The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Contingency Fund

The TANF Contingency Fund was created to provide temporary supplemental funding to states during economic downturns. This issue brief examines how the Fund’s SNAP caseload benchmark and maintenance-of-effort requirement result in routine eligibility, with most states qualifying regardless of current economic distress and funding concentrated among a small number of states. As a result, Congress now spends $608 million annually through a mechanism that no longer functions as a targeted recession-response backstop.

TANF Contingency Fund: Issue Brief - January 2026 (PDF)