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1. SSBG LEGISLATION
AUTHORITY AND APPROPRIATIONS |
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1a. LEGISLATION AUTHORITY |
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On January 4, 1975, legislation
was signed into law establishing title XX of the Social Security Act. Prior
to title XX, Federal funding for social services was largely limited to
specific categories of programs. Title XX was designed to give maximum flexibility
to the States by allowing them to use Federal funds to fill the gaps in
funding for needed services. In 1981, the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation
Act (Public Law 97-35) amended title XX to establish the Social Services
Block Grant program, under which grants are allocated to the 50 States,
the District of Columbia, and other eligible jurisdictions, on the basis
of population. Funding for social services and for staff training for those
providing social services were combined in this block grant (U.S. House
of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means [1998]. 1998 Green
book. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office). Federal funds
in this block grant are not contingent on matching funds provided by the
State. On November 15, 1993, the Department of Health and Human Services published a final rule implementing requirements for States to report on their use of SSBG funding and providing uniform definitions of 29 services for which SSBG funds may be expended. Under the final rule, States were given considerable discretion to determine the services to be provided and the groups eligible for services, usually low-income families and individuals. However, services funded by SSBG are to be directed at one or more of five broad goals: Achieving or maintaining economic self-support to prevent, reduce, or eliminate dependency;Public Law 97-35 gave States the authority to transfer up to 10 percent of their annual SSBG allotment to one or any combination of the three health care block grants and the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Block Grant. Reciprocally, most other block grant statutes allow States to transfer funds from other block grants to SSBG as well. In 1996, Public Law 104-193 replaced the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) Program with a block grant to States called Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). States were originally authorized to transfer TANF funds to either SSBG or to the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG). However, States were required to transfer $2 to CCDBG for every dollar transferred to SSBG, with a maximum transfer of 30 percent of the State allotment. The Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (Public Law 105-33) revised this provision so that States are allowed to transfer up to 10 percent of their TANF allotment to SSBG, regardless of how much, if any, they transfer to the CCDBG. The welfare reform law stipulates that any TANF funds transferred to SSBG must be used for families with incomes no higher than 200 percent of the Federal poverty guidelines (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program [TANF]; Final Rule. 45 CFR Part 260 et al.).
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1b. APPROPRIATIONS |
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FY 01 $1.725 billion FY 00 $1.775 billion FY 99 $1.909 billion |
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rev:10/11/2000
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