TANF and Work: The Gap Between Perception and Reality

Issue Brief - June 2026

Key Points

• In fiscal year (FY) 2024, only eight percent of all TANF families had someone working enough hours to count under TANF’s federal work participation measure. The rate rises to 19 percent only when considering a broader population which includes “token payment” cases, designed to boost reported work rates through small checks.
• Many families report no work participation. More than half of families with a work-eligible individual in the FY2024 caseload reported zero hours of participation in work-related activities.
• The statutory 50 percent target is largely fictional. While federal law sets a 50 percent work participation requirement, most states actually face a much lower target through the caseload reduction credit, including by reporting “excess MOE.” In FY2024, 39 states reduced their target to zero percent through the caseload reduction credit.
• States use loopholes to inflate their work rates. Even with low work targets, many states rely on strategies to artificially enhance their work rates. 

Read the issue brief: TANF and Work: The Gap Between Perception and Reality