Located in:
- Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
States that include TANF in the Combined State Plan must outline how the State will meet the requirements of section 402 of the Social Security Act including how it will:
(OMB Control Number: 0970-0145)
a. Conduct a program designed to serve all political subdivisions in the State (not necessarily in a uniform manner) that provides assistance to needy families with (or expecting) children and provides parents with job preparation, work, and support services to enable them to leave the program, specifically cash assistance, and become self-sufficient (section 402(a)(1)(A)(i) of the Social Security Act)
Current Narrative:
Arkansas operates a TANF Block Grant assistance program on a statewide basis in accordance with all applicable federal and state laws and policies. This statewide program has been fully articulated in previously-approved TANF State Plans by the Administration for Children and Families.
The Division of Workforce Services and the Department of Human Services - Division of County Operations work collaboratively in making the TANF Program services available in each of Arkansas’s seventy-five (75) counties.
POPULATIONS TO BE SERVED
Transitional Employment Assistance will be available to economically needy families with children under the age of eighteen (18) years who are residing in the State of Arkansas and meet specified eligibility requirements.
Families receiving cash assistance must meet all of the following eligibility criteria.
Definition of Needy Family
A needy family is defined as one which includes a child or children under the age of 18 years and the parent(s) or other adult relative caretaker who is living with such child(ren) and whose family income and resources are within specified limits.
Definition of Other Adult Relative Caretaker
Other adult relative caretaker is defined as a non-parent relative who is providing care for the child (when there is no natural parent in the home) and is in one of the following degrees of relationship to the child:
a. A blood or adoptive relative within the fifth degree of kinship (e.g., grandparent, aunt, etc.);
b. Step-father, step-mother, step-sister, step-brother;
c. A spouse of any of the above.
For purposes of determining family size and family income and resource eligibility, any other adult relative caretaker as defined above, with the exception of a step-parent, may choose to be included as an eligible family member or not.
If such relative chooses not to be included (i.e., is a payee only), then his/her income and resources will not be considered when determining eligibility. In addition, employment services described in Section 4 will not be available to such excluded adult relative and the time limit described in Section 3.6 will not apply.
Income Limit
Cash Assistance
The family’s countable income (as defined in the State’s policy and procedures manual) must be equal to or below $223 per month. The one income limit applies to all family sizes and to initial and on-going eligibility. This amount is 25% of what a full-time (40 hours/week) worker would have earned at the federal minimum wage that was effective September 1, 1997 ($5.15/hour) in a month.
For the purposes of income eligibility, the following deductions will be made from a family’s gross monthly-earned income:
a. For initial eligibility, a 20% deduction for work related expenses (e.g., taxes).
b. For on-going eligibility, the 20% work-related deduction followed by a 60% work incentive deduction from the remainder.
Resource Limit
Cash Assistance
The family’s countable resources must be equal to or below $3,000. The one resource limit applies to all family sizes and to initial and on-going eligibility.
Resources include real and personal property which are currently available or for which the family has the legal ability to make available for current use.
In accordance with Arkansas Act 514 of 2007, the following categories of resources are disregarded:
(a) The family’s homestead;
(b) One operable motor vehicle;
(c) Household and personal goods;
(d) Income-producing property;
(e) Monies deposited in an approved Individual Development Account (IDA) or approved escrow account for business or career development;
(f) Any other property specified in the State policy and procedures manual that the agency had determined would be cost-efficient to exclude or which must be excluded due to federal or state statute.
Citizenship Requirement
Recipients must be citizens, qualified aliens who entered the United States before August 22, 1996, qualified aliens who entered the United States on or after August 22, 1996 who are excepted from the five-year bar, or aliens who entered the United States on or after August 22, 1996 and have been in "qualified alien" status for at least five (5) years.
Time Limit Requirement
A needy family who meets all other eligibility requirements will not be eligible to receive TEA assistance if the family includes an adult parent (or other adult relative caretaker who is included as an eligible member) who has received such assistance for twenty-four (24) months unless it is determined that the family meets one of the criteria outlined in Section 5 (Exemptions/Deferrals). The twenty-four months need not be consecutive months. The twenty-four (24) month count began July 1, 1998.
A needy family that includes an adult parent who meets the criteria outlined in Section 5 (Exemptions/Deferrals) and is deferred from the twenty-four (24) month time limit will not be eligible to receive TEA assistance beyond the sixty (60) month federal time limit unless it is determined that the family meets one of the criteria outlined in Section 5 (Hardship Extensions).
Personal Responsibility Agreement Requirement
The Personal Responsibility Agreement (PRA) is an agreement between the department and recipient specifying the recipient’s responsibilities that are a condition of receiving employment assistance, which may include an employment plan that describes what the recipient and the department will do to assist the recipient to achieve self-sufficiency through employment. (See Section 8.1 for a description of the PRA.)
Drug Screening and Drug Testing
Drug screening of all TEA and Work Pays applicants and current recipients that are otherwise eligible shall be conducted. During their respective eligibility determination or redetermination, the drug screening will be used to determine whether there is reasonable cause to believe the applicant or current recipient engages in the use of drugs. The TEA and Works Pays drug screening and testing program is separate from any employer-required drug screening and/or drug testing. Drug testing information shall be kept confidential.
Drug Screening
Applicants and recipients that are otherwise eligible shall submit a completed drug screening questionnaire as a part of the eligibility determination or redetermination for TEA and Work Pays benefits. Refusal and/or failure, without good cause, to submit a completed drug screening questionnaire shall result in denial of the application or ineligibility of recipient.
If the result of the drug screening indicates a reasonable suspicion to believe that the applicant or recipient has engaged in the use of drugs, then the applicant or recipient shall be required to take a drug test.
Exemption from Drug Screening and Testing Requirements
The following are exempt from the drug screening and testing requirement:
A dependent child under eighteen (18) years of age unless the dependent child is a parent who is also an applicant for the TEA and Work Pays Programs and who does not live with a parent, legal guardian, or other adult caretaker relative.
An entity or individual participating in the Career Pathways Program or Community Investment Initiative under the TEA and Work Pays Programs.
Drug Testing and Treatment
If the applicant or recipient that is otherwise eligible tests positive for drugs, the drug testing entity will administer a confirmation test using the same specimen sample from the initial positive test. The results of the confirmation test will determine whether the program refers the applicant or recipient for a substance abuse evaluation and treatment. The applicant or recipient will be able to present a prescription for any medication or a written certification and a registry identification card issued under Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 98, she/he is taking to the drug testing entity for review in conjunction with any positive test results.
Disqualification Related to Drug Testing and Treatment Requirements
A refusal to take a drug test shall result in the applicant’s or recipient’s ineligibility for TEA and Work Pays benefits for six (6) months.
If the applicant that is otherwise eligible complies with drug testing and/or treatment requirements, the applicant may be eligible for TEA and Work Pays benefits. The applicant or recipient complying with the substance abuse evaluation and treatment/recovery plan may continue to receive benefits for duration of the program treatment not to exceed six (6) months.
After the six (6) months of treatment or disqualification, the applicant or recipient that is otherwise eligible will be re-tested. If the applicant or recipient tests positive for drugs in a subsequent drug test, validated by a confirmation test, the applicant or recipient that is otherwise eligible shall be ineligible to receive TEA and Work Pays benefits for six (6) months from the date of the positive confirmation test.
Designating a Protective Payee
If an applicant or recipient that is otherwise eligible and is found ineligible to receive TEA and Work Pays benefits as a result of a positive drug test or failure to begin, participate in, and/or complete the drug treatment/recovery support resource program, that applicant or recipient shall not be eligible for benefits and removed from the benefit unit. However, the dependent child’s eligibility for TEA and Work Pays benefits shall not be affected.
ADWS or authorized agency shall designate a protective payee, either a caretaker relative or legal guardian of the child, to receive the dependent child’s TEA benefits. No person who is the applicant for or recipient that is otherwise eligible for TEA and Work Pays benefits and tests positive for the use of drugs shall serve as a protective payee.
Appeal Drug Screening and Drug Testing
An applicant or recipient that is otherwise eligible may appeal any denial of eligibility for TEA and Work Pays benefits as a result of drug screening or drug testing in accordance with appeal procedures in the TEA Policy manual.
Assignment of Child Support
The adult caretaker must agree to assign child support rights to the State. Such assignment will become effective upon receipt of cash assistance.
Drug-Related Convictions
In accordance with Section 16 of the Arkansas Personal Responsibility and Public Assistance Reform Act, Arkansas opts out of Section 115 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act of 1996. Section 115 states that assistance may be denied to anyone who has been convicted of any felony involving a controlled substance including the use or possession of a controlled substance
Minor Parent Living Arrangements
An unmarried parent under the age of 18 must reside in a place of residence maintained by a parent, legal guardian, or other adult relative except in the following situations:
a. It has been determined that the unmarried minor parent’s current living arrangement is appropriate. In this situation, the minor parent and child will be required to continue to reside in such living arrangement as a condition of eligibility unless it is determined that such living arrangement is no longer appropriate due to changed circumstances.
b. The minor parent has no parent, legal guardian, or other adult relative of his or her own who is living or whose whereabouts are known.
c. The minor parent’s parent or legal guardian will not allow the minor parent and child to live in his/her home and there is no other adult relative who will allow the minor parent and child to live in their home.
d. The minor parent or child is being or has been subjected to serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse, or exploitation in the home of the minor parent’s parent or legal guardian.
e. Substantial evidence exists of an act or failure to act that places the minor parent or child at risk of imminent or serious harm in the home of the minor parent’s parent or legal guardian.
f. The agency determines that it is in the best interest of the minor parent’s child to waive the living arrangement requirement for the minor parent and child.
Family Violence Option (FVO)
Arkansas continues to utilize the Family Violence Option (FVO) for victims of domestic violence. This will allow us to modify program requirements and extend time limits to help victims of domestic violence.