NCSL Letter to the U.S. Senate Supporting TANF Reauthorization

September 22, 2011

The Honorable Harry Reid                              The Honorable Mitch McConnell
Senate Majority Leader                                  Senate Minority Leader
522 Hart Senate Office Building                     317 Russell House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510                                Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Majority Leader Reid and Minority Leader McConnell:

The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) strongly supports the extension and reauthorization of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program and the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG). TANF and related programs will expire on October 1 if Congress does not act. NCSL also supports the reauthorization of the TANF Supplemental Grants, which expired earlier this year.

It is imperative that states are able to continue to provide services to low-income families to assist them to move from welfare to work. States have already passed their budgets for the rest of FY 2011 and a failure to reauthorize TANF and related programs would significantly set states back in their ability to operate and administer programs.

NCSL supports the reauthorization of TANF and related programs either through the Senate passing H.R. 2943, or through its inclusion in a larger Continuing Resolution (CR). 

Sincerely,                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

William T. Pound
Executive Director, NCSL

CC: Members of the U.S. Senate