Dear Colleague Letter — TANF Disaster Preparedness and Response Playbook

The Office of Family Assistance (OFA) and the Office of Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response (OHSEPR) are pleased to announce the release of the TANF Disaster Preparedness and Response Playbook (PDF).

In response to recent major disasters, OFA and OHSEPR collaborated on the development of this playbook to identify TANF and disaster human services resources that might be provided to vulnerable families impacted by disasters. This document also aims to increase understanding of OFA’s programmatic authorities related to emergency preparedness and response. The playbook aligns with current TANF program authorities as identified in the ACF Emergency and Disaster Waivers and Flexibilities document.  The recommendations also align with priority action areas identified in the Emergency Playbook for Federal Human Services Programs .

The TANF Disaster Preparedness and Response Playbook provides high-level recommendations and strategies that TANF administrators can implement to leverage non-recurrent short-term (NRST) benefits and support families impacted by disasters.

TANF administrators may add NRST benefits to their TANF plan as part of a jurisdiction's preparedness, response, and recovery efforts.

NRST benefits are defined as one-time or infrequent forms of assistance for families experiencing a "specific crisis situation or episode of need". NRST benefits are excluded from the TANF definition of "assistance". This exemption means that some TANF requirements — including work requirements, time limits on federal assistance, and detailed data collection and reporting — do not apply to families receiving only NRST benefits. This flexibility allows TANF agencies to provide NRST benefits to families who do not receive monthly TANF cash benefits without triggering these requirements.

NRST benefits and other non-assistance expenditures must be included in a federally accepted TANF plan.

It is largely within a jurisdiction’s discretion to determine any eligibility criteria beyond the federal requirements, which benefits and services will be available to qualified recipients, and how the program will be operated.

States, tribes, and territories may also decide whether recipients must have lived in an area that received a Presidential Disaster Declaration — specifically areas that include the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Individual Assistance Program.

The playbook encourages TANF administrators to plan for the implementation of NRST benefits before disaster strikes their community. However, states are "free to implement" new benefits or services immediately in response to an ongoing disaster; a state plan amendment reflecting these changes can be submitted later in disaster response or recovery.¹

Tribes must submit an amendment for approval prior to using Tribal TANF funds for any new benefits or services. Approval of such an amendment to the Tribal TANF plan will be expedited if the change is intended to address the disaster-related needs of families who are within a tribe’s geographic service area and who are part of the tribe’s service population.²

Leveraging TANF flexibilities before, during, and after disasters. 

TANF programs have tremendous flexibility to design state programs that meet the needs of families impacted by disasters. We encourage all TANF programs and partners to review the playbook and begin the process of developing local disaster preparedness and response plans.

INQUIRIES

Please reach to OFA if your TANF agency needs assistance implementing these strategies. Please reach out to OHSPER with inquiries regarding disaster human services capabilities across preparedness, response, and recovery.

/s/ 

Natalie N. Grant
Director
Office of Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response

/s/ 

Ann Flagg
Director
Office of Family Assistance