The Basics

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) helps low-income families by giving them money to pay for basic needs like food, clothing, and rent. At the same time, it helps these families find ways to become more financially stable by offering things like:

• Education and training
• Workshops on resume writing or interviewing
• Job referrals
• Help applying for other benefit programs, or
• Other steps to create more income.

TANF (sometimes called Cash Assistance) also helps with things like child care or finding housing.

TANF is a federal program that can have different names (and different rules) in different states, but in Nevada it is simply called TANF. To get TANF benefits in Nevada, you must be a Nevada resident and your family must have no or low income and few resources.

Nevada has two main types of TANF:

• TANF-NEON (New Employees of Nevada) for households with a "work-eligible adult" in the home
  
• TANF Child-Only for households where:
  
  • The parent can't get TANF because they get Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or are not a citizen, or
    
  • The child is living with a relative-caregiver instead of their parent or parents.

Every adult (18 or older) who gets TANF benefits in Nevada must create, sign and follow a Personal Responsibility Plan (PRP). A PRP lists everything you agree to do while getting TANF benefits, and everything the state agrees to do to help you. If you have a disability, your PRP can include getting support from TANF for activities like applying for disability benefits or getting medical care. Learn more about PRPs in the section on Work, Benefits, and You.

This article explains who can get TANF, how to apply, and has details about its benefits. We'll begin by describing how to Apply for Benefits.