TANF-ACF-IM-2003-04 (Implementation and Availability of Enhancements to the TANF Data Reporting System (TDRS) for Aggregate Data)

Publication Date: November 20, 2003
Current as of:

To:

State Agencies Administering the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Program and Other Interested Parties

Subject:

Implementation and Availability of Enhancements to the TANF Data Reporting System (TDRS) for Aggregate Data

References:

45 CFR Part 265, Data Collection and Reporting Requirements, published April 12, 1999; Section 411 of the Social Security Act (SSA); and Section 103 of Public Law 104-193, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), enacted August, 1996.

Background:

The provisions of the PRWORA, the SSA, and 45 CFR Part 265, cited above, require States to collect data on a monthly basis and report it to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services on a quarterly basis.  The required aggregate data include number of applications, families, recipients, non-custodial parents, births, closed cases, and amount of assistance.  TANF-ACF-PI-99-3 dated October 27, 1999 implemented the TANF Data Reporting System (TDRS) for these information collection requirements, as well as the disaggregated information collection requirements.

Content:

ACF has recently implemented enhancements to its web-based reporting option for aggregate data under the TDRS.  These enhancements are intended to make the system more useful to States for program management and monitoring.  The enhancements include adding historical data to enable comparisons and trends; tables showing national totals, means, medians, percentages, rankings, and other statistics as appropriate; graphs with trend lines over time and a map showing the level of each State’s data; and a system for tracking revisions to the data.  The enhanced system makes more recent data available more quickly and in a widely accessible form on the Internet.

States would be able to report their data monthly and have the capability to edit their “initial” and “interim” monthly aggregate data submittals, as well as designate when the data are available to meet the State’s quarterly reporting requirements.

We encourage States to participate in the system by entering data on a monthly basis so that the reports generated can reflect the most recent data available.  States have identified TDRS users and their roles and we have assigned passwords to the users.  Guides for using the enhanced TDRS are attached to this IM for your information.

Attachment:

TDRS Overview
TDRS Administration
TDRS Data Entry
TDRS Reports
Help Resources Overview

 

Inquiries:

Inquiries should be directed to the appropriate ACF Regional Administrator.

/s/

Andrew S. Bush, Director
Office of Family Assistance