TANF-ACF-PI-2006-05 (Reporting Deemed Core Hours on the TANF Data Report and the SSP-MOE Data Report for Fiscal Year 2007) (ORIGINAL)

To:

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

Subject:

Reporting Deemed Core Hours on the TANF Data Report and the SSP-MOE Data Report for Fiscal Year 2007

References:

45 CFR §§ 261.31 and 261.32

Purpose:

To provide States with instructions on how to report the number of “deemed” core hours for the overall rate and the two-parent rate on the TANF Data Report and the SSP-MOE Data Report.

Background:

The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 reauthorized the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program and required the Secretary to issue rules to ensure a more uniform and consistent measurement of the work participation rates.  The TANF interim final rule was published on June 29, 2006. §§ 261.31 and 261.32 of the interim final rule permit States to “deem” and count hours of work experience and/or community service program activities under specified circumstances.  If a work-eligible individual participates in these activities the maximum number of hours permitted under the minimum wage provision of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and these hours do not meet the “core” hour participation requirement, we will “deem” the core hour requirement met.  This policy is limited to States that combine their TANF and food stamp benefit amounts when calculating maximum hours.  This can be done by adopting the Food Stamp Workfare Program and the mini-Simplified Food Stamp Program (mini-SFSP) option that simply permits States to count the value of food stamps in determining maximum hours.

Action:

To determine the maximum allowable number of hours of participation in work experience or community service programs for a month permitted under the minimum wage laws, States must combine the monthly TANF grant (as adjusted by the amount of child support collections retained by the State to offset the amount of the grant) and the food stamp allotment for the family and divided by the appropriate minimum wage (the State’s minimum wage or the Federal minimum wage, whichever is higher).  This result is divided by the number of weeks in the month to arrive at the average maximum number of hours per week permitted under the FLSA requirement.  A State should use the same method for determining the number of weeks in the month for this purpose as it uses to calculate the average number of hours of participation per week in the work activities.  In comparing this maximum average number of hours per week to the average number of hours of participation in work experience and community service programs, the State must use only those hours of work experience and community service programs that are subject to the FLSA requirements (i.e., those hours of participation that represent an employer/employee relationship).

If the work-eligible individual has participated in work experience and/or community service programs that are subject to the FLSA requirements for the maximum number of hours permitted under FLSA, the State can calculate the number of deemed core hours for the overall work participation rate by subtracting the average weekly number of hours of participation in work experience and community service programs that are subject to the FLSA requirements from 20 hours.  The number of deemed core hours for the overall work participation rate should be coded in the TANF Data Report — Section one data element #62, “Additional Work Activities Permitted Under Waiver Demonstration.”  For the SSP-MOE Data Report use data element #55, “Additional Work Activities Permitted Under Waiver Demonstration.”  We are using this data element to collect the number of deemed core hours because we failed to add a specific data element to collect the data: this data element is available for all but one State: and that State will not be deeming core hours until its waiver expires.  If the two parents in a two-parent family have participated in work experience and/or community service programs that are subject to the FLSA requirements for the maximum number of hours permitted under FLSA, the State can calculate the number of deemed core hours for the two-parent work participation rate by subtracting the number of hours of participation for the two parents in work experience and community service programs that are subject to the FLSA requirements from the core hour requirement for the two-parent family.  The core hour requirement for a two-parent rate is 50 hours per week if the family receives federally-funded child care and is not caring for a severely disabled child.  Otherwise the core hour requirement for the two-parent rate is 30 hours per week.  The number of deemed core hours for the two-parent work participation rate should be coded in the TANF Data Report — Section one data element #64, “Required Hours of Work Under Waiver Demonstration.”  For the SSP-MOE Data Report use data element #57, “Required Hours of Work Under Waiver Demonstration.”  In coding the deemed core hours for the two-parent rate, a State may put the total number of deemed core hours in data element #64 for one of the two parents and put zero hours in data element #64 for the other parent, or it may split the total number of deemed core hours between the two parents, so long as the sum of the hours coded in data element #64 for the two parents is the total number of deemed core hours for the two-parent rate.

Effective Date:

October 1, 2006

Inquiries:

Inquiries should be directed to the appropriate Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Regional Administrator

/s/

Sidonie Squier, Director
Office of Family Assistance