An Act To Amend the Requirements of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program
Maine Legislature, Session 128, LD 0336
Committee: Health and Human Services
Sponsors: DENNO, VOLK, GATTINE, PERRY, VACHON, KATZ
Amends: 22 MRSA §3762

Legislative Document
No. 336
H.P. 250
House of Representatives, February 2, 2017
An Act To Amend the Requirements of the Temporary Assistance 
for Needy Families Program
Reference to the Committee on Health and Human Services suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative DENNO of Cumberland.
Cosponsored by Senator VOLK of Cumberland and
Representatives: GATTINE of Westbrook, McELWEE of Caribou, PERRY of Calais, 
VACHON of Scarborough, Senator: KATZ of Kennebec.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  22 MRSA §3762, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2015, c. 267, Pt. RRRR, §2, 
is further amended to read: 
3.  Administration.  The department may administer and operate a program of aid to 
needy dependent children, called "Temporary Assistance for Needy Families" or 
"TANF," who are deprived of support or care due to the death, continued absence, 
physical or mental incapacity of a parent or the unemployment or underemployment of 
the principal wage earner in accordance with the United States Social Security Act, as 
amended by PRWORA and DRA, and this Title. 
A.  The department shall adopt rules as necessary to implement and administer the 
program.  The rules must include eligibility criteria, budgeting process, benefit 
calculation and confidentiality.  The confidentiality rules must ensure that 
confidentiality is maintained for TANF recipients at least to the same extent that 
confidentiality was maintained for families in the Aid to Families with Dependent 
Children program unless otherwise required by federal law or regulation. 
B.  The department may use funds, insofar as resources permit, provided under and in 
accordance with the United States Social Security Act or state funds appropriated for 
this purpose or a combination of state and federal funds to provide assistance to 
families under this chapter.  In addition to assistance for families described in this 
subsection, funds must be expended for the following purposes: 
(1)  To continue the pass-through of the first $50 per month of current child 
support collections and the exclusion of the $50 pass-through from the budget 
tests and benefit calculations; 
(2)  To provide financial assistance to noncitizens legally admitted to the United 
States who are receiving assistance under this subsection as of July 1, 2011.  
Recipients of assistance under this subparagraph are limited to the categories of 
noncitizens who would be eligible for the TANF programs but for their status as 
aliens under PRWORA.  Eligibility for the TANF program for these categories of 
noncitizens must be determined using the criteria applicable to other recipients of 
assistance from the TANF program. Any household receiving assistance as of  
July 1, 2011 may continue to receive assistance, as long as that household 
remains eligible, without regard to interruptions in coverage or gaps in eligibility 
for service. A noncitizen legally admitted to the United States who is neither 
receiving assistance on July 1, 2011 nor has an application pending for assistance 
on July 1, 2011 that is later approved is not eligible for financial assistance 
through a state-funded program unless that noncitizen is: 
(a)  Elderly or disabled, as described under the laws governing supplemental 
security income in 42 United States Code, Sections 1381 to 1383f (2010); 
(b)  A victim of domestic violence;  
(c)  Experiencing other hardship, such as time necessary to obtain proper 
work documentation, as defined by the department by rule. Rules adopted by 
the department under this division are routine technical rules as defined by 
Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A; or 
(d)  Unemployed but has obtained proper work documentation, as defined by 
the department by rule.  Rules adopted by the department under this division 
are routine technical rules as defined by Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A; 
(3) To provide benefits to certain 2-parent families whose deprivation is based on 
physical or mental incapacity with children using the same eligibility 
requirements as apply to families headed by a single custodial parent or caretaker 
relative; 
(4)  To provide an assistance program for needy children, 19 to 21 years of age, 
who are in full-time attendance in secondary school.  The program is operated for 
those individuals who qualify for TANF under the United States Social Security 
Act, except that they fail to meet the age requirement, and is also operated for the 
parent or caretaker relative of those individuals.  Except for the age requirement, 
all provisions of TANF, including the standard of need and the amount of 
assistance, apply to the program established pursuant to this subparagraph; 
(5)  To provide assistance for a pregnant woman who is otherwise eligible for 
assistance under this chapter, except that she has no dependents under 19 years of 
age.  An individual is eligible for the monthly benefit for one eligible person if 
the medically substantiated expected date of the birth of her child is not more 
than 90 days following the date the benefit is received; 
(6)  To provide a special housing allowance for TANF families whose shelter 
expenses for rent, mortgage or similar payments, homeowners insurance and 
property taxes equal or exceed 75% of their monthly income.  The special 
housing allowance is limited to $200 $300 per month for each family.  For 
purposes of this subparagraph, "monthly income" means the total of the TANF 
monthly benefit and all income countable under the TANF program, plus child 
support received by the family, excluding the $50 pass-through payment; 
(7)  In determining benefit levels for TANF recipients who have earnings from 
employment, the department shall disregard from monthly earnings the 
following: 
(a)  One hundred and eight dollars; 
(b)  Fifty percent of the remaining earnings that are less than the federal 
poverty level; and 
(c)  All actual child care costs necessary for work, except that the department 
may limit the child care disregard to $175 per month per child or $200 per 
month per child under 2 years of age or with special needs; 
(7-A)  In determining eligibility and benefit levels, the department may apply a 
gross income test only to applicants and not to recipients; 
(8)  In cases when the TANF recipient has no child care cost, the monthly TANF 
benefit is the maximum payment level or the difference between the countable 
earnings and the standard of need established by rule adopted by the department, 
whichever is lower; 
(9)  In cases when the TANF recipient has child care costs, the department shall 
determine a total benefit package, including TANF cash assistance, determined in 
accordance with subparagraph (7) and additional child care assistance, as 
provided by rule, necessary to cover the TANF recipient's actual child care costs 
up to the maximum amount specified in section 3782-A, subsection 5.  The 
benefit amount must be paid as provided in this subparagraph. 
(a)  Before the first month in which child care assistance is available to an 
ASPIRE-TANF recipient under this paragraph and periodically thereafter, the 
department shall notify the recipient of the total benefit package and the 
following options of the recipient: to receive the total benefit package 
directly; or to have the department pay the recipient's child care assistance 
directly to the designated child care provider for the recipient and pay the 
balance of the total benefit package to the recipient. 
(b)  If an ASPIRE-TANF recipient notifies the department that the recipient 
chooses to receive the child care assistance directly, the department shall pay 
the total benefit package to the recipient. 
(c)  If an ASPIRE-TANF recipient does not respond or notifies the 
department of the choice to have the child care assistance paid directly to the 
child care provider from the total benefit package, the department shall pay 
the child care assistance directly to the designated child care provider for the 
recipient.  The department shall pay the balance of the total benefit package 
to the recipient; 
(10)  Child care assistance under this paragraph must be paid by the department 
in a prompt manner that permits an ASPIRE-TANF recipient to access child care 
necessary for work; and 
(11)  The department shall adopt rules pursuant to Title 5, chapter 375 to 
implement this subsection.  Rules adopted pursuant to this subparagraph are 
routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
SUMMARY 
This bill changes the laws governing public assistance, which are intended to provide 
bridges to employment, by providing Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or 
TANF, benefits and alternative aid benefits to 2-parent families based on the same 
eligibility requirements as apply to single-parent families and increasing from $200 to 
$300 the special housing allowance for families receiving TANF benefits.