A Guide to Understanding the Well-Being of Children & Families in Erie County, Pennsylvania
Children Under Age 18 Receiving TANF
CHARTS
Children Under Age 18 Receiving TANF by MunicipalityMEASUREMENT
Lou Canderosi, of the Erie County Assistance Office, reported total unduplicated recipients (under the age of 18) of TANF on June 30 for years 1998 through 2002. Population figures are the 100-percent enumeration counts from the STF1 file, tables P12A - P12I of the 2000 Census. The percentage of children on TANF is the number of children on TANF divided by the number of children under age 18 and multiplied by 100.
DESCRIPTION
In 1997, the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) Program replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), the program that provided cash assistance to families. These payments are based on income limits and have a requirement of working at least 20 hours per week within two years of initiating the receipt of TANF funds to retain eligibility unless an exemption is granted for certain situations such as mental illness or domestic violence. Regulations allow only five years of payments for each adult in a lifetime. To be eligible, families may have no more than $1,000 in resources (bank accounts, bonds or poroperty excluding their primary residence) and must fall at or below the income limits determined by county for their family size. These limits are $316 for a two-person family, $403 for a three-person family and $497 for a four-person family residing in Erie County.1
DATA ANALYSIS
- Although information is not available by age, the national rate of families receiving TANF dropped 53.7% between 1996 and 2001 while the Pennsylvania rate plunged 56.7%. The total number of recipients fell 56.8% for the U.S. and 60.4% for Pennsylvania during this same time period.2
- Between 1998 and 2002, the percentage of children in Erie County receiving TANF fell 36.6% while the drop was 32.9% for the City of Erie.
- Of the children in the county receiving TANF, the City of Erie comprised 82%.
FOOTNOTE
1 Cash Assistance Handbood.(n.d.). Retrieved January 24, 2003, from http://www.dpw.state.pa.us/oim/oimFrIncome.asp.
2 Percent Change in AFDC/TANF Families and Recipients. (n.d.). Retrieved January 24, 2003, from http://www.acf.dhhs.gov/news/stats/afdc.htm.