Christy Finsel, Coordinator of the Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition, with assistance from a Tribal TANF Program Specialist, Administration for Children and Families, solicited administrative policy guidance from the Tribal TANF Central Office to determine if Children’s Savings Accounts, CSAs, (the child’s money) would negatively affect a family’s eligibility in the Tribal TANF program. We received a response that if the parent is a Tribal TANF customer, their child could have a CSA in the child's name and the parent would still be eligible for participation in their Tribal TANF program (because the Tribal TANF program can disregard the income of the child). From further conversation the Tribal TANF Program Specialist, Ms. Finsel learned that the parent would just have to check that the tribe has noted that children’s income is disregarded in their Tribal TANF plan and in their Tribal TANF policies and procedures.
This administrative policy guidance helps clear a barrier to CSA implementation in Indian Country.