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Improve the Condition of Children in Need, Especially Those in the TANF Program  (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families)

ACC/SD Postion: TANF cash assistance to meet basic needs of impoverished children received an important one-year cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in 2007. This does not make up for this oversight in the previous year. Current buying power is only 37% of the poverty level and even farther below SD's Self-Sufficiency Standard. TANF payments should be raised and, at a minimum, adjusted annually for inflation. Current average: $371/mo per family 8'07. Block grant funds could help meet these children's needs now and during their parents' training for occupations with family-sustaining wages. The children's remaining TANF reserve should be used for COLAs and caseload fluctuations, not for other uses ordinarily covered by state general funds.     

Current Status:   

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