Latest Resources
APHSA Issues Letter Raising Concerns with TANF Provisions in Debt Ceiling Bill
May 18, 2023
This letter to Congress elevates deep concerns that, as a whole, the TANF provisions in the Limit, Save, Grow Act of 2023 will work counter to the goal of helping families experiencing poverty succeed in entering careers that lead to family-sustaining wages.
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Resources for Advancing Race Equity in TANF Programs
November 2022
Newly released set of resources for advancing race equity in TANF. Created in support of the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Office of Family Assistance by APHSA and BLH Technologies, Inc., the resources focus on mobilizing data and developing staff training to advance race equity in TANF programs.
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APHSA Joint Letter to Congress on TANF Extension
September 9, 2022
APHSA submitted a joint letter on behalf of our coalition of membership associations urging Congress to provide a one-year extension to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, while we continue to work towards a bipartisan solution for a long-term reauthorization.
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APHSA Comment Letter: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking – Public Charge Grounds of Inadmissibility
April 25, 2022
This APHSA comment letter to the Department of Homeland Security is in response to a proposed rulemaking on public charge, which re-examines how public charge is defined.
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The Core—A Cutting Edge Blog Series Getting to the Core of Modern TANF Reform
Part 1: TANF Agencies' Critique and Aspirations for the Future
April 8, 2022
Our new multi-part blog series on TANF reform will be taking a detailed look at the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, now rounding a quarter century. We will be highlighting the ways in which TANF agencies, aligned systems, and community voices are thinking differently about TANF programs and how they can help families succeed for the long-term and get to the root of barriers communities face to promote opportunity for all. Our first blog is from Babs Roberts, Director of the Community Services Division at the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services.
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Core Principles for TANF Modernization: A Legislative Framework for TANF Reform, March 2022
As we round a quarter-century of TANF, APHSA is embracing the call to reimagine how TANF can work in support of the families it serves. APHSA’s members have laid out a legislative framework to unlock the potential of TANF. We call upon Congress to use this framework as a starting point to build common ground to achieve a TANF reauthorization that promotes a more equitable and prosperous future for all Americans.
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Core Principles for TANF Modernization, April 30, 2021
The latest installment of our Cornerstone series highlights how we can build common ground on what families need to thrive and how TANF can align with other key building blocks of well-being, as well as addressing the limitations in current TANF policy—particularly in redressing long-standing structural inequities—so that we can be bold about embracing change.
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TANF North Star Map of Core Principles, April 30, 2021
Our Infographic illustrates the renewed vision of what TANF can be and embedded within the principles are the values of equity, inclusion, and the limitless possibilities of human potential.
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TANF Extension Coalition Letter to Congress
APHSA and a coalition of membership organizations representing the nation’s state legislatures, counties, cities, and state and local workforce and health and human services agencies submitted a letter to Congress to provide a one-year extension to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, effective through December 31, 2021.
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Changes in State TANF Policies in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic
In partnership with The Urban Institute, APHSA co-produced a brief “Changes in State TANF Policies in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic”. In this brief, we describe how some state agencies adapted their policies during the early months of the pandemic to meet their states’ and families’ unique situations, needs, and challenges.
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