Act 127 funds county services and sets TANF limits

Act 127 sets staffing limits and provides money for the Department of Human Services Division of County Operations. The provisions cover regular employees, temporary or part-time extra-help workers, personal services, operating costs, and data-processing services. The division may use up to 2,010 regular employees. It may use up to 43 extra-help workers when needed. Extra-help pay may not exceed rates allowed by the state classification and compensation law or this act. The staffing and operating funds apply to the fiscal year ending June 30, 2027.

Act 127 sets aside money for Department of Human Services grants and program operations. The funding covers aid for aged, blind, and disabled people; community services; SNAP; TANF; Medicaid tobacco-settlement operations; emergency rental assistance; and Summer EBT. The money must come from the accounts or federal funds named for each program. The listed amounts are limited to the purposes stated in the act. The appropriations apply to the fiscal year ending June 30, 2027.

The Department of Human Services must transfer $7.5 million each fiscal year from the federal TANF block grant to the state education fund for Arkansas Better Chance. The transfer concerns federal TANF funds and may be adjusted if the federal grant or state match falls, or if new federal rules add state costs. Upon a request from the Governor or General Assembly, the department must seek a federal waiver to limit TANF aid to essential goods and services and to limit electronic-benefit-card cash withdrawals. If the federal government denies the waiver, the restrictions must not be implemented. If the department does not request the waiver, it may not use this act's appropriations for TANF participation. These TANF provisions apply from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027, as shown in the final act text, which also displays earlier dates in its printed language.