Budget Amendment Item 350 #1h (patron: Delegate Sam Rasoul) will support the original purpose of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), which is to enable the children in needy families to be cared for in their own homes or homes of relatives.

TANF for Virginia families is a federally funded program, one having a surplus of $136 million at the end of FY 2019. 

An increase in this federally funded benefit will help to close the gap, bringing benefits up to the goal of 50% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) for a family of three in the next four years. This benefit increase will help thousands of impoverished Virginians make ends meet as well as boost Virginia’s economy.

Spending on children--especially low-income children--has among the highest returns on investment of any form of government spending.

Click here to send a letter to Virginia legislators in support of these budget amendments.

Budget Amendment Item 350 #5s (chief patron: Senator G. F. Hashmi) seeks to assure that TANF program funds administered by the Virginia Department of Social Services (DSS) are best used for the intended purposes of the TANF program to strengthen families by helping stabilize families economically; offer Virginia families in poverty the opportunity to achieve economic independence by removing barriers and disincentives to work; and provide positive incentives and work skills, opportunities, and security necessary to transition to self-sufficiency and independence from welfare.

Click here to send a letter to Virginia legislators in support of these budget amendments.

For more information, please refer to:

FACT SHEET: TANF Increase and Standards of Assistance

FACT SHEET: TANF Income Disregards Fact Sheet 2021

“With true structural change, there would be far less need for charity;  without it, the very best charitable efforts will never be enough.”  Marian Wright Edelman