TANF-ACF-PI-2021-07 (Form ACF-4125, Children in Foster Homes and Children in Families Receiving Payments in Excess of the Poverty Income Level from a State Program Funded Under Part A of Title IV of the Social Security Act)

Publication Date: October 20, 2021
Current as of:

TO:

State agencies administering child welfare and public assistance programs.

SUBJECT:

Form ACF-4125, Children in Foster Homes and Children in Families Receiving Payments in Excess of the Poverty Income Level from a State Program Funded Under Part A of Title IV of the Social Security Act.

REFERENCES:

Section 1124(c)(4) of Title I of the "Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965," as amended by Public Law 107-110; Section 110(j) of Public Law 104-193, the "Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996."

PURPOSE:

To request October 2021 caseload data for the number of foster children supported with public funds and the number of children in families receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) payments in excess of the poverty income level.

BACKGROUND:

The Secretary of Health and Human Services must collect and transmit to the Secretary of Education the caseload data concerning the number of children who, in the month of October 2021, were: (1) living in foster homes supported by public funds; or (2) receiving payments in excess of the poverty income level from a state TANF program. The data collected constitute a part of the formula used by the Department of Education to allocate fiscal year 2022 (school year 2022-2023) grants to local educational agencies (LEAs) under Title I, Part A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended, to improve the academic achievement of low-achieving children served by the program.

Payments in excess of the poverty income level are public assistance payments that exceed the amounts listed below and that are made under the TANF program from federal, state, and/or local funds.  The monthly poverty income level is derived from The 2021 HHS Poverty Guidelines, a simplified version of the Federal Government’s statistical poverty thresholds issued

by the Bureau of the Census. For this report, the level is set at 1/12 of the annual poverty threshold for a non-farm family of four.  Applicable amounts for the October 2021 report are:

$2,208 for all 48 contiguous states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico
$2,761 for Alaska
$2,540 for Hawaii

SUBMITTAL PROCEDURE:

Please ensure that the data provided include the name of the LEA [or county, if not available by LEA] and reporting code shown on the list. Form ACF-4125 must be submitted by December 31, 2021 in excel format, failure to do so will result in the loss of Title I funds.

Please submit this report to the Administration for Children and Families in Washington, DC, via e-mail.  Addresses are provided in the Instructions.  In addition, please send one copy electronically to the appropriate ACF Regional Office.  Please include the contact information (name, telephone number and email address) of the person who compiled the report on the front page.

ATTACHMENTS:

Form ACF-4125 (XLSX) [OMB Number 0970-0004] and Instructions (PDF). All attachments and individual state workbooks will be e-mailed to states.

INQUIRIES:

If you have questions or need further information, please contact:

Administration for Children and Families
Office of Family Assistance:
Division of Data Collection and Analysis
Phone: (202) 401-4537
E-mail: tanfdata@acf.hhs.gov

                                          

          /s/

Susan Golonka
Acting Director
Office of Family Assistance