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3 State Plan Requirements General Provisions Conducting a Program that Provides Assistance to Needy Families Citation: 42 U.S.C. 602 (a)(1)(A)(i) How the state will “Conduct a program, designed to serve all political subdivisions in the State (not necessarily in a uniform manner), that provides assistance to needy families with (or expecting) children and provides parents with job preparation, work and support services to enable them to leave the program and become self-sufficient.” Proper and efficient administration Required reports OKDHS Financial Services: • assists in fulfilling the requirements of federal and state and federal laws by making necessary reports • cooperates with various federal agencies by providing current and special reports • furnishes OKDHS with necessary data for the operation of its programs Overview of TANF cash assistance program Oklahoma calls its financial assistance program Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) which includes a TANF Work program. TANF works to help families move from welfare to work. The eligibility criteria for TANF are set in Oklahoma statute in Article XXV of the Constitution of the State of Oklahoma and Sections 230.50 through 230.76 of Title 56 of the Oklahoma Statutes. The federal legal base for the program of TANF is vested in Title IV-A of the federal Social Security Act. The current TANF regulations are available at www.okdhs.org. • TANF provides temporary financial assistance to needy, dependent children and their parents (or caretaker relatives) to meet their basic needs while being cared for in their homes. • TANF provides case management and support services to help families prepare for, find, and keep employment; while the Oklahoma Child Support Services (OCSS) helps families establish paternity and secure financial and medical support. In accordance with the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), the State of Oklahoma has developed its TANF State Plan based upon the four major purposes of TANF, which are to: • Provide assistance to needy families so that children may be cared for in their own home or in the home of a relative; • End dependence of needy parents on government benefits by promoting job preparation, work, and marriage; • Prevent and reduce the incidence of out of wedlock pregnancies and establish annual numerical goals for preventing and reducing the incidence of these pregnancies; and • Encourage the formation and maintenance of two-parent families.