TANF extended until Mar. 31, 2005
Immigrants' Rights Update, Vol. 18, No. 7, November 8, 2004

Congress has passed a bill, HR 5149, that extends the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program for an additional six months, until Mar. 31, 2005.  This is the eighth time that TANF has been extended.  The TANF extension bill passed on Sept. 30, 2004 .

Congress passed this “clean” extension, which continues the program under its current terms, despite last-minute efforts to include controversial policy changes.  Largely because of the hard work of advocates around the country, the Senate opted not to act on legislation (S. 2830) introduced by Senators Rick Santorum (R-PA) and Evan Bayh (D-IN) that would have provided two years of funding for “marriage promotion” and “fatherhood initiatives” in addition to extending TANF for six months.

Lawmakers will revisit the TANF reauthorization debate during the next Congress.

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