Successful Families is an employment support program for families with children funded by a federal block grant (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families or TANF) and state maintenance of effort funds. Besides providing basic cash benefits for support and maintenance, services provided include job readiness training, job retention training, subsidized employment, structured job search, vocational education, intensive case management, work experience and community service placement, mentoring, and job skills training.
A SUCCESS STORY
A family with five children struggled. The father was unemployed due to a severe back injury and the mother was doing her best to support the family. She was having difficulty finding employment in a small Kansas community. Therefore, she applied for benefits from SRS. The family was approved for TAF, Food Assistance and Healthwave. An SRS worker referred the mother to Rehabilitation Services. A plan was developed for the mother to become a Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA). The mother began attending CNA training funded through Rehabilitation Services. Employment and Economic Services provided uniforms and teamed with Rehabilitation Services to purchase a vehicle. The mother now earns $9.20 per hour, plus benefits. The TAF case has been closed and food assistance has been significantly reduced. The father has received funding for back surgery with his Medicaid benefits and was approved for SSDI.
All participants are required to work or participate in work preparation activities. Participants receive the support services necessary to meet their work requirement, including cash assistance, transportation assistance, child care, and allowances for special needs such as uniforms, tools, or car repairs. TAF recipients who become employed may also receive up to 12 months of transition services.
Families who have received assistance for five cumulative years are not eligible for cash assistance. However, up to 20 percent of families may be exempted from this time limit. Kansas has developed a hardship criteria, allowing some families to be exempted from the time limit. The goal of the program is to have adults employed before their time limit expires. Through the "Every Effort" campaign, community stakeholders and SRS staff are encouraged to ensure the impact of the time limit on families is minimized.
Average Monthly Persons 44,592
Actual Expenditures---SFY 2006 $63,865,150
State General Funds $29,821,726
Work Program Participants
Average Monthly Persons 17,328
Actual Expenditures---SFY 2006 $10,092,513
"I was turned down for cash assistance. What can I do?"
This usually happens because of income eligibility limits. The local regional SRS service center can review the file to ensure that the correct eligibility determination was made. If the determination was correct, SRS staff can provide information about other resources.