If they meet minimum work participation requirements, their mandatory State effort is reduced to 75 percent. The assistance grant may be reduced for failure to meet any of 15 different program and fiscal requirements. Penalties may be waived for reasonable cause or upon implementation of an approved corrective action plan. They may reserve grant moneys, without fiscal year limitation, for providing assistance. With certain exceptions, most families are limited to no more than 5 years of assistance under the Federal grant.
Tribes have the flexibility to establish time limits on receipt of assistance.
For contingency funds, grant awards are issued monthly to eligible States and families no longer receiving assistance. Not more than 15 percent of any grant may be spent on administrative costs, exclusive of certain computerization and information technology expenses. ACF will negotiate a limitation on administrative costs for the first year of the program's operation not to exceed 35 percent, for the second year of the program's operation not to exceed 30 percent, and the for the third and subsequent years of the program's operation not to exceed 25 percent. States, Territories and Tribes are also required to report administrative costs and overhead expenditures on programs for needy families, participation by noncustodial parents in work activities, and transitional services provided to former recipients. States, Territories and Tribes must report child poverty information annually in accordance with a methodology established by the Secretary.