MONTGOMERY, Ala. Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) benefits will start rolling out this week to families with eligible school-age children who missed out on free or reduced-price school meals because of the pandemic. Click Alternative Aid Assistance assists TANF eligible parents who need short term help to find or maintain employment. In most cases under TANF, a NRST benefit addresses a specific episode of need, which means that the state or tribe has determined the specific need of that family; however, the regulation allows for NRSTs to address a specific crisis situation. As is evidenced by Congress creating the PEAF, the extraordinary nature of the COVID-19 pandemic and its sweeping economic impacts constitute a specific crisis situation allowing a grantee to offer a NRST benefit broadly to needy families who are financially and otherwise eligible. If a grantee does choose to offer a benefit without determining an individual episode of need, it would need to be clear that the NRST expenditure was related to the pandemic. Some food stamp recipients in Alabama received extra funds this week amid the growing coronavirus crisis. Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations, Seniors Farmers' Market Nutrition Program, Flexibility for States With Increasing Workloads, USDA moderniza el PlanEconmico de AlimentosThrifty actualizaciones a los beneficios del SNAP, USDA Modernizes the Thrifty Food Plan, Updates SNAP Benefits. If you have already applied or are receiving food assistance, you can sign up for an account on MyDHR or MyAlabama to access your case information, complete your recertification for benefits, and manage your benefits including reporting changes and completing your six-month report. As noted above, if a grantee has not expended all of its funds by that date, HHS will reallot any unused funds to other eligible states, territories, and tribes, which must expend the reallotted funds within 12 months of receipt, as specified in the legislation. A grantee will not need to amend its TANF plan to provide NRSTs with the PEAF. This means that we will reallot: (1) funds not initially awarded to a grantee because it chose to receive less than its full allotment; and (2) funds from the initial award that are unexpended (including unliquidated obligations) at the end of the statutory expenditure period, i.e., September 30, 2022. We hope that making this determination now will enable grantees to act expeditiously in distributing PEAF benefits and be responsive to the current crisis. 109 Capitol Street A beneficiary receiving less than their households size monthly maximum will now be bumped up to the higher level. EE&c$Nc4dmCv3Tj_:zB+i`<77s5D&nvE_/U8knj=mV|uMVOEKiQ<2xrgWE/ocvL4k1z'L.\4 _3Ywb\-GO9#a,8^skyE'!47lfZ4nuf0#-^o~/.GJq:vdm*{DFH*Zb=YnlEBn[MwqOfv1Z]Ys\^U;Z-w>E/>o0l6_})Mil1}8;-EX]VVd`A*D+ny 18(L(U"Q NI8@ww uy(>&9 E(J3!H#25l~v}Q s"9UtDT[7}C+&#&4wMD4zS(;S*WhOR; GX)kD\mkEsK~8EAe7T+K5!]u_g)Jp+f C2LXw7w?DP&"M0.HtvTqL6}qax]p||@HO;hf+TYF'VoggOy!J4D`@*i}Tr0T[&wd9bcf"kCs]q$G2b(#,s!;D Assistance for families who are behind in rent or experiencing other housing insecurity due to the pandemic. It does count for TANF. For example, a grantee might consider crafting a NRST to provide extra cash for all current TANF recipient families. There are several ways to apply for food assistance. 11 State House Station Cash assistance for short-term basic needs to help families with mixed immigration status (e.g., citizen children with parents who are not eligible due to their immigration status) who are affected by the pandemic. Some food stamp recipients in Alabama received extra funds this week amid the growing coronavirus crisis. A benefit to provide extra cash to replace lost wages to all families with children eligible to receive SNAP or other means-tested benefits who are affected by the pandemic. be designed to deal with a specific crisis situation or episode of need; not be intended to meet on-going needs; and, must only include expenditures such as emergency assistance and diversion payments, emergency housing and short-term homelessness assistance, emergency food aid, short-term utilities payments, burial assistance, clothing allowances, and back-to-school payments; and, In most cases under TANF, a NRST benefit addresses a specific episode of need, which means that the state or tribe has determined the specific need of that family; however, the regulation allows for NRSTs to address a specific crisis situation. As is evidenced by Congress creating the PEAF, the extraordinary nature of the COVID-19 pandemic and its sweeping economic impacts constitute a specific crisis situation allowing a grantee to offer a NRST benefit broadly to needy families who are financially and otherwise eligible. You may also fax, mail, or bring the signed application to your County DHR office for processing. Grantees may use funds to provide certain non-recurrent, short term (NRST) benefits, described in more detail below. These services also promote job preparation, work and marriage, and the prevention of out-of-wedlock pregnancy. Low TANF cash benefits, which disproportionately affect the benefits available to Black children, are rooted in a long history of racist ideas and policies. In addition, we will use the information grantees report on these forms to determine the amount of funds remaining for reallotment. Before you can complete the application online, you must first register for an account. Under Alabamas Work First approach, most adult recipients of cash assistance are required to participate in TANF employment program (JOBS) for up to 40 hours a week, unless otherwise exempt. All grantees must use funds to supplement, and not supplant, other federal, state, tribal, territorial, or local funds. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Office for Family Independence While each grantee must decide whether or not it intends to use its full allotment, it is important to understand that if a grantee elects to receive an amount less than the full allotment, it will lose its claim to the remainder of that allotment. 2387 0 obj <>stream %PDF-1.6 % The funds would go to extremely low-income families whose TANF benefits aren't adequate to meet basic needs in normal times and who face extra needs due to the pandemic. The law requires HHS to reallot unused funds among eligible grantees, discussed below. Option 4: Fax an application to (207) 778-8429. 92.5 percent of funds (equal to $923,150,000) will be distributed to states (including the District of Columbia), using a two-part formula, half based on child population and half based on fiscal year 2019 state expenditures on non-recurrent short term benefits, basic assistance and emergency assistance authorized solely under prior law. If a grantee does not submit a request for an allotment or submits one after the due date, the grantee will lose any claim to the allotment. The My Maine Connection portal also offers a prescreening tool that can help you find out if you may be eligible. Select from the following list to see all of the COVID-19 waivers issued for your state from SNAP. It could use the PEAF funds for diversion, as long as it adds to its program and does not replace existing funding with the PEAF dollars. If the grantee elected to accept $2,000,000 of that allotment, the remaining $876,380 would no longer be set aside for that grantee and would be reallotted to all grantees eligible for reallotment. TANF Caseload Data 2021. We encourage grantees to use this opportunity to assist needy families affected by the pandemic in meeting their basic needs. hbbd``b` Sc `4A@i bi~"@ $TP; (334) 242-1 950 Apply for Alabama Family Assistance U.S. Department of Health and Human Services This is especially true if grantees also make use of the unobligated TANF balances that many have accumulated for just such a crisis. The Family Assistance Division administers programs funded by the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant designed to provide benefits and services to needy families so children may be cared for in their own homes or in the homes of relatives. Pandemic EBT Distribution Starts This Week for Families with Eligible School-Age Children, Pandemic Help Available to Foster Youths Transitioning into Adulthood, Application Period Starts Next Week for 6th Round of Child Care Bonuses, Declaracin de No Discriminacin Espaol. The site is secure. This benefit clearly meets Purpose One and is pandemic-related. Food stamp benefits are determined by the number of people and income in a household. A payment for hotel rooms and meal delivery for people who need to quarantine away from their families. Office for Family Independence. A community group for residents of Alabama to ask questions and share information about receiving benefits that are administered locally. Option 5: Visit one of our district offices and apply in person. The amount of the shelter deduction is capped at (or limited to) $624 unless one person in the household is elderly or disabled. The Food Assistance Division administers the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in Alabama. Under the law, a grantee must expend reallotted funds within 12 months of receipt of the reallotted funds. here to find the Food Assistance office nearest you. 114 Corn Shop Lane. Susan J. GolonkaActing DirectorOffice of Family Assistance. Option 1: Apply online through My Maine Connection. 2023 SMG. There is no application for P-EBT; ALSDE has provided DHR with the names of children who participate in the National School Lunch Program, which makes them eligible for P-EBT. We hope that making this determination now will enable grantees to act expeditiously in distributing PEAF benefits and be responsive to the current crisis. Farmington, ME 04938. Option 5: Visit one of our district offices and apply in person. To apply for food assistance benefits online, you can apply via MyDHR or MyAlabama. An Office of the Administration for Children & Families, TANF-ACF-PI-2021-02 (The Pandemic Emergency Assistance Fund), The PEAF provides funding to states (which includes the District of Columbia), tribes administering a TANF program, and five U.S. territories, Grantees may use funds to provide certain non-recurrent, short term (NRST) benefits, described in more detail below. Augusta, Maine04333, Phone: (207) 287-3707 The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. The Alabama Department of Human Resources (DHR) oversees the distribution of P-EBT with assistance from the Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE). Option 2: Download and mail an application. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. A benefit to cover burial expenses for needy families who have had a family member die from COVID-19. Will the extra $300/week in unemployment benefits stop when the Maine State of Emergency ends on June 30 th? Department of SNAP has continued to approve flexibilities under this authority. Indeed, as we noted above, all PEAF-funded benefits must be designed to address needs arising from the pandemic. 436 0 obj <> endobj Your completed application will be sent to the DHR office in the county where you live. TANF provides cash assistance to families while they work towards becoming self-sufficient. This program is designed to raise the nutritional level of low income households. Here are some other examples of NRST benefits that grantees might want to provide with PEAF funds. A voucher to cover the cost of utility bills in arrears due to financial issues arising from the pandemic. DHR distributed over $144 million in benefits to more than 460,000 children in Alabama during the first round of P-EBT this past year. We will distribute reallotted funds based on the original allotment formula. If a grantee does choose to offer a benefit without determining an individual episode of need, it would need to be clear that the NRST expenditure was related to the pandemic. Nationwide Waiver to Allow Sponsors that Successfully Participated in the Summer Food Service Program in FY 2019 to Operate as Experienced Sponsors in FY 2021 Offered to All States 4/1/2021 Nationwide Waiver to Provide Flexibility for School Meal Programs Administrative Reviews of SFAs Operating Only the SSO in SY 2021-22 Given that the fund was created specifically to help address needs arising out of the pandemic, we have determined that NRST benefits that meet Purpose One (provide assistance to needy families so that children may be cared for in their own homes or in the homes of relatives) are in line with the PEAF and we do not think benefits meeting the other purposes are. The PEAF can be a powerful tool to give poor families a much-needed boost in the face of lost wages, limited work opportunities, or housing insecurity, to name just a few obstacles exacerbated by the pandemic. A grantee will not need to amend its TANF plan to provide NRSTs with the PEAF. Those dates are April 25, 2021, for states and June 9, 2021 for tribes and territories. Voucher payments, equal to up to three months of TANF benefits, are made available to families to help them with employment related expenses and avoid the need for TANF benefits. For more than a year, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a national emergency affecting not only public health, but also the American economy. 102-477). Listen. This batch of benefits covers school meals missed from August through December 2020. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. The NRST benefits a grantee funds with PEAF need not be the same as the ones funded by TANF. . We are extremely grateful to our partners at USDA-FNS and to Dr. Eric Mackey and his team at the Department of Education, along with our advocates, for their continued support of our mission to feed Alabamas children.. [4] Forty-eight percent of all Black children in the U.S. live in states with cash benefit levels below 20 percent of the poverty line, compared to 40 . %PDF-1.6 % The U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service (USDA-FNS) administers the program at the federal level. 7.5 percent of funds are set aside for Tribal TANF programs and all 5 U.S. territories, to be distributed in a manner deemed appropriate by the HHS Secretary. The law specifies an allotment formula. EEF1GYo IQm-tX 464 0 obj <>stream . Family Assistance Eligibility Requirements, Resumen De Los Requisitos De Eligibilidad, Alabama Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, Alabama Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Voter Registration Information (Informacion de registro de votantes), Earned Income Tax Credit (La Vida es mas facil con el EITC), Declaracin de No Discriminacin Espaol. This is a significant cash infusion for such a family, representing about six months of TANF benefits in a typical state and up to a year's worth in the lowest-benefit state. Under the law, states must inform HHS of its expenditure commitment within 45 days of the enactment of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, and tribes and territories within 90 days of enactment. The Continuing Appropriations Act, 2021 (PL 116-159), extended a number of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) flexibilities approved under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. The law exempts PEAF funds from the spending cap in section 1108 of the Social Security Act. FAX: (207) 287-3005 To provide initial guidance regarding the newly established Pandemic Emergency Assistance Fund. Benefits are good for up to a year, so SNAP recipients do not have to use the additional benefits immediately, Hornsby said. Grantees may use funds for administrative costs, within limitations. Option 4: Fax an application to (207) 778-8429. And the fact that there is a particular Loud House/Helluva Boss crossover that is rather . Families will receive separate EBT cards for each eligible child in their households. View guidance as of January 2022. The PEAF represents a singular opportunity to help some of our nations neediest families struggling with the effects of the pandemic. Now Public Law 117-2, it establishes the Pandemic Emergency Assistance Fund (PEAF) in section 403(c) of the Social Security Act (the Act). A one-time payment to provide extra cash to weather the pandemic to current Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipient families with children affected by the pandemic. To apply for food assistance benefits online, you can apply via MyDHR or MyAlabama. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. The Continuing Appropriations Act, 2021 ( PL 116-159 ), extended a number of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) flexibilities approved under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. It enables low-income families to buy nutritious food through Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards. Option 1: Apply online through My Maine Connection. J5(T[QJTE MD Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). 2.TANF Emergency Assistance (Formerly AFDC-EA as provided by 45 CFR 233.120 with provision date of August 21, 1996): Assistance and services to or on An official website of the United States government. Clients can use their EBT card to access cash benefits (TANF) through automated teller machines (ATMs) and Point . Failure to comply with the work requirements, without a good cause, will have their benefits reduced or revoked. To be considered financially eligible, families must have a monthly income lower than the maximum benefit for their family size. Those benefits covered meals missed during the 2019-20 school year due to school closures. A one-time payment to provide extra cash to all current TANF recipient families to assist them in dealing with added costs caused by the pandemic. Please enter your username to reset your password. Alabamas Family Assistance (FA) Program provides temporary financial assistance for needy families with children whose income must meet the eligibility thresholds. For states (including the District of Columbia) and territories, the law provides a 15-percent cap on administrative expenditures. A monthly benefit through TANF that helps parents working through a two- or four-year degree-granting education program. The ASPIRE program helps TANF recipients move towards financial independence through case management, job training, education, support and employment services. The American Rescue Plan Act, Public Law 117-2; section 403(c) of the Social Security Act. A benefit to secure personal protective equipment. Additionally, they may use funds for administrative costs (up to a 15-percent cap for states and territories and up to the negotiated cap for tribes). In order to qualify for TANF in Alabama, you must be a U.S. national, citizen, legal alien or permanent resident and a resident of the state of Alabama. Office for Family Independence The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Major services/benefits to eligible families include: Information on eligibility requirements for the Family Assistance program. All grantees are eligible for reallotted funds, unless they have unexpended funds at the end of the expenditure period. Once enrolled in TANF you may also be eligible for help receiving job training and education. Transitional Child Care (TCC) can help former TANF recipients pay for work related child care. President Biden's emergency relief plan includes $1 billion to help states deliver much-needed aid to families with the lowest incomes through state Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs which would mark an important step in the federal response to today's extraordinary hardship across America. Here are some other examples of NRST benefits that grantees might want to provide with PEAF funds. Regardless of when it receives its PEAF funds, a grantee may use the funds for allowable expenditures on or after April 1, 2021. $40012:g`$@g ` 0 Maximum benefits range from $194 for a single-person household to $1,164 for a household of eight people. Programs & Services A grantee has the flexibility to determine what needy means for each NRST and may wish to set a higher standard than it does for TANF cash assistance, such as aligning with SNAP or Medicaid income eligibility criteria. Alabama pays a maximum of $215 a month to a family of three one of the lowest TANF benefits in the nation. Any such unallotted funds will be reallotted, as discussed below. In Alabama, that amount is $215 a month for a family of three. Hope that making this determination now will enable grantees to Act expeditiously distributing. Federal, state, tribal, territorial, or local funds the spending cap in section 1108 of reallotted... 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