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. This program is designed to raise the nutritional level of low income households. SNAP has continued to approve flexibilities under this authority. 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.. 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). We encourage grantees to use this opportunity to assist needy families affected by the pandemic in meeting their basic needs. 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. Office for Family Independence . Office for Family Independence. This batch of benefits covers school meals missed from August through December 2020. A community group for residents of Alabama to ask questions and share information about receiving benefits that are administered locally. hb```f````a`bd@ A+sd11HO```yY)x!4,(qc-Ps13G8"$P c3h4 #D@adg `Py 2. Updated 6/30/2021 Phone: (207) 626-7058 Fax: (207) 621-8148 www.maineequaljustice.org $300/week does not "count" as income for SNAP and Mainecare. Department of For tribes, the same cap will apply to administrative costs in the PEAF that a tribe negotiated for administrative costs in its approved tribal TANF plan (or approved 477 plan for federally recognized tribes and tribal consortia that integrate TANF under P.L. For the purposes of the Pandemic Emergency Assistance Fund, NRST benefits mean cash payments or other benefits that meet the regulatory definition (45 CFR 260.31(b)(1)), but are limited to those that fall into the specific expenditure reporting category mentioned in the legislation (line 15 of the ACF-196R(PDF), the state financial reporting form for the TANF program). It enables low-income families to buy nutritious food through Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. A voucher to cover the cost of utility bills in arrears due to financial issues arising from the pandemic. Option 2: Download and mail an application. 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 Assistance for families who are behind in rent or experiencing other housing insecurity due to the pandemic. The Food Assistance Program's purpose is to end hunger and improve nutrition by providing monthly benefits to eligible low income households to help them buy the food they need for good health. Under the law, a grantee must expend reallotted funds within 12 months of receipt of the reallotted funds. The cards may take several weeks to arrive due to the volume of eligible children and shipping time frames. Welcome To ACF | The Administration for Children and Families 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 recipients of PEAF-funded NRSTs must be needy families with children but they do not necessarily have to be eligible for TANF cash assistance. 2023 SMG. DHHS If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Low TANF cash benefits, which disproportionately affect the benefits available to Black children, are rooted in a long history of racist ideas and policies. 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. Indeed, as we noted above, all PEAF-funded benefits must be designed to address needs arising from the pandemic. Option 4: Fax an application to (207) 778-8429. An Office of the Administration for Children & Families, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Native Americans (ANA), Administration on Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF), Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE), Office of Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response (OHSEPR), Office of Legislative Affairs and Budget (OLAB), Office of Planning, Research & Evaluation (OPRE), Public Assistance Reporting Information System (PARIS), About Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, About Health Profession Opportunity Grants. . Learn more about the HOPE program. 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. Any such unallotted funds will be reallotted, as discussed below. 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. 114 Corn Shop Lane. 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. There are several ways to apply for food assistance. We have created a form that allows each grantee to make this election. To apply for food assistance benefits online, you can apply via MyDHR or MyAlabama. Office for Family Independence Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. All rights reserved (About Us). Here are some other examples of NRST benefits that grantees might want to provide with PEAF funds. Families already receiving the monthly maximum benefit will not receive the supplement. Alabama food stamp recipients can now buy food online through Amazon. A benefit to cover burial expenses for needy families who have had a family member die from COVID-19. TTY: Maine relay 711, Maine Department of Health and Human Services, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Higher Opportunity for Pathways to Employment (HOPE), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Employment and Training, Americans With Disabilities Act/Civil Rights Compliance, Families with dependent children living in their home. Grantees may use funds to provide certain non-recurrent, short term (NRST) benefits, described in more detail below. We remind grantees that the Income Eligibility Verification System (IEVS) does apply to the PEAF, as it is funded under Title IV-A; however tribes are not subject to the IEVS requirements. Farmington, ME 04938. An official website of the United States government. 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. To apply for food assistance benefits online, you can apply via MyDHR or MyAlabama. In addition, we will use the information grantees report on these forms to determine the amount of funds remaining for reallotment. 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. A grantee will not need to amend its TANF plan to provide NRSTs with the PEAF. Your completed application will be sent to the DHR office in the county where you live. In response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, Alabama issued an "Emergency Health Preparedness Allowance" of $400 a month for three months to all TANF families, nearly double the amount of the maximum benefit alone. 455 0 obj <>/Filter/FlateDecode/ID[<8E2CFAEFB75791468CED12F6B483C4D4><70332ACC9AF89D40AF0184A0EF036C29>]/Index[436 29]/Info 435 0 R/Length 90/Prev 161574/Root 437 0 R/Size 465/Type/XRef/W[1 2 1]>>stream Option 5: Visit one of our district offices and apply in person. Susan J. GolonkaActing DirectorOffice of Family Assistance. You may also fax, mail, or bring the signed application to your County DHR office for processing. In Alabama, that amount is $215 a month for a family of three. %PDF-1.6 % Food stamp recipients in Alabama will receive extra benefits due to the coronavirus pandemic. We have published tables showing the full allotment of each grantee and will include them as an appendix to this program instruction as well. Your completed application will be sent to the DHR office in the county where you live. Start your application for Food Assistance. Electronic Benefits Transfer, or EBT, is a system that makes the issuance of state Family Assistance and federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits faster and easier through the use of electronic transactions. A supplement will also be received at the end of April as part of the response to the COVID-19 virus. %PDF-1.6 % Major services/benefits to eligible families include: Information on eligibility requirements for the Family Assistance program. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). 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 We hope that making this determination now will enable grantees to act expeditiously in distributing PEAF benefits and be responsive to the current crisis. Maximum benefits range from $194 for a single-person household to $1,164 for a household of eight people. 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. Option 3: E-mail an application to Farmington.DHHS@Maine.gov. management shortterm nonrecurrent benefits as discussed in 45CFR 260.31, day care, transportation and other work and training services. The limit is higher in Alaska, Hawaii, and Guam. The law exempts PEAF funds from the spending cap in section 1108 of the Social Security Act. (334) 242-1 950 TANF provides families with financial assistance and support services. Farmington, ME 04938, Option 3: E-mail an application to Farmington.DHHS@Maine.gov. Additionally, they. We will issue supplemental information specific to tribes that integrate TANF under Public Law 102-477 into a single plan. We will distribute reallotted funds based on the original allotment formula. $40012:g`$@g ` 0 DHR has created a toll-free customer service hotline at 1-800-410-5827 for questions related to 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. Will the extra $300/week in unemployment benefits stop when the Maine State of Emergency ends on June 30 th? 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. All grantees must use funds to supplement, and not supplant, other federal, state, tribal, territorial, or local funds. The U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service (USDA-FNS) administers the program at the federal level. 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. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. Now Public Law 117-2, it establishes the Pandemic Emergency Assistance Fund (PEAF) in section 403(c) of the Social Security Act (the Act). FAX: (207) 287-3005 Please direct inquiries to the TANF Program Manager in your region. 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. A benefit to secure personal protective equipment. Option 1: Apply online through My Maine Connection. E*bb44.=Xz Select from the following list to see all of the COVID-19 waivers issued for your state from SNAP. 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. Call 1-855-797-4357(Monday Friday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm). Recipients should hold onto these cards because additional P-EBT benefits may be added in the future. Use the map here to find the DHR office contact in your county, For additional details, please call(334) 242-1310. As of December 2019, some 711,384 Alabamians received food stamp benefits. 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. For a household with an elderly or disabled member, all shelter costs over half of the household's income may be deducted. HOPE helps Maine parents enroll in and complete training and education beyond high school by providing financial support for costs related to training and education. View guidance as of January 2022. 109 Capitol Street Option 1: Apply online through My Maine Connection. qb}'M tYp1$(PR/V40qD.bWs_G _ 98"8MCHO4#(9y\xAc@NNrEU\@Lnh4|4_OVDs1;rnM[I3]ry.d&DA(* >@@@,.jxKJq1!~q2Q. Publication Date: December 20, 2021 | Current as of: April 5, 2022 2021 - Data as of 03/10/2022 . We are revising financial reporting forms, the ACF-196R, ACF-196T, and ACF-196TR, to include a column for reporting PEAF expenditures so that grantees will not have to submit a separate form to report for this fund. Alabama Benefits - SNAP, SSI, TANF, Healthcare, Housing & More For example, a grantee might consider crafting a NRST to provide extra cash for all current TANF recipient families. This benefit clearly meets Purpose One and is pandemic-related. endstream endobj startxref Alternative Aid Assistance assists TANF eligible parents who need short term help to find or maintain employment. Once enrolled in TANF you may also be eligible for help receiving job training and education. On March 11, 2021, the President signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 into law. Please enter your username to reset your password.
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