Updated February 15, 2023
The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
Block Grant
Introduction
programs with federal dollars. The bulk of TANF funding is
The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
in a basic block grant of $16.5 billion per year. Every year,
block grant was created in the Personal Responsibility and
each state receives a fixed grant based on how much it
Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA,
received in federal funding in the pre-1996 cash assistance
P.L. 104-193). That law was the culmination of a series of
and related programs during the early- and mid-1990s.
legislative changes that altered the rules for providing
Tribes also may receive grants based on mid-1990s
benefits and services to needy families with children.
expenditures.
Brief History
The TANF block grant has not been increased since the
enactment of the 1996 welfare law. There has been no
Public cash assistance to needy families with children has
adjustment for inflation or population change. From 1997 to
its origin in the early 1900s state and locally financed
“mother’s pension” programs that aided
2022, the basic TANF block grant has lost 45% of its value
single mothers
to inflation. During TANF’s history, states have at times
(often widows) so that children could be raised in their own
received TANF funds in addition to the basic block grant.
homes rather than institutionalized. The Social Security Act
Since 2011, some states have routinely tapped a
of 1935 provided federal funding for these programs with
“contingency fund,” that was originally intended to provide
the explicit goal to aid mothers so they would not have to
extra funding during economic recessions.
work and could stay home to raise their children.
In addition to federal funding, states are required to
Post-1935 changes altered the context in which programs
contribute a minimum amount of nonfederal funds on the
for needy families with children operated. In 1939,
survivors’ benefits were added to Social Security, providing
TANF-related populations and TANF-related activities.
This amount is also based on historical expenditures in pre-
social insurance benefits to widows and their children. The
TANF programs and is known as the “maintenance of
increase in labor force participation among married mothers
effort” (MOE) requirement. Some states spend more than
altered views about whether government should aid single
the minimum.
mothers to stay at home. Families with children whose
fathers were alive but absent comprised more of the public
Use of TANF Funds
cash assistance caseload. The caseload also became more
States may use federal block grant and MOE funds in any
nonwhite. Cash assistance to needy families with children
manner that is “reasonably calculated” to achieve TANF’s
became among the most controversial of social programs,
statutory purpose and goals. In FY2021, a total of $30.3
particularly beginning in the late 1960s as the cash
billion was spent by states from federal TANF and state
assistance caseload had its first large increase. Proposals to
MOE funds. FY2021 TANF basic assistance, including
replace or reform cash assistance for needy families were
monthly cash benefits to families with children, totaled $6.9
debated across four decades, ultimately leading to the
billion. In addition to assistance, TANF contributes to state
enactment of PRWORA.
funds used for work and training programs, child care, pre-
The TANF Block Grant
kindergarten programs, programs to provide services to
children who have been abused and neglected or are at risk
PRWORA and the creation of TANF altered the federal
of it, and other services (e.g., youth activities, responsible
rules that applied to states for their cash assistance
fatherhood, healthy marriage promotion).
programs. It also ended dedicated funding for cash
assistance to needy families. Federal funding for such
Figure 1. Uses of Federal TANF and State MOE
assistance was folded into a broad-purpose block grant. The
Funds, by Category, FY2021 ($ in billions)
TANF block grant’s overall purpose is to “increase the
flexibility of states” to meet four statutory goals:
(1) provide assistance to needy families so that children
may remain in their homes; (2) end the dependence of
needy parents on government benefits through work, job
preparation, and marriage; (3) reduce out-of-wedlock
pregnancies; and (4) promote the formation and
maintenance of two-parent families.
Federal Grants and State Funds
TANF provides grants to the 50 states, the District of
Source: CRS, based on data from the Department of Health and
Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Human Services. Detail does not add to total because of rounding.
American Indian tribes may also operate their own TANF
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The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Block Grant
State TANF Cash Assistance Programs
Work Requirements
Federal law requires that a family aided by TANF cash
Current TANF rules for engagement of assistance recipients
assistance have a dependent child, and limits to five years
in work are in the context of meeting the minimum work
federally funded aid to families with an adult recipient.
participation rate (WPR). The minimum WPR is a
States set most TANF rules that apply to recipient families.
performance standard for the state; it does not apply
directly to individual recipients. States that do not meet the
States determine the TANF benefit amounts. In July 2020,
minimum WPR are at risk of a reduction in their federal
the maximum monthly benefit for a single-parent family
TANF funds. To meet the current TANF work participation
with one child ranged from $862 in New Hampshire to
standard, a state must have 50% of “all families” and 90%
$146 in Mississippi. There is a regional pattern to these
of families with two parents either working or engaged in
maximum benefits; they are generally lowest in the South.
activities. A state may lower these statutory percentages by
Figure 2. Maximum Monthly TANF Cash Assistance
reducing its caseload from FY2005 levels. Work in an
Benefit by State, July 2020
unsubsidized job and participation in job preparation
Single Parent, One Child
activities count toward meeting the standard. There are
rules for the minimum hours per week of participation
required for a family to be counted toward meeting the
state’s minimum WPR.
In FY2021, all jurisdictions except 3 (Florida, Maryland,
and Oregon) met the “all families” work standard and all
but 10 met the two-parent standard. States that met their
work standard generally did so through caseload reduction
and aiding families who were already working, rather than
engaging unemployed recipients in activities.
Issues
Most TANF policies date back to PRWORA and 1996.
Generally, Congress has opted not to undertake an effort to
“reauthorize” and alter the block grant. Rather, the program
generally operates on year-to-year funding with little or no
policy changes. A number of issues have been raised in
recent discussions around TANF:
Source: CRS, based on data from the Urban Institute’s Welfare
Rules database.
Both the overall level of funding and its
distribution among the states date back to spending
In September 2022, a total of 1.0 million families received
in pre-TANF programs in the early-to-mid 1990s.
TANF assistance. This compares with the historical peak in
Congress might consider updates to funding levels
receipt of assistance under TANF’s predecessor program in
and/or how funding is distributed among the states.
March 1994 of 5.1 million families.
Figure 3. Number of Families Receiving Cash
Proposals have been made in the past to target a
Assistance, July 1959–September 2022
specified percentage of funding to certain
activities, such as providing assistance and
activities related to employment. Additionally,
proposals have been made to require all TANF
spending to be for families with income no greater
than 200% of the federal poverty level.
The almost continuous decline in the number of
families receiving assistance since the mid-1990s,
along with a decline in the percentage of eligible
families who receive assistance, has raised
questions about whether it is meeting the needs of
low-income families.
Source: CRS, based on data from the Department of Health and
Human Services. Shaded months denote economic recessions.
For those receiving assistance, there has been
interest in altering state incentives to engage
Much of the post-1994 decline in the cash assistance
additional recipients in work activities.
caseload resulted from a reduction in the share of eligible
families receiving benefits, rather than a reduction in the
Gene Falk, Specialist in Social Policy
number of families meeting states’ definitions of being a
needy family. In 1994, an estimated 79% of individuals
IF10036
eligible for cash assistance actually received benefits; in
2018, an estimated 26% of persons in families that met
states’ eligibility requirements actually received benefits.
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The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Block Grant
Disclaimer
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