Page 1 GAO-25-107467 Child Welfare Funding Sources
More than 500,000 children nationwide were found to be victims of child abuse or
neglect in fiscal year 2022, according to Department of Health and Human
Services (HHS) data. To help ensure that children have safe and permanent
homes, the federal government provides states with funding for child welfare
programs.
Some sources of federal funding, such as Title IV-E and Title IV-B of the Social
Security Act, are dedicated to child welfare. Under Title IV-E, HHS reimburses
states for providing foster care to eligible children, among other things. States
may use funds provided under Title IV-B for a variety of services to prevent and
address child abuse and neglect. Other funding sources can be used for child
welfare, among other purposes. For example, the Temporary Assistance for
Needy Families (TANF) grant funds a wide range of benefits and services for
low-income families. Some of these benefits and services may be administered
by state child welfare agencies.
We were asked to review TANF spending. In this report, we examine states’ use
of Title IV-E, Title IV-B, and TANF funds for child welfare purposes. This is the
final report in a series of reports addressing states’ use of TANF funds. The other
reports in this series examined HHS and state oversight of TANF spending on
non-cash assistance (GAO-25-107235) and data states collect on their use of
non-cash TANF assistance (GAO-25-107226). We also examined TANF fraud
risks and HHS efforts to mitigate any risks (GAO-25-107290) and HHS oversight
of TANF single audit findings (GAO-25-107291).
• From fiscal years 2015 through 2022, states spent about $68.6 billion in Title
IV-E funds and received about $4.4 billion in Title IV-B funds from HHS,
according to HHS data. Over the same period, states spent $23.5 billion in
TANF funds for child welfare purposes.
• All states spent Title IV-E funds on payments for the care of children in foster
care. In fiscal year 2022, 14 states also used Title IV-E funds to pay for
services to prevent children from entering foster care. In addition, all states
used Title IV-B funds for services to prevent or address child abuse or
neglect. Forty-six states spent TANF funds on child welfare in fiscal year
2022.
• In determining which federal funding source to use, officials in all five of our
selected states said they first look to Title IV-E because they are entitled to
reimbursement for a portion of all costs that meet Title IV-E eligibility
requirements. Officials in four of our five selected states said they use some
Title IV-B and TANF funds—which allow more flexibility—to cover child
welfare costs for children and families who are not eligible for Title IV-E. For
example, a family’s income could be too high to meet the state’s Title IV-E
U.S. Government Accountability Office
Child Welfare: States’ Use of TANF and
Other
Major Federal Funding Sources
-25-107467
Requesters
