About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

1 1 (December 5, 2019)

handle is hein.crs/govbcww0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Social Services Block Grant - mmm, go mppm qq\ , q I aS 11LULANJILiN, Updated December 5, 2019 The Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) is a flexible funding stream used by states and territories to support a wide variety of social services. At the federal level, the SSBG is administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Social services for certain welfare recipients have been authorized under various titles of the Social Security Act since 1956. The SSBG, in its current form, was created in 1981 (P.L. 97-35). The SSBG is permanently authorized by Title XX, Subtitle A, of the Social Security Act. G oa ' Federal law establishes several broad goals for the SSBG. The goals focus on promoting self-sufficiency; eliminating dependency; preventing abuse, neglect, or exploitation of children and adults; reducing inappropriate institutional care; and supporting institutional care, when appropriate. The SSBG is an annually appropriated capped entitlement to states. This means that states are entitled to their share of funding, as determined by formula, out of an amount that is capped in statute at a specific level. At its highest, the cap was set at $2.8 billion (FY1990-FY1995), but over time it has decreased to the current level of $1.7 billion. Since FY2002, annual appropriations laws have funded the SSBG at its authorized level of $1.7 billion. However, SSBG appropriations since FY2013 have been subject to sequestration, a spending reduction process by which budgetary resources are canceled to enforce budget policy goals (see Table 1 for a recent funding history). In addition to annual appropriations, the SSBG has occasionally received supplemental appropriations to assist states and territories in responding to natural disasters, including in FY2006, FY2008, and FY2013. TANF TaFie, The Social Security Act authorizes states to transfer a portion of their Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grants to the SSBG. The 1996 welfare reform law (P.L. 104-193) capped TANF transfers to the SSBG at 10% of each state's TANF allotment. Subsequent legislation (P.L. 105-178) reduced the allowable transfer to 4.25% beginning in FY2001. However, this provision has been superseded in every year (from FY2001 on) by provisions in annual appropriations acts. These provisions have essentially reinstated the transfer authority to 10%. Table 1 shows TANF transfers to the SSBG since FY2010, as reported in TANF financial data published by HHS. Table I. SSBG Funding History (nominal $ in billions) SSBG TANF Fiscal Year Ceiling Appropriation Transfer 2010 $1.700 $1.700 $1.220 2011 $1.700 $1.700 $1.135 2012 $1.700 $1.700 $1.133 2013 $1.700 $1.613 + $0.475 $1.135 2014 $1.700 $1.578 $1.156 2015 $1.700 $1.576 $1.165 2016 $1.700 $1.584 $1.143 2017 $1.700 $1.583 $1.140 2018 $1.700 $1.588 $1.119 2019 $1.700 $1.565 not avail. 2020 $1.700 not avail, not avail. Source: SSBG budget documents and TANF spending reports. SSBG funding levels for FY2013-FY2019 reflect sequestration. FY2013 displays annual and supplemental funds after sequestration. Full-year FY2020 appropriations have not yet been enacted. SSBG funds are allocated to states according to the relative size of each state's population based on the most recent data available. Grants to Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, and Northern Mariana Islands are based on their share of Title XX funds in FY 1981. Grants to American Samoa are based on the relative size of its population compared to the population of the Northern Mariana Islands. No match is required for federal SSBG funds, and federal law does not specify a sub-state allocation formula. There are no federal eligibility criteria for SSBG recipients, but states may set their own. One exception is that welfare reform established an income limit of 200% of the poverty level for recipients of services funded by TANF. st-,u-e ML -s - ,,-,,,d R.p --,,,-,, .- o.- ,r-g-- Each year, states must submit an intended use plan to HHS, outlining the services to be supported with the state's SSBG funds, as well as certain characteristics of the individuals to be served (e.g., children, adults 59 and younger, adults 60 and older, and the disabled). States are also required to report annually on SSBG expenditures in various service categories defined in federal regulations. .O 'T

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most