporting Native American families involved in the child welfare system while respecting Tribal sovereignty and preserving family and community. The…
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) has expanded eligibility for federally funded, evidence-based prevention services to include expectant parents, allowing states to seek federal reimbursement for approved services provided during…
The NRFC Virtual Collaborative Community (VCC) offers human service providers a place to learn more about engaging fathers and strengthening fatherhood-focused services. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) practitioners can connect…
Can performance reporting do more than demonstrate compliance? This brief examines the Administration for Children and Families’ shift from traditional Program Improvement Plans (PIPs) toward a more focused approach designed to help child welfare…
Work Innovations
The National Youth Employment Coalition (NYEC) will host a webinar on October 22, 2026 at 2:30 p.m. ET to focus on how Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Title I can help youth and young adults with disabilities access employment.…
WorkforceGPS will host a webinar on October 15, 2026, at 3:00 p.m. ET to discuss state strategies for expanding worker participation and advancement. The topic is relevant to Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) agencies seeking to help…
For some Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) participants, employment barriers are connected to experiences of violence, instability, or trauma. A trauma-informed approach can help employment programs recognize those circumstances…
Gaining work experience can be an important step toward long-term employment, particularly for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) participants who face challenges entering the workforce. This infographic explores how transitional jobs…
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) participants may face a range of challenges that make it difficult to find and maintain employment, from transportation and childcare needs to health concerns and limited work experience. This…
In recognition of the 30th anniversary of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), State and Tribal Technical Assistance and Resources (STAR) developed a series of infographics exploring employment strategies tested by TANF programs. The…
Promoting Healthy Marriages and Two-Parent Families
The Director’s Corner provides a regularly updated collection of resources selected or highlighted by the Director of the Office of Family Assistance, David Swegle. Recent resources address timely Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)…
The Competitive Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) is a federal funding opportunity that supports organizations working with adolescents and young adults to build skills for healthy relationships,…
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is seeking input on the use of research from a range of audiences working in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or related family self-sufficiency programs. TANF…
As the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program marks nearly 30 years, conversations about the program’s original intent is gaining renewed attention. This opinion piece reflects on how families, the workforce, and state programs…
This report is part of the Congressional Research Services series that focuses on changes in programs affecting low-income children in light of the upcoming 30-year anniversary of the enactment of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity…
The Opportunity Atlas maps economic mobility across communities, showing how outcomes differ depending on where children grow up. This tool shifts the focus from individual effort alone to the role of place in shaping opportunity. For Temporary…