Implement Ohio TANF (Ohio Works First)

Overview

Implementation of Ohio Works First (OWF), Ohio's implementation of the federal TANF program providing time-limited cash assistance to families with children.

Status Checklist

• Documentation collected
• Parameters created (5 files)
• Variables implemented (6 files)
• Tests written (65 test cases across 6 files)
• CI passing
• Formulas verified against Ohio statutes
• PR ready for review

Implementation Summary

Ohio Works First (Branch: oh-tanf-simple)

Current Status: All formulas verified against Ohio Revised Code and Ohio Administrative Code. All tests passing.

Key Features Implemented:

• ✅ Payment standards by family size (1-12+ people)
• ✅ Earned income disregard ($250 + 50% of remainder)
• ✅ Two-tier eligibility test (initial vs ongoing)
• ✅ No resource/asset limits (unique to Ohio)
• ✅ Uses current year FPL for initial eligibility (updates annually)
• ✅ Demographic eligibility (federal rules)
• ✅ Self-employment income support

Formula (Per ORC 5107.10 and OAC 5101:1-23-40):

Earned Income Disregard: $250 + 50% of remainder
  - remainder = max(gross_earned - $250, 0)
  - countable = remainder × 50%

Countable Income = countable_earned + gross_unearned

Monthly Benefit = MAX(Payment Standard - Countable Income, 0)

Verification: Formulas match Ohio Revised Code § 5107.10(D) exactly.

Folder Structure

Parameters (5 files)

policyengine_us/parameters/gov/states/oh/odjfs/owf/
├── income/
│   └── deductions/
│       └── earned_income_disregard/
│           ├── flat_amount.yaml                    # $250
│           └── percent_of_remainder.yaml           # 50%
├── initial_eligibility/
│   └── income_limit_percent.yaml                   # 50% of FPL
└── payment_standard/
    ├── additional_person_increment.yaml            # $128
    └── amounts.yaml                                # Sizes 1-8

Variables (6 files)

policyengine_us/variables/gov/states/oh/odjfs/owf/
├── eligibility/
│   ├── oh_owf_eligible.py                          # Overall eligibility
│   ├── oh_owf_income_eligible.py                   # Two-tier income test
│   └── oh_owf_initial_income_eligible.py           # 50% FPL gross income test
├── income/
│   └── oh_owf_countable_income.py                  # $250 + 50% disregard
├── oh_owf_payment_standard.py                      # Payment standard by size
└── oh_owf.py                                       # Main benefit calculation

Tests (6 files, 65 test cases total)

policyengine_us/tests/policy/baseline/gov/states/oh/odjfs/owf/
├── integration.yaml                                # 5 integration tests
├── oh_owf.yaml                                     # 15 benefit formula tests
├── oh_owf_countable_income.yaml                    # 14 income calculation tests
├── oh_owf_eligible.yaml                            # 11 eligibility tests
├── oh_owf_income_eligible.yaml                     # 9 income eligibility tests
└── oh_owf_payment_standard.yaml                    # 11 payment standard tests

Program Documentation

Program Overview

Ohio Works First (OWF) provides temporary cash assistance to families with children who have low or no income. The program emphasizes work requirements and self-sufficiency.

Key Facts:

• State Time Limit: 36 months maximum
• Federal Lifetime Limit: 60 months total
• Work Requirements: 30-35 hours per week
• Resource Limits: NONE (vehicles and home ownership not counted)
• Payment Standards: Updated annually by COLA on January 1st

Payment Standards (November 2024)

Source: Muskingum County Job & Family Services
Effective: November 2024
Updates: Annually on January 1st by COLA per ORC 5107.04

Income Limits

Initial Eligibility (New Applicants):

• Gross income < 50% of current year Federal Poverty Guideline
• Example (2024, family of 3): $1,076/month

Ongoing Eligibility (All Recipients):

• Countable income < Payment Standard
• Example (2024, family of 3): $623/month

Benefit Calculation

Formula:

Monthly Benefit = Payment Standard - Countable Income

Earned Income Disregard:

1. Subtract $250 from gross earned income
2. Disregard 50% of remainder
3. Result = countable earned income

Unearned Income: No disregards (full amount countable)

Per ORC 5107.10(D)(3):

"the two hundred-fifty dollar and one-half of the remainder disregards"
"No amounts shall be disregarded from the assistance group's gross unearned income"

Eligibility Rules

Requirements:

• Minor child under 18 (or 19 if in school), OR pregnant woman (6+ months)
• U.S. citizen or legal immigrant
• Pass income tests (two-tier for new applicants)
• No resource/asset limits
• No member involved in a strike
• Work requirements (30-35 hours/week)

Two-Tier Income Test:

• New Applicants: Must pass BOTH:
  1. Gross income < 50% current year FPL
  2. Countable income < payment standard
• Enrolled Recipients: Must pass ONLY:
  1. Countable income < payment standard

Special Cases

No Resource Limits: Unlike most TANF programs, Ohio does NOT count:

• Vehicles
• Home ownership
• Bank accounts
• Other assets

This makes Ohio OWF more accessible than many state TANF programs.

Federal Poverty Guideline Updates: Initial eligibility uses CURRENT year FPL (updated July 1st annually), not static 1997 values.

Example Calculations

Example 1: Moderate Earned Income

Household: Family of 3 (1 parent, 2 children), enrolled
Income: $800/month earned income

Step 1: Payment standard for family of 3 = $623/month

Step 2: Calculate countable income
        Gross earned: $800/month
        After $250: $800 - $250 = $550
        50% disregarded: $550 × 50% = $275
        Countable: $550 - $275 = $275/month

Step 3: Calculate benefit
        $623 - $275 = $348/month

Total household income: $800 + $348 = $1,148/month

Example 2: Mixed Income

Household: Family of 3
Income: $500/month earned + $400/month Social Security

Earned: $500 - $250 = $250; $250 × 50% = $125 disregarded
        Countable earned: $125/month

Unearned: $400/month (no disregards)

Total countable: $125 + $400 = $525/month
Benefit: $623 - $525 = $98/month

Example 3: New Applicant (Two Tests Required)

Household: Family of 3, new applicant
Income: $1,500/month earned

Test 1 (Initial - Gross Income):
        2024 FPL for 3: $2,152/month
        50% of FPL: $1,076/month
        Gross income: $1,500/month
        $1,500 > $1,076 → FAILS

Result: Not eligible (fails initial test)

Testing & Verification

Test Coverage (65 test cases)

Test Results

✅ All 65 tests passing
   - 5 integration tests
   - 60 unit tests
   - 0 failures

How to Run Tests

# All OH OWF tests
policyengine-core test policyengine_us/tests/policy/baseline/gov/states/oh/odjfs/owf/ -c policyengine_us

# Integration tests only
policyengine-core test policyengine_us/tests/policy/baseline/gov/states/oh/odjfs/owf/integration.yaml -c policyengine_us

Test Coverage Analysis

Known Limitations & Future Enhancements

Not Yet Implemented

1. Time Limits (36-month state, 60-month federal)

   • Requires longitudinal tracking
   • Can be added with time-series data

2. Work Requirements Enforcement

   • Work hour tracking and compliance
   • Sanction system (three-tier)
   • Documented but not modeled

3. Income Allocation Rules (OAC 5101:1-23-20.2)

   • Stepparent income allocation
   • Minor caretaker parent income rules
   • Can be added as enhancement

4. Child Care Deductions

   • Mentioned in regulations
   • Can be added to earned income calculation

5. Self-Sufficiency Contract Tracking

   • Required for eligibility but not modeled
   • Out of scope for benefit calculation

Simplified Assumptions

1. Enrollment Status: Uses is_tanf_enrolled boolean (no 4-month tracking)
2. Federal Eligibility: Reuses federal is_demographic_tanf_eligible
3. Work Compliance: Assumes compliance (no sanction modeling)
4. Earnings Reporting: Assumes timely reporting (disregard always applies)

References

Official Government Sources

Ohio Revised Code:

• ORC § 5107.10 - Time-limited cash assistance (eligibility)
• ORC § 5107.04 - Payment standard adjustments
• ORC § 5107.18 - Time limits

Ohio Administrative Code:

• OAC 5101:1-23-20 - Income and eligibility
• OAC 5101:1-23-40 - Payments
• OAC 5101:1-23-10 - Assistance group determination
• OAC 5101:1-23-20.1 - Income exclusions
• OAC 5101:1-3-12 - Work activities
• OAC 5101:1-3-15 - Three-tier sanctions

Data Sources:

• Muskingum County JFS - OWF Cash Assistance - Payment standards
• Ohio Department of Job and Family Services - Program information

Federal References

• 42 U.S.C. § 601 et seq. - TANF statute
• 45 CFR Parts 260-265 - TANF regulations

Branches & PRs

Branches:

• Implementation: oh-tanf-simple
• Base: master

Status: All formulas verified, 65 tests passing, ready for review

Related PRs:

• PR Implement Ohio Works First (OWF) (TANF) #6788 - Add Ohio TANF (Ohio Works First) implementation

Key Implementation Notes

Formula Verification

All formulas verified against Ohio statutes:

1. ✅ Benefit Formula: payment_standard - countable_income (OAC 5101:1-23-40)
2. ✅ Earned Income Disregard: "$250 + 50% of remainder" (ORC 5107.10(D)(3))
3. ✅ Unearned Income: No disregards (ORC 5107.10(D)(3))
4. ✅ Two-Tier Test: Initial (50% FPL) + Ongoing (< payment standard) (ORC 5107.10(D)(1))
5. ✅ No Resource Test: Correctly omitted (Ohio policy)

Critical Design Decisions

1. Current Year FPL: Uses tanf_fpg (current year), updated July 1st annually

   • Statute says "annual revision" takes effect each July 1st
   • NOT static 1997 values

2. Simple Disregard Application: All recipients get $250 + 50% disregard

   • Simpler than PA TANF (which has conditional eligibility for disregard)
   • Exception: Not applied if failed to report earnings (not modeled)

3. No Geographic Variation: Statewide payment standards

   • Unlike PA TANF which has 5 county groups
   • Simpler implementation

4. Annual Period Tests: Tests use period 2024, calculations convert to monthly

   • Consistent with PolicyEngine patterns

Contact & Coordination

Implementation Lead: @hua7450
Branch: oh-tanf-simple
PR: #6788
Status: ✅ All formulas verified, 65 tests passing, ready for PR review
Last Updated: 2025-11-10

This issue serves as the central coordination point for Ohio Works First implementation.