SLS 21RS-1816 ORIGINAL
2021 Regular Session
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 107
BY SENATOR HEWITT
TANF. Requests the legislative auditor to conduct an efficiency audit of the Department of
Children and Family Services' administration of the Temporary Assistance for Needy
Families (TANF) program.
1 A RESOLUTION
2 To urge and request the legislative auditor to conduct an efficiency audit of the Department
3 of Children and Family Services' administration of the Temporary Assistance for
4 Needy Families program.
5 WHEREAS, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) is a federal
6 program which began in 1997 to provide time-limited assistance to families with children
7 when the parents or other responsible relatives were unable to provide for the family's basic
8 needs; and
9 WHEREAS, the federal government has established four goals of the TANF program
10 including to provide assistance to needy families so that children may be cared for in their
11 own homes or in the homes of relatives; to end the dependency of needy parents on
12 government benefits by promoting job preparation, work, and marriage; to prevent and
13 reduce the incidence of out-of-wedlock pregnancies and establish annual numerical goals
14 for preventing and reducing the incidence of these pregnancies; and to encourage the
15 formation and maintenance of two-parent families; and
16 WHEREAS, states have broad flexibility to achieve these goals and carry out their
17 TANF programs, including the type and amount of assistance payments, the range of
18 services provided, and participant eligibility determinations; and
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SLS 21RS-1816 ORIGINAL
1 WHEREAS, according to The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, in 2019
2 Louisiana spent about $187 million in federal and state funds under the TANF program; and
3 WHEREAS, The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities also noted that Louisiana
4 ranks 40th among the states and the District of Columbia for percentage of TANF funds
5 spent on basic assistance; and
6 WHEREAS, in July 2020, The Pew Charitable Trusts released a critical article that
7 cited several states, including Louisiana, for using TANF funds for purposes other than its
8 initial intended purpose; and
9 WHEREAS, the Department of Children and Family Services, DCFS, is the
10 administrator of the Louisiana TANF program; and
11 WHEREAS, in order for the legislature to ensure that DCFS is complying with the
12 federal goals of the TANF program and being a good steward of taxpayer dollars used to
13 implement the TANF program, a thorough efficiency audit is necessary; and
14 WHEREAS, through an efficiency audit, the legislative auditor will investigate the
15 implementation and administration of the TANF program for the purpose of assessing the
16 fiscal management of the program, efficiency of resource utilization, and effectiveness of
17 state efforts at achieving the four goals of the program.
18 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
19 does hereby urge and request the legislative auditor to conduct an efficiency audit of the
20 Department of Children and Family Services' administration of the Temporary Assistance
21 for Needy Families program, as part of the 2021 Louisiana Performance Audit Program.
22 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the audit shall be completed no later than
23 January 1, 2022.
24 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
25 legislative auditor and the secretary of the Department of Children and Family Services.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Brandi Cannon.
DIGEST
SR 107 Original 2021 Regular Session Hewitt
Requests the legislative auditor to conduct an efficiency audit of the Department of Children
and Family Services' administration of the TANF program.
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