WASHINGTON, D.C. – With so little reporting linking welfare spending to outcomes and performance, it’s unclear whether resources are actually going to low-income families, having the desired impact, or even getting abused by fraudsters, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). Three-quarters of state and federal spending in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program is for “non-assistance.” These are services other than direct monthly cash assistance to families, including job training, child care and other work support activities. GAO’s analysis finds that there is limited state-level data to show who is served by TANF non-assistance funds, and no standardized performance measures to assess the impact of non-assistance spending on participant outcomes.

GAO’s analysis comes in response to a request by Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (MO-08) and Work and Welfare Subcommittee Chairman Darin LaHood (IL-16) as part of the Committee’s ongoing oversight of TANF, including an examination of how non-assistance funding has been diverted away from supporting work and made more vulnerable to fraud and abuse. This report is the third in a series of GAO reports responding to that request. In January, GAO released two reports underscoring the need for more monitoring of states’ use of TANF welfare funding – including the strengthening of fraud risk management efforts. 

Ways and Means Committee Chairman Smith (MO-08) issued the following statement:

“Over its history, TANF has demonstrated how we can better utilize federal welfare spending to emphasize personal responsibility, self-sufficiency, and promote the dignity of work. The program’s early success in reducing welfare caseloads has created a situation where states have directed more funds to non-assistance. This GAO report shows that, after 30 years with virtually no major changes, the program has evolved, and reforms are needed to improve accountability in recognition of that shift. Additional reporting and transparency into how states spend non-assistance funds would help determine whether those resources are in fact targeted to low-income families and provide specific performance measures to track the impact on outcomes. The Ways and Means Committee is committed to modernizing TANF to enhance the program’s focus on measuring improvements in work and earnings for beneficiaries.”  

Work and Welfare Subcommittee Chairman LaHood (IL-16) issued the following statement:

“One of the strengths of TANF is that it provides states with flexibility to address the unique needs and challenges of families, but that flexibility needs to be paired with the right performance and accountability measures to see how it is directly impacting Americans. This GAO report shows lawmakers that some states lack comprehensive data on non-assistance spending and the impact it has on economic mobility. These findings will help inform our work to reauthorize and reform TANF to create accountability measures and strengthen the path from welfare to prosperity we need to see in federal programs.”

Background on GAO Report on “HHS Could Facilitate information Sharing to Improve States’ Use of Data on Job Training and Other Services” in TANF:

• All seven states GAO selected for its analysis (Illinois, Mississippi, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Texas, and Wyoming) reported collecting some demographic, participation, and outcome data on individuals and families receiving services supported by TANF non-assistance funds. However, the majority of reported data was at the local level by individual service providers, with significantly less reported up to the state, and nothing reported at the federal level.
  • Federal requirements for non-assistance reporting are limited to expenditure service categories.
• GAO finds that, “Service providers report some data on services funded with non-assistance to state agencies, but there are no federal TANF reporting requirements for performance information on services funded with non-assistance funds.”
• States collected more data in instances where TANF non-assistance funds were used in combination with other federal funding streams that were subject to other federal reporting requirements, such as the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA).
• GAO recommends the Department of Health and Human Services facilitate information sharing among state TANF agencies on promising practices for using data on those served with TANF non-assistance funds. 

READ: Smith, LaHood Call on Government Watchdog to Investigate Uses of TANF Funds

READ: Congressional Watchdog Reports Underscore Need for Ongoing TANF Oversight and ReformREAD:Ways and Means Members Lead Charge to Fix America’s Broken Welfare System, Make Critical Reforms to Help Americans in Need and Protect Taxpayers