Analysis of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and Child Welfare Programs in the Deficit Reduction Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 2005 (DRA) P.L. 109-171
March 24, 2006
The Deficit Reduction Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 2005 (DRA) P.L. 109-171 was signed into law by the President on February 8, 2006. It provides guidance for numerous programs including the reauthorization of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Food Stamps, Child Support, and many others. Social workers should be aware of the changes to the TANF program as it provides important resources and services to low-income families and children. We have let Congress know that these services must be preserved and expanded when one considers that 16% of American children—more than 11 million—are living in households where their parents' income is at or below the federal poverty level. These parents are typically unable to provide their families with basic necessities like stable housing and reliable child care.
While the measures advanced in this law do not go far enough to serve these financially fragile families there will be opportunities to share your input with your state child welfare and TANF directors once Health and Human Services (HHS) Michael Secretary Leavitt completes the regulatory process for final implementation which is expected sometime this fall. This document highlights the major changes to the TANF program and child welfare programs. For more detail on the other programs affected by this law, go to http://thomas.loc.gov/
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
Highlights of provisions contained in the DRA include the following:
Authorizations – The DRA authorizes: TANF through September 30, 2010; the TANF Emergency Response and Recovery Act through September 30, 2010; the High Performance Bonus and the Out-of-Wedlock bonus through September 30, 2006; the Supplemental Grants through FY 2008; and Transitional Medical Assistance through FY 2006. Both the high-performance and out-of-wedlock bonuses are eliminated after September 30, 2006, and all bonus awards have already been released to states.
Funding – The DRA provides funding for the TANF block grant at the current level, $16.5 billion through FY 2010. The amount states can transfer from TANF to the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) is maintained at 10 percent. Funding for the TANF supplemental grants to states is provided at current funding levels through FY 2008. The measure also continues the $2 billion contingency fund through FY 2010.
The law also provides an additional $150 million a year from FY 2006 to FY 2010 for marriage promotion grants to states, territories, tribal governments, tribal organizations, faith-based organizations, and community groups. Of the $150 million, up to $50 million can fund new Fatherhood grants. The DRA also allows up to $2 million per year for demonstration projects for coordination of child welfare and TANF services to tribal families.
Participation Rates – The DRA permits the Secretary of HHS to define work activities and hours in federal regulation. Also, states must establish work participation verification procedures by September 30, 2006.
Verification and Oversight Procedures – The DRA establishes a new penalty for states by allowing the Secretary of HHS to assess a penalty for states’ failure to establish and maintain work participation verification procedures. The penalty would be a minimum of 1 percent and not more than 5 percent of the state’s TANF block grant. The penalty would be based on severity of failure. The DRA also requires the Secretary of HHS to promulgate regulations no later than June 30, 2006, to ensure consistent measures of work rates for programs funded with federal and state TANF funds. The regulations are to address what activities may be treated as work; uniform methods for reporting hours of work; circumstances under which a parent who resides with a child-only TANF recipient should be included in the work participation rate calculation; and the type of documentation needed to report the number of hours worked.
National Random Sample Study – The DRA extends the authority to conduct the National Random Sample Study of Child Welfare through September 30, 2010. HHS has used this authority to conduct the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW).
Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF)
The DRA reauthorizes CCDF for five years and provides $1 billion in new mandatory funding, in addition to the current level of $4.8 billion ($2.1 billion in discretionary funding and $2.7 billion in mandatory funding). CCDF mandatory funding would be $2.917 billion for each FY 2006 through 2010. The law contains no additional discretionary funding. This amount falls short of the Congressional Budget Office estimation that $12.5 billion will be needed for child care as more people are moved into work activities.
Other Provisions – The DRA adds a provision requiring states to review and adjust child support orders in TANF cases every three years. It also requires that passport denial, revocation, or restriction would be triggered by $2,500 in past-due support owed, not the present level of $5,000 (effective October 1, 2006). It authorizes use of federal income tax refund offset program to collect arrearages on behalf of children who are no longer minors, effective October 1, 2007.
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Child Welfare
Foster Care Administrative Claims – The DRA eliminates Title IV-E administrative claims for otherwise-federally eligible children in unlicensed foster homes. An exception is provided that claims can be made for up to 12 months (or the length of time it typically takes the state to license a foster family home, whichever is shorter) for a child in a relative home that is in the process of becoming licensed or approved. Claims are also eliminated for children in ineligible facilities such as detention centers, psychiatric and medical hospitals, and institutions with more than 25 beds, with the exception that claims can be retroactively made for one calendar month (but only if the child is returned to an eligible foster care setting). A new requirement is added to conduct foster care candidacy redeterminations every six months. This and all other child welfare provisions are effective October 1, 2005.
Eligibility for IV-E Foster Care Maintenance and Adoption Assistance – The DRA limits the determination of eligibility for IV-E foster care maintenance and adoption assistance. The language would reverse the Rosales v. Thompson decision, by restricting determination of IV-E eligibility based on the broader criterion of a specified relative with whom a child may have resided within six months of removal.
Promoting Safe and Stable Families – The DRA increases the mandatory funding for the Promoting Safe and Stable Families (PSSF) program (Title IV-B, subpart 2) to $345 million for FY 2006. This is an increase of $40 million.
Court Improvement Section of Title IV-B – The DRA amends the Court Improvement section of Title IV-B to add that funds may be expended for ensuring that the safety, permanence, and well-being of children are met in a timely and complete manner. The funds may also be spent to provide training for judges, attorneys, and other legal personnel in child welfare cases. The language also specifies the information on collaboration and cross-training that must be submitted with an application for grants. Funds for improved data collection and training are appropriated at $100 million, or $20 million per year over five years. Language is included to add requirements to demonstrate meaningful collaboration between courts and child welfare agencies in the state plans for Title IV-E, Title IV-B, and Child and Family Services Reviews (CFSR) Program Improvements Plans. Finally, flexibility is provided for states to determine state policies relating to public access to child abuse and neglect court proceedings.
Resources
National Center for Children in Poverty. Low-Income Children in the United States (2004). Retrieved online from http://nccp.org/pub_cpf04.html on March 29, 2006. |
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