Wire up all 51 state TANF programs, fix childcare cycle artifact, add takeup by MaxGhenis · Pull Request #7401 · PolicyEngine/policyengine-us

MaxGhenis · 2026-02-14T00:04:52Z

Summary

Wires up all 51 state TANF programs into the tanf variable, adds takeup support, removes the tanf_reported short-circuit, and fixes two CO CCAP issues that created circular dependencies.

Closes #7400

Changes

TANF wiring and takeup

tanf.py: Removed tanf_reported short-circuit; added all 51 state programs; applied takeup multiplier
takes_up_tanf_if_eligible.py: New bool variable (default True; set by microdata for microsim)
Added KS, KY, MT, NH, TN, AR, ID, IA, LA, MA, NE, OH, UT, WV, WY to state list

Childcare cycle fix (false cycle removed)

An audit revealed that the pre-subsidy childcare workaround across 24 state TANF programs was unnecessary. The suspected cycle ran: TANF → state programs → childcare deduction → childcare_expenses → childcare subsidies (CO CCAP) → SNAP → TANF.

Root cause: CO CCAP's co_ccap_countable_income used SNAP income as a placeholder instead of its actual statutory income sources. No childcare subsidy program (CA, CO, NE, MA) includes SNAP in its income definition, so no cycle existed through this path.

Fix: Replaced the placeholder with the actual income sources from 8 CCR 1403-1 §7.105, extracted to a YAML parameter at gov.states.co.ccap.income.countable_income.sources.

Result: All 24 state TANF programs and SNAP's dependent care deduction now use childcare_expenses (post-subsidy) instead of the pre-subsidy workaround, which is more accurate.

CO CCAP FPG cycle fix (real cycle fixed)

A separate real cycle existed through CO CCAP's FPG eligibility check: TANF → childcare_expenses → co_ccap_subsidy → co_ccap_fpg_eligible → snap_fpg → snap_unit_size → is_snap_ineligible_student → tanf_person → TANF.

CO CCAP was borrowing SNAP's FPG variable, which depends on SNAP unit size (which excludes ineligible students based on TANF receipt).

Fix: Replaced snap_fpg with spm_unit_fpg / MONTHS_IN_YEAR in all three CO CCAP variables that used it (co_ccap_fpg_eligible, co_ccap_base_parent_fee, co_ccap_add_on_parent_fee). spm_unit_fpg uses spm_unit_size (just nb_persons()) with no SNAP or TANF dependency.

Files changed

1 new parameter: parameters/gov/states/co/ccap/income/countable_income/sources.yaml
1 new variable: takes_up_tanf_if_eligible.py
~30 modified variables: tanf.py, co_ccap_countable_income.py, snap_dependent_care_deduction.py, co_ccap_fpg_eligible.py, co_ccap_base_parent_fee.py, co_ccap_add_on_parent_fee.py, 24 state childcare deduction variables
~65 modified test files: removed spm_unit_pre_subsidy_childcare_expenses inputs, updated FPG mocks

Companion PR

policyengine-us-data#536 adds state-level TANF takeup rates to microdata construction.

Test plan

All 58 CO CCAP tests pass
All 205 SNAP tests pass
All state TANF integration tests pass
Full Suite - States (incl microsim) passes
All 9 CI checks pass

🤖 Generated with Claude Code

codecov · 2026-02-14T00:07:20Z

Codecov Report

✅ All modified and coverable lines are covered by tests.
✅ Project coverage is 100.00%. Comparing base (56f72a9) to head (ea20939).
⚠️ Report is 94 commits behind head on main.

Additional details and impacted files

@@            Coverage Diff            @@
##              main     #7401   +/-   ##
=========================================
  Coverage   100.00%   100.00%           
=========================================
  Files           31        19   -12     
  Lines          408       342   -66     
  Branches         1         5    +4     
=========================================
- Hits           408       342   -66

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hua7450 · 2026-02-16T04:16:53Z

11 additional state TANF programs exist in the codebase but are not included in STATE_TANF_VARIABLES:

State	Variable Name	Program Name
AR	`ar_tea`	Transitional Employment Assistance
ID	`id_tafi`	Temporary Assistance for Families in Idaho
KY	`ky_ktap`	Kentucky Transitional Assistance Program
LA	`la_fitap`	Family Independence Temporary Assistance Program
MA	`ma_tafdc`	Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children
NE	`ne_adc`	Aid to Dependent Children
NH	`nh_fanf`	Financial Assistance to Needy Families
OH	`oh_owf`	Ohio Works First
TN	`tn_ff`	Families First
UT	`ut_fep`	Family Employment Program
WY	`wy_power`	Personal Opportunities With Employment Responsibilities

This would bring the total from 39 to 50 (all states + DC except Montana, which is still in PR).

…-circuit - Add `takes_up_tanf_if_eligible` variable (bool, SPMUnit, default True) - Wire all 39 implemented state TANF programs into tanf.py: 26 with standard naming ({st}_tanf) and 13 with program-specific names (ak_atap, ct_tfa, fl_tca, ia_fip, md_tca, mi_fip, mn_mfip, nj_wfnj, nm_works, ri_works, vt_reach_up, wi_works, wv_works) - Apply takeup in TANF formula: value * takes_up - Remove tanf_reported short-circuit that blocked reform microsimulations - Update tests for new behavior Companion to PolicyEngine/policyengine-us-data#536 which adds state-level TANF takeup rates to microdata construction. Closes #7400 Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

FL TCA's payment standard depends on housing_cost, which cycles back through rent → housing_assistance → hud_annual_income → tanf. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

FL TCA payment standard now uses pre_subsidy_rent instead of housing_cost, avoiding the cycle: tanf -> fl_tca -> housing_cost -> rent -> housing_assistance -> hud_annual_income -> tanf. This is more accurate: TANF agencies assess shelter obligation based on what applicants owe, not the net amount after housing subsidies from a separate agency. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

All FL TCA tests now use pre_subsidy_rent instead of rent/housing_cost, matching the formula change in fl_tca_payment_standard. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Same pattern as FL TCA fix: use pre_subsidy_rent + other housing components instead of housing_cost to break the cycle tanf -> az_tanf -> housing_cost -> rent -> housing_assistance -> hud_annual_income -> tanf. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

The baseline test used FL because it had no TANF implementation, but now that fl_tca is wired up, this household receives TANF. Set takes_up_tanf_if_eligible to false since this test is about ECPA, not TANF. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

MI household resources includes tanf. Now that mi_fip is wired up, this family receives TANF which increases their household resources and changes the home heating credit. Suppress TANF since this test is about the home heating credit, not TANF. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

…rams Changed 22 state TANF childcare deduction formulas to use spm_unit_pre_subsidy_childcare_expenses instead of childcare_expenses, breaking the cycle: TANF → childcare_expenses → childcare subsidies → SNAP → tanf. Also fixed VT Reach Up housing allowance to use pre_subsidy_rent instead of housing_cost, breaking the same type of cycle as FL TCA and AZ TANF. States affected (childcare): AL, AK, AZ, DC, DE, GA, HI, IL, KY, MD, ME, MN, MO, NH, NM, OK, RI, TN, TX, VA, VT, WV States affected (housing): VT Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

…NH broadcast - Add ky_ktap, mt_tanf, nh_fanf, tn_ff to STATE_TANF_VARIABLES (39 → 43) - Fix MT TANF childcare deduction to use spm_unit_pre_subsidy_childcare_expenses - Fix NH FANF childcare deduction entity broadcast (any_full_time SPMUnit→Person) Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

…43 → 51) All 51 US jurisdictions now have TANF programs wired up. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

The childcare "cycle" (TANF → childcare_expenses → childcare subsidies → SNAP → TANF) was an implementation artifact, not a real policy interaction. Root cause: CO CCAP's co_ccap_countable_income used SNAP income variables as a placeholder (with a TODO comment), creating a false dependency chain. California, Nebraska, and Massachusetts childcare subsidies never included SNAP in their income definitions. Changes: - Replace CO CCAP placeholder with actual income sources per 8 CCR 1403-1 - Switch 24 state TANF programs from spm_unit_pre_subsidy_childcare_expenses to childcare_expenses (the accurate post-subsidy amount) - Switch SNAP dependent care deduction from pre_subsidy_childcare_expenses to childcare_expenses (workaround no longer needed) - Update 65+ test files to match Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Extract hardcoded income source list from co_ccap_countable_income.py into a YAML parameter at gov.states.co.ccap.income.countable_income.sources, following the same pattern as MA CCFA and federal TANF income definitions. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

CO CCAP used snap_fpg for its FPG calculation, creating a cycle: tanf → childcare_expenses → co_ccap_subsidy → co_ccap_fpg_eligible → snap_fpg → snap_unit_size → is_snap_ineligible_student → tanf_person → tanf Replaced with spm_unit_fpg (existing HHS FPG variable using spm_unit_size) divided by 12 for monthly values. No new variable needed — reuses the existing annual FPG with time-based indexing. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

hua7450

Minor changes, others looks good.

hua7450 · 2026-02-17T17:44:25Z

policyengine_us/variables/gov/states/co/ccap/entry/co_ccap_fpg_eligible.py

@@ -36,8 +36,7 @@ def formula(spm_unit, period, parameters):
            )
        if mask.any():
            fpg_rate[mask] = p.entry.fpg_rate[county[mask]]
-        # SNAP FPG is monthly.
-        fpg = spm_unit("snap_fpg", period)
+        fpg = spm_unit("spm_unit_fpg", period.this_year) / MONTHS_IN_YEAR


Suggested change

fpg = spm_unit("spm_unit_fpg", period.this_year) / MONTHS_IN_YEAR

fpg = spm_unit("spm_unit_fpg", period)

And all others

MaxGhenis force-pushed the add-tanf-takeup branch from 57676e9 to ffd5636 Compare February 16, 2026 02:47

MaxGhenis and others added 14 commits February 16, 2026 07:11

Improve documentation string wrapping

0fb439b

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Remove fl_tca from STATE_TANF_VARIABLES to fix circular dependency

d1f73d1

FL TCA's payment standard depends on housing_cost, which cycles back through rent → housing_assistance → hud_annual_income → tanf. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Update FL TCA tests to use pre_subsidy_rent

b93eb45

All FL TCA tests now use pre_subsidy_rent instead of rent/housing_cost, matching the formula change in fl_tca_payment_standard. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Add spm_unit_pre_subsidy_childcare_expenses to DC DHS integration test

9f79281

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Add remaining 8 state TANF programs: AR, ID, LA, MA, NE, OH, UT, WY (…

2b1518c

…43 → 51) All 51 US jurisdictions now have TANF programs wired up. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

MaxGhenis changed the title ~~Wire up all 39 state TANF programs with takeup support~~ Wire up all 51 state TANF programs, fix childcare cycle artifact, add takeup Feb 17, 2026

MaxGhenis mentioned this pull request Feb 17, 2026

Fix false childcare cycle: use correct CO CCAP income, switch 24 TANF states and SNAP to childcare_expenses #7412

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MaxGhenis requested review from hua7450 and nikhilwoodruff and removed request for nikhilwoodruff February 17, 2026 01:48

MaxGhenis force-pushed the add-tanf-takeup branch from 292f2f9 to ea20939 Compare February 17, 2026 14:53

hua7450 requested changes Feb 17, 2026

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Wire up all 51 state TANF programs, fix childcare cycle artifact, add takeup#7401

Wire up all 51 state TANF programs, fix childcare cycle artifact, add takeup#7401
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	fpg = spm_unit("spm_unit_fpg", period.this_year) / MONTHS_IN_YEAR
	fpg = spm_unit("spm_unit_fpg", period)

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Summary

Changes

TANF wiring and takeup

Childcare cycle fix (false cycle removed)

CO CCAP FPG cycle fix (real cycle fixed)

Files changed

Companion PR

Test plan

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MaxGhenis commented Feb 14, 2026 •

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