Health & Benefits

If you are receiving TANF, your family's TANF grant can be reduced if you do not follow the rules for:

• Work and training activities,
• Child support, or 
• School attendance.

If you are penalized or sanctioned, the Illinois Department of Human Services (DHS) should contact you at least once a month to try to get you back in the program. You must continue to participate in work and training activities even while sanctioned. If you do, you will keep getting supportive services.

DHS will withhold a part of your cash and medical benefits until you cooperate unless:

• You are pregnant, or
• You delivered a baby within the last 60 days.

Sanctions are not applied to the amount that is designated for children. Sanctions are only applied to the adult portion of the grant.

Your family will keep getting medical and SNAP benefits. But your SNAP benefits will not go up just because your TANF benefits went down because of a sanction. 

Learn more about Getting food stamps (SNAP). 

Reconciliation by showing [no-lexicon]good cause[/no-lexicon] or compliance with your Responsibility and Service Plan (RSP) 

If you fail to comply with your RSP, DHS will hold a Reconciliation meeting before imposing any penalties. If you refuse to comply with your RSP without good cause, you will not be eligible for TANF.

The Reconciliation Process is a way to help resolve disagreements with DHS about your RSP. This process can also help decide if there is good cause for not following the RSP. Sometimes, a third person from DHS will act as a mediator between you and the DHS caseworker. 

If you disagree with your RSP, you must show good cause for why you did not follow it. Some examples of good cause are:

• DHS failed to provide the supportive services that are part of your RSP,
• You were temporarily sick,
• You had a death in the family or other family crisis,
• You could not get child care for your child under age 13,
• You became homeless,
• You received an eviction notice,
• Your utilities were disconnected, 
• Severe weather,
• Failure of DHS to send you the correct information, 
• Conflict in activity appointment times, 
• Job interview,
• Medical or school appointment,
• Lack of reading or writing skills,
• Communication barriers because of a language disability, 
• Mail was not received,
• Workplace violations, 
• Medical care or recovery from injuries caused by domestic or sexual violence. 

This list is an example of good cause reasons. There may be others. DHS may require proof of good cause. 

When you prove that you are in compliance, your benefits will restart on the first day of the next month.

Cooperating with Child Support Enforcement

A custodial parent receiving any TANF cash or medical benefits must cooperate with child support enforcement. If you do not cooperate, you risk being sanctioned. 

Cooperation with child support includes meeting with child support enforcement, naming the other parent, helping establish paternity, and going to court or an administrative hearing. 

If you do not cooperate with child support enforcement, DHS will try the Reconciliation Process. During this process, you can explain why you did not comply with child support or say that you will comply with child support.

If you do not cooperate with child support after the reconciliation meeting, your TANF grant will be reduced, and you will not be eligible for medical assistance unless you are pregnant. If you agree to cooperate later, your benefits will restart on the first day of the next month.