TANF, enacted in 1996 as a flexible block grant with formula funding, provides states, territories, and tribes support to meet the need in the design of work at these local levels, has created a diverse set of services as well as varying benefit levels and eligibility requirements across states. On TANF’s 25th anniversary, JooYeun Chang, Acting Assistant Secretary for the Administration for Children and Families, notes in this blogpost the challenges TANF agencies face, such as low benefit levels and limited engagement in work activities, and proposes policies and practices agencies can adopt to help alleviate poverty and reduce racial inequity, prepare needy families for the challenges of a post-pandemic economy, and respond to emergency needs.

The Office of Family Assistance will host a webinar on August 26, 2021 from 12 noon to 1:00 p.m. ET on strengthening the skills of state, local, and tribal TANF leaders. Participants will learn about the building blocks of an evidence-informed leadership practice—strategic and visionary leadership, operational management, and developmental supervision—and the benefits to organizations and people. Project IMPROVE will launch the session with a description of leadership competencies, then facilitate a panel of leaders from across the country who will share tips from their leadership practice. This session is for leaders broadly, including program administrators, supervisors, team leaders/lead case workers, analysts, or trainers, among others. Content will also be relevant for emerging leaders.

Featured panelists include Amy Kershaw, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance and Marla Stuart, Deputy Director, Solano County Department of Health & Social Services. Michelle Derr of Adjacent Possible will facilitate the webinar.

This Administration for Children and Families webpage on the Pandemic Emergency Assistance Fund (PEAF) includes a fact sheet on the Fund’s purposes and identifies the PEAF allotment for state TANF agencies.

This Administration for Children and Families Program Instruction (PI) offers initial guidance on the Pandemic Emergency Assistance Fund (PEAF). The PI notes that state, tribal, and territorial TANF agencies are required to make a one-time election of the amount of its allotment under the Pandemic Emergency Assistance Fund no later than April 25, 2021 (for state TANF agencies) and June 9, 2021 (for TANF agencies serving tribes and territories).

The PI guidance covers several topics of interest, including: the allotment formula for PEAF funds (with accompanying tables on the allotments for states, tribes, and territories); the deadlines for the one-time election by TANF agencies to request funds; the reallotment of unused funds; the expenditure period for PEAF funds; use of funds for administrative costs; use of funds for non-recurrent, short term benefits (NRSTs); the eligible recipients of NRSTs; a statement about non-supplantation; expenditure data filings under Forms ACF-196R, ACF-196T, and ACF-196TR; instruction on TANF Plan Amendments; and guidance on the spending cap for territories. The PI also notes that direct inquiries about PEAF are to be made to regional TANF Program Managers.

Coaching is a person-centered, strength-based way of working with others that helps them direct the changes they want to make in their own lives. The Office of Family Assistance has made available to State and Tribal TANF agencies and Native Employment Works (NEW) programs a 14-module eLearning Curriculum called “Coaching for Success.” This curriculum aims to leverage coaching techniques to support employment case managers. Taken over time or for a specific topic, these self-paced modules on active listening, powerful questions, emotional intelligence, praise, and other important techniques can elevate TANF case management services. For additional information and sample module demonstrations, please refer to this introductory OFA webinar.

The OFA PeerTA team is committed to serving you. The OFA PeerTA website (https://peerta.acf.hhs.gov/) is getting a new look in 2021 to meet your evolving needs, and we need your input on how the website can be most useful to you. Please take a few minutes to complete this brief survey so we can enhance our support of your important work. Thank you in advance for your time.

Through the TANF Works! Series, the Office of Family Assistance seeks to disseminate information about promising practices within the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) field that can be scaled or adapted by other programs. The series includes three components:

• Emerging Practices Series – Special topics briefs and a three-part webinar series share strategies implemented by TANF programs to help low-income individuals gain and maintain employment.
• TANF-WIOA Collaboration Series – Fourteen case statements highlight the collaboration between TANF and WIOA agencies in 19 locations across nine states to improve service coordination for job seekers.
• Coaching for Success Series – This toolkit offers strategies for integrating client-centered coaching practices into TANF programs. Resources include topical webinars, tip sheets, and multi-page guides.

TANF Works! is part of the Integrating Innovative Employment and Economic Stability Strategies (IIEESS) project, which supports TANF agencies and their partners in identifying, adopting, and sharing innovative practices to improve employment outcomes for low-income individuals.