All New Jersey families, regardless of income, race, size, or family structure, deserve to feel supported and have the opportunity to build a bright future here in the Garden State. Yet, hundreds of thousands of residents continue to face economic challenges and are looking for relief.
Federal threats to funding loom over all safety net programs including Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), which provides cash assistance to families with the lowest incomes. In response, New Jersey leaders must protect and improve anti-poverty programs to demonstrate a commitment to helping families in need, rather than subject them to further cuts.
NJPP’s previous research showed that the lack of action to update and fund the Work First New Jersey programs (TANF, General Assistance, and Emergency Assistance) has resulted in a gradual decline and failure of these anti-poverty programs to adequately support families during modern economic times.
As noted in NJPP’s prior reports, the state’s stagnant TANF amount has even less purchasing power than it did in 1998, losing approximately 30 percent of its value since then. As a result, the assistance that a family receives each month now barely covers the average cost of the month’s groceries.
In addition to declining benefit amounts that do not adequately support residents’ needs, the TANF system suffers from outdated rules that fail to represent current understandings of poverty, as well as underfunded and understaffed offices to support people in poverty. This perpetuates racial inequities, keeps residents — including thousands of children — in poverty, and worsens long-term health, social, and economic outcomes for families throughout the state.
With many residents struggling to meet the high cost of living in the state, now is the time for New Jersey to demonstrate leadership in fighting poverty by increasing monthly grant amounts, updating program rules, and improving customer service with better funding. Increasing TANF grant amounts in next year’s budget will demonstrate commitment to New Jersey’s residents with low incomes – to help them reach their full potential and build a brighter future for the Garden State.
