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I V - A S T A T E O F M A I N E T A N F S T A T E P L A N 24 | P a g e

A one-time heating assistance payment was provided to families in March 2022. Eligible families must have met the following criteria as of February 2022 in order to receive a payment. They must have been in receipt of a SNAP or TANF benefit, with a child under the age of 18 or age 18 and attending high school, and have a heat expense for February 2022. MOE expenditures are claimed for eligible families who are not otherwise eligible to receive federal benefits due to immigration status.

Pandemic Emergency Assistance- Non Recurrent Short Term Benefit A one-time cash payment of $100 was issued in September 2021 to each eligible child to assist with “back-to-school” related items needed to return to in-person learning. To be eligible the child must have been age 18 or under, and open TANF or open SNAP with gross income below 133% FPL in July 2021.

TANF Initiative Programs The following programs meet one of the four purposes of TANF. These programs provide benefits in the form of services to Maine families. These services involve a wide variety of community partners such as other governmental agencies, non-profit organizations and others.

Child Protective Services – Investigations Maine Office of Child and Family Services (OCFS) receives reports of suspected child abuse or neglect and investigates to determine if the report meets the statutory definition of child abuse or neglect. For reports where abuse or neglect is affirmatively identified, the case is assigned to a child protective service caseworker who identifies whether the children are safe in the home, and if not, what actions must be taken to ensure the child’s safety. MOE expenditures are only claimed for families below 250% FPL.

2-1-1 Maine 2-1-1 operates a call center throughout Maine that connects individuals and families in need with community resources. The call centers are funded by several United Ways. Expenditures are only claimed for calls in which the consumer seeks information about programs that meet a TANF purpose. This program is claimed as an administrative expense.

Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services The Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services represents Maine citizens who are entitled to legal counsel at the State’s expense. Assigned counsel represents parents in cases where the state has alleged abuse or neglect of children and seeks to remove the children from the home or otherwise intervene on behalf of the child. Counsel investigate the state’s claims and works with the parents to restore custody of their children. MOE expenditures are only claimed for families with a child in their home whose income at or below 150% FPL and who meet MOE citizenship requirements.

Good Shepherd Food Bank The Good Shepherd Food Bank provides hunger relief to Maine families by distributing emergency food. The agency collects, stores, repacks, and distributes millions of pounds of food