TANF-ACF-IM-2011-04 (Correction) (TANF Contingency Fund and TANF Supplemental Grant Award Amounts for Fiscal Year (FY) 2011)

Publication Date: March 11, 2011
Current as of:

TO:

States operating Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs and other interested parties.

SUBJECT:

TANF Contingency Fund and TANF Supplemental Grant Award Amounts for Fiscal Year (FY) 2011.

REFERENCE:

P.L. 111-242, the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011 (the first Continuing Resolution (CR) for FY 2011); P.L. 11-290, H.J.RES.101 (the second CR for FY 2011); and P.L. 111-291, the Claims Resettlement Act of 2010.

PURPOSE:

To explain how the referenced legislation affects award amounts for the FY 2011 TANF Contingency Fund and TANF Supplemental Grant award amounts and to provide a table showing the award calculations.

BACKGROUND:

On September 30, 2010, the President signed the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011 which extended TANF (except the Emergency Fund) from October 1 through December 3. This extension provided $506 million for the Contingency Fund in FY 2011.

H.J.RES.101 extended TANF, along with other government operations, from December 4 through December 18.

The Claims Resettlement Act of 2010 (Claims Act) extended TANF through FY 2011, but ended our ability to award Contingency Funds for FY 2011 upon enactment, which was on December 8. The Claims Act also limited the amount we could award in Supplemental Grants from December 4 through June 30 to $490 million minus any FY 2011 Contingency Fund payments made before enactment of the bill.

Contingency Fund

The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996 (P.L.104-193, as amended) created a Contingency Fund to assist States in meeting the need for welfare assistance during periods of economic downturn. PRWORA initially authorized the TANF program through FY 2002. When the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (P.L. 109-171) reauthorized the TANF program through FY 2010, it extended the Contingency Fund.

Contingency funds are additional Federal funds available to States, at their request, when unfavorable economic conditions exist. They are considered provisional payments, according to section 403(b)(3)(A) of the Social Security Act. This is because the exact amount of contingency funds that the State may actually keep is not determined until after the fiscal year ends. A State that receives a provisional payment must meet specific spending requirements to keep some or all of the contingency funds.

In FY 2011, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) awarded 21 states a total of $334 million in contingency funds before the enactment of the Claims Act. This amount represented full payments for the months of October, November, and December for each State that applied (approximately $111 million each month for three months).

Supplemental Grants

The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) created supplemental grants for States with population increases. Section 403(a)(3) of the Social Security Act, as amended, provides for supplemental grants beginning in FY 1998 to States that experience increases in their populations and have low levels of welfare spending per capita. Only the 17 States that qualified for the supplemental grants in FY 1998 are eligible to continue to receive the grants to date.

Based on the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011 (first CR), ACF awarded $56 million in Supplemental Grants (64/92nds of their regular first quarter $80 million allocation, as specified in the law). Based on the Claims Act, ACF was limited to awarding $156 million in Supplemental Grants for the period of December 4 through June 30 ($490 million minus the $334 million in FY 2011 Contingency Fund payments made before enactment of the Act).

The following is a breakdown of the FY 2011 quarterly award amounts:

First Quarter (Dec. 4-Dec. 30): ACF awarded $24 million under the Claims Act, which added to the pro-rated award of $56 million States had already received under the first CR (States then had their full $80 million for the first quarter).

Second Quarter: ACF awarded $80 million under the Claims Act for the second quarter.

Third Quarter: ACF is prepared to award the remaining $52 million under the Claims Act for the third quarter grants, leaving States $28 million short of the normal $80 million they would receive in a quarter (our limit of $156 million, minus $24 million awarded for Dec. 4-Dec. 30, minus $80 million for the second quarter leaves $52 million for the third quarter).

Fourth Quarter:

No authorization or funding exists for fourth quarter Supplemental Grant payments.

ATTACHMENT:

FY 2011 TANF Contingency Fund and Supplemental Grant Awards Summary Table

Additional Information
For more information on the TANF Contingency Fund, please see the following program instructions:

TANF-ACF-PI-2010-09
TANF-ACF-PI-2009-06
TANF-ACF-PI-2008-04
TANF-ACF-PI-97-8

For more information on TANF Supplemental Grants, please see the following program instruction:

TANF-ACF-PI-98-3

INQUIRIES: 

Please direct any inquiries to the TANF Program Manager in your Region.

 

/s/
Earl S. Johnson
Director
Office of Family Assistance

 

 



FY 2011 TANF Contingency Fund and Supplemental Grant Awards Summary
 
  FY 2011 Contingency Fund Award FY 2011, Qtr 1 Supplemental Grant Award FY 2011, Qtr 2 Supplemental Grant Award FY 2011, Qtr 3 Supplemental Grant Award Total FY 2011 Contingency and Supplemental Awards
Alabama
 
$2,773,314
$2,773,314
$1,791,745
$7,338,372
Alaska
$2,263,017
$1,721,951
$1,721,951
$1,112,495
$6,819,413
Arizona
$10,007,064
$5,981,219
$5,981,219
$3,864,265
$25,833,767
Arkansas
$2,836,644
$1,554,594
$1,554,594
$1,004,371
$6,950,202
California
 
 
 
 
$0
Colorado
$6,802,836
$3,392,423
$3,392,423
$2,191,730
$15,779,412
Connecticut
 
 
 
 
$0
Delaware
$1,614,549
 
 
 
$1,614,549
District of Columbia
$4,630,491
 
 
 
$4,630,491
Florida
 
$15,101,417
$15,101,417
$9,756,518
$39,959,352
Georgia
 
$9,320,807
$9,320,807
$6,021,860
$24,663,474
Hawaii
$4,945,239
 
 
 
$4,945,239
Idaho
 
$874,512
$874,512
$564,993
$2,314,016
Illinois
 
 
 
 
$0
Indiana
 
 
 
 
$0
Iowa
 
 
 
 
$0
Kansas
$5,096,553
 
 
 
$5,096,553
Kentucky
 
 
 
 
$0
Louisiana
 
$4,256,753
$4,256,753
$2,750,145
$11,263,651
Maine
 
 
 
 
$0
Maryland
$11,454,903
 
 
 
$11,454,903
Massachusetts
$22,968,555
 
 
 
$22,968,555
Michigan
$38,767,644
 
 
 
$38,767,644
Minnesota
 
 
 
 
$0
Mississippi
 
$2,258,919
$2,258,919
$1,459,411
$5,977,248
Missouri
 
 
 
 
$0
Montana
 
$283,175
$283,175
$182,950
$749,301
Nebraska
 
 
 
 
$0
Nevada
$2,195,376
$933,384
$933,384
$603,028
$4,665,171
New Hampshire
 
 
 
 
$0
New Jersey
$20,201,742
 
 
 
$20,201,742
New Mexico
$5,528,904
$1,638,276
$1,638,276
$1,058,435
$9,863,891
New York
$122,146,530
 
 
 
$122,146,530
North Carolina
$15,111,981
$9,027,487
$9,027,487
$5,832,356
$38,999,311
North Dakota
 
 
 
 
$0
Ohio
 
 
 
 
$0
Oklahoma
 
 
 
 
$0
Oregon
$8,339,931
 
 
 
$8,339,931
Pennsylvania
 
 
 
 
$0
Puerto Rico
 
 
 
 
$0
Rhode Island
 
 
 
 
$0
South Carolina
$4,998,390
 
 
 
$4,998,390
South Dakota
 
 
 
 
$0
Tennessee
$9,576,189
$5,391,285
$5,391,285
$3,483,128
$23,841,888
Texas
 
$13,176,944
$13,176,944
$8,513,181
$34,867,068
Utah
 
$2,176,099
$2,176,099
$1,405,904
$5,758,102
Vermont
 
 
 
 
$0
Virgin Islands
 
 
 
 
$0
Virginia
 
 
 
 
$0
Washington
$19,027,248
 
 
 
$19,027,248
West Virginia
 
 
 
 
$0
Wisconsin
$15,724,968
 
 
 
$15,724,968
Wyoming
 
 
 
 
$0
Total
$334,238,754
$79,862,557
$79,862,557
$51,596,515
$545,560,382