The Office of Family Assistance (OFA) hosted a webinar to provide an overview of the revisions to instructions for TANF data report (Forms ACF-199 and ACF-209), with a focus on key, substantive changes. The changes made to the TANF Data Report instructions are intended to streamline the data collection and eliminate unnecessary data elements. The instructions were also revised to clarify confusing instructions and improve data quality. OFA hopes this session will help states and territories more efficiently and accurately report data on their TANF caseloads, beginning with the first quarter FY 2024 data, due February 14, 2024.

Please review the recording here.

The Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 introduced changes that require states to report on specific employment and education outcomes for people after they stop receiving TANF cash assistance.  Mirroring the Department of Labor's Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act programs, these measures cover employment, employment retention, employment earnings, and attainment of a high school degree. This Urban Institute fact sheet is a resource for states, federal staff, and agency leaders implementing the new law.  Drawing insights from the 2018 report called Measuring Employment Outcomes in TANF, the fact sheet helps explain the challenges and opportunities of measuring and interpreting employment outcomes.

This toolkit, a product from the TANF Data Innovation project, offers practical guidance to agencies on how to create a culture of evidence as a routine part of government operations. The material included was sourced from interviews with practitioners who have successfully built sustainable data use into their everyday practices. The tools were developed to help agencies build the culture and infrastructure needed to apply data analysis routinely, effectively, and accurately. While it was initially developed for State TANF agencies, many strategies may be useful for individuals in a range of agencies, where the challenges and impact are similar.

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is requesting to extend approval of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Data Reporting for Work Participation, with proposed revisions. Revisions are intended to improve the clarity of the instructions, streamline reporting, and ensure all instructions are up-to-date.

ACF is proposing to continue the same information collections with only changes to instructions to improve clarity and eliminate data elements and guidance that are no longer relevant. The Work Verification Plan Guidance has been updated to incorporate further guidance that was published in 2006. The TANF and SSP–MOE Data Report instructions were revised to streamline the data collection, reduce the burden on respondents by eliminating unnecessary data elements, and clarify confusing data elements. The TANF and SSP–MOE Data Report layouts were also updated to reflect the streamlined instructions. The TANF Sample Manual was revised to eliminate outdated and unused sections.

ACF specifically requests comments on (a) whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information; (c) the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology. Consideration will be given to comments and suggestions submitted no later than August 26, 2023.

Copies of the proposed collection of information can be obtained and comments submitted by emailing infocollection@acf.hhs.gov. Identify all requests by the title of the information collection.

This guide complements federal efforts (such as the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation’s From Theory to Practice Project) to expand the use of administrative data for building evidence and is a resource to assist program evaluation teams in assessing the feasibility and potential value of examining long-term outcomes. The guide describes common steps for linking evaluation data and administrative data. Examples and case studies throughout the guide highlight efforts to research long-term economic outcomes such as participant employment and earnings, but the concepts presented should be applicable to a variety of social policy research contexts.

It is crucial for TANF agencies to use their data to understand how programs are working for the families they serve and how to improve those programs. Yet it is often difficult for agencies to prioritize and implement data use and analytics for program improvement. This brief discusses accessible and attainable strategies to increase data use and the dissemination of analyses, with the goal of supporting more evidence-based policymaking and improving programs for children and families participating in TANF.

This Office of Family Assistance dataset includes financial data tables, interactive maps, and national and state pie charts to illustrate the uses of TANF and Maintenance-of-Effort funds and transfers in FY2019. The charts break down expenditures for TANF-allowable purposes into 15 categories, including basic assistance; work, education, and training activities; child care; refundable tax credits (state Earned Income Tax Credit programs); child welfare services; pre-K/Head Start; out-of-wedlock pregnancy prevention; non-recurrent short term benefits; work supports and supportive services (transportation, mental health/substance abuse counseling, domestic violence services, and financial education); services for children and youth (home visiting, mentoring, and after school enrichment); fatherhood and two-parent family programs; transfers to Social Services Block Grant programs; and program management for TANF administration.

The Office of Family Assistance published data tables to illustrate the characteristics and financial circumstances of TANF recipients in FY2019 for all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam. These tables provide information about adults and children in the TANF program, including data regarding age, gender, race/ethnicity, educational attainment, and employment status, as well as breakdowns by the average monthly dollar level of TANF received and other cash support received. There are also data tables on recipients who receive assistance under Separate State Programs Maintenance-of-Effort (SSP-MOE) funding and closed cases.

The Office of Family Assistance published data tables which show TANF and Separate State Programs-Maintenance of Effort (SSP-MOE) caseloads separately and combined by state and at the national level from October 2019 through June 2020. The tables are cross-tabbed to include total recipients, total families, total children, one-parent families, two-parent families, no parent families, adults, and monthly caseload data.