TANF-ACF-PI-2017-04 (Renewed Form ACF-202, Caseload Reduction Report)

TO:

State and territorial agencies (hereafter, states) administering or supervising an approved Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Program and other interested parties.

SUBJECT:

Renewed Form ACF-202, Caseload Reduction Report.

REFERENCES:

Section 407(b)(3) of the Social Security Act, 45 CFR 261.40 et seq.

PURPOSE:

To transmit the renewed form ACF-202 and instructions for completing that form, which states must use to report caseload reduction information for fiscal year 2018 and thereafter.

BACKGROUND:

Section 407(b)(3) of the Social Security Act requires us to reduce a state’s required work participation rate for a fiscal year by the state’s caseload reduction credit for that fiscal year. The caseload reduction credit gives a state credit for reducing its caseload between a base year and a comparison year.

States submit data for the calculation of their caseload reduction credit by completing form ACF-202. Office of Management and Budget approval for the use of the ACF-202 expired on September 30, 2017. The form has now been renewed until August 31, 2020. We made the following changes to reflect our longstanding practice and policy:

• We revised the text on the top of page 3 to clarify that the creation or termination of a solely state-funded program (i.e., one that uses only state dollars that do NOT count as maintenance-of-effort (MOE)) on or after October 1, 2005 (i.e., after the base year), is considered an eligibility change.
• We updated the instructions beginning on page 6 related to “excess MOE credit” to remind states that the due date for the ACF-202 is December 31, which is one quarter after the end of the comparison year. This means that a state must have reported the comparison-year MOE as expended on the 4^th quarter ACF-196R (including any revisions) by no later than the December 31 due date. The amount reported by this date will be the maximum amount considered for the calculation of the caseload reduction credit.
• We made minor changes to the instructions to update our address and the dates we used in various examples.

ACTION:

Caseload Reduction Reports for FY 2018 are due by December 31, 2017.

ATTACHMENTS:

Form ACF-202 and instructions for completing form ACF-202, with updated expiration date.

INQUIRIES:

Please make any inquiries to the ACF TANF Regional Program Manager in your region.

        /s/

Clarence H. Carter
Director
Office of Family Assistance