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Examples of disasters which could result in an emergency disaster declaration include:

 Natural disasters such as tornadoes, hurricanes, and floods  Medical pandemics such as COVID-19  Armed conflicts  Civil disorders

This initiative meets TANF purpose number one, which is to provide assistance to needy families so that children may be cared for in their own homes or in the homes of relatives. This initiative is funded with 100 percent former unobligated funds. Replacement of Cash Benefits Stolen Through Card Skimming, Cloning, and Other Electronic Means A TANF family experiencing an economic crisis due to the theft of cash benefits it relies on to meet basic needs is facing a specific episode of need. TANF eligible families who had their cash benefits stolen through card skimming, cloning, and other electronic fraudulent activity will have their benefits replaced. The maximum amount a household can receive is not to exceed the amount of cash stolen. Benefits lost to electronic fraud cannot be replaced more than two times in a calendar year. DHS will accept claims from current TANF recipients or former TANF recipients whose assistance ended within the last 90 days. A claim must be made within 60 calendar days from the date electronic benefits were stolen.

DHS considers EBT cash benefits stolen due to electronic fraudulent activity as those stolen due to:

1. Skimming: The use of electronic equipment to take someone’s information without their knowledge.

2. Card Cloning: Copying stolen EBT information to a new card. 3. Phishing scams: When criminals use phony text messaging or scam phone calls to obtain EBT card numbers and Personal Identification Numbers (PINs) and steal cash benefits. 4. Scamming: Falsely convincing a TANF recipient to give their EBT and/or personal information to someone else.

Claims of electronic stolen benefits will be validated through a record and transaction review carried out by DHS and the Office of State Inspector General.

This initiative meets TANF purpose number one to provide assistance to needy families so that children can be cared for in their own homes or in the homes of relatives. This initiative is funded with Federal TANF Funds.