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Panel approves redirecting unused TANF funds to childcare Smart Steps program
Summary
The subcommittee approved a bill requiring annual transfers of unobligated TANF funds into the Child Care and Development Fund to support the Smart Steps program; Department of Human Services staff said Tennessee receives about $191 million annually in TANF and currently budgets roughly $60 million for direct assistance.
Sponsor said House Bill 23‑58 would require the Department of Human Services to annually transfer unobligated TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) funds into the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) to sustain Smart Steps participation and reduce childcare wait lists.
Callen Baggett, assistant commissioner for the Department of Human Services, testified that Tennessee receives about $191,000,000 in federal TANF funds annually and budgets roughly $60,000,000 for direct assistance; remaining TANF dollars currently fund administrative costs and mission‑critical contracts such as partnerships with the Department of Health and other community grants. Baggett said CCDF reserves have been spent down and that, if the transfer were enacted, the department would need to renegotiate or eliminate some existing TANF contracts (including an example of a program that receives roughly $30,000,000 in TANF funding).
Baggett said the department could implement the change if the legislature directed it but warned it would require renegotiation of existing grants and programs. The committee voted 8–0 to advance the bill; sponsors described the proposal as a policy decision to prioritize childcare funding to support workforce participation.
