SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
The table of contents of this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title. 
Sec. 2. Table of contents. 
Sec. 3. References. 
Sec. 4. State plans required to address whether and how States will provide as-
sistance to neediest geographic areas. 
Sec. 5. Funding of the TANF program. 
Sec. 6. Work requirements. 
Sec. 7. Work rules. 
Sec. 8. Prohibition on imposing limit of less than 60 months on duration of as-
sistance. 
Sec. 9. Response of TANF program to economic recessions. 
Sec. 10. Requirement that States use merit-based system in administration of 
TANF programs. 
Sec. 11. Ban on using Federal TANF funds to replace State and local spending 
that does not meet the definition of qualified State expendi-
tures. 
Sec. 12. TANF assistance to meet basic family economic needs. 
Sec. 13. State plans and reports on child poverty. 
Sec. 14. Requirement that States adopt standards and procedures to address 
domestic and sexual violence among TANF recipients. 
Sec. 15. Child care entitlement. 
Sec. 16. Child support enforcement. 
Sec. 17. State option to extend eligibility for assistance to children through age 
21; prohibition on considering financial aid tied to education of 
child in determining eligibility for, or amount of assistance; 
prohibition on imposing additional requirements based on edu-
cational enrollment of child. 
Sec. 18. Elimination of certain other bars to TANF assistance. 
Sec. 19. Effective date. 
SEC. 3. REFERENCES. 
Except as otherwise expressly provided in this Act, 
wherever in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed 
in terms of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or 
other provision, the amendment or repeal shall be consid-
ered to be made to a section or other provision of the So-
cial Security Act. 
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SEC. 4. STATE PLANS REQUIRED TO ADDRESS WHETHER 
AND HOW STATES WILL PROVIDE ASSIST-
ANCE TO NEEDIEST GEOGRAPHIC AREAS. 
Section 402(a)(1)(A)(i) (42 U.S.C. 602(a)(1)(A)(i)) 
is amended by inserting ‘‘, including whether and how the 
State will give priority to providing benefits and services 
in areas of the State with the greatest need (such as areas 
with the greatest unemployment rates, the greatest pov-
erty rates, and the least job opportunity to population ra-
tios)’’ before the period. 
SEC. 5. FUNDING OF THE TANF PROGRAM. 
(a) STATE FAMILY ASSISTANCE GRANT.— 
(1) 
IN
GENERAL.—Section 
403(a)(1) 
(42 
U.S.C. 603(a)(1)) is amended— 
(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘fis-
cal years 1996,’’ and all that follows through 
‘‘2003,’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal year 2012 and 
each succeeding fiscal year’’; and 
(B) by striking subparagraphs (B) and (C) 
and inserting the following: 
‘‘(B) 
STATE
FAMILY
ASSISTANCE 
GRANT.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The State family 
assistance grant payable to a State for a 
fiscal year shall be the greater of— 
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‘‘(I) the adjusted basic block 
grant, plus the amount required to be 
paid to the State under paragraph (3) 
(as in effect on September 30, 2010) 
for fiscal year 2010; or 
‘‘(II) the amount required to be 
paid to the State under this para-
graph for the preceding fiscal year. 
‘‘(ii) 
ADJUSTED
BASIC
BLOCK 
GRANT.—In clause (i), the term ‘adjusted 
block grant’ means, with respect to a 
State, the product of— 
‘‘(I) the amount required to be 
paid to the State under this para-
graph for fiscal year 2010 (deter-
mined without regard to any reduction 
pursuant to section 409 or 412(a)(1)); 
‘‘(II) 1.00, plus the percentage 
(if any) by which the average of the 
CPI for the 12-month period ending 
with June of the preceding fiscal year 
exceeds the average of the CPI for the 
12-month period ending with June 
1996, expressed as a decimal; and 
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‘‘(III) 1.00, plus the percentage 
(if any) by which the most recent esti-
mate by the Bureau of the Census of 
the population of the State that has 
not attained 18 years of age exceeds 
the most recent estimate by the Bu-
reau of the Census of that population 
as of July 1, 1996, expressed as a 
decimal. 
‘‘(iii) CPI DEFINED.—In clause (ii), 
the term ‘CPI’ means the last Consumer 
Price Index for all-urban consumers pub-
lished by the Department of Labor for the 
period involved. 
‘‘(C) APPROPRIATION.—Out of any money 
in the Treasury of the United States not other-
wise appropriated, there are appropriated such 
sums as are necessary for grants under this 
paragraph for each fiscal year.’’. 
(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT TO ELIMINATE 
SUPPLEMENTAL
GRANTS
FOR
POPULATION
IN-
CREASES IN CERTAIN STATES.—Section 403(a) (42 
U.S.C. 603(a)) is amended by striking paragraph 
(3). 
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(b) EXTENSION
OF PENALTY
FOR FAILURE TO 
MAINTAIN EFFORT; REQUIREMENT ADJUSTED FOR IN-
FLATION.—Section 409(a)(7) (42 U.S.C. 609(a)(7)) is 
amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (A)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘fiscal year 1998, 1999, 
2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 
2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, or 2012’’ and 
inserting ‘‘a fiscal year’’; and 
(B) by inserting ‘‘the inflation-adjusted’’ 
before ‘‘historic State expenditures’’; and 
(2) in subparagraph (B)— 
(A) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘fiscal years 
1997 through 2011’’ and inserting ‘‘a fiscal 
year’’; and 
(B) by redesignating clauses (iii) through 
(v) as clauses (iv) through (vi), respectively, 
and inserting after clause (ii) the following: 
‘‘(iii) INFLATION-ADJUSTED HISTORIC 
STATE EXPENDITURES.—The term ‘infla-
tion-adjusted historic State expenditures’ 
means, with respect to a fiscal year— 
‘‘(I) historic State expenditures; 
multiplied by 
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